Assignment

Supply chain and information technology

With passage of time, IT has drawn into business. All type of business work whether its
transaction, communication or storing data is performed by computer. IT has made work
easy. You can do business at home or office. To obtain goals, the application of supply
chain information technology must contain following Electronic Data Exchange (EDI),
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Bar code, Electronic Commerce, Decision support
system.
Electronic data exchange: It is trade of data between computers in a firm.
Radio Frequency Identification: It is based on “identification tag” attached to subject
item which contains electronically coded data.
Electronic commerce: It involves answer to customer generated by computer in a
support system.
Decision Support System: Artificial intelligence enables computer to make decision in
supply chain management.
Shareholders in supply chain management are manufactures, suppliers, shippers and
distributors. Delivery of good product to customer in time is goal of shareholders. E-
business and E-commerce has opened new doors in innovation world.
Role of IT in supply chain management has effects on varying aspects:
 To keep caution, accountability and productivity.
 Storage of data in information system avoid loss.
 Manufacturing of goods and customer satisfaction is based on the relationship
between different departments of management.
 More advance way for tracking and delivery are the use of bar codes and Radio
Frequency Information Data.

Reducing porosity in AlSi10Mg parts

processed by selective laser melting
Selective Laser Melting, an alternative manufacturing technique for complex and
customized parts. The chemical addition manufacturing (AM) of metallic materials from
metallic powder using a heat source is referred as Selective Laser Melting. It is a sharp
process, with less requirement of machines for post processing which depend on final
application. SLM is environmental friendly technology as little waste is produced.
Aluminum alloy powders are light with poor flowability and high reflectivity along with
high thermal conductivity as compared to other SLM candidate materials. Al alloys are
prone to oxidation which results in porosity. AlSi10Mg powder were used for experiment
to produce test cubes. Particle size distribution for powder was determined by using laser
diffraction. Parameters involved in process of SLM are scanning speed, hatch spacing,
laser power and layer thickness. The aim of this study was to use design of scanning
strategy to enhance the relative density of parts being processed (i.e to minimize
porosity). At 50 to 100 um hatch spacing, sufficient overlap between adjacent melt pools
was achieved. Small hatch spacing result in heat accumulation in melt pool since it
allows slow cooling of layer giving a homogenous and continuous layer. It is suggested to
use small hatch spacing. The effect of scanning speed was investigated based on the hatch
spacing. At lower speed metallurgical pores are formed where as key hole pores are
created with high scanning speed. Non molten powder is enclosed by keyhole pores and
their formation is parameter dependent. Balling is observed on surface with increasing
scan speed, it promotes the capture of powder that is not fully melted by laser beam
scanning the following layer, hence keyhole pores are formed. This issue has been
resolved by altering scan strategy. The best results were found at a speed of 500 mm/s,
hatch spacing 50 um, and100 W laser power when using a layer thickness of 40 um and
employing the pre-sinter scan strategy yielding a relative density of 99.77 ± 0.08%.
However, use of Al alloy in SLM is limited because it results in parts with high degree of
porosity. Al alloy are favorable in high end applications for their strength and stiffness to
weight ratio. AlSi10Mg are used in die casting, automotives and aerospace industries.

Selective laser melting of AlSi10Mg alloy:

Process optimization and mechanical
properties development
Additive layer manufacturing (ALM) has been used for various materials. It is based on
electron beam melting (EBM), direct laser fabrication (DLF), and selective laser melting
(SLM). Factors affecting final quality of SLM samples are feedstock material
characteristics (powder size, morphology and size distribution) and laser heat input.
Statistical design approach has been adopted to optimize the process parameters and to
minimize defects. To eliminate porosity with in material, a high laser power, at low scan
speed with small hatch spacing should be used. Kempen et al. [2013] suggested optimum
process parameter of 200W, 1400mm/s, with scan spacing 105um. Additionally, Brandl et
al. [2012] used 250W, 500mm/s, 150 um scan spacing, with 50um layer thickness to
achieve defect-free SLM of the AlSi10Mg alloy. The porosity content decreases with
increasing the energy density. Olakanmi [2010] also indicated that there is a certain
threshold energy density that gives maximum material density, which is 60–75J/mm3 for
Al, Al–Si and Al–Mg alloys. A statistical method has been used to evaluate the influence
of process parameters on the porosity of SLMed AlSi10Mg, which shows the trends of
porosity in the SLM fabricated samples. There is a critical energy density point that gives
the minimum pore fraction for this alloy, approximately 60J/m3. The build direction does
not strongly influence the tensile or creep strength of SLMed AlSi10Mg. Both building
directions show higher strength than die cast A 360, although the elongation is inferior to
that of A360. Fracture surfaces show the presence of significant amounts of un-melted
powder, which give rise to local cracking. Further work is required to see if it is possible
to eliminate these regions.

Selective laser melting of AlSi10Mg:

Influence of post-processing on the micro
structural and tensile properties development
 Impact of thermal post processing using Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIPping ) and/or T6-
peak aging treatment, post-process machining, as well as the build orientation on the
microstructural and mechanical properties development inAlSi10Mg alloy fabricated
using Selective Laser Melting (SLM) has been studied. The builds are found to contain
fine columnar grains, with a fine Si-enriched cellular dendritic network, resulting in
tensile strengths exceeding the castings. This development was attributed to the high
cooling rates experienced during SLM. To clarify the as-fabricated microstructure and
strength, thermal modelling was engaged which predicted cooling rates of 105–106 °C/s
during solidification. Voids formed as result of oxide films were observed using Micro-C
T in the as-fabricated condition. HIPping results in collapsed of most voids, showing no
trace even after a additional T6 treatment. Generally, the tensile properties of the majority
of conditions were significantly better than in the cast + T6 equivalent alloy. Post-process
machining plays role to improve the strength (compared to the as fabricated surface). On
other side, HIPping+T6 allowed the builds to achieve the required tensile properties, with
no surface machining. By assessing the influence of powder recycling, it was realized that
the void content linked to oxide layer formation amplified following powder recycling,
resulting in drop in tensile properties.

Effect of heat treatment on AlSi10Mg alloy

fabricated by selective laser melting:
Microstructure evolution, mechanical
properties and fracture mechanism
The influence of solution and artificial aging heat treatments on the microstructures and
mechanical properties of SLM-produced AlSi10Mg alloy parts was investigated. Owing
to the high cooling rate of SLM, an ultrafine eutectic microstructure in the as-built
samples is characterized by using spherical nano-sized network eutectic Si embedded in
the Al matrix, which gives rise to significantly better tensile properties and Vickers
micro-hardness. The solubility of Si atom in the Al matrix of as-built SLM samples is
calculated to be 8.89 at%. With the increase in the solution temperature, the solubility
decreases swiftly. The artificial aging result in decrease of the solubility of Si atoms in the
Al matrix. Upon solution heat treatment, Si atoms are rejected from the super saturated Al
matrix to form small Si particles. With rising the solution temperature, the size of the Si
particles increases, whereas their number decreases. After artificial aging, the Si particles
are further coarsened. The variation in size of Si particles has a significant influence on
the mechanical properties of the AlSi10Mg samples. The tensile strength decreases from
434.25710.7 M Pa for the as-built samples to 168.1172.4 M Pa, while the fracture strain
remarkably increases from 5.370.22% to 23.770.84% when the as-built sample is
solution-treated at 550 °C for 2 h. This study indicates that the microstructure and
mechanical properties of SLM-processed AlSi10Mg alloy can be customized by suitable
solution and artificial aging heat treatments.
The microstructure and mechanical
properties of selectively laser melted
AlSi10Mg: The effect of a conventional T6-
like heat treatment
The nano-, micro-, and macro-scale mechanical properties of SLM AlSi10Mg were
studied. In adding up the effect of a conventional T6-like heat treatment was investigated
and correlated to the generated microstructure. Nanoindentation showed uniform
hardness within the SLM material. Significant spatial variation was observed after heat
treatment as a result of phase transformation. It was found that the SLM material's micro-
hardness exceeded its die-cast counterpart. Heat treatment softened the material, reducing
micro-hardness from 12571 HV to 10071 HV. An ultimate tensile strength (333 MPa),
surpassing that of the die cast counterpart was achieved, which was slightly reduced by
heat treatment (12%) alongside a significant gain in strain-to-failure ( threefold).
Significantly high compressive yield strength was recorded for the as-built material with
the ability to withstand high compressive strains. The SLM characteristic microstructure
yielded enhanced strength under loading, outperforming cast material. The use of a T6-
like heat treatment procedure also modified the properties of the material to yield a
potentially attractive compromise between the material's strength and ductility making it
more suitable for a wider range of applications and opening up further opportunities for
the additive manufacturing process and alloy combination.