EFFECT OF LASER QUENCHING ON MICROSTRUCTURE

With the rapid development of rail transit, the wear problem of track has become a serious challenge. Laser quenching is a new surface modification process, and it is expected to improve the service life of the track. Laser quenching was carried on the surface of rails by using 6kW fiber laser. The microstructure, hardness, wear resistance, and contact fatigue resistance (CFR) of the phase transformation hardening layer were studied by optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), microhardness tester, and wear tester. Get more news about Laser Surface Quenching Process For Sale,you can vist our website!
The results show that the microstructure of the hardened layer is composed of fine martensite and a small fraction of retained austenite. The microstructure of substrate is pearlite and ferrite. The hardness of rails quenched by the laser increased nearly two times than that of the un-treated track materials. When the laser power is 1000W, the depth of hardened layer reaches 0.8mm, and the wear resistance of hardened layer increases 167% than that of the substrate. The number, length, and depth of fatigue cracks decreased on the cross-section of worn rails after laser quenching, which indicates that laser quenching can improve the CFR of rails.