Stabilizing 3D-printed metal alloys A design strategy overcomes the strength-ductility trade-off in alloy manufacturing

Three-dimensional (3D) printing, also known as additive manufacturing, continues to reshape industries, including metals production. Among its advantages are decreasing the time and costs for creating intricate metal parts and increasing customization. However, the technology still faces challenges in achieving uniform mechanical properties in 3D-printed metallic alloys. On page 639 of this issue, Zhang et al. (1) report a design strategy for printing a robust titanium alloy. The authors show that the addition of molybdenum (Mo) to the powder metal mixture enhances phase stability and improves the strength, ductility, and uniformity of tensile properties of the 3D-printed alloy. The approach could potentially be applied to other powder mixtures and enable the customization of different alloys with enhanced properties.