The direct laser sintering process is currently being used to manufacture metallic parts for prototyping and tooling directly. This paper reports on the direct laser sintering of Fe—Cu metal powder using a 200 W CO2 laser. The effects of the ratio of Fe to Cu, the scan speed and atmosphere on the distortion, surface morphology and surface roughness have been investigated. The experiment also investigated the role of adding W particles to the Fe—Cu mixture. The result shows that adding W particles can reduce part distortion. To find the effect of gas protection in laser sintering, the three-dimensional specimens fabricated in both air and N2 atmosphere are also compared.
