Amidst the frescoed halls of the University of Pavia, with a history spanning more than six centuries, the 5th International Conference on Simulation for Additive Manufacturing (Sim-AM 2025) gathered researchers and industry experts to exchange ideas on the future of AM.
At this event, Raveeshankar Sambathkumar from the Process simulation team of Access e.V. presented our contribution:
“Numerical investigations of Dual-laser strategies in Laser Powder Bed Fusion Process”
Our work focused on how time- and space-controlled dual-laser strategies influence solidification conditions and microstructure evolution. Key insights were drawn from:
- Solidification maps, melt pool dimensions, and temperature histories, which together provide a multi-scale view of how process parameters shape solidification dynamics.
- Coupling enthalpy-based heat conduction models with a cellular automaton for grain growth in our in-house software AMMAP, enabling us to directly connect thermal history with evolving microstructure.
- Benchmarking against particle-resolved STAR-CCM+ simulations, ensuring that simplified approaches capture essential physics while being validated against high-fidelity references.
This work opens pathways toward:
- Next-gen dual-laser additive systems – where timing and positioning of multiple beams become design variables to actively steer solidification.
- Data-driven, real-time process control – enabling monitoring and adjustment of solidification conditions as the build evolves.
- Digital twins with solidification-based insights – linking process simulations directly to microstructure predictions for more reliable virtual certification.
Broader takeaways from Sim-AM 2025:
- Accurate data is essential for building the future of AM.
- Collaboration between simulation and experimental research drives real progress.
- Benchmarking is the ideal way forward in standardizing AM practices.
Sharing forward-looking AM research in halls that have stood for centuries was both humbling and inspiring — a reminder that today’s innovations will form the heritage of tomorrow. We are looking forward to continuing this journey in AM simulation, advancing methods that connect process parameters, solidification conditions, and microstructure control.
A sincere thank you to the organizers and community for the inspiring discussions at #SimAM2025
