SUMMARY

Metal 3D printing is becoming a viable strategy to manufacture geometrically complex components. Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) adds large amounts of thermal energy to a component during the additive process, and depending on the size of the component, the cool-down time can be more significant than the deposition time, decreasing productivity. Conduction cooling applied to the build plate was proposed as a strategy to decrease overall part temperature faster than natural energy dissipation, enabling shorter cool down time with comparable part quality.

This research evaluated how base plate conduction cooling would affect process outcomes of WAAM depositions including process time and quality. A Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) system was the additive system utilized. The components were manufactured in a retrofit hybrid computer numeric control (CNC) machine with water cooled copper heat exchangers used to cool the base plate of the samples.