Laser removal of casting scale

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10759004-B2
Application number	US-201816011299-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 18, 2018
Priority date	Jun 18, 2018
Publication date	Sep 1, 2020
Grant date	Sep 1, 2020

Abstract

A method of removing scale from a casting may include positioning the casting relative to a laser emitter. The casting may comprise a superalloy and the scale may have formed on the surfaces thereof, with the scale being a byproduct of a method of manufacturing the casting. The method may also include passing a laser beam emitted from the laser emitter across the casting such that the laser beam causes the scale to at least one of crack, break, shatter, and spall. The superalloy may be a nickel-based superalloy and the scale may include a metal carbide layer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of removing scale from a casting, the method comprising:
positioning the casting relative to a laser emitter, wherein the casting comprises a superalloy having the scale formed thereon, wherein the scale is a byproduct of a method of manufacturing the casting; and
passing a laser beam emitted from the laser emitter across the casting such that the laser beam causes the scale to at least one of crack, break, shatter, and spall.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the superalloy is a nickel-based superalloy.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nickel-based superalloy comprises at least one of gamma and gamma prime forming elements.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the scale comprises a metal carbide layer.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the metal carbide layer comprises at least one of Ta x C y , W x C y , Ni x C y , Mo x C y , Zr x C y , wherein x=1, 2, 3, 4, 7, or 23 and y=1, 2, 3, or 6, in pertinent combinations.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the scale comprises a thickness between 10 and 40 micrometers.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the pulsed laser emitter is operable in various pulse durations between 20 and 110 nanoseconds.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein a repetition rate of the laser emitter is between 2 and 50 kHz.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising emitting a liquid at the casting to facilitate removal of the scale.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein emitting the liquid at the casting is performed at least one of concurrently with and before passing the laser beam across the casting.

11. A method of removing scale from a casting, the method comprising:
positioning the casting relative to a laser emitter, wherein:
the casting comprises a superalloy having the scale formed thereon;
the superalloy is a nickel-based superalloy;
the scale is a byproduct of a method of manufacturing the casting; and
the scale comprises a metal carbide layer; and

passing a laser beam emitted from the laser emitter across the casting such that the laser beam causes the scale to at least one of crack, break, shatter, and spall.

12. A method of manufacturing, the method comprising:
investment casting a part using a casting shell to form a casting of the part, wherein the casting comprises a superalloy, wherein a scale is formed over at least a portion of the casting that is a byproduct of the investment casting;
positioning the casting relative to a laser emitter; and
passing a laser beam emitted from the laser emitter across the casting such that the laser beam causes the scale to at least one of crack, break, shatter, and spall.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the investment casting comprises preferred grain selection.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the casting shell comprises at least one of ZrO 2 , SiO 2 , and Al 2 O 3 .

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein the investment casting is performed under vacuum.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the superalloy is a nickel-based superalloy.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein the scale comprises a metal carbide layer.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the metal carbide layer comprises at least one of Ta x C y , W x C y , Ni x C y , Mo x C y , Zr x C y , wherein x=1, 2, 3, 4, 7, or 23 and y=1, 2, 3, or 6, in pertinent combinations.

19. The method of claim 12 , wherein the scale comprises a thickness between 10 and 40 micrometers.

20. The method of claim 12 , further comprising emitting a liquid at the casting to facilitate removal of the scale.

Assignees

• United Technologies Corp
• Raytheon Tech Corp

Inventors

• Thayer Henry H
• Peles Amra
• Novikov Dmitri

Classifications

• B23K26/40

  taking account of the properties of the material involved · CPC title

• B23K26/38 Primary

  by boring or cutting · CPC title

• B23K2101/001

  Turbines · CPC title

• B23K26/60

  Preliminary treatment · CPC title

• B23K26/0624

  using ultrashort pulses, i.e. pulses of 1 ns or less · CPC title