Laser surface modification of Ti6Al4V-Cu for improved microhardness and wear resistance properties

To modify the properties of Ti6Al4V alloy, Cu has been added to host an antimicrobial effect in the revised alloy for marine application. The Laser Metal Deposition (LMD) process on the Ti6Al4V alloy and Cu was been investigated for surface modification in order to combat the problem of biofouling in the marine industry. The investigations focused on the microstructural observations, micro-hardness measurements and dry sliding wear in the presence of 3 and 5 weight percents of Cu. The microstructure results showed that Widmanstätten microstructures were formed in all the samples and lose their robustness towards the fusion zone as a result of the transition of heat sink towards the substrate. The microhardness values of Ti6Al4V-3Cu and Ti6Al4V-5Cu alloys were greatly improved to 547±16 VHN_0.5 and 519±54 VHN_0.5 respectively. Furthermore, the behaviour of wear loss on the surface of the Ti6Al4V-Cu alloys exhibited great improvement as compared with the parent material.