{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,15]],"date-time":"2025-12-15T10:09:22Z","timestamp":1765793362975,"version":"3.48.0"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,9]],"date-time":"2025-12-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1765238400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Fundac\u0327\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia","award":["PTDC\/CTM-CTM\/3354\/2021"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PTDC\/CTM-CTM\/3354\/2021"]}]},{"name":"Fundac\u0327\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia","award":["2024.01800.BD"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024.01800.BD"]}]},{"name":"Fundac\u0327\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia","award":["UID\/04540"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UID\/04540"]}]},{"name":"ISQ","award":["03\/C05-i02\/2022"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["03\/C05-i02\/2022"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Metals"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Metal additive manufacturing (AM) offers promising advancements in producing implants with complex geometry for biomedical applications, where accuracy and near-net-shape production are essential. Metal AM by laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB) is a promising route to produce biodegradable iron implants made of complex lattice structures. However, processing windows for pure iron remain poorly defined. This work focuses on optimizing PBF-LB parameters for pure iron using a design of experiments (DoE) approach on bulk samples of different geometries to evaluate different parameters. Hatch laser power, scanning speed, hatch distance and point distance were varied and their effect on porosity, surface roughness and dimensional accuracy was evaluated. This was followed by the fabrication of rhombitruncated cuboctahedron (RTCO) lattice structures with the best parameters previously defined for the bulk samples. The best parameter set (hatch laser power 180 W, scanning speed 600 mm\/s, hatch distance 110 \u00b5m and point distance 12 \u00b5m, corresponding to a volumetric energy density of 90.9 J\/mm3) produced bulk samples with a porosity as low as 0.07% (99.93% density) measured in polished sections. Using these parameters, RTCO lattices with designed relative densities of 10.28%, 35.29% and 65.16% were successfully manufactured with small geometric deviations and good control of strut thickness and relative density. The results of this study define a robust PBF-LB processing window for pure iron and demonstrate the feasibility of producing geometrically controlled, biodegradable iron lattice structures suitable for future load-bearing biomedical applications.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/met15121355","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,9]],"date-time":"2025-12-09T16:53:33Z","timestamp":1765299213000},"page":"1355","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Selection of Processing Parameters in Laser Powder Bed Fusion for the Production of Iron Cellular Structures"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4848-2614","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pedro","family":"Nogueira","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"CeFEMA, Center of Physics and Engineering of Advanced Materials, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7376-8104","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jo\u00e3o P. G.","family":"Magrinho","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0957-9595","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rodolfo L.","family":"Batalha","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ISQ\u2014Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Avenida Professor Dr. Cavaco Silva 33 Taguspark, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, Portugal"},{"name":"Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Set\u00fabal, ESTSet\u00fabal, Campus IPS, 2910-761 Set\u00fabal, Portugal"},{"name":"ENIDH\u2014Escola N\u00e1utica Infante D. Henrique, 2770-058 Pa\u00e7o de Arcos, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Maria J.","family":"Rosa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ISQ\u2014Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Avenida Professor Dr. Cavaco Silva 33 Taguspark, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Ana","family":"Cabral","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ISQ\u2014Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Avenida Professor Dr. Cavaco Silva 33 Taguspark, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Paulo J.","family":"Morais","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ISQ\u2014Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Avenida Professor Dr. Cavaco Silva 33 Taguspark, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9848-9569","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Luis","family":"Reis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8567-0032","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Catarina","family":"Santos","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Set\u00fabal, ESTSet\u00fabal, Campus IPS, 2910-761 Set\u00fabal, Portugal"},{"name":"CQE, IMS, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0110-187X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria J.","family":"Carmezim","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Set\u00fabal, ESTSet\u00fabal, Campus IPS, 2910-761 Set\u00fabal, Portugal"},{"name":"CQE, IMS, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4773-1957","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ricardo","family":"Cl\u00e1udio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"Instituto Polit\u00e9cnico de Set\u00fabal, ESTSet\u00fabal, Campus IPS, 2910-761 Set\u00fabal, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0451-6245","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Augusto Moita de","family":"Deus","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CeFEMA, Center of Physics and Engineering of Advanced Materials, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5284-8391","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Beatriz","family":"Silva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1629-523X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria F\u00e1tima","family":"Vaz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IDMEC, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Instituto Superior T\u00e9cnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pmatsci.2017.10.001","article-title":"Additive manufacturing of metallic components\u2014Process, structure and properties","volume":"92","author":"DebRoy","year":"2018","journal-title":"Prog. Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"375","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmapro.2021.12.033","article-title":"A comprehensive review on laser powder bed fusion of steels: Processing, microstructure, defects and control methods, mechanical properties, current challenges and future trends","volume":"75","author":"Narasimharaju","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Manuf. Process."},{"key":"ref_3","first-page":"2109","article-title":"Laser powder bed fusion: A state-of-the-art review of the technology, materials, properties & defects, and numerical modelling","volume":"20","author":"Chowdhury","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Technol."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"311","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmapro.2023.06.004","article-title":"Additive manufacturing process parameter determination for a new Fe-C-Cu alloy","volume":"101","author":"Bobel","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Manuf. Process."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Bassoli, E., Sola, A., Celesti, M., Calcagnile, S., and Cavallini, C. (2018). Development of Laser-Based Powder Bed Fusion Process Parameters and Scanning Strategy for New Metal Alloy Grades: A Holistic Method Formulation. Materials, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/ma11122356"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"116788","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmatprotec.2020.116788","article-title":"Effect of processing parameters on surface roughness, porosity and cracking of as-built IN738LC parts fabricated by laser powder bed fusion","volume":"285","author":"Guo","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Mater. Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_7","first-page":"275","article-title":"Process development and impact of intrinsic heat treatment on the mechanical performance of selective laser melted AISI 4140","volume":"28","author":"Damon","year":"2019","journal-title":"Addit. Manuf."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"107246","DOI":"10.1016\/j.optlastec.2021.107246","article-title":"Optimization of surface roughness and dimensional accuracy in LPBF additive manufacturing","volume":"142","author":"Cao","year":"2021","journal-title":"Opt. Laser Technol."},{"key":"ref_9","first-page":"2217","article-title":"Compression properties of cellular iron lattice structures used to mimic bone characteristics","volume":"238","author":"Nogueira","year":"2024","journal-title":"Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng. L J. Mater. Des. Appl."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Krakhmalev, P., Fredriksson, G., Svensson, K., Yadroitsev, I., Yadroitsava, I., Thuvander, M., and Peng, R. (2018). Microstructure, Solidification Texture, and Thermal Stability of 316 L Stainless Steel Manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion. Metals, 8.","DOI":"10.3390\/met8080643"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"98","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matdes.2018.02.018","article-title":"A critical review of powder-based additive manufacturing of ferrous alloys: Process parameters, microstructure and mechanical properties","volume":"144","author":"Fayazfar","year":"2018","journal-title":"Mater. Des."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"138633","DOI":"10.1016\/j.msea.2019.138633","article-title":"Steels in additive manufacturing: A review of their microstructure and properties","volume":"772","author":"Bajaj","year":"2020","journal-title":"Mater. Sci. Eng. A"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Qu, S., Ding, J., and Song, X. (2021). Achieving triply periodic minimal surface thin-walled structures by micro laser powder bed fusion process. Micromachines, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/mi12060705"},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"117366","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmatprotec.2021.117366","article-title":"Understanding the effect of scanning strategies on the microstructure and crystallographic texture of Ti-6Al-4V alloy manufactured by laser powder bed fusion","volume":"299","author":"Liu","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110779","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matdes.2022.110779","article-title":"Review of high-strength aluminium alloys for additive manufacturing by laser powder bed fusion","volume":"219","author":"Rometsch","year":"2022","journal-title":"Mater. Des."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110460","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matdes.2022.110460","article-title":"Effect of laser scanning speed on the microstructure, phase transformation and mechanical property of NiTi alloys fabricated by LPBF","volume":"215","author":"Guo","year":"2022","journal-title":"Mater. Des."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"117542","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmatprotec.2022.117542","article-title":"Correlation between microstructure heterogeneity and multi-scale mechanical behavior of hybrid LPBF-DED Inconel 625","volume":"303","author":"Martin","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_18","first-page":"498","article-title":"Material-property evaluation of magnesium alloys fabricated using wire-and-arc-based additive manufacturing","volume":"24","author":"Takagi","year":"2018","journal-title":"Addit. Manuf."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"609","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2019.10.034","article-title":"Additively manufactured biodegradable porous zinc","volume":"101","author":"Li","year":"2020","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"451","DOI":"10.1016\/j.optlastec.2013.09.017","article-title":"Microstructure and tensile properties of iron parts fabricated by selective laser melting","volume":"56","author":"Song","year":"2014","journal-title":"Opt. Laser Technol."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"616","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmatprotec.2003.11.051","article-title":"Selective laser melting of iron-based powder","volume":"149","author":"Kruth","year":"2004","journal-title":"J. Mater. Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"117705","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmatprotec.2022.117705","article-title":"A new strategy for metal additive manufacturing using an economical water-atomized iron powder for laser powder bed fusion","volume":"308","author":"Im","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Process. Technol."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Rabeeh, V.P.M., and Hanas, T. (2025). Biodegradable Iron Implants: Development, Processing, and Applications, Springer Nature.","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-031-82099-1"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Salama, M., Vaz, M.F., Cola\u00e7o, R., Santos, C., and Carmezim, M. (2022). Biodegradable iron and porous iron: Mechanical properties, degradation behaviour, manufacturing routes and biomedical applications. J. Funct. Biomater., 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/jfb13020072"},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Gibson, L.J., and Ashby, M.F. (1997). Cellular Solids: Structure and Properties, Cambridge University Press. [2nd ed.].","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9781139878326"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2388","DOI":"10.36922\/ijb.2388","article-title":"A metamaterial bone plate for biofixation based on 3D printing technology","volume":"10","author":"Zhang","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Bioprinting"},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"113789","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mtcomm.2025.113789","article-title":"Design and biomechanical evaluation of laser powder bed fusion manufactured Ti6Al4V fusion cages with tunable lattice-induced stress distribution","volume":"49","author":"Zhu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Mater. Today Commun."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3165","DOI":"10.1007\/s00170-024-13952-7","article-title":"Scanning strategies for the 316L part with lattice structures fabricated by selective laser melting","volume":"133","author":"Huang","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Adv. Manuf. Technol."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100648","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mser.2021.100648","article-title":"Additive manufacturing of metallic lattice structures: Unconstrained design, accurate fabrication, fascinated performances, and challenges","volume":"146","author":"Chen","year":"2021","journal-title":"Mater. Sci. Eng. R Rep."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105656","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmbbm.2023.105656","article-title":"Mechanical behaviour of a novel biomimetic lattice structure for bone scaffold","volume":"138","author":"Distefano","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mech. Behav. Biomed. Mater."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"97","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mspro.2014.07.606","article-title":"Influence of Foaming Agents on Laser Based Manufacturing of Closed-cell Ti Foam","volume":"4","author":"Pape","year":"2014","journal-title":"Procedia Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"380","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2018.07.011","article-title":"Additively manufactured biodegradable porous iron","volume":"77","author":"Li","year":"2018","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4088","DOI":"10.1039\/C9TB00420C","article-title":"Additively manufactured porous metallic biomaterials","volume":"7","author":"Zadpoor","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Mater. Chem. B"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"346","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actbio.2019.12.018","article-title":"Additively manufactured iron-manganese for biodegradable porous load-bearing bone scaffold applications","volume":"103","author":"Carluccio","year":"2020","journal-title":"Acta Biomater."},{"key":"ref_35","unstructured":"ASM Handbook Committee (1990). Volume 1: Properties and Selection: Irons, Steels, and High-Performance Alloys, American Society for Metals, ASM International."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"091007","DOI":"10.1115\/1.4062580","article-title":"Process-Structure-Property Relationships of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Lattice Structures","volume":"145","author":"Jost","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Manuf. Sci. Eng."},{"key":"ref_37","first-page":"103038","article-title":"Influence of geometric defects on the compression behaviour of thin shell lattices fabricated by micro laser powder bed fusion","volume":"58","author":"Zhang","year":"2022","journal-title":"Addit. Manuf."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Nogueira, P., Lopes, P., Oliveira, L., Alves, J.L., Magrinho, J.P.G., Deus, A.M., De Vaz, M.F., and Silva, M.B. (2024). Evaluation of Lattice Structures for Medical Implants: A Study on the Mechanical Properties of Various Unit Cell Types. Metals, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/met14070780"},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"39","DOI":"10.24840\/2795-5168_002-001_2682","article-title":"Evaluation of the roughness of lattice structures of AISI 316 stainless steel produced by laser powder bed fusion","volume":"2","author":"Nogueira","year":"2024","journal-title":"Eng. Manuf. Lett."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Vukkum, V.B., Sanborn, T., Shepherd, J., Saptarshi, S., Basu, R., Horn, T., and Gupta, R.K. (2024). Influence of Spatter on Porosity, Microstructure, and Corrosion of Additively Manufactured Stainless Steel Printed Using Different Island Size. Crystals, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/cryst14040328"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9818","DOI":"10.1007\/s10853-022-06990-7","article-title":"A critical review on the effects of process-induced porosity on the mechanical properties of alloys fabricated by laser powder bed fusion","volume":"57","author":"Kan","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"071003","DOI":"10.1115\/1.4046504","article-title":"Understanding Laser Powder Bed Fusion Surface Roughness","volume":"142","author":"Snyder","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Manuf. Sci. Eng."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wang, W., Garmestani, H., and Liang, S.Y. (2021). Prediction of Upper Surface Roughness in Laser Powder Bed Fusion. Metals, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/met12010011"},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"145989","DOI":"10.1016\/j.msea.2023.145989","article-title":"Impact of laser scanning strategies on microstructure in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of nanoparticle-infused pre-alloyed water-atomized iron powder","volume":"891","author":"Im","year":"2024","journal-title":"Mater. Sci. Eng. A"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmbbm.2018.04.010","article-title":"Osteogenesis of 3D printed porous Ti6Al4V implants with different pore sizes","volume":"84","author":"Ran","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Mech. Behav. Biomed. Mater."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"104123","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jmbbm.2020.104123","article-title":"Selective Laser Melting of Ti6Al4V sub-millimetric cellular structures: Prediction of dimensional deviations and mechanical performance","volume":"113","author":"Bartolomeu","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Mech. Behav. Biomed. Mater."}],"container-title":["Metals"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2075-4701\/15\/12\/1355\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,15]],"date-time":"2025-12-15T10:04:45Z","timestamp":1765793085000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2075-4701\/15\/12\/1355"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,9]]},"references-count":46,"journal-issue":{"issue":"12","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12]]}},"alternative-id":["met15121355"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/met15121355","relation":{},"ISSN":["2075-4701"],"issn-type":[{"type":"electronic","value":"2075-4701"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,9]]}}}