NDT-Based Determination of Key Performance Elements of a Ship Propeller Model Manufactured with the Selected Laser Melting Method

Additive Manufacturing aided by 3D printers (3DAM) is seen as an alternative to conventional manufacturing (CM) methods, especially in terms of sustainability, mitigating the inefficiencies and constraints of CM methods. Metal-based 3DAM is highly variable, in terms of speed, accuracy, material compatibility, and application-specific suitability. In this study, a ship propeller model, made of AlSi10Mg powder alloy using Selective Laser Melting (SLM (which is a widely used 3DAM method), was examined for both surface and internal deficiencies through non-destructive testing (NDT) methods after operating the model under cavitation tunnel conditions for a specific period. It was observed that the factors that determine the production quality of the propeller model are: (1) consistency of the dimensions of the resulting product with the original design; (2) surface roughness and the quality of the treatment(s) to be applied to eliminate it; (3) voids forming in the internal structure; and (4) ageing of the propeller in the marine environment.