Microstructure and Hardness of Nickel-Based Coatings Prepared by Laser Additive Manufacturing on Water-Cooled Substrate: An Experimental and Numerical Study

The excess heat generated during the laser additive manufacturing process is prone to cause coating defects; a water-cooled substrate can effectively remove the excess heat and improve the hardness of the coating. In this study, the effects of water-cooled substrate on the microstructure and hardness of laser additive manufactured nickel-based coatings were investigated by experimental and numerical simulations. The results showed that the water-cooled substrate decreased the size of columnar crystals and increased the number as well as the length of secondary dendrite crystals at the bottom of the nickel-based coatings. There was also a noticeable increase in the size of equiaxed grains and the quantity of the solid solution in the middle of the coatings. The hardness value of the coating increased at the water velocity of 200 mL/s and 500 mL/s and finally decreased at 700 mL/s. A finite element model was established by ABAQUS software to numerically simulate the temperature field of the laser additive manufactured nickel-based coating with the water-cooled substrate. The results revealed significant differences in the temperature distribution of the coatings with different velocities. As the water velocity increased, the peak temperature at the center of the coating's molten pool gradually decreased. In addition, the cooling rate of the specimens increased with the application of the water cooling, leading to a more concentrated temperature distribution near the laser heat source.