On the residual stress measurements for Wire-Arc Additive Manufactured (WAAM-ed) engineering components

Additive manufacturing methods like Wire-Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) open a new field to reduce manufacturing costs and minimising waste for various components in the civil engineering and construction sector. High deposition rates and lack of limitations in large, complex build sizes promote WAAM over other metal additive manufacturing technologies for this sector. Furthermore, the ability to produce novel and individual geometries of structural parts enable unseen design possibilities for architects, and potential structural and corrosive improvements in critical areas are unique properties of additive manufacturing. Currently, the lack of studies and standardisation is holding this technology back from finding a broad industrial application. Especially the insufficient knowledge of the residual stress state within build components in both experimental and simulations. Expecting a strong texture with large grain sizes, this research evaluates the residual stress state utilising the contour method. Special focus is given on the influence of data processing during the analysis to provide recommendations and in consequence improve understanding of residual stress measurement challenges arising with large-scale WAAM components.