Optical Monitoring in Elaboration of Metal Matrix Composites by Direct Metal Deposition

Development of composites with multi-functional properties is a challenging problem that could be solved by laser cladding. The objective of the present work is to demonstrate the advantages of optical monitoring in optimizing deposition of carbide-reinforced metal matrix composites. Multi-wavelength pyrometer and infrared camera are applied to analyse high temperature heat – and mass transfer in the cladding zone. The influence of laser power, laser cladding speed and powder feeding rate on the brightness temperature are studied. The thermal images of the molten pool obtained by infrared camera for different TiC contents in the powder blend are analysed as well as the beads geometry, microstructure and microhardness.