CO2 Laser Cladding of Mild Steel Using Iron Based Powder and Silicon Carbide Particles

The objective of this research was to develop a new form of clad layer by producing a Silicon Carbide (SiC) particle reinforce Metal Matrix Composite (MMC) using the iron based alloys as the matrix material. A 1.2kW continuous wave CO2 laser was used in this research. A gravity feed system was used with one powder feed which contained different percentages of SiC particles and iron based powder. Experimental results showed that the decomposition of SiC particles was observed and only a few SiC particles were found in the clad matrix. High micro hardness values were found in the SiC clad which were in excess of 1000 HV. However, most of the SiC were evaporated which created porosity in the melt pool. Therefore, blown powder technique is recommended for overcome this problem.