Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition

Thermal stability of laser-modified surfaces is crucial for hot working conditions. Refined grain structure from the rapid solidification can only withstand a limited temperature range before the grain structure merges from grain boundary movement. Although the superior hardness properties are achie...

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Main Authors: Fazliana, Fauzun, Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad, Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir, Izwan, Ismail
Format: Article
Language:English
English
Published: Springer US 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/
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author Fazliana, Fauzun
Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad
Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir
Izwan, Ismail
author_facet Fazliana, Fauzun
Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad
Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir
Izwan, Ismail
author_sort Fazliana, Fauzun
building UMP Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Thermal stability of laser-modified surfaces is crucial for hot working conditions. Refined grain structure from the rapid solidification can only withstand a limited temperature range before the grain structure merges from grain boundary movement. Although the superior hardness properties are achievable through laser cladding, laser-clad surfaces are prone to cracking due to a mismatch in thermal expansion coefficient and coarse, hard particle size addition. Thus, this paper presents the thermal stability of laser-clad H13 tool steel with fine tungsten carbide (WC) particles (1-5 µm) addition to obstruct grain boundary movement and retain the refined grain structure. Controlled parameters for WC particle settlement onto H13 steel are laser power, pulse repetition frequency (PRF) and scanning speed. A thermal fatigue test was conducted on the clad surface for 1000-5000 cycles. The thermally worn clad surfaces were characterised for subsurface hardness properties, surface morphology and topography. The findings suggest the addition of WC particles during H13 steel surface melting increases the hardness properties to 2389 HV. Although the total volume of eroded surface and crack propagation responds evidently to the fatigue cycles, the refined grain structure is primarily intact, thus retaining the surface properties under high working temperatures. The WC particles observed amongst dendrite structure after 5000 cycles of fatigue test signify thermal stability at temperatures above 600°C. The thermal model anticipated higher stress distribution on the WC particles clad surface relative to the H13 steel substrate. These findings indicate fine particles’ significance in strengthening grain structure for designing a prolonged dies surface life cycle.
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language English
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spelling ump-435192025-08-06T00:50:54Z https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/ Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition Fazliana, Fauzun Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir Izwan, Ismail TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery Thermal stability of laser-modified surfaces is crucial for hot working conditions. Refined grain structure from the rapid solidification can only withstand a limited temperature range before the grain structure merges from grain boundary movement. Although the superior hardness properties are achievable through laser cladding, laser-clad surfaces are prone to cracking due to a mismatch in thermal expansion coefficient and coarse, hard particle size addition. Thus, this paper presents the thermal stability of laser-clad H13 tool steel with fine tungsten carbide (WC) particles (1-5 µm) addition to obstruct grain boundary movement and retain the refined grain structure. Controlled parameters for WC particle settlement onto H13 steel are laser power, pulse repetition frequency (PRF) and scanning speed. A thermal fatigue test was conducted on the clad surface for 1000-5000 cycles. The thermally worn clad surfaces were characterised for subsurface hardness properties, surface morphology and topography. The findings suggest the addition of WC particles during H13 steel surface melting increases the hardness properties to 2389 HV. Although the total volume of eroded surface and crack propagation responds evidently to the fatigue cycles, the refined grain structure is primarily intact, thus retaining the surface properties under high working temperatures. The WC particles observed amongst dendrite structure after 5000 cycles of fatigue test signify thermal stability at temperatures above 600°C. The thermal model anticipated higher stress distribution on the WC particles clad surface relative to the H13 steel substrate. These findings indicate fine particles’ significance in strengthening grain structure for designing a prolonged dies surface life cycle. Springer US 2025 Article PeerReviewed text en https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/1/s11665-024-09236-6 pdf en https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/2/Thermal%20Stability%20of%20Laser-Clad%20Tool%20Steel.pdf Fazliana, Fauzun and Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad and Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir and Izwan, Ismail (2025) Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition. Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance, 34 (3). pp. 1947-1991. ISSN 1544-1024. (Published) https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-024-09236-6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-024-09236-6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-024-09236-6
spellingShingle TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
Fazliana, Fauzun
Syarifah Nur Aqida, Syed Ahmad
Abdul Fattah, Mohd Tahir
Izwan, Ismail
Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title_full Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title_fullStr Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title_full_unstemmed Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title_short Thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
title_sort thermal stability of laser-clad tool steel with fine tungsten carbide particle addition
topic TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
url https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/
https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/
https://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/43519/