Near surface modification of aluminum alloy induced by laser shock processing

This paper investigates the influences of near surface modification induced in 6061-T6 aluminum alloy by laser shock processing (LSP). The present study evaluates LSP with a Q-switched Nd:YAG low power laser using water confinement medium and absorbent overlay on the workpiece. The near surface microstructural change of 6061-T6 alloy after LSP was studied. The residual stress variation throughout the depth of the workpiece was determined. The results showed an improvement of the material resistance to pit formation. This improvement may be attributed to compressive residual stress and work-hardening. The size and number of pits revealed by immersion in an NaOH-HCl solution decreased in comparison with the untreated material.