Laser materials processing has been widely applied in industrial processes due to unique
precision and very localized thermal action furnished by the laser’s high energy density and power
controllability. With the inherent rapid heating and cooling rates to which this surface layer is
subjected, this process provides an opportunity to produce different microstructures from that of the
bulk metal leading to useful properties. The aim of this work is to develop a heat transfer
mathematical model based on the finite difference method in order to simulate temperature fields in
the laser surface remelting process. Convective heat transfer in the remelted pool is taken into
account by using the effective thermal conductivity approach. Theoretical predictions furnished by
previous models from the literature were used for validation of numerical simulations performed
with the proposed model. Experiments of laser surface remelting of Al-9 wt pct Si samples was
carried out in the present investigation, and numerical simulations was applied for the laser machine
operating parameters. The work also encompasses the analysis of microstructural and
microhardness variations throughout the resulting treated and unmolten zones.
Effect of Laser Surface Remelting on the Corrosion Resistance of 316L Orthodontic Brackets
