Inter-layer multi-material powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of a chainmail-like 3D interlocking bonding structure

Multi-material additive manufacturing (AM) has enabled on-demand material integration by combining distinct properties and functionalities to achieve performance unattainable with single materials, while significantly enhancing design freedom. However, high-precision multi-material AM still presents...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Zixiong Lin, Hongchun Wu, Zheng Zhang, Jianghong Huang, Wenxiong Lin, Hailong Shao, Jinni Shen, Yuchao Wang, Fengyi Zhang, Mingsong Zheng, Shoufeng Yang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-12-01
Series:Virtual and Physical Prototyping
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Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17452759.2025.2525985
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Summary:Multi-material additive manufacturing (AM) has enabled on-demand material integration by combining distinct properties and functionalities to achieve performance unattainable with single materials, while significantly enhancing design freedom. However, high-precision multi-material AM still presents substantial challenges. Herein, a 3D interlocked chainmail-like Ti64/CP-Ti bioinspired composite with metallurgical bonding interfaces was fabricated via inter-layer multi-material laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) AM. The composite exhibits numerous 100-μm-scale structural features, reflecting cross-scale complexity, enhanced precision, and advanced manufacturing capabilities. Tensile tests showed that under 0° loading conditions, the composite achieved strength of 875 ± 21 MPa (80.5% higher than CP-Ti) and ductility of 7.4 ± 1.6% elongation (28.5% higher than Ti64). Finite element analysis incorporating a modified Johnson-Cook (JC) model reveals that off-axis loading (22.5°/45°) leads to performance degradation due to (1) diminished load-transfer efficiency of the Ti64 skeleton and (2) severe interfacial shear localisation, where shear stresses exceed 240 MPa at 20s(45° loading) and propagate extensively with strain. Cross-interface microhardness mapping indicates powder-spreading-direction-dependent hardness variations. This work establishes a paradigm for bioinspired anisotropic engineering composites (numerous 100-μm-scale structural features), where Ti64 governs strength via architectural control while CP-Ti enhances damage tolerance through strain delocalisation, offering direct implications for load-adaptive aerospace structures.
ISSN:1745-2759
1745-2767