What is laser cladding?
Surfacing is a process where the application of a layer of material to a substrate surface by welding, brazing, or thermal spraying produces desired properties or dimensions. When the deposited material provides corrosion or heat resistance the process is called cladding. When the deposited material provides wear resistance the process is called hardfacing. Cladding is a widely used process for providing the desired surface properties of a part, or for rebuilding worn components to their original dimensions after machining. In the first case, cladding allows a layer of material that is different than the substrate (dissimilar filler metal) to be added to the surface. Ideally, the cladding process should result in minimal mixing between the deposited and substrate materials (called dilution), a high-strength (truly metallurgic) bond between the cladding and substrate, and a minimum thermal distortion of the part being worked. Various practical considerations are usually equally importan
