materials

Article
Microstructure and Fatigue Damage of 316L Stainless Steel
Manufactured by Selective Laser Melting (SLM)
Zhentao Wang 1 , Shanglei Yang 1,2, *, Yubao Huang 1 , Cong Fan 1 , Zeng Peng 1 and Zihao Gao 1

1 School of Materials Engineering, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, Shanghai 201600, China;
[email protected] (Z.W.); [email protected] (Y.H.); [email protected] (C.F.);
[email protected] (Z.P.); [email protected] (Z.G.)
2 Shanghai Research and Development Center for Key Technologies of Ultra-Intense Laser Processing,
Shanghai University of Engineering Science, Shanghai 201600, China
* Correspondence: [email protected]

Abstract: In this paper, 316L stainless steel powder was processed and formed by selective laser
melting (SLM). The microstructure of the sample was studied using an optical microscope, and the
fatigue failure of the sample and the characteristics of crack initiation and propagation were analyzed,
providing a research basis for the application of SLM-316L. Due to the influence of microstructure
and SLM process defects, the fatigue cracks of SLM-316L mainly emerged due to defects such as
lack of fusion and pores, while the cracks of rolled 316L initiated at the inclusions near the surface of
the specimen. After fatigue microcrack initiation of the SLM-316L specimen, due to the existence of
shear stress and tear stress, the crack tip was passivated and Z-shaped propagation was formed. The
existence of internal defects in SLM-316L made the microcrack initiation random and diverse. At the





 same time, the existence of defects affected the crack propagation in the form of bending, bifurcation
Citation: Wang, Z.; Yang, S.; Huang,
and bridge, which made the main crack propagation deviate from the maximum load direction.
Y.; Fan, C.; Peng, Z.; Gao, Z.
Microstructure and Fatigue Damage Keywords: 316L stainless steel; selective laser melting; microstructure; fatigue damage
of 316L Stainless Steel Manufactured
by Selective Laser Melting (SLM).
Materials 2021, 14, 7544. https://
doi.org/10.3390/ma14247544 1. Introduction
Selective laser melting (SLM) technology is a kind of additive manufacturing technol-
Academic Editors: Jaroslav Pokluda
ogy with great development potential. Based on the discrete-stack principle, this technology
and Reinhard Pippan
uses the laser beam as a heat source under the control of a galvanometer, and is guided
by computer-aided design data to melt the selective area of metal powder layer by layer,
Received: 29 September 2021
so that the metal powder accumulates into a solid [1,2]. Recent studies have shown that
Accepted: 23 November 2021
the SLM process exhibits good mechanical properties due to its rapid cooling and unique
Published: 8 December 2021
multi-scale (from nano to macro scale) heterogeneous structure [3–5]. SLM is not only a
useful supplement to traditional processing methods such as casting, forging, welding and
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral
machining, but also a new manufacturing mode of metal parts. SLM has broad prospects
with regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional affil-
for development in the biomedical, aerospace and energy industries [6,7].
iations.
316L stainless steel is a kind of ultra-low carbon austenitic stainless steel, which is
widely used in the aerospace and automobile industries due to its good comprehensive
mechanical properties [8,9]. In recent years, the precise fabrication of complex parts for the
aerospace industry using 316L stainless steel by SLM has become a research hotspot [10].
Compared to traditional molding technology, SLM has the advantage of not requiring
Copyright: © 2021 by the authors.
development of a mold and having a short manufacturing cycle. Despite these irreplace-
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
able advantages, the complex thermal effect and the typical rapid melting and cooling
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
involved [3,11] means that SLM austenitic stainless steel has inherent defects, such as inter-
conditions of the Creative Commons
nal defects (especially unmelted hole defects), surface defects and residual stress, which
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
strongly affect the fatigue performance of the processed materials, thereby reducing the
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ reliability of engineering applications [12,13]. At present, many scholars have conducted a
4.0/). lot of research on the powder characteristics, optimization of different process parameters,

Materials 2021, 14, 7544. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14247544 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/materials

Materials 2021, 14, 7544 2 of 14

density and mechanical properties of 316L stainless steel [14–16]. However, there are few
reports investigating the fatigue failure mechanism of SLM-316L, yet fatigue failure is one
of the most common failure forms of structural components under alternating loads [17–20].
The research on fatigue failure of SLM-316L is of great significance to the development
of SLM technology. Riemer et al. used the fatigue behavior of 316L manufactured by
SLM to check the crack initiation and crack growth behavior [21]. The results obtained
clearly show that 316L is a promising candidate for cyclically loaded parts manufactured
by SLM. Primarily attributed to the high ductility that directly follows the SLM process, the
316L stainless steel shows fatigue properties similar to that of a conventionally processed
material in its as-built model. Sarkar et al. studied the fatigue properties and fracture types
of SLM stainless steel under different average stress modes [22]. The fatigue properties
and fracture characteristics of the samples under different average stress modes were
significantly different, were mainly manifested as the average stress in tensile mode was
not conducive to the fatigue performance, while the average stress in compression mode
could improve the fatigue performance. Pegues et al. studied the fatigue crack initiation
characteristics and the mechanism of AM-304L by the in situ microstructure observation
of an interrupted fatigue test [23], and considered that the microstructure refinement and
the decrease in high angle grain boundary density (HAGBs) improved the fatigue prop-
erties of AM-304L. Although relevant studies have reported the fracture process of static
tensile failure and the corresponding potential failure mechanism, there are few studies
on the fatigue failure of SLM-316L, which is insufficient for such an important failure. In
order to understand the fatigue failure mechanism of SLM-316L, a series of fatigue tests
were carried out on SLM-316L and rolled 316L by using a HB250 electro-hydraulic servo
dynamic fatigue testing machine. The fatigue fracture surfaces of the two were observed
by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and optical microscopy (OM), and then the fatigue
failure mechanism and crack propagation of SLM-316L were analyzed. These results
provide a new understanding for us to better understand the fatigue failure of SLM-316L
stainless steel.

2. Test Materials and Methods

The composition of 316L powder and traditional 316L stain-less steel is shown in
Table 1. Before laser additive manufacturing, the powder was heated in a drying furnace
to remove the moisture on the surface of the metal powder and increase the fluidity in the
powder to avoid defects such as pores inside the additive manufacturing sample.

Table 1. Composition of powder and rolled 316L.

Composion Cr Mn Ni Mo Cu C P S Fe
316L powder 16.97 0.8 12.2 2.89 0.01 0.003 0.002 0.006 Bal.
Rolled 316L 16–18 ≤2.0 10–14 2.0–3.0 —- ≤0.03 ≤0.045 ≤0.03 Bal.

The forming equipment used in this study was an HBD-100SLM, produced by Hanbon
Technology Co., Ltd. (Shanghai, China), as shown in Figure 1d. The schematic diagram of
the 316L laser selective forming process and the scanning strategy is shown in Figure 1a–c.
The process parameters used in this study are shown in Table 2. Before printing, the oxygen
in the molding chamber was reduced to less than 1000 ppm, 316L stainless steel was used
as the substrate, and the shielding gas was argon. In the printing process, a rotation of 67◦ ,
layer by layer, was performed using the scanning strategy shown in Figure 1c. The forming
samples were prepared according to the two-dimensional data of the software imported
before the test and the process parameters in Table 2. After preparing SLM-316L sample,
the sample was cut according to the size diagram in Figure 1e.
 waveforms until the sample reached 10 cycles or fracture. The stress ratio (R =
σmin/σmax) and load frequency were 0.1 and 15 Hz, respectively. All fatigue samples
were cyclically loaded at different stress ranges (∆σ = σmax−σmin). The ultimate fatigue
strength (Nf ≥ 106) of rolled 316L and SLM-316L was analyzed by an SN curve. All fatigue
tests were carried out on a Zwick/Roell Amsler HB250 hydraulic servo material testing
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 3 of 14
machine, and the fatigue fracture was observed and analyzed by an S-3400N scanning
electron microscope (SEM).

Figure 1.
Figure 1. SLM
SLM forming
forming equipment
equipment HBD-100D
HBD-100D and and cutting
cutting diagram
diagram ofof metallographic
metallographic and
and fatigue
fatigue
samples. (a)
samples. (a) Printing
Printing process,
process, (b)
(b) molten
molten pool,
pool, (c)
(c) Printing
Printing strategy,
strategy, (d)
(d) Print
Print instrument,
instrument, (e)
(e) cutting
cutting
diagram of metallographic and fatigue sam-ples.
diagram of metallographic and fatigue sam-ples.

3. Results andTable
Discussion
2. SLM process parameters.
3.1. Microstructure and Defect Analysis
Scanning Distance Scanning Speed Layer Thickness Spot Distance
Materials The sample
Laserwas based
Power (W) on the XOY surface as the bottom surface and the Z axis as the
(mm) (mm/s) (µm) (µm)
construction direction, as shown in Figure 1c, Figure 2a,b, respectively, which illustrates
316L 0.07
the metallographic160 1000
microstructure of samples in the vertical30and parallel directions
70
of con-
struction. Once the additive manufacturing commenced, the laser was directed in a pre-
After cutting,
determined the samples
path, melting were sanded
the metal powderby to sandpapers
form a molten withmicro-molten
different levels of rough-
pool, where
ness until the
the molten surface
metals werescratches
bondedwere shallow.
to each other Next, thetosamples
in order achievewere polishedofuntil
the bonding no
atoms.
obvious scratches were observed under the microscope. Once polished, the samples were
etched with corrosives (HCl:HNO3 = 3:1) for about 10 s.
According to GB/T 26077-2010 standard, and in a room temperature (25 ± 3 ◦ C) envi-
ronment with relative humidity (40–60%), the rolling 316L and SLM-316L were subjected
to fatigue tests using the symmetric tension-tension cycle of sinusoidal loading waveforms
until the sample reached 106 cycles or fracture. The stress ratio (R = σmin/σmax) and load
frequency were 0.1 and 15 Hz, respectively. All fatigue samples were cyclically loaded at
different stress ranges (∆σ = σmax−σmin). The ultimate fatigue strength (Nf ≥ 106 ) of
rolled 316L and SLM-316L was analyzed by an SN curve. All fatigue tests were carried out
on a Zwick/Roell Amsler HB250 hydraulic servo material testing machine, and the fatigue
fracture was observed and analyzed by an S-3400N scanning electron microscope (SEM).

3. Results and Discussion

3.1. Microstructure and Defect Analysis
The sample was based on the XOY surface as the bottom surface and the Z axis as
the construction direction, as shown in Figures 1c and 2a,b, respectively, which illustrates
the metallographic microstructure of samples in the vertical and parallel directions of
construction. Once the additive manufacturing commenced, the laser was directed in
a predetermined path, melting the metal powder to form a molten micro-molten pool,
where the molten metals were bonded to each other in order to achieve the bonding of
atoms. Figure 2a shows the microstructure of the sample perpendicular to the additive
 Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 4 of 15
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 4 of 14

Figure 2a shows the microstructure of the sample perpendicular to the additive manufac-
turing direction,
manufacturing and theand
direction, traces
theformed by the laser
traces formed by thescanning powderpowder
laser scanning can be can
seen. beFigure
seen.
2b shows the microstructure of the sample parallel to the additive
Figure 2b shows the microstructure of the sample parallel to the additive manufacturing manufacturing direc-
tion. Visibly,
direction. a lot aoflot
Visibly, fish-scale-shaped
of fish-scale-shaped channels are stacked
channels together.
are stacked As theAs
together. heatthesource
heat
of nearly Gaussian heat, the laser beam had a higher energy density
source of nearly Gaussian heat, the laser beam had a higher energy density in the center in the center and a
lower
and energy
a lower density
energy in the in
density edge.
the During the process
edge. During of melting,
the process the penetration
of melting, of pow-
the penetration
der scanned by the center of laser beam was greater than that
of powder scanned by the center of laser beam was greater than that scanned by scanned by the edge of laser
the
beam. After a lot of pre-laid powders were scanned one-dimensionally,
edge of laser beam. After a lot of pre-laid powders were scanned one-dimensionally, two- two-dimension-
ally and then three-dimensionally
dimensionally and then three-dimensionallyby laser beam, a lot
by laser of overlapping
beam, fish scale fish
a lot of overlapping interfaces
scale
interfaces were formed. The liquid molten pool nucleated directly on the contact between
were formed. The liquid molten pool nucleated directly on the contact surface surface
the molten
between themetal
molten and the and
metal semithe molten
semi grains
moltenand grew
grains andepitaxially. In addition,
grew epitaxially. at the bot-
In addition, at
tom
the of theofmicro
bottom molten
the micro pool,
molten thethe
pool, temperature
temperature gradient
gradientwas washigh,
high, and the nucleation
and the nucleation
grainsgrew
grains grewalong
alongthethedirection
direction perpendicular
perpendicular to to
thethe temperature
temperature gradient,
gradient, forming
forming a se-
a series
ries of long columnar crystals that grew through multiple
of long columnar crystals that grew through multiple powder layers [24,25]. powder layers [24,25].

Figure2.2.Microstructure
Figure MicrostructureofofSLM-316L
SLM-316Lstainless
stainlesssteel
steelsamples
samplesinindifferent
differentbuilding
buildingdirections
directionsand
and
rolling 316L: (a) microstructure of SLM-316L stainless steel sample perpendicular to the building
rolling 316L: (a) microstructure of SLM-316L stainless steel sample perpendicular to the building
direction, (b) microstructure of SLM-316L stainless steel sample parallel to the building direction,
direction, (b) microstructure of SLM-316L stainless steel sample parallel to the building direction,
(c) microstructure of rolling 316L.
(c) microstructure of rolling 316L.
Figure2a,b
Figure 2a and
show b there
showweretheresome
weredefects
some defects such as
such as pores (inpores
yellow (incircles)
yellowand circles)
unfusedand
unfused porosity (in yellow boxes), and the gaps appeared where the
porosity (in yellow boxes), and the gaps appeared where the melting channels made contact. melting channels
made contact.
Weingarten Weingarten
et al. studied the etpore
al. studied the pore
composition composition
of laser selectiveofmelting
laser selective
samples.melting
Their
samples. Their research found that the H 2O attached to the powder surface decomposed
research found that the H2 O attached to the powder surface decomposed and saturated in
andmolten
the saturated
metalin to
theform
molten metal to
hydrogen form
when hydrogen
the when the
laser interacted laser
with theinteracted
metal powder.with the
In
metal powder. In the subsequent solidification process of the metal,
the subsequent solidification process of the metal, the hydrogen overflowed to form pores. the hydrogen over-
flowedthe
Before tometal
form powder
pores. Before the metal
was melted, therepowder
were some wasvoids
melted, there the
between were some voids
powders. Duringbe-
tween the powders. During the solidification of molten metal, the
the solidification of molten metal, the gas in the voids will also produce pores without gas in the voids will
also produce
overflow. pores
Figure without
2c shows theoverflow. Figureof
microstructure 2crolled
shows316L.
the microstructure
Many rectangular of rolled
grains316L.
can
Many
be seen,rectangular
and the grain grains
sizecan be seen, and
distribution the grainThe
is uniform. sizeformation
distribution is uniform.
of splash The for-
and unfused
mation of
porosity splash in
is shown and unfused
Figure 3. Inporosity is shown
the process of laserinselective
Figure 3. In the process
additive of laser selec-
manufacturing, laser
tive additive manufacturing, laser irradiation melts the metal powder
irradiation melts the metal powder to form a liquid molten pool. With the accumulation of to form a liquid
molten
heat, andpool.
afterWith the accumulation
reaching the boiling point of heat,
of theand after pool,
molten reaching the boiling
the metal vaporpoint of the
is formed.
Under the action of recoil pressure, the molten pool splashes. The existence of spatter can
Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 5 of 15

Materials 2021, 14, 7544 5 of 14

molten pool, the metal vapor is formed. Under the action of recoil pressure, the molten
pool splashes. The existence of spatter can be seen in Figure 3b. In addition, as a near
Gaussian heat source, the laser has high central energy density and small edges. During
be seen in Figure 3b. In addition, as a near Gaussian heat source, the laser has high central
the laser scanning process, the molten pool is unstable, which can easily to lead to incom-
energy density and small edges. During the laser scanning process, the molten pool is
plete fusion at the overlap between the weld bead and the weld bead [26]. The presence
unstable, which can easily to lead to incomplete fusion at the overlap between the weld
of non-fusion can be seen in Figure 3c, and there is still unmelted metal powder inside the
bead and the weld bead [26]. The presence of non-fusion can be seen in Figure 3c, and
non-fusion in Figure 3d.
there is still unmelted metal powder inside the non-fusion in Figure 3d.

Figure 3. Mechanism of spatter and incomplete fusion in SLM forming process: (a) laser scanning
Figure 3. Mechanism of spatter and incomplete fusion in SLM forming process: (a) laser scanning
single channel metal powder model, (b) forming process, (c) lack of fusion, (d) lack of fusion with
single channel metal powder model, (b) forming process, (c) lack of fusion, (d) lack of fusion with
unmelted metal powder.
unmelted metal powder.
3.2.
3.2.Fatigue
FatigueTest
TestAnalysis
Analysis
During
During the courseofofthis
the course thisstudy,
study,aalaboratory
laboratoryhydraulic
hydraulicservo
servolow-frequency
low-frequency fatigue
fatigue
testing machine was used to apply a load to simulate the actual
testing machine was used to apply a load to simulate the actual service process service process ofof the
the
sample. The national standard GB/T 3075-2008 “Metal Material Fatigue
sample. The national standard GB/T 3075-2008 “Metal Material Fatigue Test Axial Force Test Axial Force
Control
ControlMethod”
Method”was wasfollowed,
followed,using
usingthe thelifting
liftingmethod
methodtotoperform
performthe thefatigue
fatigue test
testwith
with
10 66cycles for rolling 316L and laser selective additive manufacturing 316L. Fatigue data
10 cycles for rolling 316L and laser selective additive manufacturing 316L. Fatigue data
results
resultsare
areshown
shownin inTable
Table3.3.According
Accordingtotothe thedata
dataininTable
Table3,3,the
thefatigue
fatigue limits ofof
limits rolling
rolling
316L
316L and SLM-316L specimens were 370 MPa and 200 Mpa, respectively, under the con-
and SLM-316L specimens were 370 MPa and 200 Mpa, respectively, under the condi-
dition thatno
tion that nofracture
fractureoccurred
occurredafter
after 10
1066 times.
times. Without
Withoutbreaking
breakingafter
after1010times,
66
times,thethestress
stress
level
level of
of SLM-316L
SLM-316L only reached 54%
only reached 54% ofof that
that ofofrolled
rolled316L.
316L.As Asthe
thestress
stresslevel
levelincreased,
increased,the
the fatigue
fatigue lifelife of rolled
of rolled 316L 316L decreased
decreased rapidly.
rapidly. TheThe fatigue
fatigue lifelife of laser-selected
of laser-selected areaarea ad-
additive
ditive manufacturing 316L decreased slowly with the increase in
manufacturing 316L decreased slowly with the increase in stress level. Sometimes withstress level. Sometimes
with the increase
the increase in stress
in stress level,
level, life life expectancy
expectancy willwill increase.
increase. Figure
Figure 4a–c
4a–c showthe
show thefracture
frac-
ture morphologies
morphologies of rolled
of rolled 316and
316 B5, B5, Figure
and Figure 4a shows
4a shows the macroscopic
the macroscopic morphology
morphology of
of sample
sample B5. Visibly, there are fewer internal defects, an obvious plastic deformation
B5. Visibly, there are fewer internal defects, an obvious plastic deformation in the fracture, in the
and obvious inclusion defects in the lower left corner of the fracture. The inclusion defects
are located on the surface of the sample and spread radially around. Figure 4b shows an
enlarged view of the fatigue source area of sample B5, which is also a further enlargement
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 6 of 14

of Figure 4a. Noticeably, fatigue cracks originate from inclusion defects on the surface
of the sample. After the crack is formed, it starts from the defect and spreads radially
around. Defects under cyclic loading will cause the stress concentration to be higher than
the surroundings, resulting in microcracks in the sample without a large external load.
Figure 4c is an enlarged view of the defect of the fracture surface of sample B5, which is
also a further enlargement of Figure 4b. One can see the existence of the tear ridge (inside
the yellow ellipse), which is left when the cracks in the expansion process meet once they
have expanded in all directions.

Table 3. Fatigue test data of rolled 316L and SLM-316L.

Type Sample No. Maximum Stress (Smax/Mpa) Stress Amplitude (Sa/Mpa) Life Cycle
Rolled B-1 460 207 241,870
Rolled B-2 440 198 262,350
Rolled B-3 420 189 354,397
Rolled B-4 400 180 461,752
Rolled B-5 380 171 600,691
Rolled B-6 370 166.5 1,000,000
Rolled B-7 360 162 1,000,000
SLM S-1 300 135 421,906
SLM S-2 280 126 399,303
SLM S-3 260 117 465,199
SLM S-4 240 108 454,712
SLM S-5 220 99 530,287
SLM S-6 210 94.5 580,493
SLM S-7 200 90 1,000,000

Figure 4d–f show the fracture morphology of SLM-316L sample S6. Figure 4d shows
the macro fracture morphology of sample S6. The figure illustrates that there are defects
such as sintered powder (in the yellow frame) and unfused pores (in the yellow circle)
inside the sample. Figure 4e–h are an enlarged view of the fracture morphology of sample
S6, which is also a further enlargement of Figure 4d. As shown in Figure 4e, you can
see the tearing ridges produced by the cracks on the left that meet the defects caused
by unfusion. The cracks will expand further after encountering the defects during the
propagation process. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4f, around the sintered powder,
the cracks generated will expand to the surroundings. As shown in Figure 4g, cracks are
generated on the surface of the sample, and then expand forward, and tear ridges will
also be generated when intersecting with other cracks. This differs from rolled 316L in
that, depending on the type of cracks, microcracks may occur on the surface of defects
such as sintered powder, unfused, and pores. According to the location of the crack, the
fatigue source of laser-selected area additive manufacturing 316L not only exists on the
surface of the sample, but also exists inside the sample, and may also exist near the surface.
When cyclic loading, the stress concentration is prone to occur near the defect, especially
on the surface of some sharp notches, as the stress concentration factor is much higher
than the surroundings. There are microcracks near defects such as sintered powder, LOF,
pores, etc., indicating that these process defects promote the formation and propagation
of cracks during the actual loading process of the sample. The materials used this time
are added with the same parameters. There are defects in samples S1–S7, however some
samples have many defects and some samples have few defects. As a result, the fatigue
life of laser selective additive manufacturing of 316L is not obvious, or the fatigue life is
increased by the increase in stress level. If other parameters of SLM-316L are selected,
the internal defects of 316L may be reduced and the fatigue performance may be better,
however the defect cannot be completely eliminated. Defects such as sintered powder, LOF,
and pores are common in laser additive manufacturing. These defects can be divided into
two categories according to the causes. The first type is pores, which are caused by unstable
small holes in the sidewalls that are prone to local severe necking and collapse during
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 7 of 14

laser additive manufacturing. The necking and collapse of the liquid metal on the sidewall
of the small hole wraps the gas in the small hole to form pores and cavities. The second
category is non-fusion defects. There are two reasons for the occurrence of non-fusion
defects: The first aspect is that the instability of laser additive manufacturing causes the
hole wall to collapse and the powder particles in the bubbles of the liquid molten pool are
not discharged in time. After the solidification of the molten pool, the powder particles are
solidified in the weld to form particle slag. As shown in Figure 4h, on the other hand, the
particle size is different. Large particles need more heat to melt. The laser is characterized
by fast heating speed and fast cooling speed. The laser cannot melt particles with a larger
diameter at one time, and the particles with a smaller diameter have a large specific surface
area, a large heating area per unit, and high heat absorption. During laser additive process,
the small particles will first melt and stick around the large particles to further block
Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW
the
7 of 15
transmission of laser heat. Finally, the large particles and the small particles below the
large particles cannot be completely melted to form defects, as shown in Figure 4f.

Figure4.4.Fracture
Figure Fracturemorphology
morphologyof of rolzSLM-316L
rolzSLM-316L fatigue
fatigue initiation:
initiation: (a–c)(a–c) rolling
rolling 316L,316L,
(d–h) (d–h) SLM-
SLM-316L.
316L.
3.3. Surface Fatigue Damage Analysis
Figure
Figure54d–f
shows thethe
show crack propagation
fracture morphology
morphology on thesample
of SLM-316L surfaceS6.
of SLM-316L speci-
Figure 4d shows
mens underfracture
the macro different stress conditions.
morphology When
of sample S6.the
Thestress is 250
figure MPa, the
illustrates main
that crack
there are begins
defects
on
suchtheassurface of powder
sintered the sample, andyellow
(in the then expands in a unfused
frame) and Z-shape pores
way under
(in thecyclic loading.
yellow circle)
Holes are found on the surface of the sample. These holes are the weak areas in
inside the sample. Figure 4e–h are an enlarged view of the fracture morphology of sample the process
of
S6,crack
whichgrowth,
is alsowhere the tip
a further of the crack
enlargement oftends to 4d.
Figure propagate.
As shown Through the 4e,
in Figure observation of
you can see
the tearing ridges produced by the cracks on the left that meet the defects caused by un-
fusion. The cracks will expand further after encountering the defects during the propaga-
tion process. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4f, around the sintered powder, the cracks
generated will expand to the surroundings. As shown in Figure 4g, cracks are generated
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 8 of 14

the overall propagation path of cracks in Figure 5a, we found that multiple deflections had
occurred during the propagation, and the secondary microcracks that were propagating
along the surface defects of the specimen are differentiated at I, II and III in Figure 5a.
Among them, the microcracks at I and II no longer propagated forward after extending a
certain distance, while the main cracks at III were divided into microcracks that propagated
in two different directions. Careful observation shows that when crack 1 did not extend
to the microcracks at position III, secondary microcracks had been generated around the
holes. These microcracks shared the crack driving force at the tip of crack 1 and reduced
the driving force at crack 1, making this insufficient for crack 1 to continue to expand and
therefore rendering crack 1 blunt. At this time, crack 1 and the defects in the upper left
corner of the specimen had formed a tip plastic zone in a certain area. With the further
expansion of the crack, crack 1 may have expanded to the defects in the upper left corner.
Further amplification of the crack origin is shown in Figure 5d. Visibly, there are pore
defects holes on the surface of the specimen. During the fatigue test, the stress concen-
tration occurs at the hole, resulting in the initiation of microcracks. Obvious slip can be
found at the edge of fracture. From Figure 5e,i, it can be seen that when the cyclic stress
is 270 MPa and 290 MPa, respectively, the main cracks of SLM-316L samples originated
from the surface of the samples and the number of deflections during the process of crack
propagation was more than that of 250 MPa. In addition, slip can be found near the crack
of all the fracture samples.
Figure 6 shows the fatigue damage of the sample surface after the fatigue test of SLM-
316L was interrupted under different stresses. Figure 6a shows the plastic damage surface
of the sample when the maximum cyclic stress was 250 Mpa. Visibly, there is a plastic
zone at the crack tip, and a certain part of the crack tip has been enlarged and is visible in
Figure 6b. From Figure 6b, we can see a lot of dislocation slip bands with a slip distance of
0.5–1 µm, and different types of slip are marked. Type I slip is distributed regularly in a
cluster, and this slip originates from the grain boundaries. Type II slip exists in isolation,
and this slip is often located close to the grain boundary. Type III slip is the formation
of very small slip marker clusters inside the grains and near the grain boundaries. Two
sliding mark directions are usually observed. The first one is more significant and occupies
most of the surface of the cluster. This is probably related to the slip zone of the main
slip system. The second one is less obvious, and is called the secondary slip zone [27].As
shown in Figure 6a,b, we can see that a large amount of type I slip exists, and this slip
originates from the grain boundary. In Figure 6a, we can see the existence of type II slip.
Type II slip exists in isolation and is not distributed in a certain regular cluster, like type
I slip. This type of slip is often located near the grain boundary. No obvious type III slip
was found. Figure 6c shows the plastic damage surface of the sample when the maximum
cyclic stress is 270 MPa, and the crack tip is enlarged to obtain Figure 6d. From Figure 6d,
a large number of dislocation slip bands can also be seen. Compared with the stress of
250 MPa, only I-type slip is found, and the distance is similar to the stress of 250 MPa.
Figure 6e shows the plastic damage surface of the sample when the maximum cyclic stress
is 290 MPa. Figure 6f is obtained by enlarging a certain part of the crack tip. In Figure 6f, a
large number of dislocation slip bands can be seen. Compared with 250 MPa stress, the
distance is similar to 250 MPa stress. From Figure 6e, we can also find Type I slip, however
the amount of Type I slip is reduced. In addition to Type I slip, there is also Type II slip.
The slip pattern is affected by the material properties, stress and frequency during fatigue.
The slip form is influenced by material properties, fatigue stress and frequency. Different
types of slip are only affected by the stress amplitude. Under higher stress amplitude, the
number of type I slip decreases and the number of type II slip increases with the decrease
in stress amplitude. At very low stress amplitudes, type III slip dominates, while type I
slip rarely occurs. When the early type I slip occurs on the surface of the sample, more
parallel slip bands are formed inside the grain with the increase in the number of cycles.
For type II slips, most are formed at the twin boundary. For type III slip, the amount of
slippage in the early stage is very small, and during the cyclic loading process, the slip also
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 9 of 14

changes to type I and type II. The existence of slip is caused by the plastic deformation
of the sample during the fatigue test. In the loading process of the sample subjected to
Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 9 of of
cyclic stress, a lot of dislocation movements occur inside the sample, a large number 15
dislocation movements produce plastic deformation, and the dislocation movement is
along a certain direction and that of the slip plane.

Figure 5. Surface crack growth of SLM-316L

SLM-316L under
under different
different stresses:
stresses: (a–d)
(a–d) 250
250 MPa,
MPa, (e–h)
(e–h) 270
270 MPa,
MPa, (i–l)
(i–l) 290
290 MPa.
MPa.

Figure 6 shows the fatigue damage of the sample surface after the fatigue test of SLM-
316L was interrupted under different stresses. Figure 6a shows the plastic damage surface
of the sample when the maximum cyclic stress was 250 Mpa. Visibly, there is a plastic
zone at the crack tip, and a certain part of the crack tip has been enlarged and is visible in
Figure 6b. From Figure 6b, we can see a lot of dislocation slip bands with a slip distance
of 0.5–1 μm, and different types of slip are marked. Type I slip is distributed regularly in
a cluster, and this slip originates from the grain boundaries. Type II slip exists in isolation,
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 10 of 14
Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 11 of 15

Figure6.6.Surface
Figure Surfacefatigue
fatiguedamage
damagemorphology
morphologyofofSLM-316L
SLM-316Lunder
underdifferent
differentstresses:
stresses:(a,b)
(a,b)250
250MPa,
MPa,
(c,d) 270 MPa, (e,f) 290 MPa.
(c,d) 270 MPa, (e,f) 290 MPa.

4.4.Discuss
Discuss
4.1.
4.1.Fatigue
FatigueCrack
CrackInitiation
InitiationMechanism
Mechanism
WeWecan cansee
seefrom
from Figure
Figure 55 that
that the
the crack
crackoriginates
originatesfromfromthe thesample
sample surface,
surface, andand
de-
defects such as holes are found at the crack source of the sample. Figure
fects such as holes are found at the crack source of the sample. Figure 6 shows that a large 6 shows that
anumber
large number of slipexist
of slip bands bands existcrack
at the at the
tip,crack
and thetip,fracture
and themechanism
fracture mechanism
of the sample of the
can
sample can be reflected through the analysis of the pores and slip bands.
be reflected through the analysis of the pores and slip bands. In this paper, the correspond- In this paper,
the
ingcorresponding
model diagram model
wasdiagram
establishedwasto established
analyze the to analyze the crack of
crack formation formation of theas
the sample,
sample, as shown in Figure 7. Prior to the fatigue test, the surface of
shown in Figure 7. Prior to the fatigue test, the surface of the sample was smooth, without the sample was
smooth, without obvious unevenness. When the fatigue loading started,
obvious unevenness. When the fatigue loading started, a lot of slip bands shown in Figure a lot of slip bands
shown in Figure
6 indicated that 6some
indicated
areas onthatthe
some areassurface
sample on thewould
sampleslip surface
duringwould
cyclicslip during
loading, re-
cyclic loading, resulting in the resident slip band, which is a dislocation
sulting in the resident slip band, which is a dislocation wall formed by dislocation. With wall formed by
dislocation. With the continuous fatigue loading, a lot of non-uniform regions formed by
the continuous fatigue loading, a lot of non-uniform regions formed by intrusive extrusion
intrusive extrusion are generated on the surface of the sample. As shown in Figure 7a, with
are generated on the surface of the sample. As shown in Figure 7a, with the continuous
the continuous cyclic loading, slip occurs inside the sample. In the process of actual fatigue
cyclic loading, slip occurs inside the sample. In the process of actual fatigue loading and
loading and reverse loading, material properties change, and this results in the slip that
reverse loading, material properties change, and this results in the slip that does occur not
does occur not being completely reversible. Intrusive extrusion steps are generated at some
being completely reversible. Intrusive extrusion steps are generated at some positions on
positions on the surface of the SLM-316L sample, which makes the sample surface no longer
the surface of the SLM-316L sample, which makes the sample surface no longer smooth
smooth and forms an uneven area. With further fatigue loading, as shown in Figure 7b,
and forms an uneven area. With further fatigue loading, as shown in Figure 7b, this une-
this uneven plastic deformation region is prone to causing stress concentration during
ven plastic deformation region is prone to causing stress concentration during cyclic load-
cyclic loading, which promotes the initiation of microcracks. During the SLM process, the
ing, which promotes the initiation of microcracks. During the SLM process, the molten
molten pool exists for a short time and the fluidity of the molten metal decreases. Warpage
pool exists for a short time and the fluidity of the molten metal decreases. Warpage defor-
deformation, tensile residual stress, porosity, unmelted powder, and unfused (LOF) defects
mation,
are tensile
inevitable residual
[28]. stress, porosity,
The formed 316L sample unmelted
may havepowder,
defectsandsuch
unfused (LOF)
as holes defects
inside or onare
inevitable [28]. The formed 316L sample may have defects such as holes
the surface. According to Griffith’s theory, the stress value in the absence of holes is one inside or on the
surface.
third According
of that to Griffith’s
in the presence theory,holes.
of circular the stress
Under value in the stress,
a certain absence of holes
with is one third
the continuous
of that in the presence of circular holes. Under a certain stress, with
fatigue loading, microcracks will be easily generated around the holes and other defectsthe continuous fatigue
loading, microcracks will be easily generated around the holes and other defects due to
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 11 of 14
Materials 2021, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 12 of 15

due to stress concentration, and the existence of stress concentration will also affect the
stress concentration, and the existence of stress concentration will also affect the propaga-
propagation of cracks. In the actual fatigue loading process, as shown in Figure 5, the
tion of cracks. In the actual fatigue loading process, as shown in Figure 5, the defects on
defects on the surface and inside of the specimen are mostly irregular shapes, which make
the surface and inside of the specimen are mostly irregular shapes, which make the stress
the stress concentration coefficient at these defects larger, and microcracks tend to initiate
concentration coefficient at these defects larger, and microcracks tend to initiate at these
at these locations. As shown in Figure 7c, the microcracks initiate in multiple defects
locations. As shown
and continue to expandin Figure
under7c,thethe microcracks
action initiate
of fatigue load. in multiple
The defects
expanded and continue
microcracks will
to expand
connect under
with eachthe action
other of fatigue
to form the mainload. Theand
crack, expanded microcracks
ultimately will connect
make the specimen with
fracture
each other to form the main crack, and ultimately make the specimen fracture in advance.
in advance.

Figure 7.
Figure Schematic diagram
7. Schematic diagramof offatigue
fatiguecrack
crackformation
formationmechanism;
mechanism;(a)
(a)Schematic
Schematicdiagram
diagramofofslip
slip
generation, (b) Schematic diagram
diagram ofof microcrack
microcrack generation,
generation,(c)
(c)Schematic
Schematicdiagram
diagramofofcrack
crackgrowth,
growth, (d) Schematic
(d) Schematic diagramdiagram of crack propagation
of crack propagation path. path.

4.2. Characteristics
4.2. Characteristics of
of Fatigue
Fatigue Crack
Crack Growth
Growth
In general,
In general, under
under certain
certain stress,
stress, the
the main
main crack
crack generated
generated byby fatigue
fatigue loading
loading extends
extends
along the direction perpendicular to the load. However, due to the influence
along the direction perpendicular to the load. However, due to the influence of of impurities,
impurities,
holes and other defects, the crack can propagate in different directions. The research of
holes and other defects, the crack can propagate in different directions. The research of
Beachem and Yoder studied crack propagation [29]. After the slip system at a certain
Beachem and Yoder studied crack propagation [29]. After the slip system at a certain po-
position of the specimen is activated to produce microcracks, the tip of the microcrack
sition of the specimen is activated to produce microcracks, the tip of the microcrack will
will continue to undergo passivation, making its propagation path appear Z-shaped. In
continue to undergo passivation, making its propagation path appear Z-shaped. In this
this paper, the crack propagation characteristics of the sample with defects are analyzed
paper, the crack propagation characteristics of the sample with defects are analyzed
through the model. As shown in Figure 8a, when the stress is low, there is little possibility
through the model. As shown in Figure 8a, when the stress is low, there is little possibility
of microcracks occurring at the defect near the initiation of the main crack. When the stress
of microcracks occurring at the defect near the initiation of the main crack. When the stress
is high, the defects near the main crack initiation zone will also produce microcracks, and
is high, the defects near the main crack initiation zone will also produce microcracks, and
the microcracks will expand a certain distance under the action of tensile stress, and some
the microcracks will expand a certain distance under the action of tensile stress, and some
cracks may bridge with the main cracks. During the forward propagation of the main crack,
cracks may bridge with the main cracks. During the forward propagation of the main
a certain angle deflection always occurs to the area where the defect exists, as shown in
crack,
Figurea8c,d.
certain angle
Many deflection
bridging always
areas occursat
are formed tothe
the tip
areaofwhere the crack
the main defectand
exists, as shown
at the defect
in
nearFigure 8c,d.
the tip, Many
which bridging
is more areas are
conducive formed
to the at the propagation
accelerated tip of the main crack and
of fatigue at the
crack.
defect near the tip, which is more conducive to the accelerated propagation of fatigue
crack.
Materials 2021,14,
Materials2021, 14,7544
x FOR PEER REVIEW 12 of
13 of 14
15

Figure 8. Sketch
Figure 8. Sketch of
of fatigue
fatiguecrack
crackpropagation
propagationcharacteristics in in
characteristics thethe
presence
presenceof defects; (a,b)
of defects; Schematic
(a,b) Sche-
diagram of mainofdefect
matic diagram mainexpansion, (c,d) Schematic
defect expansion, diagram of
(c,d) Schematic the effect
diagram ofof
thedefects
effecton
of crack propagation.
defects on crack
propagation.
5. Conclusions
(1) The surface morphologies of SLM-316L stainless steel samples with different
5. Conclusions
forming
(1) directions
The surface aremorphologies
different. In theofdirection
SLM-316L perpendicular
stainless steelto the laser additive
samples manu-
with different
facturing,
forming directions are different. In the direction perpendicular to the laser additivetoman-
the melting tracks of the sample are well bonded; In the sample parallel the
additive manufacturing direction, a lot of fish scale melting tracks can
ufacturing, the melting tracks of the sample are well bonded; In the sample parallel to the be found, which
are superimposed
additive together.
manufacturing The surface
direction, a lot of
ofthese tracksmelting
fish scale adherestracks
to a lot of be
can unmelted metal
found, which
powder, and there are small holes in the overlap between the tracks.
are superimposed together. The surface of these tracks adheres to a lot of unmelted metal
(2) Fatigue tests of SLM-316L and rolled 316L were carried out 1 × 106 times under
powder, and there are small holes in the overlap between the tracks.
different stresses. Due to the existence of defects, the fatigue performance 6of SLM-316L
(2) Fatigue tests of SLM-316L and rolled 316L were carried out 1 × 10 times under
specimen is inferior to that of rolled 316L specimen. The fatigue fracture surface of SLM-
different stresses. Due to the existence of defects, the fatigue performance of SLM-316L
316L sample was smooth, and no obvious plastic deformation traces were found. The
specimen is inferior to that of rolled 316L specimen. The fatigue fracture surface of SLM-
fracture mode was brittle fracture. However, there are radiation patterns at the fatigue
316L sample was smooth, and no obvious plastic deformation traces were found. The frac-
source of rolled 316L, and clear dimples can be observed on the fracture surface. The
ture mode was brittle fracture. However, there are radiation patterns at the fatigue source
fracture mode is ductile fracture.
of rolled 316L, and clear dimples can be observed on the fracture surface. The fracture
(3) In the process of cyclic loading, some areas on the surface of SLM-316L sample
mode is ductile fracture.
slipped to produce resident slip bands, and a lot of non-uniform areas formed by intrusive
(3) In the process of cyclic loading, some areas on the surface of SLM-316L sample
extrusion were generated on the surface of the sample. The existence of hole defects
slipped to the
promoted produce resident
initiation slip bands, and
of microcracks, and anotably,
lot of non-uniform areas formed
they also accelerated by intrusive
the propagation
extrusion
of cracks. were generated on the surface of the sample. The existence of hole defects pro-
moted the initiation of microcracks, and notably, they also accelerated
(4) After the fatigue microcracks of SLM-316L sample were generated, the crack tip the propagation of
cracks.
expanded along the front defect due to the influence of external load, which was generally
(4) After way.
in a Z-shaped the fatigue microcracks
The inevitable defectsof during
SLM-316L sample
the SLM were affected
process generated,the the crack tip
propagation
expanded
of along the
fatigue within thefront
main defect
crackdue to the
in the influence
form of external
of bending, load, which
bifurcation was generally
and bridge, which
in a Z-shaped way. The inevitable defects during the SLM process affected
always deviates from the maximum load direction in the process of main crack propagation. the propaga-
tion of fatigue within the main crack in the form of bending, bifurcation and bridge, which
always Contributions:
Author deviates from Conceptualization,
the maximum loadZ.W. direction in the
and S.Y.; process of Z.W.,
methodology, main Z.G.;
crackvalidation,
propaga-
tion. Y.H., C.F.; formal analysis, Z.W., Y.H.; investigation, Z.W., Y.H., S.Y.; and C.F.; resources,
Z.W.,
Z.W. and Z.P.; data cura-tion, Z.W., Y.H.; writing—original draft preparation, Z.W., Y.H.; writing—
review and editing, Z.W., C.F.; visual-ization, Z.W.; supervision, Z.W.; project administration, Z.W.;
funding acquisition, Z.W. and S.Y. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of
the manuscript.
Materials 2021, 14, 7544 13 of 14

Funding: This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China
(51971129), Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai (19ZR1421200).
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement: The data used to support the findings of this study are included within
the article.
Acknowledgments: Thank Shanglei Yang, Yubao Hang, Cong Fan, Zeng Peng and Zihao Gao for
their help.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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