Selective laser melting (SLM) is a rapid-developing additive manufacturing method, which is expected to be widely applied in the fabrication of aerospace components in the future. However, there are still problems, such as cracks, which largely limits the spread of this innovative technique. Cracks are considered to be particularly associated with the solute elements, especially in the superalloys. Thus, it is of great importance to clarify the solute transport in the metal pool during the SLM process. We developed a high-fidelity model combining cellular automaton and finite volume method to simulate the solute transport and the microstructure evolution during the SLM process. The simulation results demonstrated the in-situ alloying of the powder layer and the substrate, as well as the solute segregation (distribution) in the newly printed layer. The proposed model could be a powerful tool for the numerical investigation on the thermal-fluid-chemical-microstructure multiple field interactions in the SLM and other additive manicuring processes.

Moderated by: Hani Henein / Mark Jolly