Comparative Quality Control of Titanium Alloy Ti-6Al-4V, 17-4 PH Stainless Steel, and Aluminum Alloy 4047 Either Manufactured or Repaired by Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS).

Additive manufacturing attracts much interest for manufacturing and repair of structural parts for the aerospace industry. This paper presents comparative characterization of aircraft items made of Al 4047 alloy, Ti-6Al-4V alloy, and 17-4 precipitation hardened (PH) (AISI 630) stainless steel, either manufactured or repaired by laser engineered net shaping (LENS). Chemical analysis, density, and surface roughness measurements, X-ray micro-computed tomography (μ-CT) analysis, metallography, and micro-hardness testing were conducted.