*Article* **Microstructure Control and Friction Behavior Prediction of Laser Cladding Ni35A** +**TiC Composite Coatings**

**Xu Huang 1,2, Chang Liu 1, Hao Zhang 1, Changrong Chen 1,3,\*, Guofu Lian 1, Jibin Jiang 1, Meiyan Feng 1 and Mengning Zhou 1**


Received: 8 July 2020; Accepted: 7 August 2020; Published: 9 August 2020

**Abstract:** The premise of surface strengthening and repair of high valued components is to identify the relationship between coating formulation, structure, and properties. Based on the full factorial design, the e ffects of process parameters (laser power, scanning speed, gas-powder flow rate, and weight fraction of TiC) on the phase composition, microstructure, and element distribution of Ni35A/TiC cladding layer were investigated, followed by the cause identification of wear behavior. Through ANOVA, the correlation was established with good prediction accuracy ( *R*<sup>2</sup> = 0.9719). The most important factors a ffecting the wear rate of the cladding layer were recognized as laser power and particle ratio with a *p*-value < 0.001. The cladding layer was mainly comprised of Ni3Fe and TiC0.957. The excessive laser power would enhance the process of convection-di ffusion of the melt pool, increase dilution, and improve wear volume. High laser power facilitates renucleation and growth of the hard phase, especially the complete growth of secondary axis dendrite for the top region. Increased TiC significantly changes the microstructure of the hard phase into a non-direction preferable structure, which prevents stress concentration at tips and further improves the mechanical properties. The research results are a valuable support for the manipulation of microstructure and prediction of wear behavior of composite cladding layer.

**Keywords:** laser cladding; TiC; microstructure control; wear behavior prediction
