Effect of process parameters on surface smoothness in laser cladding

To obtain the smooth surface quality of cladding layer, the effects of process parameters on surface smoothness and the ratios of the width and height of cladding layer to surface smoothness were studied by experiments in laser cladding. The relationships of the height and width of cladding layer with center distance and overlapping ratio were analyzed, and the height, width and surface smoothness of cladding layer were tested. The experimental results indicate that the degree of surface smoothness decreases with the increase of laser power and powder mass flow rate and the reducing of traverse speed; the degree of surface smoothness firstly increased then decreased with the growth of carrier gas flow rates.