Additive manufacturing (AM) technology, also known as 3D printing, is a highly promising technology that can drive innovation in various industrial areas, including the nuclear industry. Although the nuclear industry is traditionally conservative when it comes to adopting new technologies, it is crucial that AM technology is eventually applied for a variety of reasons. To overcome the barriers that currently hinder the adoption of AM in the nuclear industry, it is essential to ensure the reliability of AM products. One key factor is ensuring that AM products have mechanical properties equivalent to those of traditionally manufactured products. This paper presents the results of mechanical property tests conducted on additive manufactured specimens of stainless steel 316 L after heat treatment. We performed tensile tests, hardness tests, and microstructure analysis on specimens produced using two types of metal AM technologies: powder bed fusion (PBF) and directed energy deposition (DED). The results of the tests indicate that certain weaknesses, such as anisotropy and brittleness, in AM products can be improved through three types of heat treatments. In particular, AM products produced using the PBF method and subjected to heat treatments show potential for application in the nuclear industry in terms of materials.
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Medium-entropy-alloy-assisted functionally graded material design of directed-energy-deposited 316L stainless steel for improved tensile performance Eun Seong Kim, Sung-Jae Jo, G.M. Karthik, Gang Hee Gu, Soung Yeoul Ahn, Soon-Jik Hong, Jian-Zhong Jiang, Hyoung Seop Kim Materials Science and Engineering: A.2026; 978: 151231. CrossRef