Through‐Build Wear Investigation of Vertically Oriented LPBF AlSi10Mg Specimens

ABSTRACT AlSi10Mg components with refined microstructures can be created with laser powder bed fusion (LPBF); however, tribological performance may exhibit build‐height‐dependent variations possibly resulting from thermal gradients during the building process. The layer‐wise tribological response of vertically fabricated LPBF AlSi10Mg components under dry sliding conditions is examined in this work. It was assessed under controlled conditions using LPBF samples produced at a laser power of 400 W, 1200 mm/s scan speed , 0.12 mm hatch spacing , and 40 µm layer thickness . Pin‐on‐disc wear experiments were conducted using samples across various build zones with a load of 40 N for 750 s, and the track diameter was 50 mm, with a total sliding distance of 1500 mm. To determine variances in performance throughout the build direction, rates of wear and frictional behavior have been examined for each layer. The LPBF process may cause changes in microstructure and defect distribution along the build direction, potentially influenced by variations in thermal history. These microstructural variations result in the lowest wear in subsurface layers and the highest wear in central layers. These findings demonstrate the necessity of considering layer‐wise position, which has been unexplored in previous tribological research studies and is useful in critical defense and aerospace applications.