Supersonic laser deposition of corrosion and wear resistant materials

Abstract

Supersonic Laser Deposition (SLD) is a new coating and fabrication process which combines the supersonic powder stream found in Cold Spray with laser heating of the deposition zone. SLD combines some advantages of CS: solid-state deposition and high build rate (≤ 8 kghr-1) with the ability to deposit materials which are either difficult or impossible to deposit using cold spray alone. A system has been developed in house which can impact metallic powder particles onto a substrate which is locally heated using a 4kW IPG fibre laser. A pyrometer and control system is used to record and maintain impact site temperature. This paper describes the deposition of titanium, 316L stainless steel and Stellite 6 powders, the conditions which were found to be optimal, the build rates wqhich were achieved, and the structure and hardness of the coatings produced.