High-energy acoustic beam-assisted additive manufacturing of ZL114A aluminum alloy for complex components: residual stress reduction and deformation control

Non-uniform residual stress in wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) induces deformation and reduces mechanical properties. This study established a multi-source high-energy acoustic beam (HEAB) propagation model and developed a liquid-solid coupled underwater control system. Residual stress was evaluated using self-developed critical refracted longitudinal wave equipment. Results indicate that HEAB significantly refines grain structure by disrupting columnar growth via acoustic streaming and cavitation. Implementing HEAB during WAAM effectively mitigates stress and deformation in aluminum alloy components. For shell components, the stress homogenization rate (SHR) reached 49.1%, and dimensional deviation decreased by 70% (average 0.068 mm). Furthermore, the underwater acoustic field control system reduced average stress in cabin components to 63.08 MPa, a 50% decrease compared to untreated samples. These findings demonstrate that HEAB-integrated WAAM enhances dimensional accuracy and structural integrity, facilitating the engineering application of additive manufacturing.