The influence of powder parameters on laser cladding process Available to Purchase

Coaxial laser cladding with powder has a great deal of parameters, which have to be determined, optimised and set to constant level for successful laser clad processing. The powder material itself includes several variables such as basic material properties and characteristics, powder particle size and distribution, and shape of particles. The selection of particle size is done mainly by availability of the feedstock material, and by practical knowledge and experience. Coating powders are in many cases available in different sizes, which allows optimisation and tailoring of laser clad structures and properties, depending on needs for applications. However, useful theoretical knowledge with good applicability to real life solutions is very limited. The main purpose of the investigation was to establish powder selection criteria for industrial laser cladding, by gathering practical knowledge through experimental research. The focus of the study is to clarify the effect of powder particle size range and distribution on powder catchment efficiency and surface quality. The cladding powder used in the work was a cobalt based hardfacing alloy Stellite 21 with several particle size ranges and distributions, from different powder manufacturers.