D

Journal of Physical Science and Application 3 (5) (2013) 287-294

DAVID

PUBLISHING

A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding:

Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of Ti-6Al-4V
Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate
Ryan Cottam1, 3, Tim Barry1, 3 and Milan Brandt2, 3
1. Industrial Laser Applications Laboratory, IRIS, Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences, Swinburne University of
Technology Hawthorn, Victoria 3122, Australia
2. School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, RMIT University, Bundoora, Melbourne, Victoria 3001,
Australia
3. Defence Materials Technology Centre, Victoria 3122, Australia
Received: March 18, 2013 / Accepted: April 06, 2013 / Published: May 15, 2013.
Abstract: A theoretical processing map for the laser cladding of Ti-6Al-4V powder on a Ti-6Al-4V substrate was developed. The
map was constructed with the aid of a new analytical model for laser cladding, which is detailed in this paper. The map is a series of
loci that relate laser traversing speed with laser power for a given melt pool depth and clad height. Several of the developed
parameters were experimentally trialled on Ti-6Al-4V clad on Ti-6Al-4V and produced clads of sound metallurgical quality. These
maps would be useful for industrial engineers developing new cladding procedures or the research engineer developing
understanding of the fundamental aspects of laser cladding. Additive manufacturing or laser engineered net shaping (LENS) could
also use this type of map for the development of process parameters.
Key words: Laser cladding, Ti-6Al-4V, process modeling, processing map.

1. Introduction
Laser cladding is metal deposition technique that
can be used to repair or enhance material surfaces. A
moving high power laser is used to heat the substrate
to a temperature where it melts. Usually metallic or
ceramic powder is injected into the melt pool formed,
which adds to the melt pool and builds up a new layer.
This layer can have the same composition as the
substrate to rebuild worn components or can have a
different composition for enhanced corrosion or wear
resistance. Multiple clad layers can be used to build up
three dimensional structures for rapid tooling or rapid
prototyping, which is known as additive
manufacturing or laser engineered net shaping

Corresponding author: Ryan Cottam, Dr., research fields:

laser cladding, mathematical modeling, metallurgy. E-mail:
rcottam@swin.edu.au.

(LENS). To successfully develop any one of these

techniques, laser cladding parameters of power,
traversing speed and powder feed rate need to be
determined.
The development of processing parameters for laser
cladding is traditionally achieved by trial and error. A
recent example of determining laser cladding
parameters using trial and error was conducted by Wu
et al. [1], where the laser power, scan speed and
powder feed rate were all varied to determine a range
of cladding parameters that produce a metallurgically
sound clad layer. This process of developing cladding
parameters can be taken further where the results of
such investigations are plotted as a processing window,
such as the one presented by Zah and Lutzmann [2].
De Hosson et al. [3] have used a semi analytical
approach where analysis of the clad layer produced by
trial and error is characterized by the process

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A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

parameters of traversing speed, laser power and

powder feed rate. This is then analysed by regression
analysis to develop equations for the three variables to
produce an acceptable clad layer, which were then
plotted as a map. This yields a deeper understanding
of the process and is a step forward in the
development of process parameters. Gaumannet al.
and Kobryn et al. [4, 5] have taken the approach of
developing a processing map for laser cladding based
on solidification properties of the materials to control
microstructure. Gaumann et al. [4] developed
processing maps for laser cladding to yield single
crystal microstructure of superalloys for the repair of
high temperature gas turbine blades, which have a
single crystal structure. Kobryn and Semiatin [5] used
the solidification approach to produce quiaxed
microstructures in the cladding of Ti-6Al-4V, which
in other investigations has a columnar structure that
can be undesirable. While this approach has a much
more theoretical basis for clad parameters, it does not
specify the parameters for powder feeding rate to
control the dimension of the clad layer.
A laser cladding map that is somewhere between
the two types of map in the literature would integrate
the advantages of both types of process parameter
development strategies. The process variables of laser
traversing speed, laser power related through physical
understanding

of

the

process,

developed

mathematically, would yield a theoretical processing

map. This will allow the prediction of process
variables over a predetermined range that yields clad
layers, which are metallurgically sound. Hence,
removing the need for trial and error, and allowing the
process to be controlled with precision. Therefore, a
model of the process is required.
There are two approaches to the modelling of laser
cladding, analytical and numerical. Numerical
methods are typically used to solve complex
thermo-mechanical histories and transient thermal
fields produced by laser cladding [6-9]. Each model
takes significant amounts of time to compute a

solution and the computation of tens to hundreds of

models, all with slight process variations to produce a
map, would take a lot of computing power. Analytical
models can be solved faster and therefore a range of
processing conditions can be easily calculated using
the standard PC making them attractive for
constructing a processing map. Picasso et al. [10] were
the first, and to date the only group to develop a full
analytical model of laser cladding. The model takes
into account the powder feed rate, the effect of the
feed rate and the geometry of the clad layer on
absorption, which is not easily achieved by numerical
modelling. This model is able to predict process
parameters to produce quality clads. However, it has
never been used to develop a processing map for laser
cladding. This paper outlines a new analytical laser
cladding model and uses it to produce a processing
map for the cladding of Ti-6Al-4V powder on
Ti-6Al-4V substrate with the aim of identifying a
wide range of combinations of process parameters that
can produce metallurgically sound clad layers.

2. Analytical Laser Cladding Model

2.1 Moving Heating Model
The laser cladding model uses an analytical heating
model to calculate the laser power required to create a
melt pool of a desired depth for a given laser
traversing speed. There are several analytical moving
heat source models that will calculate the heat at any
position in the substrate under the moving laser beam.
The earliest of these is the Rosenthal equation [11],
which takes into account the thermo-physical
properties of the substrate and assumes the heat is a
point source. Cline and Anthony [12] also proposed a
model which takes into account the thermo-physical
properties of the substrate and applies the heat in a
Gaussian profile, which represents the heating of a
laser. Lasers can also have other beam profiles such as
bimodal, and top hat. Komanduri and Hou [13]
developed a model based on the analytical model for a
moving ring heat source proposed by Carslaw and

A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

Jaeger [14]. They integrated the moving ring heat

sources over the radius of the laser spot size such that
a weighting for the power of each ring allowed the
three types of laser beam profile to be modeled. Due
to its superior versatility for modeling the various
types of laser profiles, this model was selected as the
basis of the laser cladding model. The equation and its
various components are given below:
, ,

(1)
where, T is the temperature rise at any position x, y, z
in C under the laser beam, A is a constant given in
Table 1 depending on the laser beam profile, Q is the
absorbed laser power in W, is thermal conductivity
in W/m/C, a is the thermal diffusivity of the medium
in m2/s, rL is the radius of the laser in m, ri is the
radius of that integration segment in m, B is a
mathematical function that is determined by the laser
beam profile given in Table 1, v is the laser traversing
speed in m/s, t is the time the laser is on for in s. The
following equations are used to define the other
variables:
where
and
x, y, z are any position under the laser in m. I0 is
calculated from a function which has been defined
mathematically in Ref. [15] and V = v/2a.

289

Pool shape. The melt pool shape is calculated by

determining the extremities of the melt pool using the
power level calculated above and in Eq. (1). The
efficiency of the cladding process, Eff, is then
calculated using Eq. (2) [10]:
(2)
2

where, Amp is the area of the melt pool in m and Apj

is the projected area of the powder jet in m2. The
mass flow rate of the powder can be calculated using
Eq. (3):
(3)
where, Mp is the mass flow rate of the powder in kg/s,

is the density of the powder in kg/m3 and hc is the

height of the clad in m and sc is the inter-track spacing
in m. The mass flow rate of the powder can then be
used to correct for using either Eqs. (4a) or (4b)
depending on the regime [10]:
ifrpj < rL

(4a)

ifrpj rL

(4b)

where, Qat is the attenuated laser power in W, QLs is

the laser power set by the machine, rp is the average
radius of the powder particles in m, vp is the velocity
of the powder particles which can be calculated from
the flow rate of the gasses in the powder jet in m/s and

pj is angle the powder jet makes with substrate in

degrees.
2.3 Calculation of Absorption Coefficient

2.2 Calculation of the Attenuation of the Laser Beam

Due to the Powder

The absorption of the laser is then corrected for the

Brewster effect [10]. Initially the geometry of the
clad is calculated starting with the angle the beam

The powder flow rate required to produce the

desired clad height is then calculated base on
the efficiency of the powder jet footprint and the melt

makes with the horizontal, liq:

Table 1 Coefficients for beam profile used in analytical

heating model, Eq. (1).
Distribution
Normal

A
9

Bimodal

4.3677

Uniform

where, xmax and xmin are the extremities of the melt

pool calculated above in m followed by the angle the
pervious track makes with the beam, sol:
(6)

(5)

The increase in absorption due to the Brewster

effect, brew is calculated as follows [10]:
1
(7)

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A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

where, is the absorption coefficient for the material

with the laser being used, brew is the proportionality
coefficient for the Brewster effect and is the angle
the laser makes with the substrate. The absorption
coefficient at the work piece w during cladding can
be calculated as follows [10]:
(8)
where, AsL is the area of solid under the laser beam in
m2, AlL is the area of liquid under the laser and AL is
the area under the laser. Note that AL = AlL + AsL.
2.4 Calculation of the Latent Heat of Fusion
The power absorbed by the work piece Q needs to
be corrected for the latent heat of fusion, QL.
Ashby and Easterlings treatment of this problem is
adopted [16]:
2
(9)
where, zm is the depth of the melt pool and L is the
latent heat per unit volume in J/m3.
2.5 Calculation of Laser Power
The power setting of the laser can now be
calculated as follows [10]:
1

(10)

A flowchart representing this series of calculations

is shown in Fig. 1. When programmed, the calculation
can be performed for a range of laser traversing
speeds and melt pool depths, the results of which can
be used to generate the processing map.

3. Laser Cladding Map for Ti-6Al-4V

Powder on Ti-6Al-4V Substrate
The above algorithm was programmed using
MATLAB. As Table 2 shows a range of traversing
speeds and melt pool depths were used in the
calculation to generate the processing map, Fig. 2. The
variable of clad height can also be changed and would
require a different map for each clad height.
The map, Fig. 2, shows a linear increase in laser
power with speed, the slope of which increases with
increasing melt pool depth. For a very shallow melt

pool depth and slow traversing speed the relationship

departs from linearity and can be attributed to the
kinetics of the heat diffusion.

4. Experiments
Laser cladding was conducted using a fibre
delivered Nd:YAG laser and a 2 mm diameter
side-injecting powder nozzle located about 10 mm
from the melt pool. Trials of the 0.5 mm melt pool
depth resulted in the tip of the powder feeding nozzle
melting and so they are not part of the experimental
trials of the processing maps. The parameters chosen,
Table 3 represented 0.1 and 0.25 mm melt pool depth
lines from the cladding map, Fig. 2. Inter-track
spacing of 0.5 mm was used by the model and in the
experiments.
The Ti-6Al-4V powder used to create the clad layer
was produced by TLS, Germany. The cladding was
conducted in a chamber filled with argon to stop
oxygen and nitrogen pick up. After cladding, the
samples were cut perpendicular to the track direction,
mounted, and polished down to colloidal silica.
Optical images were taken.

5. Results and Discussion

5.1 Metallurgical Evaluation of the Clad Layer
The surface of the clad layers was uniform which
indicates the cladding of different combinations of
cladding parameters was successful, as shown in Fig.
3. The samples were then sectioned transverse to the
individual layers of the clad track and polished to
reveal any porosity. An example of the polished
sections is shown in Fig. 4. For all of the conditions
the occurrence of porosity is very low and would not
adversely affect the mechanical properties of the clad
layers.
5.2 Evaluation of the Clad Layers in Relation to
Model Parameters
The thickness of the clad layer produced is usually
an important dimension for rebuilding a worn or

A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

Fig. 1
Table 2

Flow chart for laser cladding model algorithm.

Constants and variables used by the cladding model for cladding of Ti-6Al-4V powder on Ti-6Al-4V substrate.

Clad height
Melt pool depth
Material properties
Thermal diffusivity
Thermal conductivity
Density
Latent heat of fusion

Clad dimensions
1 mm
0.1, 0.25, 0.5 mm
2.87 10-7 m2/s
6.7 W/mC
4,400 kg/m3
4,962 kJ/m3

Laser spot size

Traversing velocity
Inter-track step
Radius powder particles
Absorption coefficient
Powder velocity
Power

Laser variables
3 mm
3,000-300 mm/min
0.5 mm
7 10-5 m
0.3
2.5 m/sec
0-5,000 W

291

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A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

parameters of Table 3 are presented in Fig. 5. It is

clear from this graph that the model underestimates
the powder mass flow rate required to reach the
predicted clad height of 1 mm for the 6 different
conditions. Condition 4 comes close the modeled
height. It is apparent that as the laser traversing speed
decreases, the clad height decreases. The reason for
this can be seen in the predicted melt pool dimensions
for Ti-6Al-4V in Fig. 6. At the faster traversing speeds
Fig. 2 Laser cladding map for Ti-6Al-4V; MPD is melt
pool depth.

the melt pool becomes elongated, which can be

attributed to the relatively low thermal conductivity of
Ti-6Al-4V alloy (Table 2). Therefore, the melt pool is
very large and hence has a greater area to capture the
powder being jetted onto the melt pool. As the laser
traversing speed slows and the melt pool decreases in
size, the efficiency of the cladding process decreases,
hence the clad layer reduces in thickness. It should be
noted that at the slower speeds the experimental

(a)

(b)

(c)

powder feed rate is lower than calculated by the

cladding model. The other aspect as to why the clad
height has not been attained is that the size of the
calculated melt pool could be larger than the melt
pools formed during the experiments, resulting in
calculated efficiency being over estimated. The heat

(d)
(e)
(f)
Fig. 3 Image of Ti-6AL-4V clad layers: (a) condition 1; (b)
condition 2; (c) condition 3; (d) condition 4; (e) condition 5;
(f) condition 6.

transfer model used in the algorithm assumes all the

Corroded component, which needs the original

heat and so some of it is lost, which is not taken

specification of the component to be restored or

account of, resulting in the melt pool size being

perhaps the specification of the clad layer for

overestimated. However, the latent heat of fusion has

enhanced material properties. In both cases the

been taken into consideration.

energy is being used to heat the material. The melt

pool will be radiating and convectively transferring

cladlayer needs to reach a desired thickness. The

The level of dilution, controlled by the melt pool

thicknesses of the clad layer produced using the laser

depth, plays a large role in the properties of the clad

Table 3

Experimental laser parameters.

Sample designation
Condition 1
Condition 2
Condition 3
Condition 4
Condition 5
Condition 6

Traversing speed (mm/min)

1,500
600
300
1,500
600
300

Incidentlaser power (W)

862
616
456
1,477
885
686

A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

293

(a)

(b)
Fig. 4 Polished sections of the Ti-6Al-4V clad layers: (a) condition 4 as polished and (b) condition 4 etched 2% HF.

Fig. 5 Clad thickness for the 6 different clad parameters

used to clad Ti-6Al-4V on Ti-6Al-4V.

Fig. 6 Melt pool shape as calculated by the cladding model

for the three laser traversing speeds used in the
experiments.

produced. For clad layers of a different composition to

the substrate, the amount of substrate melting dilutes
the composition of the clad layer and can reduce the
properties of the clad layer. Therefore, minimising the
melt pool depth and dilution produces a clad of
superior quality. Two melt pool depths of 0.1 and 0.25
mm were used in the calculation of the processing

parameters to investigate their effects on the clad

produced and also to evaluate the effectiveness of the
model. The melt pool depths produced by the
experiments were measured by measuring the depth of
the martensite of the clad layer below the substrate
surface and are shown in Fig. 7. The model
underestimates the laser power required to produce a
melt pool of 0.1 mm but is only marginally short and
it should be noted that clad layers of these
experiments were metallurgical sound even though the
dilution was very low. For the higher dilution levels
the model slightly over predicts the laser power
required and can be considered a successful result.
The issues discussed above in relation to the melt pool
shape calculation influence the result. What is
encouraging about the melt pool depth results is that
the depths of the melt pool for the two depths
calculated are consistent irrespective of the speed.
This shows that the heatingmodel of Komanduri
and Hou [13] is effective in relation to this
parameter.
The processing map is considered a success in the
sense that it produced six different metallurgically
sound clad layers from a vast range of processing
parameters that were close to the inputs of the model.
Given the complexity of the process, this is significant
and has application in both research and industrial use.
The experiments have also validated the processing
map presented in Fig. 1.

294

A Theoretical Processing Map for Laser Cladding: Experimental Validation with Laser Cladding of
Ti-6Al-4V Powder on a Ti-6Al-4V Substrate

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[3]

Fig. 7 Measured and predicted melt pool depths for the

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[4]

6. Conclusions

[5]

The development of a theoretical processing map

has been achieved using a new analytical laser

[6]

cladding model. The model was applied to cladding of

Ti-6Al-4V alloy powder on a Ti-6Al-4V substrate and

[7]

a processing map produced. Several of the cladding

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[8]

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[9]

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[12]

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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the Defence
Materials Technology Centre (DMTC) for funding
this work through program 4, Propulsion Systems,
project 4.1 Repair technologies for current and next
generation aircraft systems. The authors would also
like to thank Girish Thipperudrappa for his help with
conducting the laser cladding experiments.

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