| Abstract Scope |
Additive manufacturing (AM) helps reduce processing time and cost as well as increase design flexibility. Yet, great challenges are encountered when processing high-temperature and brittle materials such as refractory metals and ceramic materials. Using Directed Energy Deposition (DED) AM, pure Tungsten and Inconel 625 were first printed, applying several printing process parameter sets and aiming to produce dense and uniform samples with good adhesion to the base plate. Next, SiC was DED’ed on top of the Tungsten and Inconel. The as-deposited samples were characterized by optical and electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and hardness tests. SiC coatings were examined for adhesion to the refractory metal, density, and mechanical properties. It has been found that using high-energy deposition of SiC results in relatively dense graded coating. Moreover, it was observed that SiC partly blends with the refractory metal underneath creating a strong composite material. At the same time, the top coating layer might have mixed alloyed phases containing both Si, C, and relevant metal due to the high cooling rates. |