Texture evolution in stainless steel processed by selective laser melting and annealing

This work analyses the texture and microstructure gradients emerging in a 316L stainless steel processed by selective laser melting, using an island scan strategy, followed by annealing. Laser processing leads to the alignment of different crystallographic directions with the build direction at the mid and top layers, as well as to gradual structural coarsening. Annealing triggers discontinuous recrystallisation at highly strained regions, such as grain boundaries and laser track centre lines, resulting in the onset of new texture gradients. The development of the mentioned texture gradients is rationalised based on a competition between thermal gradient-driven growth and epitaxial growth.