MIREA – Russian Technological University (Moscow, Russia)

Е. S. Kozik, Associate Professor of the Department of Materials Engineering, Candidate of Technical Sciences, ele57670823@yandex.ru

Orenburg State University named after V. A. Bondarenko (Orenburg, Russia)

Е. V. Svidenko, Associate Professor of the Department of Materials Science and Technology, Candidate of Technical Sciences, tzvetkova.katia2016@yandex.ru

The operational properties of hard alloys can be improved by such methods as thermal, laser, chemical and thermal treatment, coating. The effect of laser treatment of a hard alloy on the wear resistance of replaceable polyhedral plates made of the VK8 alloy has been studied. Laser treament was carried out on an LC-3015-LS-07 machine, which can be used for various industrial purposes, including cutting thin-layer materials (laser cutting), engraving, local annealing, and quenching. The LC-3015-LS-07 laser machine has high power and good performance, and the output radiation of the fiber laser is characterized by very high quality and stable beam parameters. Laser treatment of the surface of a pentahedral plate of the VK8 hard alloy of WC – Co compostion was carried out in a wide range of laser beam parameters: the diameter of the focus spot is 1.5 mm, the laser radiation power is 200–300 W, and the speed of the laser beam is 10–30 mm/s. The research included laser treatment of carbide plates, determination of mechanical properties, carrying out wear resistance tests, as well as analysis of the results and microstructure. An increase in the power of the laser exposure increases the hardness, and with an increase in the speed of the laser exposure, the hardness decreases. After continuous laser treatment, the hardness increased by 15%. As a result of tests for diamond-abrasive wear, it was found that the wear resistance of the VK8 hard alloy increased 1.5 times after laser treatment. The analysis of the microstructures of the VK8 hard alloy after continuous laser exposure showed a decrease in the size of the carbide inclusions and the grinding of the structure.

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