Tribological performance of selective laser melted 316L stainless steel

Selective laser melting (SLM) is a commonly used additive manufacturing technique for metallic parts. This paper investigates the effects of build-up directions and different test conditions on tribological behaviour of 316L stainless steel samples made by SLM. Sliding wear tests were conducted under different normal loads, temperatures and frequencies. The results showed that the effects of build-up direction on coefficient of friction (COF) and wear rate are not significant. At higher test temperatures, COF decreased significantly, while wear rate was maximum at 200 °C and then slightly decreased at higher temperatures due to oxide layers working as lubricants and protecting the samples from further loss of material. At higher contact pressures, wear rate was higher, but COF was not affected remarkably.