Technology Insights | 2012 Advanced laser cladding application for oil and gas components

Advanced laser cladding

application for oil and gas
components
By Alessio Andolfi, Fabrizio Mammoliti, Federico Pineschi,
Riccardo Catastini / ge oil & gas

Abstract
Centrifugal compressor and steam turbine shafts and centrifugal compressor impellers are often
damaged by erosion and/or wear. Laser cladding has shown that high quality, distortion free clad
layers, and even thick layers, can be deposited successfully on base materials in order to rebuild them.

In the laser cladding process, the additive material and a thin layer of the substrate are melted by a
laser beam to obtain metallurgical bonding between the layer and substrate.

The realization of a system for the repair of large components requires mechanical design of the
equipment, stress analysis of the component, investigation of laser and metallurgical parameters and
development of control and inspection technologies. This paper describes the activities required for the
technical design and application of powders such as alloy 625, Stellite 21 or AISI4140 on a large range
of base materials. Two laser sources have been used in this work: a 2.2 KW Nd:YAG at the GE Oil & Gas
Florence plant and a 2 KW fiber laser at the GE Houston Service Center. Both plants are equipped with
robotic nine-axis systems and customized tooling. Laser cladding is also applicable to other parts and,
other projects are in progress to extend the use of this technology.

Introduction
The increasing use of our machines at the and gas turbine rotors (in addition to well-known
operational limits requires development processes used for gas turbine bucket repair).
of specific repair technologies designed to
reproduce conditions as close as possible to Processes have been developed to modify the
those of new parts. In particular, rotating parts surface composition by adding new materials
(but non-rotating parts as well) can experience or modifying the microstructure of the surface,
areas of damage from erosion and/or from wear. thereby attempting to dimensionally rebuild
these parts. Laser surfacing has advantages
For example, steam turbine shafts are often over alternative surfacing processes that
damaged at the shaft ends (coupling area) include (1):
and in the proximity of journal bearings. On
centrifugal compressor shafts we have the • Chemically clean process with no combustion
same situation as for bearing journals and or ion bombardment problems
shaft ends and very often during a compressor • Localized heating with minimum heat input
overhaul, impellers are found with the to the substrate, resulting in minimal thermal
sealing area worn out. Other parts can be damage of the component
dimensionally restored as well, such as steam • Reduced post-machining processing
turbine blades, centrifugal compressor cases, • Very hard, brittle, or soft materials can be
processed

164 165
• Controlled heat penetration minimized to utilize the properties of the coating material df is focus diameter, FL focal length, FC collimator length,
• Greater thickness of the layer (depending on the most effectively. Laser cladding offers advantages Θ laser divergence, R radius of a generic section and rfs
specific energy) (2) compared to traditional techniques because it can create radius of the beam focus.
surface layers with superior properties in terms of purity,
Laser surfacing falls into one of two classes: 1. Thermal homogeneity, hardness, bonding and, microstructure. To The scanning speed was selected to avoid high residual
processes (e.g., transformation, hardening/re-melting) develop a system able to reach the desired quality level, thermal stresses.
that modify the surface properties by changing the these are necessary steps:
microstructure of the surface; 2. Thermochemical Other parameters have been analyzed but these are out
processes (e.g., alloying, particle dispersion, cladding) that • A good understanding of the laser cladding technology of the scope of this paper.
modify the surface composition by adding new materials. • The right combination of variables and parameters
The clad geometry plays a fundamental role in
• System design for the chosen applications
In particular, GE Oil & Gas has developed laser cladding understanding if the chosen beam geometry is correct.
applications. These need a special welding system A characteristic of laser cladding is the conflict between Many variables have been investigated to achieve control
consisting of a high power laser beam associated with the demand for achieving a good metallurgical bond of the system (Figure 3).
gas driven metal powder flow. essential for rebuilding damaged parts, and avoiding
mixing between the coating and the base material in
The component’s flaw is filled using a laser beam and order to retain the desired coating properties at the
process related wire material (powders in our case), surface. This means that the heat input by the source has 25,00
which is added separately. Depending on the filler Lower light after
to be well controlled to achieve an acceptable degree ???, 25mm ???
metal characteristics, the total thickness is restored by of fusing. A laser beam with a uniform power density is
repeated application of layers. Subsequent machining required to obtain an acceptable, uniform temperature 93, 500º
techniques are used to shape the final geometry. With distribution and consistent clad properties over the width
93, 500º

this technology the additive material and a thin layer of of the track. The design of the equipment starts with the 194,00 200,00 220
the substrate are melted with a laser beam to obtain a laser beam parameter configuration in order to produce
FIgure 2 Coaxial (on left) and off-axis (on right) nozzles 533 mm laser
metallurgical bond between the layer and substrate. a large track as well as uniform power density. Two focus point

different types of lasers have been studied and applied:

The advantage over conventional techniques, such as 3 mm spot size
location
electric arc or microplasma deposit welding, results from • Rofin YAG laser 2.2 kW Where:
higher heating and cooling rates as well as lower melting • IPG fiberlaser 2.2 kW PL Figure 3 Laser beam design
volumes. Ps =
Laser powder cladding was adopted in order to achieve Aw
For these reasons GE Oil & Gas Global Services now has a balance between the clad shape and track properties. The optical parameters were calculated to impart a
five laser cladding facilities: two in the Florence Service Inconel 625 powder and a Sultzer Metco powder feeder laser spot with a uniform specific power distribution. The
Shop, two in the Houston Service Center and one in were used to set up the system. In this kind of laser is the specific power, and welding speed was chosen to avoid high residual thermal
Algeria. With this equipment, it is possible to reduce the stresses and the powder feed was selected to obtain
scrapping of components, improve quality and offer new
cladding, the filler material is powder blown at the melting
ds acceptable clad properties. Specific procedures for this
point. In this process a carrier gas is used to form a It =
services to customers. cladding powder stream blown under the laser beam v study were prepared (Figure 4) and the approach is based
while it scans the surface to create a melt pool. A large on continuously increasing one process parameter while
System design surface can be repaired by overlapping multiple tracks of is the interaction process time. Aw and ds are respectively
the others are kept fixed.
As already said, laser cladding is usually able to improve cladding. Two different methods are possible depending area welding and spot welding diameters. The clad properties are typically classified into four groups:
the surface properties of machine parts. A cladding on the specific application and the accessibility of the
material with the desired properties is fused into the part being repaired: coaxial and off-axis (Figure 2). The optical tools and the quality of the laser beam (Bpp) Geometrical Mechanical Metallurgical Qualitative
base material by means of a laser beam to rebuild a determine the geometric properties of the laser beam. properties properties properties properties

damaged part’s surface. The mixing of materials has to be clad dimensions hardness distribution microstructure porosity
FL
df = ·Øc dilution residual stress dilution cracking

FC roughness wear resistance grain size

tensile strength homogeneity

corrosion resistance
Bpp = Θ · R
Different parts require different properties, which can be
ds = rf · tan Θ -1 obtained by selecting specific powders and adjusting the
process parameters. In any case, all properties have to be
FIgure 1 Centrifugal compressor shaft in as-serviced condition, during and after cladding, after machining
balanced to achieve an acceptable level of microporosity
and avoid cracks (Figure 5).

166 167
 source and nozzle produce a clad without defects, with
General laser cladding
parameters identification
0120 0140 good dilution, and uniform penetration into the base
material. The process is also stable, with high repeatability
Clad geometry
identification
(Figures 7 and 8).

Layout design
Single layer
0110 0130 0150
welding

NO A system (Figure 9) capable of repairing damaged

Accept
result components typical of the oil and gas industry was
Figure 6 Clad shape realization
YES designed. Two different laser sources were tested and
Multiple layers
welding used in GE’s different shops: a medium power traditional
YES Nd:YAG laser and the new Yb fiber laser. Compared to Figure 10 Robotic system
Normal Probability plot
Inter-run YES Accept
traditional lasers, the fiber laser is more compact. High
porosity result NO power lasers could be used in the future, adopting
NO .999 optical tools capable of creating uniform specific power
1. Set-up
Item welding
.99 distributions for laser spot welding.
2. Single clad welding
3. Single clad welding examination
Item machining
as per drawing
.95 The system is composed of these fundamental
4. Double & arrow clad welding Probability .80 components:
Welding and run-out 5. Double & arrow clad welding examination
examination
.50
6. Rotor welding • Laser source : 2.2 kWatt YAG/FIBER
YES
Fail any 7. Rotor machining .20 • Nozzle and optical tooling
inspect
8. Welding and run-out examination .05 • Powder feeder
NO
• 6-axis robotic system to manipulate the component
Packaging & shipping .01
(Figure 10)
.001 Figure 11 Protection cabin
Figure 4 Setup flow chart • 3 external axes including rolling support to repair rotors
• First-class protection cabin
2.2 3.2 4.2 • Special tooling for non-standard repairs (Figure 12) into a service shop. All the analysis is done in cooperation
Bead width
Average: 3.59687 Anderson-Daring normailty test
with sales, finance and the technical repair side.
StDev: 0.545695 A-squared: 0.362
Nozzle of the
laser system N: 16 P-value: 0.400 In the case of laser cladding repair, all new qualifications
angle 2
width
angle 1
Figure 7 Normal test – clad width/powder feeder are evaluated as completely new projects.
overlapping length
height
p angle 2 angle 1
height Qualification team
The individuals involved in the process qualification
Normal Probability plot
Heat affected zone (qualification team) include a Design Engineer, Chief
Engineer, Material & Process Engineer, Quality Engineer
.999 and Repair Engineer.
Figure 5 Clad shape design
.99
Item analysis
.95
The qualification team has the assignment of studying
Several test operations must be performed to achieve the
.80 the item in detail to evaluate the impact of the repair. With
correct clad profile (Figure 6) and verify the stability of the
Probability

.50 support from the engineering department, for every item,

system. A Design of Experiments approach was used to
stress maps are studied, and crack propagation analysis
vary the parameters and monitor the results. The laser .20
(Figure 13) and FEM models for simulation (Figure 14) are
cladding operational window is usually defined in terms .05 Figure 9 Layout design employed.
of laser power, scanning speed and powder feed rate.
.01
However, several additional parameters such as the laser Qualification Requirements
beam spot size, laser beam energy distribution, amount .001

and type of shielding and carrier gas, size and speed of Process design After analysis of the item, the qualification team has to
produce the Qualification Requirements.
the powder particles, etc., also play a fundamental role. 0.95 1.05 1.15 1.25 1.35 1.45 The principal steps for the design, qualification and
HAZ (mm) introduction of a new repair are as follows: The Qualification Requirements is a document with a list
All laser claddings were cross sectioned, producing a Average: 1.21875 Anderson-Daring normailty test
of requirements, with shared acceptable limits that must
StDev: 0.120381 A-squared: 0.504
large number of data points corresponding to different N: 16 P-value: 0.174 Business case be performed for process qualification, including the
combinations of speed, powder and powder feeder Starting from the frequency of repair of the component, following: Manufacturing Process Plan, testing/
Figure 8 Normal test – HAZ/laser power
fundamental parameters. The results show that the laser a business case is completed for all projects introduced

168 169
 450

400

350

Hardness
PWHT
300
As clad

250

Figure 15 Example of parameter setup 200

0 1 2 3 4
Distance from top surface (mm)

and this direct feedback has allowed the development of Figure 17 Hardness control in as-clad condition and after PWHT
the correct parameters (Figure 16) for various applications (welding of centrifugal compressor bearing journal in
Figure 14 Impeller FEM model
and for many base materials (e.g., nickel base superalloys ASTM A322 type 4140 with In625)
such as GTD111 for buckets, alloy steel such as ASTM
analysis for setting the parameters, testing/analysis for A322 type 4340 for centrifugal compressor shafts or
First Piece Qualification and testing/analysis for Pilot Lot ASTM A182 F22 for impellers, stainless steel such as
Qualification. X22CrMoV12.1 for steam turbines, precipitation hardened
steel such as 17-4-PH for impellers) in all different supply
The tests and analysis depend on how critical the item is. conditions (with particular reference to the original heat
treatments). Relevant indicators for obtaining high quality
Basic tests performed for every welding repair include
welds are: the shape of the individual weld, the depth of
micrographic inspection and a hardness map, a
penetration and HAZ, and the dilution and hardness of all
destructive check and dye penetrant Inspection as a non-
areas (Figure 17). It is important to begin the study from a
destructive check.
single bead in order to achieve the correct multi-bead and Figure 18 Details of HAZ (on the left) and of overlay (on the right)
Additional mechanical tests, for example are, impact test, multi-layer welds. for the rebuilding of a centrifugal compressor using
Stellite 21
residual stress analysis, tensile test, crack propagation
test, etc. Non-destructive tests such as an eddy current 0.35
check are normally considered for the item.
0.3
Figure 12 Special tool for steam turbine casing repair
Qualification Requirements could include developing a 0.25

Penetration (mm)
mock-up and assembly/disassembly tests. 0.2

Powder and parameter settings 0.15 3g/min

5g/min
For each type of repair it is necessary to evaluate the 0.1
powder used as the filler material. 0.05

Commercially available powders are evaluated by studying 0

0 200 400 600 800 1,000 1,200
the physical composition and weldability quality, and by
Power (W)
comparing data with qualification requirement limits.
Figure 16 Example of relationship between the parameters
After selecting a powder, for every filler material and type during the setup for centrifugal compressor bearing
of nozzle (coaxial or off-axis) it is necessary to determine journal rebuilding in Houston Service Center Figure 19 Details of strain gages for residual stress evaluation
the best welding parameters. on a mock-up
Figure 13 CC shaft dry gas seal crack propagation study
Studies of the laser beam proprieties and filler material In the final result, the overlay, base metal and HAZ must
welding proprieties are conducted and consist of tests of be free of cracks, lack of bonding or fusion, excessive The method adopted for measuring residual stress uses
single clad, multi-pass, and multi-layer welding (Figure 15). porosity and other linear defects (Figure 18.). strain gages in accordance with ASTM E 837-8 (Figure19).
This method calculates the residual voltage according to
Inspection and results The mechanical properties and characteristics (e.g., HCF, the release of deformation of the material in a small hole
All results were analyzed in accordance with the residual stress, crack propagation, impact and tensile centered at the point of measurement, thus providing a
qualification requirements already mentioned. Important strength) of the HAZ and overlay have been verified with local result.
indications were obtained from micrographic analysis, respect to the stress of the specific component to be repaired.

170 171
 Max main residual stresses Conclusion References
150 [1] Analysis of coaxial laser cladding processing conditions U. de
1_s1 This work summarizes results obtained for the Laser
125 Oliveira, V. Ocelı´k, J.Th.M. De Hosson* 25 june 2004
100
2_s1
3_s1 post cladding removal Cladding system layout and process design and includes
75
4_s1 post cladding removal
examples of actual repairs. [2] Residual stress analysis in Co-based laser clad layers by laboratory
50 X-rays and synchrotron diffraction techniques U. de Oliveira, V. Ocelík,
25 In-depth study of the technology and an expansive test J.Th.M. De Hosson
[MPa]

0 campaign have demonstrated the ability to repair more [3] J. Lin, W.M. Steen, Journal of Laser Applications 10 (1998)
-25
than 15 materials using two different laser sources with
-50 [4] J. Lin, Optics and Laser Technology 31 (1999) 233
-75
different powders and different system parameters.
-100 [5] J.-M. Jouvard, D.F. Grevey, F. Lemoine, A.B. Vannes, Journal of Laser
-125 The studies conducted (mechanical proprieties, NDT, Applications 9 (1997) 43
-150 metallurgical analysis, etc.) have led to the development
0.00 0.10 0.20 0.30 0.40 0.50 0.60 0.70 0.80 0.90 1.00 1.10 [6] M. Bamberger, W.D. Kaplan, B. Medres, L. Shepeleva, Journal of Laser
Depth [mm] of a stable process and results in accordance with the
Applications 10 (1998) 29
Design Requirements. The stability of the process allows
Figure 20 Residual stress evaluation on shaft end rebuilding
very large repairs to be performed without defects in very [7] P. Koshy, Laser cladding techniques for application to wear and
using ASTM A322 type 4140 as filler metal Figure 21 Assembly/disassembly test corrosion resistant coatings, in Conference on Applications of High
sensitive items of rotating and stationary parts.
Power Lasers, Los Angeles, CA, January 22-23, 1985, SPIE, The
International Society for Optical Engineering, PO Box 10, Bellingham,
The quality of the materials used, the continuous study of
For the rebuilding of centrifugal compressor and steam by destructive inspection, while the first production item Washington, DC, 1985, pp. 80-85
the process and the application of innovative technologies
turbine shaft ends, these values have been estimated for is considered the PLQ and is checked by additional non- [8] CLADDING FORMATION IN LASER-BEAM FUSION OF METAL POWDER
permit high quality repairs today and will permit further
different filler materials and different post-welding heat destructive techniques. by V. Yevko C. B. Park G. Zak T. W. Coyle* B. Benhabib Computer
extension of the life of components by improving Integrated Manufacturing Laboratory Department of Mechanical and
treatments to find the best compromise between the
Depending on the item, additional checks such as an mechanical proprieties in the future. A clear example of Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto June 1998
hardness of the top surface (in order to guarantee wear
assembly/disassembly test (Figure 21) could be provided. the quality of these new repairs is the aforementioned
resistance) and the hardness in the HAZ (and therefore [9] High energy welding processes book . Italian Welding Institute
rebuilding of bearing journals without limitations of Genova
the correct level of residual stress in this area). A solution
Non-destructive checks thickness that avoids the need for the procurement and
has also been realized during the setup that allows for
DPI is performed for every welded/machined surface; the management of special components. [10] Laser cladding Ph.D. Thesis University of Twente, Enschede, The
precompression in the external material (Figure 20). Netherlands March 1998
additional non-destructive checks, such as an eddy
current check, could be provided. GE Oil & Gas Global Services has invested in and is
Manufacturing Process Plan continuing to invest in the development of this process
[11] ASM Metals HandBook Volume 1 - Properties and Selection Irons
Steels and High Performance Alloys
In accordance with QR a procedure for item repair is An eddy current check is developed by producing a with the intent of extending the application of laser
required (Manufacturing Process Plan - MPP). calibration sample for each base material and filler cladding to other components and machines. [12] ASM Metals HandBook Volume 2 - Properties and Selection -
Nonferrous alloys and special-purpose materials
MPP includes: material, with calibrated defects designed in accordance
with guidance from the GE engineering department [13] ASM Metals Handbook Volume 6 - Welding Brazing and Soldering
• pre-welding machining design: relating to all types of (Figure 22) used as acceptance limits. [14] ASM Metals HandBook Volume 17 - Nondestructive Evaluation
items and to a representative catalog of defects
• welding parameters; powder rate, speed, laser power, [15] ASME IX welding and brazing qualification

gas flow rate, standoff distance, etc.

• welding/item positioning instruction
• checks

FPQ and PLQ

After setting the parameters, the qualification process
requires a First Piece Qualification and Pilot Lot
Qualification.

In the case of bucket repair, for example, FPQ is defined

as one real bucket repaired and analyzed as required by
the Qualifications Requirement. PLQ is the first production
bucket lot, repaired and checked by random selection
of several buckets to be analyzed using destructive Figure 22 Eddy current check
inspection.

With regard to other items (for example impeller, journal

bearing, shaft end, shaft dry gas seals zone, etc.), a mock-
up or scrap item could be repaired for FPQ and checked

172 173