Multi-objective optimization of process parameters of laser cladding 15-5PH alloy powder based on gray-fuzzy taguchi approach

Laser cladding is a new surface treatment technology that is widely used for surface modification of metal parts, and the high quality of the surface geometry of the cladding layer can save a lot of resources for the company. To obtain high quality of the clad layer, the L25 Taguchi experiment of laser cladding process parameters was designed to laser-clad a single 15-5PH layer on the surface of 45# steel; the effect of process parameters on the surface morphology and dilution rate of the coating was determined by ANOVA; the optimal combination of process parameters was obtained by combining gray correlation and fuzzy inference system method. The ANOVA results show that the scanning speed among the laser cladding process parameters plays a key role in obtaining the best superposition of the four geometrical features of the cladding layer simultaneously; With the optimization objectives of larger clad width and height, smaller clad depth, and 30% dilution rate, the optimal combination of process parameters, (P: 600W, V: 500 mm min(-1), F ( -1 ): 1.3 r min(-1)), obtained based on the Gray-fuzzy Taguchi Approach, was compared and analyzed to find a significant improvement in the geometric quality characteristics of the optimized clad layer. The analysis of microstructure, physical phase, hardness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance showed that the 15-5PH clad layer was able to effectively enhance the surface properties of the 12Cr13 substrate. The optimization method proposed in this study can solve the problem of parameter optimization in the industrial multi-parameter and multi-response processes.