Enhancement of deposition quality in micro-plasma transferred arc deposition process

Abstract

Micro-plasma-transferred arc (μPTA) wire deposition is a cost-effective additive layer manufacturing process used for remanufacturing/repair of high-value components. Prediction of geometry and cross-sectional area of each deposition track and deposition overlap between the successive deposition tracks helps in optimizing the deposition strategies and automated repair and remanufacturing of the components by μPTA process. This paper presents investigations on enhancing the deposition quality in μPTA process by approximating deposition geometry as an elliptical arc with an objective to predict its cross-sectional area and to optimize the deposition overlap between the successive deposition tracks. The model was validated using the experimental apparatus developed for the μPTA wire deposition process. The predictions were compared with the previously developed models of deposition geometry considering it as an arc of parabola, circle, and cosine function. The results proved the superiority of the elliptical function-based model over the previous models for predicting cross-sectional area and overlap of the deposition track for μPTA wire deposition process. The deposition overlap was optimized to predict the center distance between successive deposition tracks to maximize the quality of deposit over a flat surface. © 2014 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.