Design of Aluminum Lightweight Alloys and In-situ monitoring of Laser Additive MAnufacturing – DALAILAMA

Additive manufacturing by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is gaining increasing significance within the aeronautics and automotive sectors for the production of complex metal components. While aluminum alloys are appealing due to their high specific strength, certain grades are highly susceptible to hot cracking, presenting challenges in LPBF manufacturing. The DALAILAMA project aims to develop a specialized aluminum alloy for the LPBF process, focusing on three primary objectives. First and foremost, a novel alloy will be designed to minimize the risk of cracking while achieving a more uniform and controlled microstructure, thus striking a balance between strength and ductility. This will involve the precise management of nucleating agents and the control of precipitates formation in terms of both fraction and kinetics. In the subsequent phase, model alloys will be selected and produced by atomization and powder mixing to quickly test the design criteria. Instrumented LPBF manufacturing tests will highlight the impact of alloy composition on the stability of the meltpool and on the spatters emission. Finally, the selected optimal composition will be produced on a larger scale by atomization and processed by LPBF. Mechanical and microstructural assessments will be conducted to evaluate its performance and in-use properties. This project aims to establish a novel methodology for designing alloys suitable for the LPBF process, including both innovative experimental techniques and a digital optimization framework. It will also lead to the creation of a high-performance aluminum grade dedicated to LPBF. These advances will drive the development of lightweight aluminum grades for industry, offering both new design tools and higher performance materials.