Electron backscatter diffraction characterization of fatigue crack growth in laser metal wire deposited Ti-6Al-4V

Highlights: • No difference in fatigue crack growth rate was confirmed within the material. • The tortuosity of the crack propagation could be related to the alpha colonies. • Large areas with similar crystallographic orientation were observed. - Abstract: By additive manufacturing (AM) there is a feasibility of producing near net shape components in basically one step from 3D CAD model to final product. The interest for AM is high and during the past decade a lot of research has been carried out in order to understand the influence from process parameters on the microstructure and furthermore on the mechanical properties. In the present study laser metal wire deposition of Ti-6Al-4V has been studied in detail with regard to its fatigue crack propagation characteristics. Two specimen orientations, parallel and perpendicular to the deposition direction, have been evaluated at room temperature and at 250 °C. No difference in the fatigue crack growth rate could be confirmed for the two specimen orientations. However, in the fractographic study it was observed that the tortuosity varied between certain regions on the fracture surface. The local crack path characteristic could be related to the alpha colony size and/or the crystallographic orientation. Moreover, large areas exhibiting similar crystallographic orientation were observed along the prior beta grain boundaries, which were attributed to the wide alpha colonies frequently observed along the prior beta grain boundaries.