Experimental and numerical studies on Wire-and-Arc Additively Manufactured stainless steel rods

Additive manufacturing has gained worldwide popularity due to its numerous benefits, which includes structural efficiency, reduction of material consumption and wastage, enhanced customisation, improved accuracy and safety on-site. Among the various categories of the additive manufacturing process, Wire and arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) has proven its ability of producing medium to large scale components. However, there is still a lack of knowledge regarding the structural response and mechanical properties of WAAM-produced elements. This paper provides results of numerical and experimental studies on WAAM rods produces using a commercial ER308LSi stainless steel welding wire. The aim is to evaluate the effect of initial imperfections and material mechanical properties on the response of such rods under compression. Tensile and compression tests were carried out in order to determine the mechanical properties of the rods. Subsequently, numerical simulations were performed in order to simulate the mechanical response of the rods under different conditions.