Development of numerical simulation tools for process improvement in additive manufacturing

The general objective of the proposal is the thermal and thermo-mechanical modelling and simulation of pieces built by Laser Additive Manufacturing using Directed Energy Deposition (LAM-DED). Modelling will be based on the physical and thermodynamic principles in each case. For their discretization, the different zones of the simulation domain will be dynamically considered depending on the area of influence of the laser; and the sizes of the meshes in each zone and the corresponding time steps will be automatically adjusted using error estimates. The simulation results of the physical models considered will be combined with model order reduction (MOR) and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques based on the selected parameters of process operation, to reduce computational times and so that the developed software can be used as a support tool in the manufacturing process. Warnings shall be implemented in the software to alert technicians if distortion or residual stresses exceed the defined maximum values at any time during the LAM-DED process. Finally, an industrial use case will be identified, with several options in its operating parameters, for which laboratory and numerical experiences will be developed to calibrate and validate the simulation results in all phases of the manufacturing process.

Project details

Reference: PID2023-146841OB-I00

Acronym: DeNSiProAM

Period: 01-09-2024 – 31/08/2028

Principal Investigators:
P. Quintela

Research Team:
P. Barral
T. Cao (Universidade da Coruña)
C. Naya (Universidade da Coruña)
Mónica Salgueiro (AIMEN)

Funding: Agencia Estatal de Investigación