The laser engineered net shaping (LENS®) process is shown here as an alternative to melting, casting, and powder metallurgy for manufacturingiron aluminides. This technique was found to allow for the production ofFeAl and Fe3Al phases from mixtures of elemental iron and aluminum powders. Theinsitusynthesis reduces the manufacturing cost and enhances the manufacturing efficiency due to the control of the chemical and phase composition of the deposited layers. The research was carried out on samples with different chemical compositionsthat were deposited on the intermetallic substrates that were produced by powder metallurgy. The obtained samples withthe desired phase composition illustrated that LENS® technology can be successfully applied to alloys synthesis.
Keywords: Fe3Al; FeAl; LENS; additive manufacturing; intermetallics; synthesis.