Understanding the complex microstructure of Additively Manufactured Alloys (AMAs) and its relationship to durability

Additively manufactured alloys (AMAs) are already being used in Naval applications, with a rapid increase in use projected. To date, the use of components manufactured by AMAs are assumed to have a corrosion resistance equivalent to that of a component manufactured from wrought materials of the same nominal composition. However, the corrosion risk associated with the use of these components is essentially unknown.
AMAs, which are inclusive of 3D printed alloys, are distinct from conventional wrought alloys. To describe it concisely, a wrought alloy is prepared by melting, casting and comparatively slow solidification, followed by a number of thermomechanical processing steps that may take hundreds of hours to complete. In contrast, AMAs are nominally prepared (in the context of this proposal) with a melting and solidification process that leads to the final structure in a timeframe of