Tribological performance of selective laser melted 316L stainless steel

• Published in: Tribology international 2018-12, Vol.128, p.121-129
• Main Authors: Li, Hua, Ramezani, Maziar, Li, Ming, Ma, Chao, Wang, Jyhwen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 316L stainless steel; Accumulation; Austenitic stainless steels; Coefficient of friction; Contact pressure; Frictional wear; Laser beam melting; Lasers; Lubricants; Selective laser melting; Sliding friction; Sliding wear; Stainless steel; Tribology; Wear; Wear rate
• ISSN: 0301-679X; 1879-2464
• DOI: 10.1016/j.triboint.2018.07.021

Selective laser melting (SLM) is a commonly used additive manufacturing technique for metallic parts. This paper investigates the effects of build-up directions and different test conditions on tribological behaviour of 316L stainless steel samples made by SLM. Sliding wear tests were conducted under different normal loads, temperatures and frequencies. The results showed that the effects of build-up direction on coefficient of friction (COF) and wear rate are not significant. At higher test temperatures, COF decreased significantly, while wear rate was maximum at 200 °C and then slightly decreased at higher temperatures due to oxide layers working as lubricants and protecting the samples from further loss of material. At higher contact pressures, wear rate was higher, but COF was not affected remarkably. •Tribological behaviour of selective laser melted 316L stainless steel was studied.•Effects of load, frequency and temperature on wear performance were investigated.•At higher temperatures, coefficient of friction decreased significantly.•At higher load, wear rate was higher, but friction coefficient was not affected.•Higher speed causes more wear rates due to the higher kinetic energy in the system.