The Use of Laser Ultrasound to Detect Defects in Laser Melted Parts

Additive manufacturing (AM) offers a number of benefits over conventional manufacturing, giving an increased design freedom and the opportunity to integrate multiple components, saving weight. The rigorous standard for material integrity set by the Aerospace sector necessitates the development of systems to ensure quality. Laser ultrasonic testing (LU) is a non-contact inspection technique which has been proposed as suitable for in-situ monitoring of additive manufacturing processes, as measurements can be taken at elevated temperatures. This paper will show the capability of this technique for assuring material quality in metal AM parts and compare LU with x-ray computed tomography (XCT).