Marcel Bachmann

Full penetration laser beam welding of thick duplex steel plates with electromagnetic weld pool support

Full penetration high power bead-on-plate laser beam welding tests of up to 20 mm thick 2205 duplex steel plates were performed in PA position. A contactless inductive electromagnetic (EM) weld pool support system was used to prevent gravity drop-out of the melt. Welding experiments with 15 mm thick plates were carried out using IPG fiber laser YLR 20000 and Yb:YAG thin disk laser TruDisk 16002. The laser power needed to achieve a full penetration was found to be 10.9 and 8.56 kW for welding velocity of 1.0 and 0.5 m min−1, respectively. Reference welds without weld pool support demonstrate excessive root sag. The optimal value of the alternating current(AC) power needed to completely compensate the sagging on the root side was found to be ≈1.6 kW for both values of the welding velocity. The same EM weld pool support system was used in welding tests with 20 mm thick plates. The laser beam power (TRUMPF Yb:YAG thin disk laser TruDisk 16002) needed to reach a full penetration for 0.5 m min−1 was found to be 13.9 kW. Full penetration welding without EM weld pool support is not possible—the surface tension cannot stop the gravity drop-out of the melt. The AC power needed to completely compensate the gravity was found to be 2 kW.

Finite element modeling of an alternating current electromagnetic weld pool support in full penetration laser beam welding of thick duplex stainless steel plates

An electromagnetic weld pool support system for 20 mm thick duplex stainless steel AISI 2205 was investigated numerically and compared to experiments. In our former publications, it was shown how an alternating current (AC) magnetic field below the process zone directed perpendicular to the welding direction can induce vertically directed Lorentz forces. These can counteract the gravitational forces and allow for a suppression of material drop-out for austenitic stainless steels and aluminum alloys. In this investigation, we additionally adopted a steady-state complex magnetic permeability model for the consideration of the magnetic hysteresis behavior due to the ferritic characteristics of the material. The model was calibrated against the Jiles–Atherton model. The material model was also successfully tested against an experimental configuration before welding with a 30 mm diameter cylinder of austenitic stainless steel surrounded by duplex stainless steel. Thereby, the effects of the Curie temperature o...

Sensitivity analysis of the residual stress state in friction stir welding of high strength aluminum alloy

Abstract In this paper, the friction stir welding process was numerically investigated for 6 mm thick aluminum alloy AA2024-T3. The finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics was used to calculate the transient thermal field during welding and the mechanical reaction depending on different mechanical clamping conditions and hardening models subsequently. A thermal pseudo-mechanical (TPM) heat source was implemented. Softening effects of the material due to precipitation hardening dissolution caused by the frictional heat were accounted for. The transient temperature evolution measured by thermocouple elements at various locations was compared to the numerical results. A good agreement was found for the thermal field. A sensitivity study of the mechanical models showed the strong influence of the clamping conditions and the softening model.

Numerical simulation of electromagnetic melt control systems in high power laser beam welding

The availability of laser sources with a power of 20 kW upwards prepared the ground for laser beam welding of up to 20 mm thick metal parts. Challenges are the prevention of gravity-driven melt drop-out and the control of the dynamics mainly due to the Marangoni flow.Coupled numerical turbulent fluid flow, thermal and electromagnetic simulations and experimental validation with aluminum AlMg3 and stainless steel AISI 304 were done for alternating and steady magnetic fields perpendicular to the process direction. The first can prevent melt sagging in full-penetration welding by Lorentz forces in the melt induced by an AC magnet located below the weld specimen counteracting gravitational forces. The latter controls the Marangoni flow by Lorentz braking forces in the melt by the so-called Hartmann effect.The simulations show that the drop-out of aluminum and stainless steel can be avoided for 20 mm thick full-penetration welds with moderate magnetic flux densities of 70 mT and 95 mT at oscillation frequencies of 450 Hz and 3 kHz, respectively. The experiments are in good agreement but show somewhat larger values for steel, whose weakly ferromagnetic properties are a possible reason. The investigations with steady magnetic fields reveal the possibility to mitigate the dynamics significantly beginning with around 500 mT at laser penetration depths of approximately 20 mm.The availability of laser sources with a power of 20 kW upwards prepared the ground for laser beam welding of up to 20 mm thick metal parts. Challenges are the prevention of gravity-driven melt drop-out and the control of the dynamics mainly due to the Marangoni flow.Coupled numerical turbulent fluid flow, thermal and electromagnetic simulations and experimental validation with aluminum AlMg3 and stainless steel AISI 304 were done for alternating and steady magnetic fields perpendicular to the process direction. The first can prevent melt sagging in full-penetration welding by Lorentz forces in the melt induced by an AC magnet located below the weld specimen counteracting gravitational forces. The latter controls the Marangoni flow by Lorentz braking forces in the melt by the so-called Hartmann effect.The simulations show that the drop-out of aluminum and stainless steel can be avoided for 20 mm thick full-penetration welds with moderate magnetic flux densities of 70 mT and 95 mT at oscillation frequencie...