Effects of the Laser Power on the Microstructure and Microhardness of the Carbonitrided 45 Steel

Abstract

The 45 steel was processed by laser remelting after the carbonitriding heat treatment in this study. The microstructure morphology and microhardness of the laser-remelting layer at different laser powers were investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and microhardness tester, respectively. The results show that a compact microstructure and a homogeneous element distribution can be achieved at the laser power of 1.2 kW under the given other laser parameters, and the microhardness was enhanced greatly.