Experimental investigations of the laser cladding of protective coatings on preheated base material

The laser cladding technique was applied to obtain Co-based stellite SF6 coatings on the chromium steel base. The coatings were prepared by means of a direct cladding of metal powder using a 1.2 kW cw CO2 laser stand with a controlled preheating of the substrate material. Results of the metallographic tests revealed a fine-grained, dendritic microstructure and proper metallic bonding between substrate and coating. A nearly constant concentration of mian elements at different areas of the coating cross-section indicated on homogeneous chemical composition of the laser-cladded SF6 alloy samples. A significant decrease of the micro-crack number with increasing temperature of the base preheating was observed. This was accompanied by a drop of the wear and corrosion resistance.