EAPSI: Laser Additive Approach to Rapid Assessment and Development of Promising Magnetic Alloy Compositions

Mikler Calvin V, Denton TX

Investigators

Abstract

Additive manufacturing a technique for near-net shaping and rapid prototyping of both industrial products and novel alloy systems. More specifically, direct laser deposition techniques such a Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS) can be used for depositing compositionally and functionally graded materials. This research aims to optimize laser additive processing technologies such as LENS to process a class of magnetic materials from elemental powders, and to use LENS-deposited compositionally-graded magnetic alloys to assess the relationship between microstructure and magnetic property. This research will be conducted in collaboration with Dr. Raju Ramanujan, an expert on magnetic alloys, at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. The outcomes of this project would include advancements in energy and power transmission sector, high efficiency motors, as well as in solid-state refrigeration. Laser Engineered Net Shaping allows for the use of elemental blends of powders for novel alloy prototyping. By utilizing multiple powder feeders, it is possible to alter alloy composition as a function of build distance and yield a single system with continuum of compositions. Soft and semi-hard magnetic alloys, and graded alloys of different types will be processed using LENS. These include those of the permalloy type, based on Ni-Fe-V and Ni-Fe-Mo compositions, compositions based on Finemet, Fe-Si-B-Nb-Cu, as well as magneto-caloric compositions based on Fe-Mn-Ni. The scale of this microstructure in these LENS processed alloys can be varied via the laser deposition parameters and this, in turn, influences coercivity (Hc) and saturation magnetization (Ms) of these laser-deposited magnetic alloys. Various instrumentation for magnetic property testing including Anisotropic Magnetoresistance (AMR), Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM), and Physical Property Measurement System (PPMS) are available for use through collaboration with Dr. Raju Ramanujan and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Furthermore, the Singapore Center for 3D Printing (SC3DP) is conveniently located at Nanyang Technological University and contains several other additive manufacturing systems such as Selective Laser Melting (SLM) and Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) which can also be used during this project. This award under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the National Research Foundation of Singapore.