Fatigue behavior of 316L stainless steel fabricated via Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing

Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing (MEAM) is a novel technique that widens the field of additive manufacturing applications in producing metal parts. There is limited knowledge about the process-induced properties of the metal parts obtained with such a process, especially when dealing with cyclic loading. The present work aims to assess the fatigue life of 316L components fabricated via MEAM, investigating the fatigue failure mechanisms. The resulting S-N curve shows a lower fatigue limit compared to wrought 316L. Internal defects are detrimental to the fatigue life since crack initiation sites are observed from the pores resulting from the deposition strategy of the material during the printing phase.