Study on changes in hardness and wear resistance of 3D printed Ti6Al4V with heat treatment temperature

Abstract

The hardness and specific wear rate of 3 dimensionally (3D) printed Ti6Al4V specimens were studied with respect to heat treatment temperature (HTT) in a range of 400-800 °C. Increasing the HTT from 400 °C to 500 °C promoted the hardness of the printed specimen while its decreased hardness associated with a further increase in the HTT to 800 °C was observed. Since higher wear resistance was the result of higher hardness, the trend of specific wear rate versus HTT of the printed specimen was opposite to that of its hardness versus HTT. The highest hardness and lowest wear of the printed specimen were therefore found at the HTT of 500 °C.