Laser consolidation of Waspalloy and In-718 alloys for making net-shape functional parts for gas turbine applications

Laser consolidation (LC) is a laser cladding based novel manufacturing process that produces net-shape functional components directly from a CAD model. As an alternative to conventional machining processes, the LC process builds complete net-shape functional parts or features on existing parts by adding instead of removing material. In this paper, laser consolidation of Waspalloy and IN-718 alloys is demonstrated. The LC process successfully built metallurgically sound Waspalloy and IN-718 alloy samples. The microstructures of as-consolidated and heat-treated Waspalloy and IN-718 materials were examined. Their tensile properties were evaluated and compared with reference data. In addition, several LC Waspalloy and IN-718 samples that are difficult or impossible to make using conventional manufacturing technologies were produced to demonstrate the capability of the process.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye