Preliminary Study of the Wire Filler Selection of Gas Metal Arc Welding-Additive Manufacturing (GMAW-AM) on Aluminum Alloys

Abstract:

Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) with the Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) method has a high deposit rate. It is more efficient and capable of producing small and medium-sized components economically. In addition to parameter selection, the WAAM process is also influenced by the choice of the filler wire types to determine the process stability, quality of the results, and desired dimensions. Filler wire selection in the WAAM process is important because it uses aluminum alloys commonly used in ER4043 and ER5356 fillers. This research method employs experiments using ER4043 and ER5356 filler wires and AA6061 substrate to determine suitable parameters for a stable WAAM process. It then measures bead dimensions, surface roughness, and tests for damage-free operation using dye penetrant. The experimental results obtained using the ER4043 wire with a diameter of 1 mm, a current of 80 A, and a voltage of 14 V were unstable. In contrast, using the ER5356 filler, the stable experimental process. The arc length affects the bead geometry. Some of the impacts that occur due to the arc length are defects such as porosity, protrusions, and collapse areas in the final bead area, as well as the absence of fusion defects on the bead edges.

• Periodical: Key Engineering Materials (Volume 1058)
• Pages: 111-125
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-lCcPU5
• Online since: June 2026
• Authors: Agus Sifa, Ario Sunar Baskoro*, Gandjar Kiswanto, Sugeng Supriadi, Winarto Winarto
• Keywords: Dye Penetrant Test, ER4043, ER5356, GMAW-AM, Surface Roughness

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