Constitutive and failure behaviour in selective laser melted stainless steel for microlattice structures

The emerging selective laser melting (SLM) technology makes possible the manufacturing of metallic microlattice structures with better tailorability of properties. This work investigated the constitutive formulation of the parent material and the failure mechanism in the SLM stainless steel microlattice structure. The constitutive behaviour of SLM stainless steel was quantitatively formulated using the Johnson–Cook hardening model. A finite element model incorporating the constitutive formula was developed and experimentally validated to predict the localised stress evolution in an SLM stainless steel microlattice structure subjected to uniaxial compression. The predicted stresses were then linked to the fracture process in the SLM steel observed by scanning electron microscope. It was found that the tensile and compressive stress state is localised in the strut members of the microlattice, and determines the macroscopic cracking mode. The tensile opening and shear cracking dominate the tension and compression zones, respectively. However, the microscopic examination on the fracture surfaces reveals the formation of substantial slip bands in both the tension and compression zones, implying that the ductile fracture in the SLM stainless steel is transgranular.