Laser Cladding 

Laser cladding is coating process where laser is used to bond molten additive material to base material. Laser melts both additive material and surface of base material so that between additive material and base material forms metallurgical bond. Additive material can be import in to process in many different forms, such as powder, wire, plate or paste. Laser cladding has many advantages compared to other thermal cladding processes. Laser coated surface is more dens and have less pores than coats done using other thermal method. Since laser cladding make metallurgical bond between coat and base material, coat sticks by base material really well. Laser claddings small heat input enables coat small and thin parts and also small heat input guarantees rapid cooling so that coat gets fine grained microstructure.

Laser cladding can be done using either dynamic additive delivery or by importing additive material in advance. When additive is imported in advance it is usually done using thermal spraying cladding and laser is used to re-melt this coat and fixing coated layer in base material. This how thermally sprayed coat condensate and forms metallurgical bond between base materials. Laser cladding using dynamical additive delivery happens so that additive is delivered inside laser interaction region when laser beam melts additive material and a small part of base material. As beam goes forward coated layer solidifies behind laser beam and forms metallurgical bond between base material.

All sorts of materials can be coated using laser cladding such as mild-, tempering- and stainless steels. Additive can be almost any melting metal or alloy, such as cobalt or nickel alloys or stainless steels. Laser cladding is used in many different industry applications, for example jet engine parts or internal combustion engines valves, cylinders or axles.