Experimental investigation of the influence of process parameters on the mechanical properties of maraging steel produced by electron beam melting.

Maraging steels are used in industries that require high precision due to their exceptional mechanical properties. This paper presents the impact of ten process parameters on the mechanical properties of maraging steel produced via electron beam melting (EBM). The parameters studied here include printing orientation, scanning speed, beam power, beam diameter, line offset, layer thickness, scan strategy, number of contours, preheating temperature, and post-processing. The mechanical properties evaluated are tensile strength, strain at fracture, elongation at failure, energy density, material hardness, porosity, and surface morphology. The results showed a significant correlation between these mechanical properties and the EBM parameters. The highest ultimate tensile stress, determined from the tensile test, was recorded at 1491.51 MPa, corresponding to an energy density of 64.28 J/mm³. The optimal parameters were identified as a line offset of 0.1 mm, a layer thickness of 50 μm, a scanning speed of 2800 mm/s, and a beam power of 15 mA. The energy density during EBM in turn affected microstructure, porosity, and mechanical properties. Furthermore, the study revealed that aging heat treatment had a considerable impact on the mechanical properties, with the highest tensile strength observed for a sample that had undergone aging at 460 °C for 8 h. The results show the critical role of process parameters and aging heat treatment in achieving optimal mechanical properties in EBM-produced maraging steel M789. These findings contribute to the optimization of this manufacturing technique for industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]