Wear properties of laser alloyed and clad Fe-Cr-Mn-C alloys

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Abstract
The abrasive wear resistance of a Fe-Cr-Mn-C clad, produced by laser cladding techniques, was studied for a possible alternative to Co-alloys used in hardfacing for wear applications. The clad was produced by using a pneumatic powder delivery system to inject a Cr-Mn-C powder mixture into a molten pool produced in the AISI 1016 steel substrate by a 10 KW CW CO2 laser. The molten pool area was shielded with argon gas to suppress vaporization of the Mn, resulting in a non-porous clad. This preliminary study has shown that wear resistance can be significantly improved by laser alloying and cladding of Cr-Mn-C alloy to a mild steel substrate. The laser processed material composed of Fe-Cr-Mn-C exhibited far superior wear properties than Stellite 6 during block-on-cylinder tests. The wear resistance is attributed to dendrite structures and chrome carbides. The finer the dendrites, the higher the wear resistance. Using a two level factorial experimental design matrix gave insight as to which laser process variables results in better wear resistance. The combination of low laser power and high table velocities produced better wear resistant materials for laser surface alloying. This condition allows for higher concentration of alloy particles per melted volume which, in conjunction with faster cooling rates, produces a finer microstructure. For laser cladding, both the laser power and table speed seem to have little influence on wear for the range of power and speed considered.

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