Surface finishing green treatment of SLM copper parts

In this work, the feasibility of an electropolishing treatment using a green, ethaline-based solution of copper components produced by additive technology via Selective Laser Melting (SLM) was investigated. Subsequently, the influence of some of the many parameters of the electrochemical electropolishing process, such as temperature and treatment duration, was investigated. The as-built and electropolished samples were subjected to morphological characterisation, roughness measurements, chemical analysis and electrochemical characterisation. The green electropolishing treatment performed on the samples confirmed that this can also be considered as a valid surface finishing process for copper components obtained by additive manufacturing, as an alternative to the classic process where environmentally harmful acids are used.