Selective laser surface melting of a magnesium-aluminium alloy

A High Power Diode Laser (HPDL) has been used to selectively melt one of the phases present in the microstructure of the surface of a magnesium-aluminium alloy (AZ91D). The intermetallic precipitates were molten and they dissolved some of the surrounding Mg. After laser treatment, a new microstructure with modified mechanical properties is obtained on the surface of the Mg-alloy. This methodology can be easily applied to many other systems. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.