Abstract
Direct energy deposition with arc and wire (DED-AW) is a versatile, low-cost, and energy-efficient technology for additive manufacturing of medium- and large-sized metallic components. In this study, the effects of arc energy and shielding gas in cold metal transfer (CMT) welding of walls and blocks on cooling time, mechanical properties, and macro- and microstructure have been studied using precipitation-hardenable Ni-based superalloy Haynes® 282®. The arc energy and consequently the cooling rate were varied by changing the wire feed rate and the travel speed. As expected, increasing the arc energy leads to higher cooling times for the walls. Due to the 2D thermal conduction, the thin walls cool down much slower than multi-layer welded blocks, but this reduces the strength values only very slightly. While the walls have no sensitivity to the occurrence of unacceptable seam irregularities, the multi-layer blocks show isolated seam defects, such as hot cracks or lack of fusion. Despite shielding gas variation, the as-welded blocks show acceptable strength properties at room temperatures (RT) and impact values at RT and -196 °C. However, the use of an N-containing shielding gas results in lower elongation and notched bar impact energy. Precipitation-hardened specimens tested at 871 °C exhibit a similar strength level to transverse tensile specimens of gas metal arc welding (GMAW) welded joints on 12.7 mm thick plates with fracture in the weld metal.