Nature inspired multi objective optimization of selective laser melting of SS316L with the microstructural investigations

Globally, SLM is changing the way organizations design and manufacture products. It is an emerging manufacturing technique. This technique is classified as additive layered manufacturing, as the component is built by adding material in layers. Components/parts manufactured by Selective Laser Melting (SLM) find a lot of applications in many industries like aerospace, biomedical and automobile. Proposed research work investigates the effect of various process parameters on the mechanical properties manufactured by the SLM process of Stainless Steel 316L [SS316L]. The literature indicates that process parameters having maximum impact on mechanical properties includes Laser Power (P), Exposure Time (T), Border Power (BP) and Hatch Spacing (HS). The effect of these process parameters on Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS) and Surface Roughness (SR) was investigated. This research work aims to enhance the performance measures, by optimizing the process parameters used in SLM with Grasshopper Optimization Algorithm (GOA) technique. GOA was used to achieve maximum ultimate tensile strength and minimum surface roughness in a single set of experimentation through a multiobjective approach.