In situ synthesized VC reinforced Fe-based coating by using extreme high-speed laser cladding

An in-situ VC reinforced composite coating was fabricated on a mild steel substrate by using extreme high-speed laser cladding (EHLA) for the first time. The composite coating was defect-free and metallurgically bonded to the substrate. The composite coating reaped the benefits, that small-sized in-situ VC (<2 μm) was densely and uniformly distributed in the Fe-based coating, from the advantages of EHLA and in-situ synthesis. Therefore, the hardness distribution of the coating was homogeneous; the hardness and the abrasion resistance of the coated mild steel were increased by 4 and 10 times, respectively. This work verified the feasibility of preparing in-situ ceramic reinforced composite coatings by using EHLA.