Investigation on the process window with liner energy density for single-layer parts fabricated by wire and arc additive manufacturing

Abstract The process parameters of wire and arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) are considered to affect the quality and molding efficiency of the fabrications significantly. In this investigation, liner energy density as a process parameter instead of welding voltage, welding current, travel speed, and wire feed speed is introduced to define the process window of single-layer parts. A series of effects of liner energy density on characteristic geometry parameters, such as bead width, bead height, penetration, dilution, and W/H (bead width/bead height), are discussed. Additionally, the influence and correlation coefficient of liner energy density on characteristic geometry parameters are calculated. The result shows that liner energy density appears the most significant impact on bead height and the least significant impact on dilution. At last, the novel single-layer process window has been developed, which indicates that the single-layer parts can be formed when the liner energy density passes the line of 400 J/mm. The proposed research provides the foundation for indicating the manufacturing process and molding optimization.