General Electric Company

Fabrizio Mangano

Norbert Lucke

Piero-Daniele Grasso

Michael Seemann

Sabrina Michelle Puidokas

Hans Bissig

Klaus-Dieter Hermann Maximilian Wassmer

David Cafarelli

Klaus-Dieter Wassmer

A method of repairing a superalloy component includes a series of sequential steps. The steps are, cleaning the component, applying brazing material to the component, heat treating the component, inspecting the component, preparing the surface of the component, welding the component, and performing a second inspection of the component. The superalloy component is comprised of a high gamma prime superalloy.

Method of repairing superalloys

Methods of repair of a component or adding material to a component using laser welding are disclosed. One method may include repairing or adding material to the component by laser irradiating a wire material with a laser in an inert gas in a vicinity of the component. The laser irradiating the wire material includes modulated pulsing the laser through: a warm up phase during which an on-power of the laser is increased over time to a maximum target on-power, a melt and bond phase during which the wire material is melted and during which the on-power is less than the maximum target on-power, and a stress releasing phase during which the on-power of the laser is less than the on-power during the melt and bond phase. The laser irradiated wire material forms a weld material to repair a damaged area or add material to the component.

Laser welding of component

Methods of forming or repairing a tip rail of a turbine are disclosed. One method may include repairing the tip rail, or adding material to form the tip rail, by laser irradiating a wire material with a laser in an inert gas in a vicinity of a tip plate. The laser irradiating the wire material includes modulated pulsing the laser through: a warm up phase during which an on-power of the laser is increased over time to a maximum target on-power, a melt and bond phase during which the wire material is melted and during which the on-power is less than the maximum target on-power, and a stress releasing phase during which the on-power of the laser is less than the on-power during the melt and bond phase. Exterior surface coatings and/or TBC may be sprayed onto the tip rail to protect it.

Turbine blade tip rail formation and repair using laser welding

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Dottikon, Switzerland

Fabrizio Mangano