1 Laser surface alloying of aluminium (AA1200) with Ni and SiC powders

An Nd:YAG laser was used for surface alloying of aluminium AA1200. The alloying powder was a mixture of Ni and SiC in different ratios. A study of the microstructures obtained after alloying was conducted using optical and scanning electron microscopy. EDX and XRD were used for phase identification. Analysis of the alloyed layer revealed the presence of Al4C3, AlNi3 and α-Al-Si eutectic phases. The SiC particles dissociated into Si and C. The dissociated C reacted with Al to form Al4C3. The addition of Ni resulted in the formation of the Al3Ni phase. A hardness increase of approximately 4 times that of aluminium AA1200 was achieved in the alloyed layer