Effect of electron beam continuity on microstructures and mechanical properties of titanium lattice structures produced with electron beam additive manufacturing

Abstract The effects of the electron beam (EB) continuity on the microstructures and mechanical properties of titanium lattice structures with produced by EB additive manufacturing were studied. Continuous line and discontinuous spot scans were applied for the EB continuity. The porous structures produced with the continuous line scans had lower defect densities than those produced with discontinuous spot scans. Most defects of the continuous line scans had spherical morphologies, whereas non-spherical defects formed in the porous structure produced with discontinuous spot scans because of the availability of sufficient heat for melting the powder. The microstructures were composed of an α-titanium matrix, martensitic α′ phases, and elongated FeTi4 phases on the grain boundaries. Furthermore, the atom probe tomography results showed that the FeTi4 phase had a network structure with a diameter of 5 nm after the continuous line scan, which enhanced the compressive strength. The compressive strength and elastic modulus of the porous structures produced with the continuous line scan were more than 400 MPa and 11 GPa, respectively. Despite the high porosity, continuous line scans are preferable for achieving high compressive strengths with low elastic moduli for biomedical devices.