The 12CrNi2 alloy steel powder studied in the present paper is mainly used to manufacture camshafts for nuclear power emergency diesel engines. Laser cladding deposition is of great significance for the manufacture of nuclear power emergency diesel camshafts, which has the advantages of reducing material cost and shortening the manufacturing cycle. However, due to the extremely uneven heating of the components during the deposition process, a complex residual stress field occurs, resulting in crack defects and residual deformation of the components. In the present paper, 12CrNi2 bulk specimens were prepared on the Q460E high-strength structural steel substrate at different preheating temperatures by laser cladding deposition technique, and a finite element residual stress analysis model was established to investigate the effects of different preheating temperatures on the microstructure, properties, and residual stress of the specimens. The results of the experiments and finite element simulations show that with the increase of preheating temperature, the content of martensite/bainite in the deposited layer decreases, and the ferrite content increases. The proper preheating temperature (150 °C) has good mechanical properties. The residual stress on the surface of each specimen decreases with the increase of the preheating temperature. The longitudinal stress is greater at the rear-end deposition part, and the lateral residual stress is greater on both sides along the scanning direction.

Aluminum alloy structures may be damaged due to wear or corrosion while in service. These damages will bring about huge financial costs, as well as a huge amount of energy consumption. There is an urgent need to search for an appropriate repair method in order to solve this problem. In this research, the cold spray process was used to repair the damages by using a mixture of powders with Al and Al₂O₃. A 7N01-T4 aluminum alloy plate with a factitious pit was regarded as the damaged sample. The microstructure, mechanical properties, and corrosion behavior were studied. The results showed that there were no visible perforative pores or cracks in the repaired areas. The microhardness of the repaired areas was in the range of 57.4–63.2 HV and was lower than that of the 7N01-T4 aluminum alloy. The tensile strength of the repaired samples was markedly improved compared with the unrepaired samples. The alternate immersion test results indicated that the repaired samples had the lowest rate of mass loss compared with 7N01-T4 and the unrepaired samples. After alternate immersion tests for 504 h, the repaired samples were covered with dense corrosion products. The repaired samples had a superior corrosion resistance compared to that of 7N01-T4. Thus, the cold spray process is a method of repairing damage in aluminum alloy structures.

In the present study, plasma spray welding was used to prepare an in-situ niobium carbide (NbC) reinforced Ni-based composite coating on the low carbon steel, and the phase composition and the microstructure of the composite coatings were studied. The wear resistance and the wear mechanism of the composite coatings were also researched by the wear tests. The results showed that the main phases of the composite coating were NbC, γ-Ni, Cr₂₃C₆, Ni₃Si, CrB, Cr₅B₃, Cr₇C₃ and FeNi₃. A number of fine in-situ NbC particles and numerous chromium carbide particles were distributed in the γ-Ni matrix. The increase in the mass fraction of Nb and NiCr-Cr₃C₂ could lead to the increase in NbC particles in the composite coatings. Due to the high hardness of NbC and chromium carbides, the micro-hardness and the wear resistance of the composite coatings were advanced. The composite coating with the powder mixtures of 20% (Nb + NiCr-Cr₃C₂) and 80% NiCrBSi had the highest micro-hardness and the best wear resistance in this study. The average micro-hardness reached the maximum value 1025HV_0.5. The volume loss was 39.2 mm³, which was merely 37% of that of the NiCrBSi coating and 6% of that of the substrate under the identical conditions.

Aluminum alloy components of high-speed trains have a great risk of being corroded by various corrosive medium due to extremely complex atmospheric environments. This will bring out huge losses and reduce the safety and stability of trains. In order to solve the problem, cold spray process was used for repairing the damage of the aluminum alloy components with Al-based powders. Microstructure, mechanical properties and corrosion behavior were studied. The results indicated that there were very few pores and cracks in the repaired areas after repairing. The average microhardness of the repaired areas was 54.5 HV ± 3.4 HV, and the tensile strength of the repaired samples was 160.4 MPa. After neutral salt spray tests for 1000 h, the rate of mass loss of the samples repaired by cold spray was lower than that of 6A01 aluminum alloy. The electrochemical test results showed that the repaired areas had a higher open circuit potential than 6A01 aluminum alloy. As a result, the repaired areas such as the anode protected its nearby substrate. The samples repaired by cold spray exhibited better corrosion than 6A01 aluminum alloy. Cold spray process and Al-based powders are applicable for repairing the aluminum alloy components of high-speed trains.

In this study, with the rapid development of the field of rail vehicles, the laser welding process with high energy and small thermal deformation is selected, which reduces the working hours of post-welding grinding, repainting, and other processes, and ensures the industrial design requirements of the beautiful body after welding. The welding process for the non-penetration laser lap welding of SUS301L stainless-steel plates was optimized to address the problem of welding marks on the outer surface of railway vehicle car bodies. The impact of laser power, welding speed, and defocusing amount on weld penetration and tensile shear load was investigated using the response surface methodology. The results showed that the optimal response model for tensile shear load was the linear model, while the optimal response model for weld penetration was the 2FI model. The defocusing amount had the greatest influence on tensile shear load and weld penetration. When the laser power was 1.44 kW, the welding speed was 15 mm/s, and the defocusing amount was −4 mm, the tensile shear load reached its maximum by prediction. The actual tensile shear load of welded joints using these parameters was 4293 N with an error of merely 0.31% relative to the predicted value. The shear strength of laser-welded joints was measured at 429.3 N/mm, meeting the criteria established by the relevant standards. The tensile fracture shows characteristics of brittle fracture. The surface of the welded joints was bright white and well-formed, while the back side of the lower plate exhibited no signs of melting or welding marks. The microstructure of the weld zone (WZ) exhibited irregular columnar austenite and plate-like ferrite, while the heat-affected zone (HAZ) comprised columnar austenite and elongated bars or networks of δ-ferrite. The small-angle grain in welded joints can reduce grain boundary defects and mitigate stress concentration. After welding, angular deformation occurred, resulting in a residual stress distribution that shows tensile stress near the weld and compressive stress at a distance from the weld.