Shield Hardfacing Wear Parts

Cemented Carbide Hardfacing Protection

Shield machine wear parts with cemented carbide hardfacing offer outstanding wear and impact resistance for tunneling operations.

Shield Machine Wear Parts Cemented Carbide Wear Parts Hardfacing Shield Components Abrasion Resistant Tunnel Parts +2 More

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Shield Hardfacing Wear Parts

Cemented Carbide Hardfacing Protection

Shield machine wear parts with cemented carbide hardfacing offer outstanding wear and impact resistance for tunneling operations. extend equipment life significantly, minimize failures, and cut maintenance costs in subway, pipeline, and high-speed rail projects.

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Wear parts of shield machines are critical components engineered to withstand harsh conditions during shield tunneling operations. These parts are constructed from high-strength materials that resist pressure, wear, and high temperatures, with the surface covered by a cemented carbide layer for enhanced performance. The hardfacing provides excellent wear resistance and impact resistance, effectively protecting equipment surfaces from abrasive and erosive forces in underground environments like tunnels, subways, pipelines, high-speed railways, and water conservancy projects.

Features & Benefits

The cemented carbide surfacing delivers key advantages for demanding shield operations:

Excellent wear resistance and impact resistance from cemented carbide layer
High pressure resistance and high-temperature tolerance
Strict quality control and precision machining for reliable fit and function
Effective protection against surface wear in abrasive conditions

Extended service life of shield machine components
Reduced equipment failures and maintenance frequency
Lower overall operating costs through fewer replacements
Improved construction efficiency by maintaining consistent machine performance

These parts are essential for minimizing downtime and ensuring smooth progress in large-scale tunneling projects where abrasion from soil, rock, and slurry is constant.

Technical Specifications

Parameter	Details
Surface Treatment	Cemented carbide layer (hardfacing overlay)
Base Material	High-strength materials resistant to pressure, wear, and high temperatures
Key Properties	Superior wear resistance, impact resistance, corrosion resistance, high-temperature stability
Manufacturing	Surfacing with cemented carbide, precision machining, strict quality control
Benefits	Extended component life, reduced failures and costs
Compatibility	Custom for shield machine cutters, shields, and related wear zones

Hardfacing Wear Parts for Shield Machines (also known as shield machine wear-resistant components or cemented carbide surfaced shield parts) are specialized protective elements designed for shield tunneling machinery. These parts feature a high-strength base material overlaid with a cemented carbide layer on the surface, providing exceptional wear resistance, impact resistance, pressure resistance, and high-temperature tolerance in demanding underground construction environments.

Are There Different Techniques for Hardfacing?

Yes. Hardfacing is commonly performed using two primary techniques: Build-Up and Overlay. These methods are used either to restore worn components or to reinforce new or lightly used parts to extend their service life.

Build-Up Hardfacing

Used to repair heavily worn components with gouges, scratches, and surface loss by rebuilding the original working profile.

Surface Restoration

Additional weld material is carefully deposited in damaged areas, followed by leveling and finishing to restore functionality.

Overlay Hardfacing

Applied to new or lightly worn parts using uniform weld passes to add a protective, wear-resistant layer.

Life Extension

Enhances durability and abrasion resistance without repair work, making it ideal for preventive reinforcement.

Wear-resistant Steel Plate Series

Model	HRC	Working temperature	Alloy chemical composition
Model	HRC	Working temperature	C	Cr	Mn	Nb	Others
HP100	60-63	>500℃	3-5	22-28			48	4+4, 5+5, 6+5, 6+6, 8+5, 8+6, 8+8, 10+5, 10+6, 10+7, 10+8, 10+10, 12+5, 12+6, 12+7, 12+8, 12+10, 12+12, 14+6, 14+8, 14+10, 16+4, 16+6, 16+8, 16+10, 16+12
HP200	58-62	>500℃	3-5	20-26	1-3		2-5
HP300	60-65	>800℃	4-6	18-25	2-3	5-8	3-6
HP400	50-55	>500℃	0.4-2	3-7	15-20		2-5

Hardfacing

What is it and how to do it right

Hardfacing is a specialized welding process designed to extend the working life of metal parts by building a hard, wear-resistant surface over the base material. Unlike typical welds, hardfacing covers the entire working surface rather than just seams or cracks.

In reality, hardfacing is a special process that can be done with the only purpose of extending the service’s life of any equipment or surface. Now, if a metal part reaches a longer lifespan through hardfacing, more time can be used and fewer times will need to be replaced.

What is hardfacing?

Hardfacing is the process to apply a tougher material to a base metal, to make it more durable or extend its lifespan. This harder material is welded to the base metal by using specialized electrodes or filler rods.

They are meant to form very dense and thick layers (between 1 to 10 mm) above the base metal of wear-resistant material with high bond strength. The coating material can add ductility, hardness, corrosion resistance, and erosion resistance to the original part.

Other names given to hardfacing are hard surfacing, surface welding, and cladding. Among the base metals that can be hardfaced are the following ones:

Cast Iron
Copper-base Alloy
Nickel-base Alloy
Stainless Steel
Manganese Steel
Carbon and Alloy Steel

Before starting any hardfacing process is needed to identify exactly what material is made the part of because this defines the pre-heat and post-heat temperature that should be applied.

Why hardfacing may be needed?

All metal parts even with normal use will wear as time goes by. This may cause them to lose their functionality and as a result, the need for a new part.

In certain industrial applications, like in mining or agriculture, this may happen more frequently. Hardfacing can be an ideal option for any metal part that may wear for being used. In short, hardfacing can help to:

Spend less downtime for replacing worn or broken components
Store fewer spare parts to inventory, because they are not needed
Longer equipment lifespan

The process to apply hardfacing

Industrial equipment is intended to last for many years. So, many companies take some years to replace theirs.

1. Clean the part

Take away any rust, grime, oil, grease, or gunk that the workpiece may have. If there is any previous hardfacing layer, take it out to avoid any cracking.

2. Build up

The part may have an indent caused by an impact. In that case, fill the space before applying layers. Some people know this step as rebuilding because the purpose is to restore the piece to its original dimensions.

3. Buttering

This step is also known as a buffer layer. The objective is to overcome the possible incompatibility between the metal base and the final coating. By doing this, shrinkage cracks from the hardfacing to the base metal can be avoided.

4. Hardfacing

Here is when the job is done. This consists of the addition of coating layers to the workpiece. Normally 3 layers are the most you can add but are unlimited when using certain materials.

Who may need hardfacing?

In short, hardfacing is the option for any company trying to save in parts or equipment with a high rate of abrasion or erosion. Some of the many industries in which hardfacing is quite popular or convenient are:

Mining
Agriculture
Construction
Oil and Gas
Power Generation
Food Processing
Pulp and Paper
Cement Manufacturing

But this list does not pretend to be exclusive, so despite your industry not being there, chances are hardfacing may be an option for you.

HARD FACING

Where Is Hardfacing Often Used?

Hardfacing is widely used in applications where components are exposed to continuous impact, abrasion, or erosion. By reinforcing the working surface, it helps equipment maintain strength, dimensions, and performance over extended service periods.

Construction Equipment: Components such as excavator buckets, plow blades, and cutting edges endure severe impact and abrasive wear. Hardfacing strengthens these parts, reducing material loss and preserving operating dimensions.
Agricultural Machinery: In sugar processing, rollers used to crush sugarcane are subjected to constant mechanical stress. Hardfacing improves resistance to abrasion and impact, significantly extending roller service life.
Mining & Crushing Systems: Crusher jaws, wear plates, and liners are exposed to highly abrasive ore and rock. Hardfacing protects these critical components and can restore worn surfaces before full replacement is required.

Hardfacing often appears uneven and rough because it builds up material across the surface. Unlike conventional welds, the goal is durability and wear resistance rather than smooth seams.

Hardfacing is suitable for steels (carbon, alloy, stainless, manganese), cast iron, nickel-based alloys, and copper-based alloys. Materials that are too soft or used in non-wear-critical applications are generally not suitable.

Hardfacing is primarily used on high-wear components exposed to abrasion or impact. It is not effective for parts damaged by flexing or sheer stress alone.

Common processes include submerged arc welding and flux-cored arc welding. Other methods like plasma arc, laser welding, or brazing can also be used. The key factors are heat control and deposition rate to ensure strong, durable wear layers.

Common welding techniques used in hardfacing applications:

Plasma Transferred Arc (PTA) Welding

Laser Welding, Spray Fuse Welding, and Thermal Spraying

Oxy-Fuel Welding (OFW) or Oxyacetylene Welding

Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW or TIG Welding)

Submerged Arc Welding (SAW)

Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW)

Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW or MIG) with Shielded Wire

Flux Cored Arc Welding (FCAW) with an Open-Arc or Gas-Shielded Hardfacing Wire

All metal parts even with normal use will wear as time goes by. This may cause them to lose their functionality and as a result, the need for a new part.

In certain industrial applications, like in mining or agriculture, this may happen more frequently. Hardfacing can be an ideal option for any metal part that may wear for being used. In short, hardfacing can help to:

Spend less downtime for replacing worn or broken components
Store fewer spare parts to inventory, because they are not needed
Longer equipment lifespan

Hardfacing is used for a wide range of applications, but we can highlight some examples.

Excavator plowshare
These parts suffer abrasion daily like any other construction equipment. The constant abrasion and erosion due to its daily outdoor heavy duty may significantly reduce the dimension and strength of the piece.
By hardfacing these parts, the total machinery lifespan can be extended many times, with a very reduced investment.

Sugar cane crusher roll
This part is constantly exerting pressure to mill the cane to extract the sugar to process. The sugar cane is a strong plant that can put these metal-made parts to the test.
Hardfacing is the usual procedure to extend the life of these parts, lowering production costs and downtime.

Mining crushing rolls
Mining is an industry quite related to hardfacing. The material obtained from the mine should be crushed to be processed.
Even with being made of hard material, in a short time these rolls are worn down because they deal with strong minerals all day long. So, more than a possibility, hardfacing is a must for mining crushing rolls.

There are several techniques and methods for applying hardfacing. The one you should choose will depend on your equipment and needs. Let’s talk about the techniques first.

Wear is typically caused by abrasion, impact, or metal-to-metal contact. Heat and corrosion can also contribute but are less common in hardfacing applications. Multiple wear types can occur simultaneously, such as abrasion and impact on excavator blades.

The ideal hardfacing machine handles long duty cycles, delivers consistent deposition, and minimizes the heat-affected zone. High-power welders (e.g., 220V) are generally more efficient, but most industrial-grade welders can perform hardfacing effectively. Equipment rentals can help test different machines before purchase.