The influence of laser parameters, scanning strategies and material on the fatigue strength of a stochastic porous structure

The trends observed during fatigue testing for monolithic metals and statically for solid and porous AM materials were not always indicative of the high cycle fatigue behaviour of porous AM materials. Unlike their solid counterparts, porous tantalum and the titanium-tantalum alloy had the greatest fatigue strength for a given stiffness, 8% greater than CP-Ti and 19% greater than Ti6Al4V ELI. Optimisation of the laser parameters and scan strategies was found to also increase the fatigue strength for a given stiffness of porous AM materials by 7-8%.