Laser Cladding

Capitalizing on the rapid growth and reduced costs of laser systems, laser cladding is gaining momentum, and in some instances replacing conventional techniques of depositing thin films because it can accommodate a great variety of materials, achieve uniform thickness and precise widths of layers, and provide improved resistance to wear and corrosion in the final product. Laser cladding technology also offers a revolutionary layered manufacturing and prototyping technique that can fabricate complex components without intermediate steps. Laser Cladding reviews the parameters, techniques and equipment, process modeling and control, and the physical metallurgy of alloying and solidification during laser cladding. The authors clarify the interconnections laser cladding has with CAD/CAM design; automation and robotics; sensors, feedback, and control; physics, material science, heat transfer, fluid dynamics, and powder metallurgy to promote further development and improved process quality of this growing technology. As the first book entirely dedicated to the topic, it also offers a history of its development and a guide to applications and market opportunities. While a considerable part of Laser Cladding is dedicated to industrial applications, this volume brings together valuable information illustrated with real case studies based on the authors' vast experience, and research and analysis in the field to provide a timely source for both academia and industry.

Laser cladding is an additive manufacturing technology capable of producing coatings due to the surface fusion of metals. The selected powder is fed into a focused laser beam to be melted and deposited as coating. This allows to apply material in a selected way onto those required sections of complex components. The process main properties are the production of a perfect metallurgically bonded and fully dense coatings; the minimal heat affected zone and low dilution between the substrate and filler material resulting in functional coatings that perform at reduced thickness, so fewer layers are applied; fine, homogeneous microstructure resulting from the rapid solidification rate that promotes wear resistance of carbide coatings; near net-shape weld build-up requires little finishing effort; extended weldability of sensitive materials like carbon-rich steels or nickel-based superalloys that are difficult or even impossible to weld using conventional welding processes; post-weld heat treatment is often eliminated as the small heat affected zone minimizes component stress; excellent process stability and reproducibility because it is numerical controlled welding process. The typical applications are the dimensional restoration; the wear and corrosion protection; additive manufacturing. The wide range of materials that can be deposited and its suitability for treating small areas make laser cladding particularly appropriate to tailor surface properties to local service requirements and it opens up a new perspective for surface engineered materials. The main key aspect to be scientifically and technologically explored are the type of laser; the powders properties; the processing parameters; the consequent microstructural and mechanical properties of the processed material; the capability of fabrication of prototypes to rapid tooling and rapid manufacturing. Distills critical concepts, methods, and applications from leading full-length chapters, along with the authors’s own deep understanding of the material taught, into a concise yet rigorous graduate and advanced undergraduate text; Reinforces concepts covered with detailed solutions to illuminating and challenging industrial applications; Discusses current and future applications of laser cladding in additive manufacturing.

The complete guide to understanding and using lasers in material processing! Lasers are now an integral part of modern society, providing extraordinary opportunities for innovation in an ever-widening range of material processing and manufacturing applications. The study of laser material processing is a core element of many materials and manufacturing courses at undergraduate and postgraduate level. As a consequence, there is now a vast amount of research on the theory and application of lasers to be absorbed by students, industrial researchers, practising engineers and production managers. Written by an acknowledged expert in the field with over twenty years' experience in laser processing, John Ion distils cutting-edge information and research into a single key text. Essential for anyone studying or working with lasers, Laser Processing of Engineering Materials provides a clear explanation of the underlying principles, including physics, chemistry and materials science, along with a framework of available laser processes and their distinguishing features and variables. This book delivers the knowledge needed to understand and apply lasers to the processing of engineering materials, and is highly recommended as a valuable guide to this revolutionary manufacturing technology. The first single volume text that treats this core engineering subject in a systematic manner Covers the principles, practice and application of lasers in all contemporary industrial processes; packed with examples, materials data and analysis, and modelling techniques

The purpose of this book is to show how general principles afford insight into laser processes. The principles may be from fundamental physical theory or from direct observation, but understanding of the general characteristics of a process is essential.

Presents various facets of laser surface treatment, emphasizing technologies that are expected to be important soon. The topics include fundamentals and types, surface texturing, heat treatment, metallic and intermetallic coating, the laser deposition of ceramic coatings, polymeric coatings, the cor