Laser Cladding Machine

Laser cladding machine is an emerging new technology that uses lasers and nano-materials to strengthen alloys in various parts.

WALDUN have a very strong R&D team for laser cladding machine. Now WALDUN can supply you both machine and service for laser cladding.

Laser cladding, also known as laser remanufacturing, or laser repair, is a new surface modification technology.

By adding cladding material to the substrate’s surface, and using a high-energy-density laser beam to melt with the thin layer on the surface of the substrate. The coating forms a cladding layer.

The treatment can significantly increase the hardness and wear resistance of the surface and extend the parts’ service life.

Laser Cladding Machine Applications

The materials applied to laser cladding are relatively wide. It has been successfully developed in stainless steel, dies steel, malleable cast iron, gray cast iron, copper alloys, titanium alloys, aluminum alloys, and special surfaces. And has been used in a wide range of applications, such as the following: laser cladding of cobalt-based, nickel-based, iron-based, and other self-fusing alloy powders and ceramic phases.

Laser cladding of iron-based alloy powders is suitable for parts that require local abrasion resistance and are prone to deformation.

Nickel-based alloy powders are suitable for components requiring local wear resistance, heat resistance, corrosion resistance, and thermal fatigue resistance.

Cobalt-based alloy powder is suitable for parts requiring local wear resistance, heat resistance, corrosion resistance, and thermal fatigue resistance.

Ceramic coating has high strength, excellent thermal stability, and high chemical stability under high temperature, which is suitable for parts requiring wear resistance, corrosion resistance, and high temperature resistance. And oxidation resistance of the parts.

Laser Cladding Machine Process

Laser cladding can be divided into two main categories according to the cladding material’s supply method, i.e., pre-set laser cladding and synchronous laser cladding.

Pre-set laser cladding is to place the cladding material on the substrate’s surface beforehand, and then use laser beam irradiation to scan and melt the cladding material. The content is added in the form of powder, wire, or sheet, with dust being the most common.

Simultaneous laser cladding is where the cladding material is fed directly into the laser beam so that both feeding and coating can be done simultaneously. The molten metal is also supplied primarily in the form of powder, but some also use wire or sheet for simultaneous feeding.

Process Flow

The primary process of pre-set laser cladding is pretreatment of substrate cladding surface — pre-set cladding material — preheating — pre-set cladding material — Laser melting – post heat treatment.

The primary process of synchronous laser cladding is the substrate cladding surface pretreatment — feeding laser melting— post-heat treatment.

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Laser Cladding Machine Video

2000W-12000W HIGH SPEED LASER CLADDING MACHINE

High-speed laser cladding series covers products between 2000W and 12000W.

High electro-optical conversion efficiency, good beam quality, high energy density, wide modulation frequency, strong reliability, long life, maintenance-free operation and so on.

1000W-6000W LASER CLADDING MACHINE

High-power fiber optic semiconductor system with external water cooling and temperature control. Suitable for metal surface treatment, welding, cladding, quenching, 3D Printing, and other fields.

WHY US?

We have 15 years of experience. Committed to wear plate, wear pipes, parts, and related equipment production and sales.
Our equipment used by significant suppliers of wear-resistant plates in many countries. Contact us to get some references.
We use our R & D and manufactured hardfacing equipment to produce wear-resistant plate, our annual wear-resistant plate production value reach more than 20 million US dollars. Therefore, we are experts in the production of wear-resistant plates. Only in the creation of the wear-resistant plate, we can provide you with the best wear-resistant production types of equipment.
In total, we sold over 500 surfacing machines in the past ten years.

Our lead time is short because we have a very mature supply chain.
According to your unique production requirements, we can provide custom-made corresponding non-standard equipment. Contact us for more information.
We have an excellent after-sales service team. To make sure you use the equipment properly after you buy it.
We have excellent quality assurance on our machines. All the tools we produce has a one-year warranty.
Our package can meet your shipping, air transport requirements.

Laser Cladding Machine – The Ultimate FAQ Guide

The need for high-quality, wear-resistant equipment is rampant in various industries. This is why big companies and corporations invest heavily in enhancing and developing their machines.

One of the most effective methods of enhancing machines is laser cladding. In this post, we’ll be discussing more about what it is and how you can benefit from it.

What is Laser Cladding?

Laser cladding is an alteration process that enhances the surface of a base product using lasers.

Through a laser beam, alloy powder is melted on top of the parent metal, creating the clad.

What is the Laser Cladding Process?

Understanding the laser cladding process is simple; and you don’t have to be a welding expert to understand it.

A workpiece is prepared
The laser beam hangs alongside the metallic powder
In the process, the laser beam is what melts the powder, forming the metallurgical bond
Thus, the laser cladding process

What Are Laser Cladding Machines And Its Parts?

Laser cladding machines are the equipment used to complete the laser cladding process.

The usual parts of laser cladding machines include:

Laser system
Coaxial Nozzle
Powder feeder + powder carrier
Focusing optics
Substrate

Why Do You Need to Use Laser Cladding Machines?

Laser cladding equipment have higher power and energy. Moreover, they’re more advanced as they can finish the cladding faster.

Also, they can effectively bond metallic powder material to the substrate easily.

What is Cladding?

Cladding is a procedure that enhances the exterior of a workpiece.

If you compare it to overlay, it doesn’t join or bond two pieces of materials.

How Are Laser Cladding Materials Chosen?

Various methods and procedures have been done to experiment and to test to determine what the best cladding material is for a particular project.

An image of a laser cladding powder (an example)

But, the best, the most sensible, and the most effective way based on years of practice is to perform a thorough and a complete analysis of the substrate (workpiece), the environment, as well as the application that it will serve.

What this tries to determine would be the wear, corrosion, as well as other properties of the substrate that needs enhancement and pure development.

What’s the Difference Between Laser Cladding and Thermal Spraying?

In case you weren’t aware, laser cladding and thermal spraying are two (2) methods that are often interchanged.

How the thermal spraying process works

This is because of the fact that they produce similar-looking results compared to other methods.

But how is the laser cladding method different from thermal spraying? Let’s take a closer and a deeper look at each of them.

Laser cladding is a process of hardfacing that utilizes laser to melt powder materials to a surface, oftentimes, hard steel, metal, or alloy surfaces, resulting to a metallurgical bond between the welded powder and the workpiece material.

The great thing about laser cladding is it doesn’t need tremendously high levels of energy– as opposed to TIG welding that needs about 6,100 degrees Celsius. It usually just needs somewhere around 530 to 560 degrees Celsius.

Thermal spraying, on the other end of the rope, is not just a singular process. It can be conceived by performing various procedures and methodologies.

But, among the most common would be the use of electricity or gas, creating flame that would melt the powder or the wire that’ll be applied to the workpiece or the material being hardfaced.

Unlike laser cladding, thermal spraying isn’t just limited to producing metallurgical bonds. In fact, most of the processes use mechanical bonding for it.

When to Use Laser Cladding?

Laser cladding being done to a specific workpiece or substrate

You’ll want to use laser cladding instead of thermal spraying in a variety of instances, some of which include:

If you want a solid metallurgical bond
If temperature is an issue
When you’re looking for a single pass or a one-step process

The procedure is usually fast, simple, and easy – but it’s something you need to refrain from doing if the environment you’re on has issues with high and fluctuating temperature.

When to Use Thermal Spraying?

An image of how full-blown thermal spraying looks like

You would want to perform thermal spraying on your substrate or your materials, on the other hand, if:

You’re looking for thin but durable coatings
Accuracy and precision of the thickness is required
You want to achieve more than just metallurgical bonding – mechanical bonding, too

These are just some of the most notable differences between the two.

Although some might find it subtle, it’s already enough to determine how different laser cladding is from thermal spraying.

How Does Laser Cladding and Laser Welding Differ?

They both require the use of lasers, so, how are they different?

A perfect image of how laser welding is done and completed

If you initially thought that laser welding will be as close as how laser cladding is from thermal spraying, think again.

To heighten your awareness of which is which, let’s try to discuss what laser welding is in accordance to how you understand laser cladding.

Laser Welding simply is the process of melting two (2) or more different materials together using a laser. It’s basically welding but instead of using traditional welding components, you’ll use laser.

The primary purpose of laser welding is to join 2 or more pieces of metal or substrates together – even materials that are dissimilar.

Part of the most common and the most customary applications you can have for laser welding include:

Medical Devices and Medical Equipment
Consumer Electronics Parts and Components
Automotive and Aerospace Parts
Packaging For Small and Consumer Products
And Many More

Laser Cladding involves the melting of filler material, usually in the form of wire or powder, onto the surface of the workpiece or the substrate.

The goal of laser cladding is not to join or fuse materials together, but to deposit the material onto the surface of the workpiece or the substrate. It can be for various reasons and goals, but the most common would be for protection against corrosion, wear, as well as to add another layer of material for further protection.

So that’s how easy it is to differentiate laser cladding from laser welding. As you might have seen, the procedures aren’t that far from one another but their goals are completely different.

Is a Laser Cladding Head Important?

A laser cladding head is a type of component in a laser welder machine that carries the laser that will perform the melting of the materials.

An image of what a laser cladding head looks like

It’s part of the main or the primary components of a laser welding machine because without it, the welding would not be able to take place.

Imagine a laser welding machine with just the base at its bottom part. How will it perform the welding procedure if it does not have the part or the component that would provide the welding procedure?

So, to answer that question, yes, a laser cladding head is, in fact, one of the most important things in a laser cladding or a laser welding machine.

What is Dilution in Laser Cladding?

By definition, dilution is referred to the overall amount of the intermixing of clad, as well as other substrate materials.

Image of a low dilution instance since the base metal is less than the coating

To give it to you in a simpler and an easier manner, let’s take a look at this particular example.

If the procedure you’re doing has little amounts of the base metal compared to the coating, it means low dilution. On the other hand, if the amount or the volume of the coating is much less than the coating, it means higher dilution.

What’s the Usual Heat Affected Zone For Laser Cladding?

Ideally speaking, the median or the average heat affected zone for laser cladding is about 0.5 to 0.75 mm.

An image of what a heat affected zone looks like

This is subject to the requirements of your projects, though as it can go as high as 1 to 1.25 mm.

But, that’s the general or the average radius of the heat affected zone in a laser cladding procedure.

Can You Use Laser Cladding in Aerospace Materials?

Of course, you can! As a matter of fact, laser cladding is the best-known alternative to TIG or Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW), and GTAW is the traditional procedure for welding parts and components that are in the aerospace and defense (AS&D) industry.

Therefore, the laser cladding procedure is also something that you can bank and rely on if you’re meddling with workpieces and substrates in the aerospace sector or industry.

Is it Possible to Perform Laser Cladding on Cast Iron?

An image of gray cast iron

While many people argue that it’s something not possible, laser cladding has proven its efficiency and its effectiveness of being able to work on a vast array of materials.

Some explain that they were able to find success in performing laser cladding on cast iron, while some say that they failed and never attempted to try again.

As per researches, though, little information has been seen revolving around the ability to perform laser cladding on cast iron, as well as substrates that are similar in terms of composition, durability, and overall engineering.

Backed by research, cast iron substrates have been proven to be one of the most difficult materials for whatever welding processes there is.

Are Laser Cladded Workpieces Machinable?

Yes, absolutely! In fact, many businesses still perform too few finishes and treatments to the cladded part to enhance its physicality or overall visualization.

You’ll still be able to perform milling, lathing, or any other type of precision finishes to laser cladded workpieces and substrates.

Can You Use Laser Cladding to Restore Parts and Components?

If we were to look at the primary functions of laser cladding, it is to deposit layers of materials in the form of wires and powders, right? And its ultimate goal is to be able to preserve or improve the longevity of a certain component, right?

Therefore, we can come to the conclusion that laser cladding is a procedure that you can absolutely use to restore parts and components, whatever business industry they might be in – so long as they’re using metallic or steel substrates.

Laser Cladding vs. Laser Metal Deposition

When you encounter both or any of these terms, don’t be confused.

By definition, laser cladding is the procedure of depositing filler materials or clad materials to substrates and workpieces with the goal of creating a metallurgical bond between the two (2).

Laser metal deposition is just a general term for it, while laser cladding is much more of a jargon.

Both terms are the same, in essence; it’s just that laser cladding is used more in the industry because laser metal deposition could mean hardfacing or pure welding.

What Are Common Laser Cladding Defects?

Just like in any other type of laser procedures, you’ll find quite a lot of defects and errors in welding procedures.

But, to give you the most common and the most popular ones, they include, but are not limited to:

Porosity

Oftentimes, the plates or the surfaces being contaminated cause porosity. It can also be due to the fact that it’s not properly cleaned thoroughly before the cladding process.

Furthermore, porosity can also occur if the laser keyhole is not stable that it collapses while being penetrated in high power.

Solidification Cracking

Also commonly referred to as hot cracking, is the defect that involves the formation of cracks while a particular weld is being solidified.

The common culprit in solidification cracking is when the shape of the weld is not properly controlled during the laser welding procedure.

Is Laser Cladding Effective For Railway Repair?

Yes, in fact, the railroad industry is one of the industries that are reliant to laser cladding for fast, accurate, and high-quality clads and welds.

Railway repair through laser welding and laser cladding

Especially since the railways are considered to be the norm by the society, laser cladding was able to give the guarantee of accuracy and precision done in a fast, urgent, and a swift manner.

Several other business sectors and industries that are in the likes of the railroad industry heed the importance of laser cladding technology in their arsenal, too, this include:

Shipyard and Shipbuilding Industry
Military and Defense Industry
Marine and Maritime Industry
Tanks and Vessels Industry
And Many More!

Are there all the defects? Of course not, these two (2) are just considered to be the most common defects and errors that occur in a laser cladding procedure.

Can Thickness of the Clad Be Controlled?

Not many experts believe this, but yes, you will be able to have control over the metal or the filler that’s applied to the workpiece or the substrate.

In fact, several laser cladding machines and equipment have their controls so that it’s easier for the workers and for the employees to be accurate and precise over the thickness of the cladded metal or material.

Types of Laser Cladding Equipment

There are quite a few different types of laser cladding machines and equipment available in the market, and there’s not a single way to categorize or to group them together.

But, the best and the most ideal way would be by differentiating them based on the type of laser they produce.

In this way, we’ll be able to identify four (4) different types of laser cladding equipment, they are:

Diode Laser Cladding Machines
YAG Laser Cladding Machines
CO2 Laser Cladding Machines
Fiber Laser Cladding Machines

Where Can You Best Apply Laser Cladding?

The best application of laser cladding is to restore and repair valuable parts and components.

As a matter of fact, laser cladding can best improve:

Military-involved components
Turbine blades
Internal parts of a combustion engine
And Many More

What is the Purpose of Laser Cladding?

Laser cladding’s main purpose is to extend the lives of machines and equipment prone to wear.

It can be corrosion, erosion, impact, stress, abrasion, and the like.

Is Laser a Good Cladding Agent?

Yes, lasers are good cladding agents because they can melt many alloys and metals easily.

In fact, they’ve been developed for this use in the industry.

What Are the Advantages or Laser Cladding?

Some of the major advantages that laser cladding can give you include:

Higher powder efficiency
Low porosity
Better metallic bond
Higher speed processing
Low to no distortion
Low energy input
Reduced processing time

What Are the Disadvantages of Laser Cladding?

However, some of the major disadvantages that it has are:

More costly for setup and installation
Wrong setup can cause stress in the cladding which results to cracks and defects
Limited availability
Machines have size limitations

What Are the Types of Laser Cladding?

Laser cladding has different types and methods, and they are:

Fiber Laser Cladding
CO2 Laser Cladding
YAG Laser Cladding
Diode Laser Cladding

What is Laser Welding?

Laser welding is a process that melts two dissimilar materials, joining them together.

It’s the process you need to create Part C, by welding Parts A & B.

Is Laser Welding the Same as Laser Cladding?

No, laser welding and laser cladding are two different processes.

Laser welding is done to combine two pieces of materials together, to create a new one.

Laser cladding, on the other hand, is used to coat a material.

You would need to perform laser welding if you want to create a new part or component. But if you want to restore, repair, or enhance a certain component, you need laser cladding.

Is Laser Welding Strong?

Laser welding, compared to other processes, is significantly stronger and more reliable.

It can melt a wide array of materials that the conventional welding agents can’t.

What Are Laser Cladding Powders?

They are the materials used to melt to create the clad material to the workpiece.

These contain the properties you need for the enhancement of your part or component.

What is Clad Metal?

They are the types of metals that came from two or more materials fused together.

You produce them by fusing two different or dissimilar materials.

Which Industries Benefit From Laser Cladding?

Many industries and sectors use laser cladding to enhance their machinery or equipment.

However, manufacturing, oil and gas, even other fields get the most benefit from them.

Are Laser Cladding Machines Effective?

Yes, laser cladding machines are effective for their main purpose.

Without them, you wouldn’t be able to enhance or strengthen your component.

Where Can You Purchase Laser Cladding Equipment?

There are a lot of laser cladding machine manufacturers in the market.

Oftentimes, they are the companies that offer other laser-inclined services as well.

Would Using a Laser Cladding Machine be Safe to Use?

If done well and appropriately, yes, laser cladding machines are safe to use.

Newer laser cladding machines are computer numerically controlled (CNC).

This means that you don’t have to man it to operate it, making it safer and easier to use.

Thermal Spraying vs. Laser Cladding

Thermal spraying is a surface modification process that coats a particular surface.

In this process, you use gas or electricity to melt the powder or the wire, applying them to the substrate.

Laser cladding uses a high-beam laser to weld and melt powder to a surface.

Laser cladding is better if you want better resistance to abrasion, corrosion, and wear.

If you need more than just resistance to wear, thermal spraying is the best option to go with.

Who Can Help You With Laser Cladding?

There are a lot of companies that offer laser cladding services.

But if you want the best, work with us here at Waldun. We’re the best company that has the best laser cladding machines in the industry.

For more than a decade, we’ve given our clients the specifics they need for their business.

All our laser cladding equipment are high standard and advanced.

We can help you with the job faster and more accurate.

Complete Guide Of Laser Cladding | Introduction Of Laser Cladding

Laser cladding, also known as laser remanufacturing, or laser repair, is a new surface modification technology.

By adding cladding material to the substrate’s surface, and using a high-energy-density laser beam to melt with the thin layer on the surface of the substrate. The coating forms a cladding layer.

Laser cladding technology is an emerging technology that uses lasers and nano-materials to strengthen alloys in various parts. The treatment can significantly increase the hardness and wear resistance of the surface and extend the parts’ service life.

Applications

Laser cladding of iron-based alloy powders is suitable for parts that require local abrasion resistance and are prone to deformation.

Nickel-based alloy powders are suitable for components requiring local wear resistance, heat resistance, corrosion resistance, and thermal fatigue resistance.

Cobalt-based alloy powder is suitable for parts requiring local wear resistance, heat resistance, corrosion resistance, and thermal fatigue resistance.

Process

Laser cladding can be divided into two main categories according to the cladding material’s supply method, i.e., pre-set laser cladding and synchronous laser cladding.

Process Flow

The primary process of synchronous laser cladding is the substrate cladding surface pretreatment — feeding laser melting— post-heat treatment.

Process Parameters Of Laser Cladding

The main parameters are laser power, spot diameter, cladding speed, defocusing amount, powder feed speed, scanning speed, and preheating temperature. These parameters have a significant influence on the dilution rate, cracking, the surface roughness of the cladding layer, and the density of the cladding parts. The settings also affect each other, which is a very complex process, and reasonable control methods must be adopted to control these parameters in the laser, within the range allowed by the cladding process.

Laser Power

The higher the laser power, the more the amount of molten cladding metal is melted, and the higher the probability of porosity. As the laser power increases, the depth of the cladding layer increases, the surrounding liquid metal fluctuates dramatically, and dynamic solidification crystallizes, causing the number of porosity to increase gradually. The cracking is gradually reduced or even eliminated. When the depth of the cladding layer reaches the ultimate bottom, the deformation and cracking intensify as the power increases, and the surface temperature of the substrate rises. The power is too small, only the surface coating melting, the substrate is not molten, this time the surface of the molten layer of local pilling, hollow, etc., can not reach the surface of the melting Purpose.

Cladding Speed

The cladding speed V has a similar effect to the laser power P. The cladding speed is too high, and the alloy powder cannot be completely melted. If the cladding speed is too high, the alloy powder does not vanish entirely and does not have the effect of high-quality cladding; if the cladding speed is too low, the existence time of the melting pool is too long. Excessive length, overburning of the powder, loss of alloying elements, and high heat input to the substrate will increase the deformation.

Spot Diameter

the laser beam is generally circular. The cladding layer’s width mainly depends on the spot diameter of the laser beam, which increases, and the cladding layer becomes wider. The spot size will cause changes in the energy distribution on the surface of the cladding, and the morphology and tissue properties of the cladding will vary considerably. Generally speaking, in the small size of the spot, the quality of the cladding layer is better, as the spot size increases, the quality of the cladding layer decreases. But the spot diameter is too small, which is not conducive to obtaining a large area of the cladding layer.