In this study, the addition of the rare earth oxide CeO₂ was investigated to alter the microstructural properties of the nano-WC-reinforced Ni-based composite coatings. The reinforced composite was prepared on the 42CrMo steel surface using a semiconductor laser. The morphology and microstructure of coatings were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Further, the digital microhardness tester and high-temperature friction and wear tester were used to observe the mechanical properties. The results indicated that the addition of CeO₂ eliminated the cracks from the surface of the coatings and effectively reduced the number of pores. The phases were mainly observed as γ-Ni(Fe) in a solid solution, and some residual WC and W₂C phases were observed. In addition, Fe₃C, Cr₂₃C₆, M₆C (M = W, Fe, and Ni), SiC and Cr₇C₃ composite carbides, Si₂W and NiW tungsten compounds, and CeFe₂- and CeNi₂-containing Ce complex compounds were formed on the coating. The rare earth oxide CeO₂ composite-modified coating mainly comprised dendrites, crystal cells, strips, and massive microstructures. The reinforced phases of the modified coating presented uniform dispersion distribution with the addition of 1% CeO₂, and the structures were significantly refined. The maximum microhardness of the modified coating was approximately 1560 HV_0.2, which was approximately 20% higher than that of the unmodified composite coating. The minimum wear loss of the modified coating was 6.1 mg and the minimum frictional coefficient was approximately 0.23, which were better than those of the unmodified coating. The wear mechanism of the nano-WC-reinforced Ni-based coating was primarily adhesive, whereas that of the CeO₂ composite modified coating was mainly abrasive particle wear, which accompanied adhesive wear.

To enhance the friction and wear properties of 40Cr steel’s surface, CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy (HEA) coatings with various Ti contents were prepared using laser cladding. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were used to characterize the phase composition, microstructure, and chemical composition of the samples. The findings demonstrated that the CoCrFeMnNiTi_x HEA coatings formed a single FCC phase. Fe₂Ti, Ni₃Ti, and Co₂Ti intermetallic compounds were discovered in the coatings when the molar ratio of Ti content was greater than 0.5. The EDS findings indicated that Cr and Co/Ni/Ti were primarily enriched in the dendrite and interdendrite, respectively. Ti addition can effectively enhance the coating’s mechanical properties. The hardness test findings showed that when the molar ratio of Ti was 0.75, the coating’s microhardness was 511 HV0.5, which was 1.9 times the hardness of the 40Cr (256 HV0.5) substrate and 1.46 times the hardness of the CrCrFeMnNi HEA coating (348 HV0.5). The friction and wear findings demonstrated that the addition of Ti can substantially reduce the coating’s friction coefficient and wear rate. The coating’s wear resistance was the best when the molar ratio of Ti was 0.75, the friction coefficient was 0.296, and the wear amount was 0.001 g. SEM and 3D morphology test results demonstrated that the coating’s wear mechanism changed from adhesive wear and abrasive wear to fatigue wear and abrasive wear with the increase in Ti content.

Ni-Mo and Ni-Mo-W coatings were electrodeposited on a stainless steel sheet, and then were annealed at 200, 400, and 600 °C. The effect of annealing heat treatment on the microstructure of Ni-Mo and Ni-Mo-W electrodepositions, their nano-hardness, and tribological properties were investigated. It was revealed that the average crystalline are refined and phase separation are promoted with formation of Mo-W related intermetallic precipitates at temperature exceed 400 °C on account of the co-existence of Mo-W elements within Ni-Mo-W coatings. Annealing heat treatment leads to hardening, and the hardness and elastic module increase significantly. The grain boundary (GB) relaxation and hard precipitated intermetallic particles are responsible for the annealing-induced hardening for ≤400 °C annealed and 600 °C annealed Ni-Mo-W coatings, respectively. In addition, both adhesive wear and abrasive wear are observed for coatings, and abrasive wear becomes predominant when annealing temperature up to 600 °C. The wear resistance of coatings is improved eventually by formation of a mixture of lubricated oxides upon annealing at 600 °C and the enhancement of H/E ratio for ≤400 °C annealed Ni-Mo-W coatings.

In depositing multiple layers on the surface of failed metal parts, the overlap rate is a critical factor in determining the surface smoothness and uniformity of the coating thickness. Therefore, special attention must be given to the spacing between adjacent melt tracks when planning laser paths on complex metal parts. A strategy for selecting the overlap rate for multi-track cladding is proposed, based on the key parameters of surface curvature, mass conservation, and the profile of single-track coatings. A multi-track overlap model is developed, expressing the relationship between coating morphology and the overlap rate. The optimal spacing value is determined to achieve the goal of high-quality coating remanufacturing. To verify the effectiveness of this method, nickel-based powder was used for laser forming on the surface of metal gears. The results showed that the surface of the cladding layer was smooth and flat, further demonstrating that this model helps improve the repair quality and overall performance of curved metal parts. Thus, it provides valuable guidance for the remanufacturing of failed metal parts.

An improved butterfly optimization algorithm (IBOA) is proposed to overcome the disadvantages, including slow convergence, generation of local optimum solutions, and deadlock phenomenon, of the optimization algorithm in the path planning of mobile robots. A path-planning grid model is established based on an improved obstacle model. First, the population diversity is improved by introducing kent mapping during population position renewal in the normal butterfly optimization algorithm (BOA) to enhance the global search ability of the butterfly population. Second, an adaptive weight coefficient is introduced in the renewal process of each generation to increase the convergence speed and accuracy. An opposition-based learning strategy based on convex lens imaging is introduced to help the butterfly population jump out of the local optimum. Finally, a mutation strategy is introduced to solve the path planning problem. On this basis, two path simplification strategies are proposed to make up for the shortcomings of planning paths in grid maps. The shortest path lengths solved by IBOA, BOA, and GA in the 20 × 20 map are 30.97, 31.799, and 31.799, respectively. The numbers of iterations for the shortest paths searched by IBOA, BOA, and GA are 14, 24, and 38 in that order. The shortest path lengths solved by IBOA, BOA and GA in the 40 × 40 map are 63.84, 65.60, and 65.84, respectively. The number of iterations for the shortest paths searched by IBOA, BOA and GA are 32, 40, and 46, respectively. Simulation results show that IBOA has a strong ability to solve robot path planning problems and that the proposed path simplification strategy can effectively reduce the length of the optimal path in the grid map to solve the path planning problem of mobile robots. The shortest paths solved by IBOA in 20 × 20 and 40 × 40 maps are simplified to lengths of 30.2914 and 61.03, respectively.

Due to its unique single-phase multivariate alloy characteristics and good low-temperature mechanical properties, CoCrFeNiMn high entropy alloy (HEA) has attracted the interest of many researchers in recent years. In this paper, to improve the wear resistance of Q235 alloy steel surface, CoCrFeNiMnSn_x HEA coatings were prepared on the surface of Q235 steel via laser cladding. X-ray diffractometry, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectrometry were used to determine the microstructure and chemical composition. The research findings revealed that the CoCrFeNiMn HEA coatings were formed from a single FCC phase. As the Sn content in the coating increased, a new MnNi₂Sn phase formed. Microhardness and friction and wear results showed that when the mole content of Sn was 0.2, the hardness of the CoCrFeNiMn HEA coating was increased by approximately 45%, the friction coefficient decreased by 0.168, and the wear loss decreased by 16.6%. Three-dimensional noncontact morphology and SEM results revealed that the wear mechanisms of CoCrFeNiMn HEA coatings were abrasive wear, delamination wear and a small amount of oxidative wear under dry friction conditions, whereas the friction mechanisms of CoCrFeNiMnSn_0.2 HEA coatings were primarily abrasive wear and oxidative wear.