This doctoral thesis investigates the influence of metal additive manufacturing process parameters on surface topography, microstructure, mechanical properties, and tribological behaviour of additively manufactured components. The study focuses on two industrially relevant alloys, AlSi10Mg and maraging steel 18Ni300, produced by selective laser melting, with systematic variations of laser power and scanning speed. The experimental work includes analyses of surface topography, porosity, microstructure, and hardness, and their correlation with friction and wear behaviour under dry and lubricated sliding conditions. Tribological tests were conducted using ball-on-disc configurations under different contact pressures and sliding regimes. The results demonstrate that process parameters strongly affect surface anisotropy, microstructural features, and hardness, which directly influence the prevailing friction and wear mechanisms. It was shown that the tribological performance cannot be attributed to a single parameter but arises from the combined interaction of processing conditions, material properties, and contact conditions. This dissertation advances the understanding of tribological behaviour in additively manufactured metals and provides a basis for process parameter optimization tailored to specific application requirements.
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