Ti6Al4V Coating on 316L Substrate by Laser-based Fusion Process

The laser powder-bed fusion (LPBF) process is one of the additive manufacturing processes used to produce intricate geometry without limits. LPBF processes materials layer-by-layer and can fabricate a wide spectrum of materials. However, its applicability as a coating method is rarely considered. The present study aims to fabricate Ti6Al4V coating on a 316L substrate. 316L plates were fabricated using the spark plasma sintering (SPS) process and are used as the substrate for the Ti6Al4V coating. The Ti6Al4V coating was performed on the substrate with/without laser pre-scanning using laser powder-bed fusion. Cracks were observed if the coating was performed without pre-scanning of the substrate and with pre-scanning the cracks disappear. A strong interfacing bonding was observed with the formation of FeTi and Fe2Ti intermetallic phases, which enhances the hardness of the coating. The compressive results show that both SPS 316L and Ti6Al4V coating on 316L show similar curves except that the sample with coating exhibits higher deformability. The present results portray the effectiveness of the LBPF process for coating purposes.