Arc Welding Processes for Additive Manufacturing: A Review

Arc-welding based additive manufacturing techniques are attracting interest from the manufacturing industry because of their potential to fabricate large metal components with low cost and short production lead time. This paper introduces wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) techniques, reviews mechanical properties of additively manufactured metallic components, summarises the development in process planning, sensing and control of WAAM, and finally provides recommendations for future work. Research indicates that the mechanical properties of additively manufactured materials, such as titanium alloy, are comparable to cast or wrought material. It has also been found that twin-wire WAAM has the capability to fabricate intermetallic alloys and functional graded materials. The paper concludes that WAAM is a promising alternative to traditional subtractive manufacturing for fabricating large expensive metal components. On the basis of current trends, the future outlook will include automated process planning, monitoring, and control for WAAM process.