Full-Scale High-Load, Thermal, and Fatigue Testing of Additive Manufactured Powder Bed Fusion Component for Oil Field Applications

ABSTRACT:

As the usage of additive manufacturing (AM) expands into more critical applications, the need to establish confidence in the expected performance and reliability of AM components also becomes more critical. Significant research and efforts have been made public related to the qualification of AM components for aerospace and medical applications; however, very little information has been presented with regard to the use of AM within the oil and gas industry. The harsh and demanding environments of oil and natural gas production present unique and challenging conditions for AM components to withstand. To help address this lack of information, a case study AM component was created to showcase the types of features that can be created using the AM process while designing for oil field conditions. An Alloy 625 laser powder bed fusion printed component was created and analyzed via a finite element model (FEM) and then statically load tested and fatigue tested to simulate typical oil field conditions. Various properties, including hardness, were documented along with the microstructure. Corrosion testing was also performed to compare the critical pitting temperature of the Alloy 625 AM material to a traditional wrought Alloy 625 material. Full-scale tests performed included axial compression loading to more than 80,000 lb, rotational bending fatigue testing to more than 10 million cycles, combined load testing of 5,000 ft·lb torque and bending, flame impingement, and rapid cryogenic temperature cyclizing. After each testing stage, the part was inspected for crack indications. The compression test was monitored using advanced digital image correlation (DIC) to monitor the strain deformation of the part during testing. The results of the testing were compared to the FEM using the DIC data and found to be in good agreement.

Sanders M. , Rowe A. , and Divi, S. , “Full-Scale High-Load, Thermal, and Fatigue Testing of Additive Manufactured Powder Bed Fusion Component for Oil Field Applications,” in ASTM Structural Integrity of Additive Manufactured Materials & Parts, Paper #STP163120190164.