By Jari Tuominen, Jonne Näkki, Henri Pajukoski, Tuomo Peltola, Petri Vuoristo

Laser cladding is currently done with 3-6 kW gas and solid state lasers. Components to be clad or repaired are usually small or some discrete regions in larger components. Net deposition rates are typically 1-2 kg/h. In large area coating applications, conventional coating methods such as thermal spraying (HVOF, HVAF) and overlay welding (SAW) prevail due to higher cost efficiency based mainly on high productivity and low capital costs. For applications such as boiler tube panels in power generation and massive hydraulics in off-shore and mining industries, coating properties produced by conventional coating methods are often insufficient. Continue reading →