CFD-DEM simulation of melt pool formation and evolution in powder bed fusion process

Computational models can be used to optimize metal additive manufacturing parts, and can also play a role in the evaluation of component quality. Among the most important components of such models will be the detailed simulation of flow and heat transfer in and around the melt pool that is formed when the powder bed is melted.
In the present work, A Powder Bed Fusion process is studied numerically by using a coupled Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model and eXtended Discrete Element Method (XDEM) model to predict the physical behavior of discrete particles and the melt pool. In XDEM, a randomly packed powder bed of spherical particles is generated and heat and momentum exchange of each particle with other particles and the melt pool are calculated. The CFD model will predict the effects of laser-melt and powder-melt interactions on the melt pool dynamics. Using the developed numerical framework, it will be possible to determine how powder size distribution, the velocity of a laser beam, and the power, among other factors, will affect the characteristics of melt pool.