Study of Direct Fabrication of a Ti-6Al-4V Impeller on a Wrought Ti-6Al-4V Plate by Electron Beam Melting

The direct building of a Ti-6Al-4V impeller part onto a wrought Ti-6Al-4V plate using electron beam melting (EBM) has been reported for the first time in this study. From the results of the defect analysis, hardness measurement, microstructural observation, and tensile test of the as-built specimens, it is revealed that the complex geometrical component can be successfully fabricated, and the finished component has a combination of wrought base plate and EBM-built section. The fusion zone is about 150 μm thick and no defect is observed along the fusion zone. Tensile results also reflect a good fusion between the wrought and EBM-built sections.