In order to improve the performance of the cladding layer, this study used the Taguchi orthogonal design to investigate the influence of laser power, scanning speed, gas flow, and SiC powder ratio on the micro-hardness and wear volume of the cladding layer. The results indicate that the SiC powder ratio was the major factor that had the main impact on the micro-hardness and wear volume of the cladding layer. The contribution of SiC powder ratio on the micro-hardness and wear volume are 92.08% and 79.39%, respectively. Through signal to noise ratio conversion and combining grey relational analysis, the multiple objectives optimization was attained. With the target of maximizing the micro-hardness and minimizing the wear volume simultaneously, grey relational analysis was applied to obtain the optimal processing parameters set and predict the corresponding grey relational grade. The error rate was 5.3% between the prediction and experimental validation. This study provides the guidance for optimizing multiple goals at the same time using grey relational analysis about the coating properties deposited by laser cladding in actual industrial applications. It provided theoretical basis for the processing parameters optimization with targeting the micro-hardness and wear resistance.

This paper aims to explore the mechanism of an ultrasonic applied field on the microstructures and properties of coatings, and clarify the evolution of the molten pool under different ultrasonic frequencies. The Taguchi experimental design method was adopted in this paper. NbC-reinforced Ni-based coatings were in situ synthesized by laser cladding to investigate the effects of ultrasonic vibration process parameters on the microstructure, pore area, microhardness, and wear resistance of the cladding layer. The results show that the pore area decreases first and then increases as ultrasonic power increases from 600 to 900 W and ultrasonic frequency from 23 to 40 kHz. On the contrary, the hardness and wear resistance increase at first and then decrease. The pore area is minimized at 800 W ultrasonic power and 32 kHz ultrasonic frequency, and the hardness is maximized at 600 W ultrasonic power and 40 kHz ultrasonic frequency. Meanwhile, the highest wear resistance can be obtained when ultrasonic power is 700 W and ultrasonic frequency is 32 kHz. Based on the phase structure analysis, the cladding layer mainly consists of FeNi₃, NbC, B₄C, and CrB₂. Ultrasonic vibration will not change the phase composition of the layer. Combined with the varying G/R value and cooling rate, the reasons for the change in grain morphology in different areas were analyzed to reveal the evolution mechanism of the molten pool under the influence of ultrasound.

This paper investigated the correlation between the processing parameters and the properties of clad deposited by laser cladding on a curved surface. Mathematical models relating the processing parameters (laser power, scanning speed, gas flow, and overlap ratio) and clad properties (flatness ratio and pore area) were established by central composite design. Analysis of variance and experimental validation confirmed the validity of the models. The results indicated that the flatness ratio was negatively influenced by the larger scanning speed, gas flow, and overlap ratio, while the pore area was enlarged by the increasing of scanning speed, and increasing the overlap ratio lead to the pore area reducing at first and then increasing. Optimized processing parameters were obtained under the target of maximizing the flatness ratio and minimizing the pore area. The developed mathematical models enabled predicting the flatness ratio and pore area with optimized processing parameters. The validation experimental result verified the prediction accuracy of the models and displayed target improvement compared with the original central composite design. The results provide theoretical guidance in multi-track laser cladding on a curved surface for the prediction and control of the geometric characteristics of the coating and the optimization of the processing parameters. This research outcome provides guidance for the coating deposition application in crankshaft surface coating or surface restoration, rotary parts coating deposition, or complex shape tool manufacturing. It also forms the fundamental basis for the extensive application of multi-track laser cladding on curved substrates in the additive manufacturing industry.

As a Lagrangian gridless particle method, the MPS (Moving Particle Semi-implicit) method has a wide engineering application. However, for complex 3D flows, unphysical pressure oscillations often occur and result in the failure of simulations. This paper compares the stability enhancement methods proposed by different researchers to develop a 3D, stable MPS method. The results indicate that the proposed methods are incapable of eliminating the particle clustering that leads to instability as the main source in coarser particle spacing cases. An anti-clustering model, referring to the SPH (Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics) artificial viscosity model, is proposed to further reduce instability. Combining various proposed methods and models, several typical examples are simulated comparatively. The results are compared with those of the VOF (Volume of Fluid) model using commercial software to validate the accuracy and stability of the combination of the proposed methods and models. It is concluded that (1) 3D cases that adopt a high-order Laplacian model and high-order source terms in PPE are more accurate than those adopting the low-order operators; (2) the proposed anti-clustering model can produce a tuned interparticle force to prevent particle clustering and introduce no additional viscosity effects in the flow of the normal state, which plays a very positive role for further stability enhancement of MPS; (3) particle resolution significantly maintains simulation accuracy given the stable algorithms by the combination of stability enhancement methods. The 3D MPS method is coupled with the Euler grid (FLUENT V17 software, ANSYS, Pittsburgh, PA, USA) in two phases. In particular, the 3D MPS algorithm is used to calculate the liquid-phase change from the continuous to the dispersed, and the finite volume method based on the Euler grid is adopted to measure the corresponding gas-phase motion. The atomization of the liquid jet under static air flow is calculated and compared with the results of the VOF method, which can capture the continuous interface.