Thermal behavior and microstructure evolution mechanism of Ti6Al4V 80 mm thick plates jointed by laser melting deposition

Abstract The traditional welding processes are challenging to obtain an excellent jointed structure with a thickness of over 80 mm. Meanwhile, cyclic heating for large-scale manufacturing components worsens microstructure and mechanical properties after welding. Laser Melting Deposition (LMD) technology is put forward to break through the limit of large-scale jointing components widely used for manufacturing aerospace products. Therefore, the LMD experiment with coaxial powder feeding for joining a pair of X-groove Ti-6Al-4V thick plates (80 mm) with different thermal behaviors (including laser scanning speeds and cooling rates) is carried out in this paper. The morphology evolution of its microstructure at the equiaxed grain zone (EQZ) and the deposition area under different thermal behaviors are systematically investigated. Meanwhile, the relationship between microstructure evolution mechanism and tensile properties is further explored. The volume fraction and size of acicular α/α' phases at the EQZ or the deposition area keep a stable rising when the laser scanning speed increase from 10mm/s to 20mm/s. The α-Ti cluster phases are usually precipitate around the β grain boundary with a low scanning speed and cooling rate. By contrast, the orthogonal acicular martensitic α/α' phase can precipitate inside the β grain, forming a Basketweave structure with a high scanning speed and cooling rate. The Basketweave structure forming in β grains can coordinate the deformation and reduce the stacking effect of dislocations, which is beneficial for improving ductility. However, the α-Ti cluster phases precipitating around the β grain boundary usually cause local stress concentration at these locations, forming microcracks at this location and deteriorating the tensile properties.