Microstructure and properties of high chrome steel roller after laser surface melting

Laser surface melting of high chrome steels was achieved by a 5 kW continuous wave CO₂ laser. The microstructure of the laser surface-melted steels was investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry, and the hardness profiles were determined by a Vickers hardness tester. The corrosion behavior in 3.5% NaCl solution was studied by electrochemical corrosion equipment. The large carbides of high chrome steels are completely dissolved and ultrafine dendrites of austenite with submicroscopic M₂₃C₆ carbides precipitation are formed in the melted zone. The austenite in the melted zone has a high tempering stability. The corrosion resistance of the laser surface-melted steels is significantly improved due to the dissolution of carbides and the increase of the alloying elements in the solid solution as well as the large amount of austenite.     

Improvement of the corrosion behavior of low carbon steel by laser surface alloying

In the present study, an integrated layer of iron aluminides of FeAl and Fe₃Al was formed on the surface of a low carbon steel sheet by a two-step process. The first step was hot dipping of the steel in a molten aluminum pool and secondly laser surface processing using a pulsed Nd:YAG laser. The corrosion resistance of the coated specimens was evaluated by activation polarization and Tafel methods. The results show that laser processing of the aluminized steel leads to a considerable increase in its corrosion resistance compared to both uncoated and merely aluminized materials.     

Microstructure and selected properties of hot-work tool steel with PVD coatings after laser surface treatment

The paper presents the effect of HPD laser treatment on the microstructure and selected properties of the PVD CrN, (Ti,Al) and Ti(C,N) coatings deposited onto hot-work tool steel substrates. The microstructure and surface topography of the investigated samples are characteristic of the diversified morphology connected with the applied laser beam power. Employment of laser beam at 0.7 kW power to the laser treatment of samples with Ti(C,N) coatings causes clear coating adhesion growth because of the diffusive processes induced by heat release. Because of the higher value of the (Ti,Al)N absorption coefficient one can state that the observed substrate materials change and finally coatings destruction in case of those samples is the most noticeable. The moderate effect of the laser beam treatment of the hot-work tool steel with the PVD coating was observed for CrN coatings. However, for laser beam power above 0.5 kW differences in the thermal expansion coefficients of the substrate materials and coatings generate coating crackings.     

Microstructure of single crystals of austenitic stainless steel

Auger spectroscopy and x-ray structure analysis have been used to study the chemical and phase inhomogeneity in single crystals of the austenitic nitrided stainless steel Cr22Ni17Mo3 with various morphologies of the dendritic structure. In single crystals grown in the 100 direction with a classical dendritic structure the interaxial regions are highly enriched with S, N, and C and weakly enriched with Mo, V, and Mn. At the same time these regions have a high density of particles of the type Me₂₃C₆, Me₇C₃, and vanadium carbonitrides, oriented in the growth direction. The axial regions have a subcellular structure, with oxygen-rich subcell boundaries. In single crystals with growth direction close to 110, in which only secondary dendrite axes are formed, the alloying elements, impurities, and second-phase particles are distributed relatively uniformly throughout the ingot.V. D. Kuznetsov Siberian Physicotechnical Institute at Tomsk University. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 10, pp. 3–6, October, 1992.     

Surface characteristic of stainless steel sheet after pulsed laser forming

Laser forming is a non-contact and die-less forming technique of producing bending, spatial forming, modifying and adjusting the curvature of the metallic sheet by using the controlled laser beam energy. One of the problems in laser forming is controlling the characteristic of laser scanned surface. The aim of the investigation is to explore the relation between the surface behaviors of heat affected zone (HAZ) scanned by pulse laser and the pulse parameters of the laser. This paper illustrated the fundamental theory of pulsed laser affected material, and pays attention to the microstructure, micro-hardness and the anticorrosion in the HAZ generated by the laser scanning. Metallographic microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM), micro-hardness testing system are used to examine the surface characteristics. The work presented in this paper is beneficial to understand the mechanism of pulse laser affect to materials and improve controlling the surface behaviors scanned by pulsed laser.     

Morphologies,microstructures, and mechanical properties of samples produced using laser metal deposition with 316 L stainless steel wire

Laser metal deposition (LMD) with a filler has been demonstrated to be an effective method for additive manufacturing because of its high material deposition efficiency, improved surface quality, reduced material wastage, and cleaner process environment without metal dust pollution. In this study, single beads and samples with ten layers were successfully deposited on a 316 L stainless steel surface under optimized conditions using a 4000 W continuous wave fibre laser and an arc welding machine. The results showed that satisfactory layered samples with a large deposition height and smooth side surface could be achieved under appropriate parameters. The uniform structures had fine cellular and network austenite grains with good metallurgical bonding between layers, showing an austenite solidification mode. Precipitated ferrite at the grain boundaries showed a subgrain structure with fine uniform grain size. A higher microhardness (205–226 HV) was detected in the middle of the deposition area, while the tensile strength of the 50 layer sample reached 669 MPa. In addition, ductile fracturing was proven by the emergence of obvious dimples at the fracture surface.     

Microstructure and phase transformations in laser clad CrxSy/Ni coating on H13 steel

Laser cladding was carried out onto H13 steel with preplaced NiCrBSi+Ni/MoS₂ powders using CO₂ laser under the optimized experimental parameters of laser power 2 kW, scanning velocity 6 mm/s and laser beam diameter 3 mm. An X-ray diffractometer and scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive spectroscopy were applied to analyze the microstructure and phase compositions of the coating. Thermodynamic calculation was performed with Thermo-Calc software on the basis of a commercially available Ni-based Alloys׳ database. The experimental results show that MoS₂ decomposed and S reacted with Cr to form nonstoichiometric Cr_xS_y during the laser cladding process. The coating consists of spherical Cr_xS_y particles, primary γ-Ni dendrite, interdendritic eutectic (γ-Ni+NiMo) and precipitated NiMo. The precipitated NiMo was fine and uniformly distributed in primary γ-Ni dendrite. The calculated results and experimental data indicate that the solidification process in the coating during laser cladding process was liquid→liquid+Cr_xS_y→ liquid+Cr_xS_y+γ-Ni→liquid+Cr_xS_y+γ-Ni+ eutectic (γ-Ni+NiMo). A solid state phase transformation (fine and uniformly distributed NiMo precipitated from γ-Ni) occurred after the solidification process. The calculations agree well with the experimental data and it is helpful to understand the phase transformation and microstructure evolution in the coating.     

Microstructure evolution of WC/steel composite by laser surface re-melting

WC/steel composites fabricated by electro-slag melting and casting were re-melted by transverse flow CO₂ laser. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy were used to analyze the microstructure evolution in laser melted layer. It was found that the laser-affected zone has three distinguished zones, the melted, transient and heat affected zone. The phases of the melted zone were composed of WC, Fe₃W₃C, (Cr,Fe)₇C₃, martensite and retained austenite. The microstructure evolution in the melted zone was represented by the transformation of three parts including the steel matrix, WC particles cluster and dispersed carbides. A significant reactant was herringbone eutectic carbide of Fe₃W₃C. The effect of laser scanning rate was mainly behaved in affecting the melt depth, microstructure of transient zone and dissolution of medium carbides. In comparison with the substrate, the melted zone has much higher microhardness.     

Microstructure and friction and wear behavior of laser boronizing composite coatings on titanium substrate

Three kinds of laser boronizing composite coatings were in situ synthesized on Ti substrate by using powders of B, BN and B₄C as starting materials. Microstructures of the laser boronizing composite coatings were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM); and their worn surface morphologies were also observed by using SEM. Moreover, the friction and wear behavior of the boronizing composite coatings under dry sliding condition were evaluated using a UMT-2MT friction and wear tester. It was found that all the three types of laser boronizing composite coatings had higher microhardness and better wear resistance than pure Ti substrate; and their microstructure and wear resistance varied with varying pre-placed powders of B, BN, and B₄C. Under the same dry sliding test conditions, the wear resistance of the three kinds of laser boronizing composite coatings, i.e., sample 1 prepared from pre-placed B, sample 2 obtained from pre-placed BN, and sample 3 fabricated from pre-placed B₄C, is ranked in an order of sample 1 > sample 2 > sample 3, which, surprisingly, well conforms to their order of hardness and friction coefficients.     

Characterization and corrosion study of NiTi laser surface alloyed with Nb or Co

The interest in NiTi alloys for medical applications has been steadily growing in recent years because of its biocompatibility, superelasticity and shape memory characteristics. However, the high Ni content in NiTi alloys is still a concern for its long-term applications in the human body. The release of Ni ion into the human body might cause serious problems, as Ni is capable of eliciting toxic and allergic responses. In view of this, surface modification to reduce the surface content of Ni and to improve the corrosion resistance, both of which would reduce Ni release, is an important step in the development of NiTi implants. In the present study, NiTi was surface alloyed with Nb or Co by laser processing. The fine dendritic structure characteristic of laser processing has been described in terms of rapid solidification. The amount of surface elemental Ni was reduced to 10% and 35% for the Nb-alloyed and Co-alloyed layer, respectively. The corrosion resistance in Hanks’ solution (a simulated body fluid) was increased as evidenced by a reduced passive current density and a higher pitting potential for both the Nb- and Co-alloyed specimens. The composition and hardness profiles along the depth of the modified layer were correlated with the distribution of the dendrites. The microhardness of the alloyed layers was around 700-800 Hv, which was about four times that of the untreated NiTi specimens.     

Impact of yttrium ion implantation on corrosion behavior of laser beam welded zircaloy-4 in sulfuric acid solution

In order to study the effect of yttrium ion implantation on the aqueous corrosion behavior of laser beam welded zircaloy-4 (LBWZr4), The butt weld joint of zircaloy-4 was made by means of a carbon dioxide laser, subsequently the LBWZr4 samples were implanted with yttrium ion using a MEVVA source at an energy of 40 keV, with a fluence range from 1 × 10¹⁶ to 4 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm² at about 150 °C. Three-sweep potentiodynamic polarization measurement was employed to evaluate the aqueous corrosion behavior of yttrium-implanted LBWZr4 in a 0.5 M H₂SO₄ solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the surface topographic character of the yttrium-implanted LBWZr4 before and after the potentiodynamic polarization measurement. The valences of the carbon, yttrium, and zirconium in the surface layer were analyzed by X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS). It was found that a significant improvement was achieved in the aqueous corrosion resistance of yttrium-implanted LBWZr4 compared with that of the un-implanted LBWZr4. The mechanism of the corrosion resistance improvement of the yttrium-implanted LBWZr4 is probably due to the addition of the yttrium oxide dispersoid into the zirconium matrix.     

Microstructure characteristics of laser-MIG hybrid welded mild steel

To deepen the understanding of laser-arc hybrid welding, the weld shape and microstructure characteristics of laser-metal inert gas hybrid welded mild steel were analyzed. The results showed typical hybrid weld could be classified as two parts: the wide upper zone and the narrow nether zone, which were defined as arc zone and laser zone, respectively. In the hybrid weld, the microstructure, alloy element distribution and microhardness all have evident difference between laser zone and arc zone. The microstructure of arc zone consists of coarse columnar dendrite and fine acicular dendrite between the columnar dendrites, but that of laser zone is composed of fine equiaxed dendrite in weld center and columnar dendrite around the equiaxed dendrite. Compared to arc zone, laser zone has finer grain size, higher microhardness, smaller alloy element content in the fusion zone and narrower heat affected zone. The discussions demonstrated that the observed difference was caused by the difference of temperature gradient, crystallizing and the effects of arc pressure on the molten pool between laser zone and arc zone.     

Microstructure of yttric calcium phosphate bioceramic coatings synthesized by laser cladding

The yttric calcium phosphate (CaP) coatings were in situ prepared on pure titanium substrate by laser cladding. The morphologies and phases constitution of CaP coatings were studied by electron probe microanalysis, X-ray diffraction and so on. The bonding state between the coating and the substrate is fine metallurgical combination, and the addition of yttria can fine the structure and increase the tensile strength of the coatings. The X-ray result shows that the coating is composed of the phases of HA, α-Ca₂P₂O₇, β-Ca₂P₂O₇ and CaTiO₃.     

Fiber laser welding of austenitic steel and commercially pure copper butt joint

The fiber laser welding of austenitic stainless steel and commercially pure copper in butt joint configuration without filler or intermediate material is presented. In order to melt stainless steel directly and melt copper via heat conduction a defocused laser beam was used with an offset to stainless steel. During mechanical tests the weld seam was more durable than heat affected zone of copper so samples without defects could be obtained. Three process variants of offset of the laser beam were applied. The following tests were conducted: tensile test of weldment, intermediate layer microhardness, optical metallography, study of the chemical composition of the intermediate layer, fractography. Measurements of electrical resistivity coefficients of stainless steel, copper and copper–stainless steel weldment were made, which can be interpreted or recalculated as the thermal conductivity coefficient. It shows that electrical resistivity coefficient of cooper–stainless steel weldment higher than that of stainless steel. The width of intermediate layer between stainless steel and commercially pure copper was 41–53 µm, microhardness was 128–170 HV_0.01.     

Mild corrosion behavior on sulphurized steel surface during friction

After treatment by low temperature ion sulphuration, the solid lubrication sulphuration layers (FeS films) were produced on the AISI 1045 and stainless steel. A mass of corrosion peeling pits occurred on the worn scars of 1045 steel sulphuration layer after wear test, whereas none of them on the stainless steel one. AFM was used to observe the morphology of sulphuration layer, SEM equipped EDS was utilized to analyze the morphologies and compositions of worn scars. XPS and XRD were employed to detect the valence states of sulphuration layer and its worn scars, as well as the phase structures. The results showed that during friction, under the frictional heat, the sulfate radical with mild corrosion was produced, so that the 1045 steel without any anti-corrosion was corroded in some certain, meanwhile the stainless steel was not corroded depending on its excellent corrosion resistance.     

Electrochemical response of laser surface melted inconel 617 alloy

Inconel 617 alloy has superior high temperature properties and finds application in thermal systems. The alloying elements of chromium and molybdenum make the alloy resistant to corrosion. In the present study, the corrosion properties of Inconel 617 alloy, after 37,000 h of operation as a transition piece in the gas turbine engine, are examined. The workpiece surfaces are treated using an Nd : YAG pulsed laser. The electrochemical tests are carried out in 0.1 N H₂SO₄+0.05 N NaCl deairated aqueous solution at room temperature. It is found that the laser treated workpieces result in improved corrosion rates. The locally scattered shallow pits are observed at the workpiece surface after the electrochemical tests.     

强流脉冲离子束辐照对不锈钢耐腐蚀性能的影响

 利用强流脉冲离子束（HIPIB）对316L不锈钢进行了表面辐照处理,研究了HIPIB辐照对其在0.5mol/L H2SO4溶液中电化学腐蚀性能的影响。极化曲线测量结果表明,HIPIB辐照能够显著提高316L的抗腐蚀性能,自腐蚀电流对辐照次数的依赖性与自腐蚀电位相比明显较强。采用扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、X射线衍射（XRD）和电子探针（EPMA）分析辐照后试样表面形貌、表面层相结构和元素分布的变化。结果表明：HIPIB辐照使试样表面光滑化,表面层产生择优取向,且发生了杂质元素的选择性烧蚀,是316L不锈钢耐电化学腐蚀性能得以提高的主要原因。     

Microstructure and interface interaction in laser induction hybrid cladding of Ni-based coating

Based on the powder feeding laser induction hybrid cladding experiments by means of three different laser and induction energy, the microstructure of Ni-based coating and interface characteristics between the Ni-based coating and steel substrate were investigated. The results show that the hybrid cladding energy including laser and induction energy has an important influence on the formation of the interface and the microstructure of the Ni-based coating characterized by the dendrite. In addition, the laser and induction energy can complement each other. For high hybrid cladding energy, the single phase Fe-Ni-Cr solid solution is formed at the interface between the coating and substrate, while the microhardness of the Ni-based coating decreases. For low hybrid cladding energy, the solid solution phases of Fe-Ni-Cr and Ni-Fe-Cr are respectively obtained on both sides of the interface and microhardness of the Ni-based coating is relatively high. During laser induction hybrid cladding, the metallurgical bond characterized by the white light layer is achieved between the coating and substrate, and the extent of metallurgical reaction can be controlled by adjusting the laser energy and induction energy appropriately.     

Effect of surface nanocrystallization induced by fast multiple rotation rolling on hardness and corrosion behavior of 316L stainless steel

A nanostructured layer was fabricated by using fast multiple rotation rolling (FMRR) on the surface of 316L stainless steel. The microstructure in the surface was characterized by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The effects of FMRR on the microhardness, surface roughness and corrosion behavior of the stainless steel were investigated by microhardness measurements, surface roughness measurements, potentiodynamic polarization curves and pitting corrosion tests. The surface morphologies of pitting corrosion specimens were characterized by scanning electron microscopy. The results show that FMRR can cause surface nanocrystallization with the grain size ranges from 6 to 24 nm in the top surface layer of the sample. The microhardness of FMRR specimen in the top surface layer remarkably increases from 190 to 530 HV. However, the surface roughness slightly rises after FMRR treatment. The potentiodynamic polarization curves and pitting corrosion tests indicated that the FMRR treated 316L stainless steel with a surface nanocrystallized layer reduced the corrosion resistance in a 3.5% NaCl solution and enhanced the pitting corrosion rate in a FeCl₃ solution. Possible reasons leading to the decrease in corrosion resistance were discussed.