Method for preparing copper-chromium-niobium alloy high-thermal-conductivity component based on green laser SLM
By using green laser and layered energy gradient control technology, the problems of low absorption rate of copper-based materials and difficult formation of complex structures in traditional SLM processes are solved, and the preparation of copper-chromium-niobium alloy components with high thermal conductivity and high electrical conductivity is achieved, reducing cost and processing complexity.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202510678236.9
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-05-26
- Publication Date
- 2025-06-24
- Estimated Expiration
- 2045-05-26
AI Technical Summary
In traditional SLM processes, copper-based materials have low laser absorption, resulting in high-power laser demand, and complex structures are difficult to form in an integrated manner, resulting in high molding accuracy and cost.
Green laser (wavelength 500nm-550nm) is used for selective laser melt printing, and printing parameters of different energy densities are set through layered energy gradient control to form a pore structure with continuous gradient distribution of porosity. Combined with heat treatment technology, high thermal conductivity components are prepared.
The absorption rate of copper-based alloys to laser is improved, the power requirement is reduced, and high thermal conductivity (≥350W/(m·K) and high electrical conductivity (≥80% IACS) is achieved, which significantly reduces cost and processing complexity, and meets the high-precision forming requirements of complex structures.
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Figure CN120190361A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of copper-chromium-niobium alloys, and particularly relates to a method for preparing high-thermal-conductivity components of copper-chromium-niobium alloys based on green laser SLM. Background Art
[0002] Due to its excellent high-temperature mechanical properties and conductivity, copper-chromium-niobium alloys are widely used in high-thermal-conductivity complex components required for scenarios such as heat-dissipating substrates for thermal-conducting electronics, linings of combustion chambers in aerospace, heat-dissipating modules for high-power IGBTs, heat-dissipating fins for 5G base stations, and heat exchangers in nuclear reactors. Selective laser melting (SLM) technology is a technology for manufacturing solid parts by means of layer-by-layer printing. Currently, in the process of preparing copper-chromium-niobium alloys using SLM technology, the following problems usually exist: (1) High reflectivity and low energy efficiency. The reflectivity of copper to traditional infrared lasers (wavelength 1064 nm) exceeds 90%, and the absorption rate is only 5%-10%. To achieve powder melting, traditional SLM relies on ultra-high-power lasers (≥800 W), which will result in energy losses of more than 60%. Moreover, high-power lasers are prone to cause violent fluctuations in the molten pool, thereby forming defects such as pores and lack of fusion (porosity > 5%). At the same time, local overheating causes the oxygen content of the material to exceed 1000 ppm, significantly reducing the conductivity (<70% IACS); (2) Insufficient forming ability for complex structures. Traditional SLM processes are limited by a large spot diameter (60 μm - 70 μm) and a wide molten pool (200 μm - 300 μm), and it is difficult to precisely control complex structure parts such as thin walls (<100 μm) and micro-channels (pore diameter < 200 μm). The forming accuracy is limited, and subsequent finishing processing is required, resulting in a 3- to 5-fold increase in cost. In addition, pore-forming agents need to be added or the scanning strategy needs to be adjusted to achieve a porous structure, but the pore distribution is random (connectivity rate < 50%), and interface stress concentration makes it difficult to balance high porosity and thermal properties (for example, when the porosity is 30%, the thermal conductivity is less than 200 W / m·K); (3) Process complexity. In the prior art, graphene is added to improve the laser absorption rate, but additional processes (mixing, dispersion, drying) are introduced, resulting in a 40%-60% increase in material cost. Moreover, nanoparticles are prone to agglomeration, which will affect the tissue uniformity. The entire process flow is very long and it is difficult to meet the requirements of rapid manufacturing. Based on this, there is an urgent need for a copper alloy additive manufacturing technology that can take into account high thermal conductivity, integrated forming of complex structures (such as micro-channels, honeycomb structures), and low-cost manufacturing. Summary of the Invention The main object of the present application is to provide a method for preparing high-thermal-conductivity components of copper-chromium-niobium alloys based on green laser SLM, aiming to solve the technical problems of low laser absorption rate of copper-based materials and difficult integrated forming of complex structures in traditional SLM processes.
[0003] To achieve the above object, the present application proposes a method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM, comprising the following steps: Pre-treat the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder; Lay the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on a substrate, perform selective laser melting printing using a green laser, and set the printing parameters of at least two layers with different energy densities by a layered energy gradient control method to perform layered printing to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity, obtaining a pre-processed part; wherein, the wavelength of the green laser is 500nm - 550nm, and the spot diameter is 15μm - 30μm; Heat-treat the pre-processed part to obtain a high thermal conductivity component.
[0004] Optionally, the mass percentage of chromium element in the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder is 3.0wt% - 4.0wt%, and the mass percentage of niobium element is 2.0wt% - 3.0wt%.
[0005] Optionally, the particle size of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder is 15μm - 53μm, and the loose bulk density is 4.0g / cm 3 - 5.0g / cm 3 , and the fluidity ≤ 25s / 50g.
[0006] Optionally, the step of pre-treating the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder includes: After passing the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder through a sieve with 180 - 200 meshes, dry it in a vacuum environment or an inert atmosphere at 80°C - 150°C for 2h - 4h to make the gas content of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder < 100ppm.
[0007] Optionally, in the step of laying the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on a substrate, the powder laying thickness is 0.03mm - 0.08mm, and the scanning speed is 600mm / s - 1200mm / s.
[0008] Optionally, before the step of laying the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on a substrate, it further includes: Grind and sandblast the substrate to make the surface roughness Ra of the substrate ≤ 3.2μm.
[0009] Optionally, in the step of setting the printing parameters of at least two layers with different energy densities by a layered energy gradient control method to perform layered printing to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity, it includes: Set the printing parameters of three layers with different energy densities respectively, and perform layered printing in sequence according to the dense layer, the transition layer, and the core layer to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity; Among them, the printing parameters of the dense layer include: laser power of 300W - 400W, scanning speed of 800mm / s - 1200mm / s, and scanning pitch of 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the transition layer include: laser power of 200W - 300W, scanning speed of 500mm / s - 800mm / s, and scanning pitch of 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the core layer include: laser power of 100W - 200W, scanning speed of 200mm / s - 500mm / s, and scanning pitch of 0.04mm - 0.09mm.
[0010] Optionally, the porosity of the dense layer is 0.5% - 3.0%, the porosity of the transition layer is 10.0% - 20.0%, and the porosity of the core layer is 20.0% - 30.0%.
[0011] Optionally, in the hierarchical energy gradient control method, the scanning process adopts strip filling or checkerboard filling.
[0012] Optionally, the step of heat-treating the pre-processed part to obtain a high thermal conductivity component includes: Vacuum heat-treating the pre-processed part, with a heat treatment temperature of 600°C - 900°C and a holding time of 3h - 7h.
[0013] This application has at least the following beneficial effects: This application prepares copper-chromium-niobium alloy components through the green laser SLM process. By precisely melting copper alloy powder with a small spot of green laser, it achieves efficient melting of copper alloy at low power, overcomes the problem of high reflectivity of copper, increases the laser absorption rate of copper-based alloys to about 40%, and avoids element volatilization caused by traditional high-power infrared laser printing (≥1000W). The prepared copper-chromium-niobium alloy components have a thermal conductivity ≥ 350W / (m·K), which is more than 35% higher than that of the traditional infrared laser process (thermal conductivity ≤ 280W / (m·K)); and the electrical conductivity ≥ 80% IACS (International Annealed Copper Standard), which is 14% higher than that of the traditional infrared laser process (electrical conductivity < 70% IACS), significantly reducing the Joule heat loss during the operation of electronic devices; and based on the characteristics of the green laser with low power (100W - 400W) in this application, the oxygen content of the prepared high-thermal-conductivity components can be controlled below 500ppm, avoiding the deterioration of conductivity caused by the relatively high oxygen content (oxygen content > 1000ppm) of traditional high-power lasers; and this application adopts a layered energy density gradient control technology for pore connectivity design and heat dissipation structure optimization. By coordinating the laser power and printing speed, it precisely regulates the local pore distribution of the printed parts, forms a dense layer near the surface of the radiator to improve strength, maintains a high porosity in the core to optimize the heat exchange area, and effectively avoids the problem of interlayer interface stress concentration by smoothly regulating the interlayer porosity, realizing a continuous gradient pore structure from the dense layer to the core layer. The microhardness of the high-thermal-conductivity components after heat treatment is ≥ HB110, which is 50% higher than that of traditional cast copper alloys (HB60 - HB80), meeting the wear resistance and heat dissipation requirements of high-load heat dissipation components; and the green laser spot diameter in this application is 15μm - 30μm. The width of the molten pool can be precisely controlled within 30μm - 80μm by the small-spot laser, thereby improving the forming accuracy of the parts, supporting the processing of thin-wall structures with a thickness of 60μm - 100μm, breaking through the limit of the traditional SLM process (minimum forming size ≥ 200μm), and eliminating the need for subsequent finishing processing, saving processing costs. Thus, it systematically solves the problems of high reflectivity, structure limitation, and performance deficiency in the additive manufacturing of copper-based alloys, providing an efficient, low-cost, and high-precision solution for high-power device heat dissipation components. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the following described drawings are only some embodiments of this application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings.
[0015] Figure 1Flow chart of the method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper chromium niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to the embodiments of the present application.
[0016] The realization of the purpose of the present application, functional characteristics and advantages will be further described in conjunction with the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. Detailed implementation manners
[0017] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present application.
[0018] In view of the technical problems existing in the prior art, embodiments of the present application provide a method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper chromium niobium alloy based on green laser SLM, as Figure 1 shown, including the following steps: S1. Pretreat the copper chromium niobium alloy powder.
[0019] In the specific implementation process, during pretreatment, the copper chromium niobium alloy powder is sieved through a sieve with a mesh size of 180 mesh - 200 mesh to remove agglomerated particles and ultrafine powders, control the particle size distribution range of the copper chromium niobium alloy powder, and then dried in a vacuum environment or inert atmosphere at 80°C - 150°C for 2h - 4h to make the gas content of the copper chromium niobium alloy powder < 100 ppm.
[0020] The present application controls the gas content < 100 ppm (the gas content of traditional undried powder can reach 300 ppm - 500 ppm), which can significantly reduce the pore defects during printing (reduce the porosity from more than 5% to less than 1%), and combined with heat treatment in an inert atmosphere (such as argon), it can avoid copper oxidation at high temperatures (oxygen content < 500 ppm), thereby ensuring the conductivity ≥ 80% IACS.
[0021] Specifically, the mass percentage of chromium element in the copper chromium niobium alloy powder is 3.0 wt% - 4.0 wt%, and the mass percentage of niobium element is 2.0 wt% - 3.0 wt%.
[0022] The particle size of the copper chromium niobium alloy powder is 15 μm - 53 μm, the loose bulk density is 4.0 g / cm 3 - 5.0 g / cm 3 , and the fluidity ≤ 25 s / 50 g. The particle size distribution is concentrated in 15 μm - 53 μm, which can reduce the instability of the molten pool caused by the difference in particle size (such as lack of fusion or spatter), and 4.0 g / cm 3 - 5.0 g / cm 3The loose density can be adapted to the SLM powder spreading layer thickness (0.03 mm - 0.08 mm) to ensure powder spreading uniformity (with layer thickness deviation < 5%). The fluidity of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder after sieving is ≤ 25 s / 50 g (the fluidity test standard is the time for 50 g of powder to pass through a standard funnel), which can avoid uneven powder accumulation caused by agglomeration during powder spreading.
[0023] S2. Grind and sandblast the substrate to make the surface roughness Ra of the substrate ≤ 3.2 μm; coat the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on the substrate, perform selective laser melting printing with green laser, and set the printing parameters of at least two layers with different energy densities by means of hierarchical energy gradient control for hierarchical printing to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity and obtain a pre-processed part; wherein, the wavelength of the green laser is 500 nm - 550 nm, and the spot diameter is 15 μm - 30 μm.
[0024] This application uses a green laser with a wavelength of 500 nm - 550 nm, which has a higher compatibility with copper-based materials. The absorption rate of copper-based materials in the 500 nm - 550 nm band is about 40%, which is significantly higher than the absorption rate (about 5%) of traditional infrared lasers (1064 nm), and it can also reduce the laser power to 300 W - 400 W (the traditional SLM laser power ≥ 800 W), thereby reducing energy loss and oxidation risk. Moreover, the conventional SLM technology is limited by a large spot diameter of 60 μm - 70 μm, and the formed wide molten pool is prone to adhesion of unmelted powder particles, resulting in ineffective control of the surface roughness and porosity of the formed part, great difficulty in optimizing the surface quality, and difficulty in processing complex micro-channel structures. While the spot diameter of this application is 15 μm - 30 μm, which can support a micron-level molten pool (width 30 μm - 80 μm), thus realizing high-precision printing of thin walls (60 μm - 100 μm) and micro-channels (pore diameter < 200 μm).
[0025] In the specific implementation process, the powder spreading thickness is 0.03 mm - 0.08 mm, and the scanning speed is 600 mm / s - 1200 mm / s. The powder spreading thickness of 0.03 mm - 0.08 mm can ensure uniform powder spreading for each layer, reduce the lack of fusion defect (porosity < 3%), and the layer thickness matches the spot diameter (spot diameter ≈ 2 - 3 times the layer thickness), ensuring the molten pool depth and interlayer bonding strength. And a moderate scanning speed (600 mm / s - 1200 mm / s) can balance the energy input and the stability of the molten pool, avoiding lack of fusion caused by too fast speed or element volatilization caused by too slow speed.
[0026] The way of controlling by hierarchical energy gradient is specifically as follows: Set the printing parameters of three layers with different energy densities respectively, and perform hierarchical printing in sequence according to the dense layer, the transition layer and the core layer; Among them, the printing parameters of the dense layer include: laser power of 300W - 400W, scanning speed of 800mm / s - 1200mm / s, and scanning spacing of 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the transition layer include: laser power of 200W - 300W, scanning speed of 500mm / s - 800mm / s, and scanning spacing of 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the core layer include: laser power of 100W - 200W, scanning speed of 200mm / s - 500mm / s, and scanning spacing of 0.04mm - 0.09mm.
[0027] The dense layer realizes dense melting through fast scanning + high power to form a near - pore - free surface layer, improving the surface hardness (HB≥110) and wear resistance of the component. Moreover, the short - time action of high power can reduce heat accumulation, making the oxygen content <500ppm (traditional process >1000ppm); the transition layer can relieve the difference in thermal expansion coefficient between the dense layer and the core layer, reduce the stress concentration at the inter - layer interface, and achieve a smooth transition of mechanical properties and heat dissipation performance; the core layer promotes the full melting of the powder through low power + slow scanning, avoiding defects such as spherical or honeycomb - shaped unfused pores and reducing stress concentration.
[0028] Specifically, the scanning process adopts strip filling or checkerboard filling. Strip filling refers to a unidirectional scanning path, which is suitable for the rapid forming of the dense layer, reducing the turning time of the scanning head and improving efficiency; checkerboard filling refers to zonal scanning (rotation angle 67°) to disperse heat accumulation, reduce residual stress, and avoid part warping.
[0029] Specifically, the porosity of the formed dense layer is 0.5% - 3.0%, the porosity of the transition layer is 10.0% - 20.0%, and the porosity of the core layer is 20.0% - 30.0%, thus forming a pore structure with a continuous gradient distribution of porosity.
[0030] The relatively low porosity of the dense layer can form a near - pore - free surface layer to improve the surface hardness and wear resistance of high - thermal - conductivity components. The medium porosity of the transition layer can reduce the stress concentration at the inter - layer interface and achieve a smooth transition of porosity between the dense layer and the core layer. The high porosity of the core layer can increase the heat dissipation surface area. By combining a high - strength surface (dense layer) with an efficient heat - dissipating core (core layer), the thermal conductivity is increased to 350W / (m·K), achieving a balance between heat dissipation efficiency and structural strength; and the gradient pore structure effectively avoids the problem of stress concentration at the inter - layer interface, improving the fatigue life of high - thermal - conductivity components.
[0031] S3. Heat - treat the pre - processed part to obtain a high - thermal - conductivity component.
[0032] In the specific implementation process, the pre-processed part is subjected to vacuum heat treatment, the heat treatment temperature is 600°C - 900°C, and the heat preservation time is 3h - 7h.
[0033] Since in the selective laser melting process, rapid melting and cooling will cause residual stress to accumulate inside the part, and by holding at 600°C - 900°C for 3h - 7h, through atomic diffusion and dislocation recombination, the residual stress can be reduced to <50 MPa, reducing the risk of deformation and cracking of the high thermal conductivity part, and synchronously improving the thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity, and further reducing the oxygen content.
[0034] The above technical solutions of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with specific embodiments.
[0035] Example 1 A method for preparing a high thermal conductivity part of copper chromium niobium alloy based on green laser SLM includes the following steps; Step 1: Material selection and pretreatment Select CuCr4Nb2 powder prepared by gas atomization method, the composition includes: Cr 3.8 wt%, Nb 2.5 wt%, the balance is Cu and trace O (<0.05 wt%); the particle size distribution D50 = 32μm, D90 = 55μm; the loose density is 4.5g / cm 3 , and the fluidity is 22s / 50g; After passing the copper chromium niobium alloy powder through a 200-mesh sieve, it is dried in an argon atmosphere at 120°C for 3h to reduce the gas content of the copper chromium niobium alloy powder to 80 ppm.
[0036] Step 2: Substrate treatment and equipment configuration Substrate: Use a 304 stainless steel substrate, the surface is sandblasted (sand particle diameter 50μm) and the roughness Ra = 1.2μm, and preheated to 150°C to reduce thermal stress; Equipment: Select an EOS M300-4 green laser SLM equipment, the laser wavelength is 532nm, the spot diameter is 20μm, and the powder layer thickness is 0.05mm.
[0037] Step 3: Layered printing strategy Dense layer: The laser power is 380 W, the scanning speed is 1000mm / s, the scanning spacing is 0.06mm, to achieve high energy density printing of the near-surface dense layer, and the porosity is 1.5%; Transition layer: The laser power is 250 W, the scanning speed is 600 mm / s, the scanning spacing is 0.06 mm, to achieve high energy density printing of the part transition layer, and the porosity is 15%; Core layer: Laser power is 150 W, scanning speed is 300 mm / s, scanning spacing is 0.06 mm, enabling printing of high-porosity microchannels with a relatively high energy density, with a porosity of 25%; the scanning strategy is checkerboard filling.
[0038] After printing, a pore structure with a continuous gradient distribution of porosity in the dense layer - transition layer - core layer is formed to obtain a prefabricated part.
[0039] Step 4: Post-treatment and performance testing Heat treatment: Place the prefabricated part in a vacuum furnace (vacuum degree ≤ 1×10 -3 Pa), heat it to 800 °C at a rate of 8 °C / min, hold for 5 h, and then slowly cool it to room temperature at a rate of 5 °C / min to obtain a high thermal conductivity component.
[0040] Perform performance testing on the high thermal conductivity component prepared in this example, and the test results are as follows: Oxygen content: 420 ppm (measured by LECO oxygen and nitrogen analyzer); Thermal conductivity: 365 W / (m·K) (measured by laser flash method with reference to ASTM E1461 standard); Electrical conductivity: 82% IACS (measured by four-probe method); Surface roughness: Ra = 5.8 μm (detected by white light interferometer); Microhardness: HB118.
[0041] Example 2 A method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM, comprising the following steps; Step 1: Material selection and pretreatment Select CuCr4Nb2 powder prepared by gas atomization method, with the composition including: Cr 3.0 wt%, Nb 2.0 wt%, and the balance being Cu and trace O (< 0.05 wt%); the particle size distribution is D50 = 30 μm, D90 = 50 μm; the loose bulk density is 4.5 g / cm 3 , and the fluidity is 22 s / 50 g; After sieving the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder through a 180-mesh sieve, dry it in an argon atmosphere at 100 °C for 4 h to reduce the gas content of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder to 85 ppm.
[0042] Step 2: Substrate treatment and equipment configuration Substrate: Use a 304 stainless steel substrate, whose surface is sandblasted (sand particle size 50 μm) with a roughness Ra = 1.2 μm, and preheated to 150 °C to reduce thermal stress; Equipment: Select the EOS M300-4 green laser SLM equipment with a laser wavelength of 532 nm, a spot diameter of 15 μm, and a powder spreading layer thickness of 0.03 mm.
[0043] Step 3: Layered printing strategy Dense layer: Laser power is 300 W, scanning speed is 800 mm / s, scanning spacing is 0.04 mm, to achieve high-energy density printing of the near-surface dense layer with a porosity of 0.5%; Transition layer: Laser power is 200 W, scanning speed is 500 mm / s, scanning spacing is 0.04 mm, to achieve printing of the part transition layer with a relatively high energy density and a porosity of 10%; Core layer: Laser power is 100 W, scanning speed is 200 mm / s, scanning spacing is 0.04 mm, to achieve printing of high-porosity microchannels with a relatively high energy density and a porosity of 20%; The scanning strategy is checkerboard filling.
[0044] After printing, a pore structure with a continuous gradient distribution of porosity in the dense layer - transition layer - core layer is formed to obtain a pre-processed part.
[0045] Step 4: Post-processing and performance testing Heat treatment: Place the pre-processed part in a vacuum furnace (vacuum degree ≤ 1×10 -3 Pa), heat it to 900 °C at a rate of 8 °C / min, hold for 3 h, and then slowly cool to room temperature at a rate of 5 °C / min to obtain a high thermal conductivity component.
[0046] Perform performance testing on the high thermal conductivity component prepared in this example, and the test results are as follows: Oxygen content: 424 ppm (measured by a LECO oxygen and nitrogen analyzer); Thermal conductivity: 355 W / (m·K) (measured by the laser flash method with reference to the ASTM E1461 standard); Conductivity: 78% IACS (measured by the four-probe method); Surface roughness: Ra = 5.9 μm (detected by a white light interferometer); Microhardness: HB116.
[0047] Comparative experiment Control group: Use a traditional infrared laser of 1064 nm with a laser power of 1000 W, without layered printing, and the parameters of the remaining steps are the same to obtain a high thermal conductivity component. After testing, under the same parameters, its oxygen content reaches 1100 ppm and the thermal conductivity is only 280 W / (m·K).
[0048] Example 3 A method for preparing a copper-chromium-niobium alloy electric vehicle motor heat dissipation housing based on green laser SLM includes the following steps; Step 1: Material Selection and Pretreatment Select CuCr4Nb2 powder prepared by gas atomization method. The composition includes: Cr 3.5wt%, Nb 2.8wt%, and the balance is Cu and trace O (<0.05 wt%); the particle size distribution is D50 = 28μm, D90 = 52μm; the apparent density is 4.9g / cm 3 , and the fluidity is 23s / 50g; After sieving the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder through a 180-mesh sieve, dry it in a vacuum environment at 100°C for 4h to reduce the gas content of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder to 90ppm.
[0049] Step 2: Substrate Treatment and Equipment Configuration Substrate: Use a 304 stainless steel substrate. After surface sandblasting (sand grain diameter 50μm), the surface roughness Ra = 1.0μm, and preheat it to 180°C to reduce thermal stress; Equipment: Select an EOS M300-4 green laser SLM equipment, with a laser wavelength of 532nm, a spot diameter of 25μm, and a powder spreading layer thickness of 0.06mm.
[0050] Step 3: Layered Printing Strategy Dense layer: Laser power 400 W, scanning speed 1200mm / s, scanning spacing 0.09mm, to achieve high-energy density printing of the near-surface dense layer with a porosity of 3.0%; Transition layer: Laser power 300 W, scanning speed 800mm / s, scanning spacing 0.09mm, to achieve higher-energy density printing of the part transition layer with a porosity of 20%; Core layer: Laser power 200W, scanning speed 500mm / s, scanning spacing 0.09mm, to achieve higher-energy density printing of high-porosity microchannels with a porosity of 30%; the scanning strategy is checkerboard filling.
[0051] After printing, a pore structure with a continuous gradient distribution of porosity in the dense layer - transition layer - core layer is formed to obtain a prefabricated part.
[0052] Step 4: Post-treatment and Performance Testing Heat treatment: Place the prefabricated part in a vacuum furnace (vacuum degree ≤ 1×10 -3 Pa), heat it to 850°C at a rate of 8°C / min, hold for 6h, and then cool it slowly to room temperature at a rate of 5°C / min to obtain a heat dissipation housing for an electric vehicle motor.
[0053] After testing, the thermal resistance at the integrated flow channel interface of this solution is 0.01 K / W.
[0054] Comparative Experiment Control group: Traditional brazing process was used to prepare high - thermal - conductivity components for the heat - dissipation housing of electric - vehicle motors. After testing, the thermal resistance at the flow - channel interface was 0.05 K / W.
[0055] Due to the high - heat load generated during the operation of electric - vehicle motors (local temperature > 200 °C), the thermal conductivity of traditional aluminum heat - dissipation housings is insufficient, with a thermal conductivity ≤ 200 W / (m·K), resulting in a 10% - 15% decrease in motor efficiency. Using a copper - based heat - dissipation housing can improve the heat - dissipation efficiency, but the traditional casting process cannot achieve the integrated forming of internal spiral cooling channels and requires multi - part brazing assembly, leading to an increase in thermal resistance. In this embodiment, the thermal resistance of the integrated flow channel is only 0.01 K / W.
[0056] Example 4 A method for preparing copper - chromium - niobium alloy aerospace lightweight support components based on green - laser SLM includes the following steps; Step 1: Material selection and pretreatment Select CuCr4Nb2 powder prepared by gas atomization, with the composition including: Cr 4.0 wt%, Nb 3.0 wt%, and the balance being Cu and trace O (< 0.05 wt%); the particle - size distribution D50 = 35 μm, D90 = 53 μm; the loose - powder density is 5.0 g / cm 3 , and the fluidity is 25 s / 50 g; After passing the copper - chromium - niobium alloy powder through a 200 - mesh sieve, it is dried in a vacuum environment at 100 °C for 4 h to reduce the gas content of the copper - chromium - niobium alloy powder to 90 ppm.
[0057] Step 2: Substrate treatment and equipment configuration Substrate: A 304 stainless - steel substrate is used. After surface sandblasting (sand - grain diameter 50 μm), the surface roughness Ra = 1.0 μm, and it is pre - heated to 180 °C to reduce thermal stress; Equipment: An EOS M300 - 4 green - laser SLM equipment is selected, with a laser wavelength of 532 nm, a spot diameter of 25 μm, and a powder - spreading layer thickness of 0.06 mm.
[0058] Step 3: Layer - by - layer printing strategy Dense layer: Laser power 400 W, scanning speed 1100 mm / s, scanning pitch 0.09 mm, to achieve high - energy - density printing of the near - surface dense layer with a porosity of 1.0%; Transition layer: Laser power 250 W, scanning speed 700 mm / s, scanning pitch 0.09 mm, to achieve higher - energy - density printing of the part transition layer with a porosity of 15%; Core layer (porous region): Laser power 100 W, scanning speed 200 mm / s, scanning pitch 0.09 mm, to achieve higher - energy - density printing of high - porosity micro - channels with a porosity of 30%; During the process, the temperature of the molten pool is real-time fed back by an infrared thermal imager. When the detected local temperature > 1450 °C, the power is automatically reduced by 10%; and the scanning strategy is dynamically switched according to the geometric features of the part (strip filling for dense areas and honeycomb filling for porous areas). After printing, a pore structure with a continuous gradient distribution of porosity in the dense layer - transition layer - core layer is formed to obtain a pre-processed part.
[0059] Step 4: Post-treatment and performance testing Heat treatment: The pre-processed part is placed in a vacuum furnace (vacuum degree ≤ 1×10 -3 Pa), heated to 850 °C at a rate of 8 °C / min, held for 6 h, and then slowly cooled to room temperature at a rate of 5 °C / min to obtain an aerospace lightweight support component.
[0060] The performance test results are as follows: Density: 5.2 g / cm³ (weight reduction of 40% compared to the solid structure); Tensile strength: 420 MPa; Thermal conductivity: 320 W / (m·K).
[0061] Since the thermal conductivity of the traditional aluminum honeycomb structure ≤ 200 W / (m·K), and the tensile strength < 300 MPa, while the lightweight support component prepared in this embodiment can increase the strength by 40%, improve the heat dissipation efficiency by 60%, and avoid the risk of interface failure of dissimilar materials.
[0062] In summary, the present application prepares copper-chromium-niobium alloy components through the green laser SLM process. By precisely melting copper alloy powder with a small spot of green laser, high-efficiency melting of copper alloy at low power is achieved, overcoming the problem of high reflectivity of copper, increasing the laser absorption rate of copper-based alloys to about 40%, and avoiding element volatilization caused by traditional infrared laser high-power printing (≥1000W). The prepared copper-chromium-niobium alloy components have a thermal conductivity ≥ 350 W / (m·K), which is more than 35% higher than that of the traditional infrared laser process (thermal conductivity ≤ 280 W / (m·K)); and the electrical conductivity ≥ 80% IACS (International Annealed Copper Standard), which is 14% higher than that of the traditional infrared laser process (electrical conductivity < 70% IACS), significantly reducing the Joule heat loss during the operation of electronic devices; and based on the characteristics of the green laser with low power (100W - 400W) of the present application, the oxygen content of the prepared high-thermal-conductivity components can be controlled below 500 ppm, avoiding the deterioration of electrical conductivity caused by the relatively high oxygen content (oxygen content > 1000 ppm) of traditional high-power lasers; and the present application adopts a hierarchical energy density gradient control technology to carry out pore connectivity design and heat dissipation structure optimization. By coordinating the laser power and printing speed, the local pore distribution of the printed parts is precisely regulated. A dense layer is formed near the surface of the radiator to improve strength, and a high porosity is maintained in the core to optimize the heat exchange area. By smoothly regulating the interlayer porosity, the problem of interlayer interface stress concentration is effectively avoided, realizing a continuous gradient pore structure from the dense layer to the core layer. The microhardness of the heat-treated high-thermal-conductivity components is ≥ HB110, which is 50% higher than that of traditional cast copper alloys (HB60 - HB80), meeting the wear resistance requirements and heat dissipation requirements of high-load heat dissipation components; and the green laser spot diameter of the present application is 15μm - 30μm. The width of the molten pool can be precisely controlled within 30μm - 80μm by a small-spot laser, thereby improving the forming accuracy of the parts, supporting the processing of thin-wall structures with a thickness of 60μm - 100μm, breaking through the limit of the traditional SLM process (minimum forming size ≥ 200μm), and eliminating the need for subsequent finishing treatment, saving processing costs.
[0063] The above are only optional embodiments of the present application, and do not limit the patent scope of the present application accordingly. Any equivalent structural transformation made under the inventive concept of the present application by using the content of the specification and drawings of the present application, or any direct / indirect application in other related technical fields is included in the patent protection scope of the present application.
Claims
1. A method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: Pre-treat the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder; Lay the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on a substrate, and perform selective laser melting printing with green laser. Set the printing parameters of at least two layers with different energy densities by means of hierarchical energy gradient control, and perform hierarchical printing to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity, so as to obtain a pre-processed part; wherein, the wavelength of the green laser is 500nm - 550nm, and the spot diameter is 15μm - 30μm; Heat-treat the pre-processed part to obtain a high thermal conductivity component.
2. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein, In the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder, the mass percentage of chromium element is 3.0wt% - 4.0wt%, and the mass percentage of niobium element is 2.0wt% - 3.0wt%.
3. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein The particle size of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder is 15μm - 53μm, and the apparent density is 4.0g / cm 3 - 5.0g / cm 3 , and the fluidity ≤ 25s / 50g.
4. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper chromium niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of pre-treating the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder includes: After passing the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder through a sieve with 180 - 200 meshes, dry it in a vacuum environment or inert atmosphere at 80℃ - 150℃ for 2h - 4h, so that the gas content of the copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder < 100ppm.
5. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein In the step of laying the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on the substrate, the powder laying thickness is 0.03mm - 0.08mm, and the scanning speed is 600mm / s - 1200mm / s.
6. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein, Before the step of laying the pre-treated copper-chromium-niobium alloy powder on the substrate, it further includes: Grind and sandblast the substrate to make the surface roughness Ra of the substrate ≤ 3.2μm.
7. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein In the step of setting the printing parameters of at least two layers with different energy densities by means of hierarchical energy gradient control and performing hierarchical printing to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity, it includes: Set the printing parameters of three layers with different energy densities respectively, and perform hierarchical printing in sequence according to the dense layer, transition layer and core layer to form a pore structure with a continuously gradient distribution of porosity; Among them, the printing parameters of the dense layer include: laser power is 300W - 400W, scanning speed is 800mm / s - 1200mm / s, and scanning pitch is 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the transition layer include: laser power is 200W - 300W, scanning speed is 500mm / s - 800mm / s, and scanning pitch is 0.04mm - 0.09mm; The printing parameters of the core layer include: laser power is 100W - 200W, scanning speed is 200mm / s - 500mm / s, and scanning pitch is 0.04mm - 0.09mm.
8. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of a copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 7, wherein The porosity of the dense layer is 0.5% - 3.0%, the porosity of the transition layer is 10.0% - 20.0%, and the porosity of the core layer is 20.0% - 30.0%.
9. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper chromium niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 7, characterized in that, In the hierarchical energy gradient control method, the scanning process adopts strip filling or checkerboard filling.
10. The method for preparing a high thermal conductivity component of copper-chromium-niobium alloy based on green laser SLM according to claim 1, wherein, The step of heat-treating the pre-processed part to obtain a high thermal conductivity component includes: Perform vacuum heat treatment on the pre-processed part, the heat treatment temperature is 600℃ - 900℃, and the holding time is 3h - 7h.
Citation Information
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