Aluminum alloys are widely used in metal additive manufacturing due to their low density, good thermal conductivity, and high specific strength. In industrial Laser Powder Bed Fusion, or LPBF, AlSi10Mg remains the established standard because it offers reliable processability and balanced mechanical properties. AlSi10Mg is also the primary aluminum alloy used at MATERIA. Depending on the application, other aluminum alloys can be processed or specifically qualified through dedicated material and process development.

Why New Aluminum Alloys Are Needed

Many conventional high-strength alloys from the 2xxx, 6xxx, and 7xxx series are difficult to process by LPBF. Rapid cooling, steep thermal gradients, and repeated heat cycles can cause hot cracking, residual stresses, and strongly directional microstructures.

Current research therefore focuses on alloys designed specifically for additive manufacturing. Instead of adapting only the process parameters, alloy composition, solidification behavior, and heat treatment are developed together.

Grain Refinement and Crack Prevention

A key approach is the addition of elements such as zirconium, scandium, erbium, or titanium. These elements can form fine Al₃X particles that act as nucleation sites during solidification. The resulting finer and more equiaxed grain structure can reduce hot cracking and improve the uniformity of the mechanical properties.

A 2025 study on an Al-Zr-Er-Ni alloy demonstrated the potential of this approach. By optimizing the alloy composition with computational methods, the researchers increased elongation in the as-built condition from 0.9% to approximately 19%, while maintaining a tensile strength of around 279 MPa.

Aluminum for Higher Temperatures

Another research focus is the development of aluminum alloys for operating temperatures above approximately 200 °C. Recent studies use thermally stable intermetallic phases and nanoscale cellular structures to limit the loss of strength at elevated temperatures. An Al-La-Sc-Zr alloy, for example, achieved a yield strength of approximately 250 MPa at 300 °C.

A further alloy introduced in 2026 combined Fe-, Mn-, Ni-, and Si-containing phases and reached an average tensile strength of approximately 582 MPa in the as-built condition.

Recycling-Oriented Alloy Design

Recycling is also becoming part of alloy development. Iron is usually treated as an undesirable impurity in aluminum. However, a 2025 study showed that the rapid solidification of LPBF can be used to form fine, metastable Al₆Fe phases. Instead of removing iron, the element was integrated into the alloy design. Such concepts could make future aluminum alloys more tolerant to impurities typically found in recycled feedstock.

Outlook

AlSi10Mg will remain an important industrial alloy due to its robust processing characteristics. However, current research shows that future aluminum alloys will be increasingly designed around the specific conditions of additive manufacturing. The main targets are higher strength, improved ductility, reduced cracking, increased temperature resistance, and better compatibility with recycled materials.

Additive manufacturing is therefore not only changing how aluminum components are produced. It is also changing how aluminum alloys themselves are developed.

Selected References