Anisotropic Thermal Conductivity of Nickel-Based Superalloy CM247LC Fabricated via Selective Laser Melting

Efforts to enhance thermal efficiency of turbines by increasing the turbine inlet temperature have been further accelerated by the introduction of 3D printing to turbine components as complex cooling geometry can be implemented using this technique. However, as opposed to the properties of materials fabricated by conventional methods, the properties of materials manufactured by 3D printing are not isotropic. In this study, we analyzed the anisotropic thermal conductivity of nickel-based superalloy CM247LC manufactured by selective laser melting (SLM). We found that as the density decreases, so does the thermal conductivity. In addition, the anisotropy in thermal conductivity is more pronounced at lower densities. It was confirmed that the samples manufactured with low energy density have the same electron thermal conductivity with respect to the orientation, but the lattice thermal conductivity was about 16.5% higher in the in-plane direction than in the cross-plane direction. This difference in anisotropic lattice thermal conductivity is proportional to the difference in square root of elastic modulus. We found that ellipsoidal pores contributed to a direction-dependent elastic modulus, resulting in anisotropy in thermal conductivity. The results of this study should be beneficial not only for designing next-generation gas turbines, but also for any system produced by 3D printing.