Diode Laser Surface Alloying of Armor Steel with Tungsten Carbide

Metal matrix composite (MMC) surface layers reinforced by WC were fabricated on armor steel ARMOX 500T plates via a laser surface alloying process. The microstructure of the layers was assessed by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The surface layers having the WC fraction up to 71 vol% and an average hardness of 1300 HV were produced. The thickness of these layers was up to 650 μm. The addition of a titanium powder in the molten pool increased the wettability of WC particles by the liquid metal in the molten pool increasing the WC fraction. Additionally, the presence of titanium resulted in the precipitation of the (Ti,W)C phase, which significantly reduced the fraction of W-rich complex carbides and improved a structural integrity of the layers.