Investigation into the Microstructure and Hardness of Additively Manufactured (3D-Printed) Inconel 718 Alloy.

Additive manufacturing (AM) of Ni-based super alloys is more challenging, compared to the production other metallic alloys. This is due to their high melting point and excellent high temperature resistance. In the present work, an Inconel 718 alloy was fabricated by a powder laser bed fusion (P-LBF) process and investigated to assess its microstructural evolution, together with mechanical properties.