Application of CALPHAD based tools to additive manufacturing

CALPHAD is based on relating the underlying thermodynamics and kinetics of a system to predict the phases/microstructure that can form and the amounts and compositions of those phases in multicomponent systems of industrial relevance. For more than 30 years, CALPHAD-based tools have been used to accelerate materials design, drive process improvements and deepen the understanding of materials behavior through many stages of the materials life cycle.

Additive manufacturing of complex alloys is a rapidly evolving field. Questions have been raised as to what role CALPHAD based simulations can play in the modeling of additive processes. This presentation will identify several examples of how CALPHAD based tools can be applied, including:

• Generating chemistry and temperature dependent properties for FEM codes, where handbook data may be insufficient
• Predicting compositional segregation and phase formation during solidification
• Prediction of tendency for solidification cracking
• Providing insights into compositionally graded builds to avoid brittle phases
• Simulating the growth and dissolution of precipitate phases during thermal cycling and thermal post-processing
• Designing new metals and alloys specifically tuned for AM processes