LASER CLADDING

Laser Cladding serves as an invaluable tool for surface modification and repair, offering precise control, minimal heat impact, versatility, efficiency, tailored properties, and environmental advantages. It finds extensive application across industries where optimizing component performance and prolonging lifespan are paramount.

What is Laser Cladding?

Laser Cladding, also known as Laser Metal Deposition (LMD), is an advanced additive manufacturing technology that employs precisely-controlled energy from a high-power laser. This method utilizes a high-energy laser as the heat source and alloy powder as the welding material. Through simultaneous application of the laser and alloy powder onto the metal surface, a molten pool quickly forms and subsequently solidifies to create a dense, uniform, and precisely controlled metallurgical bonded thick layer. Laser Cladding enhances the wear resistance, corrosion resistance and effectively extends the operating life of components by providing highly durable surfaces with superior performance characteristics.

Advantages

Laser Cladding offers numerous advantages compared to conventional coating processes. These advantages include the delivery of high-quality coating material with exceptional bond strength and integrity, minimal distortion, and enhanced surface quality. Here are some key benefits:

  • Minimal Dilution of cladding ensures maximum purity & performance
  • Strong Metallurgical bonding achieved
  • High quench rates result in finer grain structure
  • Uniform & consistent hardness throughout the clad area
  • Narrow Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) – Preserves Substrate Integrity
  • Precise and thoroughly fused deposit layer
  • Material Versatility
  • Clad area exhibit minimal or no porosity, ensures high density
  • Minimal or No substrate distortion
  • Automation Compatibility
  • Excellent Mechanical Properties: Coatings exhibit excellent mechanical properties, enhancing component performance and durability.
  • Repair Capabilities: Suitable for the repair of worn or damaged parts, extending their service life.
These advantages collectively make laser cladding a preferred choice for industries seeking superior coating quality, precise material deposition, and efficient production processes.

Wider/Large Spot Laser Cladding

Wider spot laser cladding refers to a laser cladding process where a broader laser beam is utilized to cover a larger area during the deposition of material on to a substrate. This approach allows for the efficient coating or modification of larger surface areas in a single pass, reducing processing time and increasing productivity. It is particularly useful for applications where extensive coverage or rapid deposition is required, such as in the repair or coating of large industrial shafts/components, mold dies, and huge structures etc. Large spot laser cladding systems are equipped with optics and beam delivery systems capable of delivering broader laser beams, enabling precise control over the deposition process while ensuring uniformity and quality across the treated surface.

Advantages

  • Increased Efficiency & productivity
  • Enhanced Coverage
  • Reduced Processing Time
  • Cost Savings
  • Improved Quality
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Overall, wider spot laser cladding offers numerous advantages in terms of efficiency, quality, cost-effectiveness, and versatility, making it an attractive option for various industrial applications.

Internal Diameter (ID) Laser Cladding:

Internal Diameter cladding (ID Cladding) enhances the structural integrity of a material’s interior, thereby extending the lifespan of treated parts and components. Laser-applied coatings offer excellent anti-corrosive and wear-resistant properties to metal parts, making ID cladding particularly suitable for reinforcing the internal surfaces of tubes, pipes, and components situated in difficult-to-access or confined spaces.

Minimum Cladding bores ≥ 70 mm ID & length up to 4 m.

High Speed Laser Cladding

In the High Speed Laser Cladding Process, powder is introduced into the focused laser beam above the substrate. This ensures that the deposited material is molten before reaching the substrate. On the substrate, a shallow melt pool forms, allowing the deposited material to cool and solidify in contact with the underlying material. This minimizes the amount of heat transferred to the component below, as well as the depth of dilution and heat effects.

 

This controlled process enables the production of thinner coatings (20-300μm) with desired chemistry achieved with 5-10μm. It also enables high traverse speeds, exceeding 100m/min, making High Speed Laser Cladding an efficient and versatile technique for various applications.

 

  • Thin Coatings
  • Competitive to thermal spray
  • Alternative / replacement of chrome plating
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