Run an SLM Analysis

Run an SLM additive manufacturing analysis for the selcted print parts.

Before running a selective laser melting analysis, you must first select the parts to be printed, set up the printer, and define the part orientation and supports.
  1. Click the button on the Analyze icon.
  2. Specify the process parameters. Use the Fast/Accurate slider to set your preference between speed and accuracy.
  3. Click Run to begin the analysis.
    The run may take several minutes to several hours to complete, depending on the complexity of the model and the accuracy setting. If the run is completed successfully, a green flag will appear over the Analyze icon. If unsuccessful, a red flag will appear instead.
  4. Click the green flag or double-click the run name in the Run Status window to view the results.
Tip:
  • Click on the Analyze icon to view the run status. Runs that are being processed or that have not been viewed are shown in the Run Status table.
  • Click on the Analyze icon to view the run history. Runs that have been viewed previously are shown in the Run History table.
  • The icon indicates that the run was incomplete. Some but not all of the result types may be available. You should run a new analysis to generate complete results.
  • To view multiple runs, hold the Ctrl key while selecting runs, then click the View Now button. If several runs are associated with the same part, the result from the most recently completed run for that part will be activated in the modeling window.
  • To open the directory where a run is stored, right-click the run name and select Open Run Folder.

Process Parameters

Process parameters impact what result types are available at the end of the simulation, as well as the processing time and accuracy of results.

Analysis type
The analysis type determines what result types will be available at the end of the simulation. Selecting Inherent Strain will generate results for displacement and Von Mises stress. Selecting Pure Thermal will generate results for temperature and nodal temperature. Selecting thermo-mechanical will also generate results for displacement, plastic strain, and von Mises stress. Inherent Strain and Thermal analysis are much faster, as thermo-mechanical analysis requires more processing time due to the greater number of results types.
Note: Velocity, Laser power, Powder Absorption, Cooling time, and the Fast/Accurate slider are not available for the Inherent Strain analysis type. Supports thickness, Calibrations, and Inherent Strain Vector are not available for the Pure Thermal and Thermomechanical analysis types.
Velocity
The velocity of the 3D printer laser. This information is unique to the printer model and should be available from your 3D printer.
Laser power
The power of the 3D printer laser. This information is unique to the printer model and should be available from your 3D printer.
Supports thickness (inherent strain only)
The thickness of a printed support's outer shell. The number will depend on the printer being used.
Calibrations (inherent strain only)
Enable this option to select available calibrations from the dropdown menu.
Powder layer thickness
For powder-based 3D printing processes, this indicates the thickness of the powder layer that is spread across the printing bed. This information is unique to the printer model and should be available from your 3D printer.
Powder absorption

The powder absorption in the z-direction is a property of the powder. It depends on the material as well as the grain sizes and grain shape, as well as the grain distribution after spreading.

The energy powder absorption is the fraction of energy really used to melt the powder, the rest is reflected and then lost. It can also be seen as the efficiency of the laser powder interaction.

If the powder absorption is unknown, it should be calibrated so that the temperature at activation time is close to the temperature in the melt pool. As an example, for titanium the melting temperature is about 1800K, whereas the temperature in the melt pool is close to 2300K. A pure thermal dilatation will help to quickly determine the right value.

Cooling time
Cooling time is the time needed after printing for the part to cool before cutting it from the base plate. This information is unique to the printer model and should be available from your 3D printer.
Base temperature
The temperature of the printer base plate.
Inherent Strain Vector (inherent strain only)
This represents a symmetric tensor written in vector form, with components [XX, YY, ZZ, XY, XZ, YZ]. The values in these fields represent the material's shrinkage in all directions as it cools.
Note: These parameters are only available for Inherent Strain analyses in which the Calibrations option is not selected.
Average thickness
The simulations results are shown as a voxel mesh. You can enter either an average thickness or an element size for the mesh.
Element size
If you choose to define the voxel mesh in terms of element size, enter a length and height. A good starting point is generally 1 x 1 mm. Reducing the voxel size improves accuracy, but increases the time of the analysis.
Fast/Accurate
Drag the slider to set the desired balance between speed and accuracy for the simulation. There are three positions that use different numerical parameters when running the solver: Fast, Intermediate, and Accurate.