Crystallographic texture control of beta-type Ti–15Mo–5Zr–3Al alloy by selective laser melting for the development of novel implants with a biocompatible low Young's modulus

We first successfully achieved the two types of distinct texture control in low-modulus beta-type Ti–15Mo–5Zr–3Al alloy products using selective laser melting. Bidirectional scanning with and without a rotation of 90° between the layers gave rise to different textures with preferential orientations of 〈001〉 and 〈011〉 along the building direction, respectively. Control of the growth behavior of the columnar cells in the melt pools via scanning strategies enabled the generation of such different textures. The obtained material exhibits a low Young's modulus of 68.7 ± 0.9 GPa, which potentially allows for the development of implants that can suppress stress shielding.