In situ synthesised WC reinforced nickel coating by laser cladding

Using tungsten, carbon, and nickel powder as raw materials, an in situ synthesised WC reinforced nickel matrix (marked as IWC) coating was fabricated on a mild steel by laser cladding. The experimental results showed that a large number of WC particles were in situ synthesised and homogeneously distributed in the coating with free of pores and cracks. Compared with the steel substrate, an improvement of micro-hardness value (2.6 times) was observed for the IWC coating. Sliding wear test showed that the IWC coating has stable friction coefficient, and possesses higher anti-wear property under 300 N than ex situ WC reinforced coating.