Thermal-stress analysis of wire-arc additive manufacturing 2Cr13 parts with different interlayer idle time

During the wire-arc additive manufacturing, the thermal and stress evolution inside the as-deposited parts has an important influence on the quality of the parts. Temperature and stress characteristics of 2Cr13 thin-wall parts, with interlayer idle time of 30, 120, 210 and 300 s was simulated using the three-dimensional finite element model. The simulation results have a good agreement with the corresponding experimental results. The results indicated that longitudinal residual stress distribution of the buildup with 30 s interlayer idle time are significantly different from those of deposits with other interlayer idle time. When the interlayer idle time is longer than 210 s, the further increase of the interlayer idle time can hardly reduce the stress. Consequently the interlayer idle time of the wire-arc additive manufacture 25-layer thin-walled 2Cr13 parts is suitable between 120~210 s.