Powder bed based additive manufacturing processes belong to the key technologies of the future. They allow the production of complex shaped components from powder with nearly no waste. However, to optimise the process and the properties of the components, it is fundamental to identify reasonable process windows, ensuring part integrity and stable mechanical properties without giving up too much flexibility in the additive manufacturing process.

The aim of the project was to establish a full software set, which allows the prediction of resulting mechanical properties of materials produced by additive manufacturing processes as a function of process parameters. In order to realise this task, we coupled three simulation tools covering all the essential physical mechanisms on relevant length- and time-scales: The melting, initial grain structure and orientation formation of the powder particles upon laser or electron beam interaction will be simulated via Lattice-Boltzmann approaches; the initial microstructure formation during rapid dendritic solidification at micrometer-dendritic arm-spacing length and solidification time-scales will be covered by the phase-field module; the thermo-mechanical behaviour of the resulting grain structure at heat-treatment-time-scales will be simulated using a crystal plasticity Finite Element simulation module.

Furthermore, the development of the simulation models were be accompanied by experiments to define essential material parameters and to calibrate, validate and optimize the derived models. SIMCHAIN was an innovative and unique approach to build a ready to use software set in order to predict the influence of various process parameters on the resulting mechanical properties during additive manufacturing processes. SIMCHAIN prepared the ground for robust process design, as an important step towards design-driven manufacturing for future aero engines parts optimized in weight and function.