Experimental and statistical analyses of geometry characteristics of Inconel 718 laser clad layer with response surface methodology

The process parameters of laser remanufacturing technology have significant effects on the geometric characteristics of the single clad layer in the laser remanufacturing process. In this study, the effects of laser power, laser scanning velocity, and powder feeding rate on the geometry characteristics of a clad layer are investigated by depositing Inconel 718 powder on Inconel 718 alloy via coaxial laser cladding. Based on the experimental results, the mathematical models of geometry characteristics are created using the response surface methodology and checked by the analysis of variance. The verification results indicate that the predicted values coincide with the measured ones, which confirms the reliability effectiveness of the models derived from the regression analysis. Finally, the relationship between the main process parameters and geometric characteristics is studied. The modeling results show that laser power has a positive effect on all the geometry characteristics, while the powder feeding rate has a positive effect on the clad height and a negative impact on the width, depth, W/H (the ratio of clad width to height), and dilution rate of the clad layer. The scanning velocity has a positive effect on the W/H and dilution rate of the clad layer and a negative effect on the width, depth, and height of the clad layer.