Laser Induced Surface Modification of Metals for Low-cost Manaufacturing of Improved Wear Surfaces

Surface Treatment Technologies, Inc., proposes the application of Laser Induced Surface Improvement (LISI) technology for the high-throughput, low-cost modification of metal surfaces to promote enhanced wear and impact resistance. The LISI approach involves the application of laser energy to a small spot and inducing a shallow (< lmm) melt-pool on the surface of a base metal. Included in this melt-pool are powder master-alloying additions of metals, ceramics, or compounding additives. As the laser is rapidly scanned over a surface, the top lmm of the base metal is transformed into a new alloy with pre-selected material properties and protective surfaces (wear, corrosion, thermal transient, impact, atomic oxygen, etc.). Because of the method of formation in which the surface is grown from the base alloy, a LISI modification has excellent chemical and mechanical bonding to the substrate - it is not a coating in the traditional sense. Further, the LISI manufacturing process has proven to be environmentally friendly and relatively inexpensive. This effort shall focus on the design and evaluation of LISI surfaces on lightweight materials for wear and other potential applications. Master alloying additions, laser optics, laser energy, tracking speed, and zone overlap will all be addressed.