Abstract: High-grade aluminum alloy components are widely applied for aerospace,petrochemical,liquid nitrogen hydrogen storage,etc.It shows a high research value in engineering applications due to its high yield,light material,and high plasticity.However,the service of aluminum alloy components is affected by manufacturing surface defects,such as poor corrosion and wear resistance,low strength and hardness,coarsening of grain,surface orange peel,etc.Therefore,further applications are limited and large-scale industrial production is not possible.Generally,surface properties of aluminum alloys can be improved by surface treatment methods.Nowadays,more surface treatment technologies are applied to aluminum alloy surfaces to exploit their industrial application value.In this paper,key technologies for the preparation of high-performance coatings by laser cladding were introduced.The current status of research on laser cladding coatings for aluminum alloys is presented.A comparative analysis of the technologies regarding the improvement of the surface properties of aluminum alloy substrates is presented in recent years.High hardness,corrosion resistance,and wear resistance coatings are successfully prepared.Then,problems in laser cladding of aluminum alloy substrates are presented.The laser reflectivity of the aluminum alloy surface is calculated.Different techniques to improve the surface properties of aluminum alloy substrates are presented.The effect of different elements on the coating of aluminum alloy substrates is analyzed.Ultimately,the use of laser cladding techniques in combination with other techniques is discussed to enhance the properties of aluminum alloy substrates.The laser power and coating material are modified to obtain superior coatings.The microstructure,corrosion and wear resistances of the coating were analyzed.And the application prospect of aluminum alloy surface coating was prospected.