What is selective laser melting
Release time：2026.04.03
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The term "selective laser melting" commonly refers to selective laser melting technology in both academia and industry, with the English name being Selective Laser Melting (SLM). It is two different 3D printing technologies from what we often refer to as "laser cladding", with the main difference being that one is a "from scratch" manufacturing process, and the other is a "icing on the cake" repair or strengthening process.
The fundamental difference in technology:
Cooling speed: SLM has an extremely fast cooling speed, reaching 10 ⁶ K/s (cooling one million degrees Celsius per second). This produces very fine grains, giving the part extremely high strength and hardness. The cooling rate of laser cladding is relatively slow (about 10 ² K/s), resulting in larger grain size.
Mechanical properties: Due to the difference in microstructure, parts manufactured by SLM typically have much higher tensile strength than laser cladding parts, but slightly lower plasticity (ductility).
