Morphology of Direct SLS-Processed Stainless Steel Layers

This paper discusses work done to analyse the shape of stainless steel layers generated by direct selective laser sintering (SLS). Laser power, scan spacing and scanning speed have been varied, to investigate their effect on geometry. The relationship between scanning parameters and the qualities of sintered parts (dimensional uniformity, porosity and scanned track shape) is described. A PC-based finite element code, developed to simulate SLS, has been modified to match the conditions of experiments discussed above. A comparison is made between computer-generated and experimentally-generated parts.