Effect of cooling rate and laser process parameters on additive manufactured Fe–Ti–C metal matrix composites microstructure and carbide morphology

•We understood the effects of the process parameters’ values on the TiC morphology and microstructure.•Cooling rates were calculated and mapped by numerical method in order to predict the carbide morphology.•A developed map, gives valuable information for first time to control the microstructure by laser material processing.

In this paper, laser additive manufacturing (LAM) of Fe–TiC composite coating on AISI 1030 carbon steel is investigated using a numerical and experimental method. In order to have a desired result using LAM, it is crucial to understand the effects of the process parameters’ values on the TiC morphology and microstructure. For this purpose, the LAM process is numerically simulated in order to calculate cooling rate and peak temperature. Experimental data and numerical results are in good agreement in terms of the phase development. Results show that cooling rate plays a crucial role in phase transformation in the clad, however, final microstructure strongly depends on the cooling rate and powder's chemical composition. Two main carbide morphologies (i.e. dendritic and particulate) are studied and relevant cooling rates are detected. Based on this paper and developed map, it is possible to control the cooling rate in order to achieve specific carbide morphologies in the clad. In this study, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) are used to characterize clads’ microstructure.