Characterization of functionally graded commercially pure titanium (CPTI) and titanium carbide (TiC) powders

Functionally Graded Materials (FGM) are advanced materials fabricated using additive manufacturing techniques. It belongs to a class of advanced material characterization in which the properties of the material composition is varied. The resulting property of the composite is always different from the properties of the individual material employed in the formation of the composite. They are known to also exhibit good mechanical and chemical properties and as such, are used for different industrial applications. One of the techniques employed in the fabrication of FGMs is called Laser Metal Deposition (LMD) technique. It uses laser beam to melt powder material on a substrate forming a melt pool that solidifies upon cooling. This paper reports on the material characterization of functionally graded Titanium and Titanium Carbide (TiC) powders deposited on Titanium substrate by laser metal deposition approach. The formed deposits were fabricated by varying the processing parameters such as laser power, scanning speed and the powder flow rate. From the result obtained, the microstructures showed that the laser power has much influence on the grain growth of the material. In addition, with the SEM analysis of the microstructure since the percentages of the titanium and titanium carbide were varied, it was observed that the sharp boundaries of the Titanium Carbide were reduced greatly and this resulting effect can be attributed to the thermal effect of the laser. The microstructures further revealed that as the percentage of TiC decreases, it becomes more difficult to see the TiC as a different material in the composite, emphasizing this as one of the best characteristics of functionally graded materials, which is the elimination of sharp interfaces and layers. Furthermore, it was observed that the laser power has great influence on the evolving hardness of the material compared to the TiC content.