Effects of rapid solidification and numerical modelling of laser cladded Ti-Al-Cu coatings on Ti-6Al-4V alloy

The outstanding features of alloys of titanium which include low mass to volume ratio, exceptional integration of high strength to weight ratio, reduced Young modulus of elasticity, excellent biocompatibility and low susceptibility to corrosion, make it a prime material in a broad spectrum of engineering applications consisting of aerospace, thermal power generation, saline (sea water and subsea applications) and chemical plant industries. The microstructures of titanium alloys are characterized by the size and orientation of a and ß phases. The microstructure of these alloys is highly influenced by processes involving plastic deformation and thermal treatments which, in effect, determines the mechanical properties adhering to desired properties. This paper present 2D Multiphysics models to describe the heat transfer, melting and solidification that take place during laser-materials interaction. From the obtained numerical results, the key process parameters in laser metal deposition was determined by the COMSOL Multiphysics model used in this research.