Abstract
Aluminum and aluminum alloys have the advantage of a high strength-to-weight ratio, but their low hardness and poor wear resistance often cause wear damage. In the present study, the cladding layer was prepared using argon-shielded arc cladding of CuZn40-WC powders which were pre-coated on a pure aluminum substrate. The effects of WC proportion on the morphology, microstructure, and properties of cladding layers were investigated in detail. The results indicated that the optimal WC proportion in CuZn40-WC powders was 60 wt.%. With the increase of WC proportion, although the morphology of the cladding layer became slightly worse, the surface quality of the cladding layer was acceptable for industrial application until the WC proportion was 80 wt.%. Meanwhile, the top width and maximum depth of the cladding layer decreased. The maximum microhardness and optimal wear resistance of the cladding layer were 4.5 and 2.5 times that of the aluminum substrate, respectively. The increased microhardness and wear resistance were mainly attributed to the formation of Al4W in the cladding layer. The wear scar of the high wear resistance specimen was smoother and some bulk Al4W compounds were clearly observed on the wear surface.
Highlights
Due to the demands for lightweight, energy-saving, and environmentally friendly materials, aluminum and aluminum alloys are increasingly applied in mechanical engineering, automobile, rail traffic, aerospace, shipping, and other industrial fields [1,2,3]
When the CuZn40 proportion in the mix powders was large, the cladding layer was very smooth, but as the WC proportion was increased, spherical particles, voids, and poor fusion defects appeared on the cladding layer surface
Owing to the high melting point of WC powder (2870 ◦ C), a large part of WC powders was not melted by the arc and moved to the melting pool, which resulted in an unstable flow of the melting pool and in defects during the cladding process with the high WC proportion powders
Summary
Due to the demands for lightweight, energy-saving, and environmentally friendly materials, aluminum and aluminum alloys are increasingly applied in mechanical engineering, automobile, rail traffic, aerospace, shipping, and other industrial fields [1,2,3]. High hardness, wear resistance, and high temperature resistance are required for cylinder and friction pair parts, and an aluminum alloy is difficult to apply. Improvement of the wear resistance and high temperature resistance of aluminum alloy surfaces has become an important issue [4,5,6]. Laser and arc heat sources are mainly used for the surface strengthening and treatment of aluminum and aluminum alloys. Ravi et al [7] studied laser surface alloyed aluminum with Ni-Cr powder. Ye et al [8] prepared an Fe-Al intermetallic coating on an aluminum alloy substrate by laser cladding, and the composite cladding layer consisted of α-Al, FeAl, FeAl3 , Fe2 Al5 , and Fe3 Al phases.
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