Original Article

Effect of scanning strategy on stress of selective laser melting Mg-Y-Sm-Zn-Zr Alloy

School of Metallurgical Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, Shaanxi, P.R. China

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Received: 7 October 2025
Accepted: 5 March 2025

Abstract

A sequentially coupled thermal-structural 3D finite element model was developed. The effects of four interlayer rotation angles (0°, 37°, 67°, 90°) on the thermal process, residual stress, and final deformation of Mg-Y-Sm-Zn-Zr alloy parts formed by SLM were studied. The SLMed samples of rare earth magnesium alloy were characterized by experiments. The reliability of the model was tested by comparing the morphology and path of the molten pool of SLMed samples. The findings of the research show that interlayer rotation scanning can reduce the residual stress difference in the X and Y directions. The lowest values of the average equivalent stress, S11 stress, and S22 stress were found in the 37° rotating scan, with values of 69.66, 55.38, and 54.23 MPa, respectively. Simultaneously, it exhibited the lowest Z-direction deflection. According to the simulation results, the 37° rotating scan is the optimal choice among the four scanning strategies.