EVALUATING GEOMETRIC ACCURACY AND MATERIAL USAGE EFFICIENCY WHEN SHAPING HOLLOW-CONE PARTS FROM HIGH STRENGTH ALLOY STEEL BY WAAM TECHNOLOGY

Abstract

WAAM (wire arc additive manufacturing) is known as a kind of metal 3D printing technologies, using an arc energy source to melt metal wire and deposit molten
metal in layers to form 3D parts. WAAM has a high speed of material deposition, many times higher than other metal 3D printing technologies. Therefore, it is
considered as the most suitable method for manufacturing large-sized parts in various industrial fields. In this article, a hollow-cone part - a common geometric
structure used in weapons and aircraft, was manufactured by WAAM technology. Subsequently, its geometric accuracy and the efficiency of using material when
shaping by WAAM are also evaluated. The results show that the WAAM technology allows shaping hollow conical parts with acceptable geometric accuracy, creating
a workpiece with a shape close to the final product for finishing operations, thereby improving the material usage efficiency. Compared with traditional machining
methods, WAAM allows saving up to 80% of input materials, minimizing energy consumption, labor, costs, and environmental pollution impacts.