Mechanical Properties Of L-PBF Printed Parts Using Fine Water Atomized Powders

In additive manufacturing (AM), most of the metal powders used in laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) are expensive gas atomized powders because they are spherical and have a low oxygen content.On the other hand, it has been reported recently that water atomized powders for metal injection molding (MIM) with the same spherical shape as gas atomized powders can be produced and used for L-PBF.However, water atomized powders have a higher oxygen content than gas atomized powders, and there have been concerns about their mechanical properties.In this study, water atomized powder with an average particle size (D50) of 10 µm or less was applied to L-PBF. The results showed good mechanical properties.This is expected to increase raw material options and reduce costs by using inexpensive water atomized powders.