Toward an integrated computational system for describing the additive manufacturing process for metallic materials

The ability to simulate the thermal, mechanical, and material response in additive manufacturing offers tremendous utility for gaining a deeper understanding of the process, while also having significant practical application. The approach and progress in establishing an integrated computational system for simulating additive manufacturing of metallic components are discussed, with the primary focus directed at the computational intensive components, which include the process and material models. The ability to experimentally measure key characteristics for verification of the models is also presented and is seen as critical in the development of the integrated computational system. Two examples are also presented that utilize the current features of the analyses techniques for exploring and applying additive manufacturing technology.