Abstract
The processing of refractory metals via additive manufacturing (AM) presents an opportunity to fabricate
components not possible through traditional powder metallurgy techniques. However, processing via AM is
extremely challenging and there exist a host of technological limitations still unaddressed. Molybdenum
and tungsten are two materials of particular interest for nuclear energy generation applications. The
majority of existing work on the processing of these materials is focused on laser powder bed fusion whereas
a smaller body of work exists for electron beam melting AM. In general, material with acceptable density
can be obtained via both routes however cracking is much more difficult to mitigate against. Strong
crystallographic fiber textures have been observed across a range of refractory systems. In this work we
present our recent findings on electron beam melting AM of pure tungsten and molybdenum. We
demonstrate that defect-free material can be obtained in both systems with appropriate processing. Strong
build direction crystallographic texture fi bers are observed in both systems. In molybdenum the fiber
texture has direct impact on the resulting tensile behavior. These results demonstrate that electron beam
AM is a suitable technology for processing these difficult to fabricate materials.
