Tribological performance of 18Ni-300 maraging steel produced by DMLS technique

18Ni-300 maraging steels used in the wear resistance applications across aerospace, automative, and tooling sectors. The current work involved an experimental investigation of the tribological performance of the 18Ni-300 maraging steel produced through the DMLS. Preliminary tribological tests under dry conditions were conducted with varied normal loads (5 to 35 N), frequency (1–5 Hz), and temperature (30–125°C) for identifying the critical range of the parameters, which has been further used for the design of experiments (DOE). The outcomes unveiled that the coefficient of friction and specific wear rate lie between 0.1–0.45 and 30–250 mm 3 N −1 m −1 , respectively. It is observed that the frequency was found to be a more influencing parameter on the COF, and its contribution is about 34.91%, whereas normal load contributed about 30.407% for the specific wear rate. Changes in oxidation kinetics, adhesive and abrasive wear are the primary factors contributing to the wear of 18Ni300 maraging steel.