Effect of Y(2)O(3) Addition on Microstructure and Properties of Laser Cladded Al-Si Coatings on AZ91D Magnesium Alloy

The effect of Y(2)O(3) addition on the microstructure and properties of the laser cladded Al-Si alloy coating on the surface of AZ91D magnesium alloy was investigated in this study. The experimental results showed that the Al-Si + Y(2)O(3) cladding layers contained α-Mg, Mg(2)Si, Al(4)MgY and a small amount of Al(12)Mg(17) phases. The coarse dendrites, reticulated eutectic structures and massive phases in the coatings tended to be refined and gradually uniformly distributed with the increased amount of Y(2)O(3). The introduction of Y(2)O(3) into the cladding layer favored the improvement of microhardness and wear resistance due to the grain refinement strengthening and dispersion strengthening. The addition of Y(2)O(3) also promoted the reduction of localized corrosion sites and made the corrosion surface smoother, implying that the corrosion resistance of the Y(2)O(3)-modified coatings was better than that of the unmodified cladding layer.