Mechanical and Electro-Chemical Properties of Laser Surface Alloyed AISI 304 Stainless Steel with WC+Ni+NiCr

In the present study, a detailed evaluation of wear and corrosion resistance properties of laser surface alloyed of AISI 304 stainless steel with WC+Ni+NiCr (in the ratio of 70:15:15) has been undertaken. Laser processing has been carried out using a 5 kW continuous wave (CW) Nd:YAG laser (at a beam diameter of 3 mm) by surface melting and simultaneous deposition of precursor powder mixture in the melt zone (at a flow rate of 10 mg/s) and using Ar shroud at a gas flow rate of 5 l/min. Followed by laser processing, a detailed evaluation of fretting wear behavior has been conducted against WC surface. Finally, the corrosion property is measured using a potentiodynamic polarization testing unit in a 3.56 wt.% NaCl solution. The wear resistance property is significantly improved due to laser surface alloying which is attributed to the improvement in surface microhardness to 1350 VHN as compared to 220 VHN of as-received γ-stainless steel substrate. The mechanism of wear is established. The pitting corrosion resistance property is also improved due to the presence of Ni and Cr in solution and homogenization of microstructure due to laser processing.