Building direction dependence of corrosion resistance property of Ti–6Al–4V alloy fabricated by electron beam melting

Highlights: •Electrochemical measurements of EBM Ti–6Al–4V alloy were carried out. •Corrosion resistance in 1 M HCl solution is different along building direction. •Grain boundary and β phase along building direction account for the difference. -- Abstract: Electrochemical measurements in 1 M HCl solution were performed to investigate the corrosion behaviour of Ti–6Al–4V alloy fabricated by electron beam melting (EBM) with cylindrical axes deviating from the building direction by 0°, 45°, 55°, and 90°. Microstructure characterization before and after the tests was carried out by using a variety of methods The results suggested that the corrosion resistance of EBM alloy in 1 M HCl solution increased slightly in the order of 45°, 90°, 55°, and 0°. Such difference can be ascribed to the grain boundary density and β phase constitution, which varied with the building direction.