TY - JOUR A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - The influence of magnetic field orientation on metal mixing in electromagnetic stirring enhanced wire feed laser beam welding N2 - The application of the electromagnetic stirring from an oscillating magnetic field can improve the metal mixing in wire feed laser beam welding. However, the extra parameters introduced in this technique make the selection of an optimal combination of process parameters more difficult. In the current study, besides the commonly concerned magnetic flux density and frequency, the influence of the magnetic field orientation (magnetic field angle) on the transport of filler metal is studied numerically and experimentally. Ex-situ X-ray fluorescence spectrometer measurements are used to map the metal mixing in the final weld. A three-dimensional transient multi-physical model is developed to reveal the deeper physical essence, considering the coupling between heat transfer, fluid flow, keyhole dynamics, element transport and magnetohydrodynamics. The spatial distribution of the laser energy on the keyhole wall is calculated by a ray tracing algorithm. The results show that the magnetic field with smaller angle with respect to the transverse direction provides better penetration capacity, and its stirring effect can reach the lower part of the molten pool. Therefore, the smaller magnetic field angle produces better metal mixing. A constant downward flow is formed at the lower part of the molten pool when magnetic field of 10° angle is applied, which brings the filler metal to the root region. As the magnetic field angle increases to 40°, the beneficial downward flow changes into a constant upward flow, resulting in a concentration of the filler metal in the upper region. This study provides further insight of the underlying physics in the electromagnetically enhanced laser beam welding, which may guide the optimization of parameters to achieve property homogeneity or to avoid potential defects. KW - Laser welding KW - Metal mixing KW - Magnetic field KW - Magnetohydrodynamics KW - Multi-physical modelling PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2021.117135 VL - 294 SP - 117135 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-52469 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rethmeier, Michael A1 - Gumenyuk, Andrey A1 - Bachmann, Marcel T1 - High-power laser beam welding for thick section steels – new perspectives using electromagnetic systems N2 - In recent years, it was shown that the introduction of additional oscillating and permanent magnetic fields to laser beam and laser-arc hybrid welding can bring several beneficial effects. Examples are a contactless weld pool support for metals of high thickness suffering from severe drop-out when being welded conventionally or an enhanced stirring to improve the mixing of added filler material in the depth of the weld pool to guarantee homogeneous resulting mechanical properties of the weld. The latest research results show the applicability to various metal types over a wide range of thicknesses and welding conditions. The observations made were demonstrated in numerous experimental studies and a deep understanding of the interaction of the underlying physical mechanisms was extracted from numerical calculations. KW - Laser beam welding KW - Numerical simulations KW - Electromagnetic support PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/13621718.2021.1999763 VL - 27 IS - 1 SP - 43 EP - 51 PB - Taylor & Francis Group AN - OPUS4-53970 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel T1 - Numerical analysis of the dependency of the weld pool shape on turbulence and thermodynamic activity of solutes in laser beam welding of unalloyed steels N2 - A three-dimensional numerical model was developed to accurately predict the steady-state weld pool shape in full penetration laser beam welding. The model accounts for the coupling between the heat transfer and the fluid dynamics by considering the effects of solid/liquid phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection, and phase-specific and temperature-dependent material properties up to the evaporation temperature. A fixed right circular cone was utilized as a keyhole geometry to consider the heat absorbed from the laser beam. The model was used to analyze the influence of the thermodynamic activity of solutes and turbulence on the weld pool shape. A mesh sensitivity analysis was performed on a hybrid mesh combining hexahedral and tetrahedral elements. For the case of full penetration laser beam welding of 8 mm thick unalloyed steel sheets, the dependence of the weld pool shape on the surface-active element sulfur was found to be negligible. The analysis of the results showed that a laminar formulation is sufficient for accurately predicting the weld pool shape since the turbulence has a minor impact on the flow dynamics in the weld pool. The validity of the numerical results was backed up by experimental measurements and observations, including weld pool length, local temperature history, and a range of metallographic cross-sections. T2 - 13th International Seminar Numerical Analysis of Weldability CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 04.09.2022 KW - Weld pool shape KW - Numerical modeling KW - Laser beam welding KW - Thermo-capillary convection KW - Turbulence PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-55718 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael A1 - Karkhin, V. A1 - Khomich, P. T1 - Modeling of hydrodynamic and thermal processes at laser welding with through penetration N2 - A mathematical model for physical processes in fusion welding has been developed. It is based on the equivalent heat source concept and consists of two parts: thermo-hydrodynamics of the weld pool and heat conduction in the weldment outside the pool. In thermo-hydrodynamic problem, temperature – dependent material properties, keyhole shape, thermo-capillary and natural convection, phase transformations and other physical phenomena are taken into consideration. Solution of the thermo-hydrodynamic problem by the finite element method is demonstrated with keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm thick steel plate. Thermo-capillary convection is primarily responsible for the intricate convex-concave melt pool shape and pool enlargement near the plate surfaces. The calculated and experimental molten pool dimensions are in close agreement. KW - Laser welding KW - Weld pool modeling KW - Heat conduction KW - Greens function method PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/09507116.2021.1989209 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Taylor & Francis Group AN - OPUS4-54022 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Yang, Fan A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Numerical analysis of the effect of the metal vapor plume on the keyhole and the molten pool behavior during deep penetration laser beam welding N2 - The effect of the oscillating metal vapor plume on the keyhole and molten pool behavior during the laser beam welding of AlMg3 aluminum alloys is investigated by the experimental and numerical method. The real-time height of the metal vapor plume is measured by high-speed camera observation. The obtained experimental results are used to evaluate the additional heating source and laser beam attenuation caused by the scattering and absorption based on the Beer-Lambert theory. Furthermore, the dynamic behavior of the metal vapor plume is incorporated into a 3D transient heat transfer and fluid flow model, coupled with the ray tracing method, for the laser beam welding of the AlMg3 alloy. It is found that the additional heating resulting from the scattered and absorbed laser beam energy by the metal vapor plume significantly expands the shape of the molten pool on the top region. Moreover, the oscillating metal vapor plume caused the fluctuation of the molten pool shape. The probability of keyhole collapse at the bottom increases significantly to 72% due to the oscillating laser power induced by the laser beam attenuation. The internal interplay between the metal vapor plume, molten pool shape, and the keyhole collapse are obtained. The developed model has been validated by the experiments, which shows a good agreement. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2023 CY - Chicago, Illinois, USA DA - 16.10.2023 KW - Deep penetration laser beam welding KW - Numerical simulation KW - Oscillating vapor plume KW - Keyhole collapse PY - 2023 SP - 1 EP - 10 AN - OPUS4-58841 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Investigating defects caused by narrow pool shapes in deep penetration welding N2 - Laser beam welding is a widely used joining technique in many industrial applications. This is mainly due to its many unique advantages, especially compared to conventional arc welding processes. These advantages include, among others, highly concentrated energy deposition, low total heat input and a capacity to penetrate deep into the material while causing only small welding distortions. However, at the same time, the small dimension of the laser spot, high solidification rates, and small dimensions of the weld pool itself can provoke issues regarding the assembly tolerances of the workpiece, the hot-cracking phenomena, as well as keyhole-induced bubbles escaping from the melt. Weld pool shapes in laser beam welding are elongated at the external, free surfaces under the action of the main driving forces in the melt – such as recoil pressure and surface tension forces – while being shorter in the internal areas of the weld pool. This leads to a regular solidification sequence from the internal zones toward the free surfaces, e.g. from the bottom to the top in partial penetration welding. However, in recent studies reported in the literature and seen in the experimental and numerical investigations of BAM Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung in Berlin, it was found that an internal narrowing phenomenon can occur that is often accompanied by a distinct bulging of the weld bead in deeper zones. As the internal behaviour of the melt during the process is hardly optically accessible, several numerical models and experimental techniques were established to visualise the mechanisms of the formation of the bulging and the narrowing phenomenon and to reveal the consequences on the solidification sequence, pore formation, and filler metal dilution. KW - Weld pool shape KW - Laser beam welding KW - Solidification PY - 2022 SN - 1759-0752 IS - 57 SP - 28 EP - 29 PB - Europa Science CY - Cambridge, UK AN - OPUS4-56995 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Numerical study on the formation of a bulging region in partial penetration laser beam welding N2 - A transient three-dimensional thermo-fluid dynamics numerical model was developed to study the formation of a bulging region in partial penetration laser beam welding. The model accounts for the coupling between the fluid flow, the heat transfer, and the keyhole dynamics by considering the effects of multiple reflections and Fresnel absorption of the laser beam in the keyhole, the phase transitions during melting and evaporating, the thermo-capillary convection, the natural convection, and the phase-specific and temperature-dependent material properties up to the evaporation temperature. The validity of the model was backed up by experimentally obtained data, including the drilling time, the weld pool length, the local temperature history outside the weld pool, the process efficiency, and a range of metallographic crosssections. The model was applied for the cases of partial penetration laser beam welding of 8 mm and 12 mm thick unalloyed steel sheets. The obtained experimental and numerical results reveal that the bulging region forms transiently depending on the penetration depth of the weld, showing a tendency to transition from a slight bulging to a fully developed bulging region between penetration depths of 6 mm and 9 mm, respectively. T2 - 13th International Seminar "Numerical Analysis of Weldability" CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 04.09.2022 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Deep penetration KW - Bulge formation KW - Numerical modeling PY - 2023 SN - 978-3-85125-968-1 SN - 978-3-85125-969-8 SN - 2410-0544 VL - 13 SP - 101 EP - 126 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-58802 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Kising, Pascal A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Numerical analysis of the dependency of the weld pool shape on turbulence and thermodynamic activity of solutes in laser beam welding of unalloyed steels N2 - A three-dimensional numerical model was developed to accurately predict the steady-state weld pool shape in full penetration laser beam welding. The model accounts for the coupling between the heat transfer and the fluid dynamics by considering the effects of solid/liquid phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection, and phase-specific and temperature-dependent material properties up to the evaporation temperature. A fixed right circular cone was utilized as a keyhole geometry to consider the heat absorbed from the laser beam. The model was used to analyze the influence of the thermodynamic activity of solutes and turbulence on the weld pool shape. A mesh sensitivity analysis was performed on a hybrid mesh combining hexahedral and tetrahedral elements. For the case of full penetration laser beam welding of 8 mm thick unalloyed steel sheets, the dependence of the weld pool shape on the surface-active element sulfur was found to be negligible. The analysis of the results showed that a laminar formulation is sufficient for accurately predicting the weld pool shape since the turbulence has a minor impact on the flow dynamics in the weld pool. The validity of the numerical results was backed up by experimental measurements and observations, including weld pool length, local temperature history, and a range of metallographic crosssections. T2 - 13th International Seminar Numerical Analysis of Weldability CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 04.09.2022 KW - Weld pool shape KW - Numerical modeling KW - Laser beam welding KW - Thermo-capillary convection KW - Turbulence PY - 2023 SN - 978-3-85125-968-1 SN - 978-3-85125-969-8 SN - 2410-0544 VL - 13 SP - 161 EP - 188 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-58803 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Yang, Chunliang A1 - Wu, Chuansong A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Numerical analysis of ultrasonic vibration enhanced friction stir welding of dissimilar Al/Mg alloys N2 - The ultrasonic vibration enhanced friction stir welding (UVeFSW) process has unique advantages in joining dissimilar Al/Mg alloys. While there are complex coupling mechanisms of multi-fields in the process, it is of great significance to model this process, to reveal the influence mechanism of ultrasonic vibration on the formation of Al/Mg joints. In this study, the acoustic-plastic constitutive equation was established by considering the influence of both ultrasonic softening and residual hardening on the flow stress at different temperatures and strain rates. And the ultrasonic induced friction reduction (UiFR) effect on friction coefficient in different relative directions at the FSW tool-workpiece interface was quantitatively calculated and analyzed. The Al/Mg UVeFSW process model was developed through introducing the above acoustic effects into the model of Al/Mg friction stir welding (FSW). The ultrasonic energy is stronger on the aluminum alloy side. In the stirred zone, there is the pattern distribution of ultrasonic sound pressure and energy. The heat generation at the tool-workpiece contact interface and viscous dissipation were reduced after applying ultrasonic vibra-tion. Due to the UiFR effect, the projection of friction coefficient and heat flux distributions at the tool-workpiece interface present a "deformed" butterfly shape. The calculated results show that ultrasonic vibra-tion enhanced the material flow and promoted the mixing of dissimilar materials. T2 - 13th International Seminar Numerical Analysis of Weldability CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 04.09.2022 KW - Friction stir welding KW - Ultrasonic vibration KW - Al/Mg alloys KW - Numerical simulation PY - 2023 SN - 2410-0544 VL - 13 SP - 517 EP - 538 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-58805 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Üstündag, Ömer A1 - Gumenyuk, Andrey A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - A numerical study on the suppression of a detrimental weld pool profile in wire feed laser beam welding by magnetohydrodynamic technique N2 - The weld quality and the possible defect formation are directly determined by the weld pool shape and the thermo-fluid dynamics therein. In this paper, an untypical weld pool profile, i.e., elongated at its top and bottom but narrowed at the middle, is found experimentally and numerically in the wire feed laser beam welding. The detrimental influence of the weld pool narrowing on the element transport is analyzed and discussed. A magnetohydrodynamic technique is utilized to suppress the narrowing, aiming at a more homogenous element distribution. It is found that a low-temperature region is formed in the middle of the weld pool due to the interaction of the two dominant circulations from the top and bottom regions. The weld pool is significantly narrowed due to the untypical growth of the mushy zone in the low-temperature region, which results in a direct blocking effect on the downward flow and the premature solidification in the middle region. The Lorentz force produced by a transverse oscillating magnetic field shows the potential to change the flow pattern into a single-circulation type and the low-temperature-gradient region is mitigated. Therefore, the downward transfer channel is widened, and its premature solidification is prevented. The numerical results are well validated by experimental measurements of metal/glass observation and X-ray fluorescence element mapping. T2 - 13th International Seminar Numerical Analysis of Weldability CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 04.09.2022 KW - Thermo-fluid flow KW - Element transport KW - Laser beam welding KW - Magnetohydrodynamics KW - Multi - physical modeling PY - 2023 SN - 2410-0544 VL - 13 SP - 143 EP - 160 PB - Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz AN - OPUS4-58806 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Yang, Chunliang A1 - Yang, Fan A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Experimental and numerical study on grain refinement in electromagnetic assisted laser beam welding of 5754 al alloy N2 - Through experimental observation and auxiliary numerical simulation, this investigation studies the different types of grain refinement of 5754 aluminum alloy laser beam welding by applying a transverse oscillating magnetic field. Scanning electron microscope results have proved that the application of a magnetic field can reduce the average crystal branch width and increase its number. The interaction between the induced eddy current generated by the Seebeck effect and the applied external magnetic field produces a Lorentz force, which is important for the increase of the number of crystal branches. Based on the theory of dendrite fragmentation and the magnetic field-induced branches increment, the grain size reduction caused by the magnetic field is studied. Furthermore, the effects of the magnetic field are analyzed by combining a phase field method model and simulations of nucleation and grain growth. The grain distribution and average grain size after welding verifies the reliability of the model. In addition, the introduction of a magnetic field can increase the number of periodic three-dimensional solidification patterns. In the intersection of two periods of solidification patterns, the metal can be re-melted and then re-solidified, which prevents the grains that have been solidified and formed previously from further growth and generates some small cellular grains in the new fusion line. The magnetic field increases the building frequency of these solidification structures and thus promotes this kind of grain refinement. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2023 CY - Chicago, USA DA - 16.10.2023 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Magnetic field KW - Crystal branch development KW - Grain refinement KW - Periodic solidification pattern PY - 2023 SP - 1 EP - 10 AN - OPUS4-58809 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Challenges in dynamic heat source modeling in high-power laser beam welding N2 - The amount of absorbed energy in the keyhole as well as its spatial and temporal distribution is essential to model the laser beam welding process. The recoil pressure, which develops because of the evaporation process induced by the absorbed laser energy at the keyhole wall, is a key determining factor for the macroscopic flow of the molten metal in the weld pool during high-power laser beam welding. Consequently, a realistic implementation of the effect of the laser radiation on the weld metal is crucial to obtain reliable and accurate simulation results. In this paper, we discuss manyfold different improvements on the laser-material interaction, namely the ray-tracing method, in the numerical simulation of the laser beam welding process. The first improvement relates to locating the exact reflection points in the ray tracing method using a so-called cosine condition in the determination algorithm for the intersection of the reflected rays and the keyhole surface. A second correction refers to the numerical treatment of the Gaussian distribution of the laser beam, whose beam width is defined by a decay of the laser intensity by a factor of 1/e2 thus ignoring around 14 % of the total laser beam energy. In a third step, the changes in the laser radiation distribution in the vertical direction were adapted by using different approximations for the converging and the diverging regions of the laser beam thus mimicking the beam caustic. Finally, a virtual mesh refinement was adopted in the ray tracing routine. The obtained numerical results were validated with experimental measurements. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2023 CY - Chicago, USA DA - 16.10.2023 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Laser energy distribution KW - Ray tracing KW - Numerical modeling PY - 2023 SP - 1 EP - 10 AN - OPUS4-58475 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Der Einfluss verschiedener räumlicher Diskretisierungsansätze des Ray-Tracing-Verfahrens bei der Simulation des Laserstrahltiefschweißen N2 - Die Wärmeverteilung des Lasers beim Laserstrahltiefschweißen ist für die Formgebung der Dampfkapillare und für die Schweißbaddynamik entscheidend. In dieser Arbeit werden die Laserwärmeverteilung und deren Einflüsse auf die Schweißbadtiefe sowie -breite numerisch anhand des Ray-Tracing-Verfahrens analysiert. Hierbei wird der La-serstrahl in mehreren Strahlenbündeln bzw. Subrays unterteilt. Diesbezüglich soll der Pfad der Subrays präzis be-rechnet werden, um die Dynamik der Dampfkapillare und des Schweißbades eines realen Schweißprozesses rich-tig abzubilden. Zu diesem Zweck beschäftigt sich die vorliegende Arbeit mit der Genauigkeitsverbesserung der Kontaktposition und der Reflexionsrichtung der Subrays auf der freien Oberfläche anhand der Level-Set-Methode. Um die Güte dieses Simulationsansatzes zu gewährleisten, wurde eine Gegenüberstellung mit den zwei klassischen Ray-Tracing-Verfahren mittels drei verschiedenen Benchmark-Testreihen durchgeführt. Anschließend wurden die Versuchsergebnisse zur Validierung der implementierten numerischen Ansätze verwendet. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit kann es gezeigt werden, dass unterschiedliche Wärmeverteilung aufgrund der verschiedenen Ray-Tracing-Verfahren deutlich zu erkennen ist, welche wiederum die Schweißbaddynamik sowie die lokalisierte Dampfkapil-lardynamik stark beeinflussen. Ferner wurde es bestätigt, dass die implementierte Level-Set-Methode zu einer ge-naueren Ermittlung der Kontaktposition und der Reflexionsrichtung der Subrays und somit zu einer Verbesserung der simulierten Schmelzkontur führt. T2 - 43. Assistentenseminar Füge- und Schweißtechnik CY - Schwarzenberg/Erzgebirge, Germany DA - 27.09.2022 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Ray tracing method KW - Weld pool dynamics KW - Numerical modeling PY - 2023 UR - https://www.dvs-media.eu/de/neuerscheinungen/4584/43.-assistentenseminar-fuegetechnik SN - 978-3-96144-212-6 VL - 386 SP - 91 EP - 102 PB - DVS Media GmbH CY - Düsseldorf AN - OPUS4-59119 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Yang, Fan A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Pusbatzkies, Pablo A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Elucidation of the Laser Beam Energy Attenuation by the Vapor Plume Formation during High Power Laser Beam Welding N2 - In high-power laser beam welding, a common phenomenon is the formation of a keyhole caused by the rapid evaporation of the material. Under atmospheric pressure, this evaporation generates a vapor plume that interacts with the laser beam, leading to energy attenuation and scattering of the laser radiation along its path. These interactions affect the stability of the process and the overall weld quality. This study investigates the influence of the vapor plume on the weld pool and keyhole dynamics during high-power laser beam welding of AlMg3 aluminum alloy through experimental and numerical approaches. The primary goal is to identify key vapor plume characteristics, particularly its length fluctuations, and to improve the accuracy of the numerical models. To achieve this, an algorithm was developed for the automated measurement of the vapor plume length using high-speed imaging and advanced data processing techniques. The measured plume length is then used to estimate the additional vapor heating and laser energy attenuation using the Beer–Lambert law. A refined numerical CFD model, incorporating 3D transient heat transfer, fluid flow, and ray tracing, was developed to evaluate the vapor plume’s impact. Results show that already the time-averaged plume length effectively captures its transient influence and aligns well with experimental weld seam geometries. Additionally, energy scattering and absorption caused by the vapor plume led to a wider weld pool at the top surface. The study also shows an increased percentage of keyhole collapses due to the reduced laser power absorption at the keyhole bottom, further highlighting the importance of accurately modeling vapor plume effects. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2025 CY - Orlando, USA DA - 12.10.2025 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Vapor plume formation KW - Weld pool KW - Keyhole dynamics KW - Numerical modeling PY - 2025 SP - 1 EP - 10 AN - OPUS4-64817 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel T1 - Challenges in Modelling Dynamic Heat Sources in High-Power Laser Beam Welding N2 - The amount of absorbed energy in the keyhole as well as its distribution is essential to model the laser beam welding process. The recoil pressure is a key determining factor for the macroscopic flow of the molten metal in the weld pool during high-power laser beam welding. Consequently, a realistic implementation of the laser radiation on the weld metal is crucial to obtain accurate simulation results. The following developments on the laser-material interaction are discussed for the numerical simulation of the laser beam welding process. The first implemented improvements relate to locating the exact reflection points in the ray tracing method in the determination algorithm for the intersection of the reflected rays and the keyhole surface. A second correction refers to the numerical treatment of the Gaussian distribution of the laser beam, whose beam width is defined by a decay of the laser intensity by a factor of 1/e2 thus ignoring around 14 % of the total laser beam energy. In a third step, the laser radiation distribution in vertical direction was approximated according to the beam caustics. Finally, a virtual mesh refinement was adopted in the ray tracing routine. The obtained numerical results were validated with experimental measurements. T2 - IIW Annual Assembly 2024 CY - Rhodes , Greece DA - 07.07.2024 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Numerical modeling KW - Ray tracing KW - Heat source modeling PY - 2024 AN - OPUS4-60634 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Putra, Stephen Nugraha A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Parametric study of the laser energy absorption in high-power laser beam welding N2 - Laser energy absorption on the keyhole wall is decisive for the thermodynamic behavior and the resultant weld properties in the high-power laser beam welding process. However, its highly transient nature on a microsecond scale makes the quantitative analysis challenging. In this paper, the influence of the relevant welding parameters on laser energy absorption is studied statistically by utilizing multiphysical modeling, in which the three-dimensional transient keyhole dynamics and thermo-fluid flow are calculated. A dynamic mesh adaption technique and a localized level-set-based ray-tracing method are employed to improve the model accuracy further. The results show that the focus position has a remarkable effect on the time-averaged laser absorption, and in contrast, the laser energy distribution regime is only slightly influenced by the welding speed in the studied parameter range (1.5–3.0 m/min). The absorption ratio of the laser energy on the keyhole front wall decreases with increasing welding speed and increases with upward-moving focus positions. The comparison between the calculated results and the experimental measurements ensures the validity of the proposed model. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2024 CY - Los Angeles, CA, USA DA - 03.11.2024 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Laser energy absorption KW - Multiphysics modeling KW - Parametric study KW - Weld pool PY - 2024 SP - 1 EP - 8 AN - OPUS4-61629 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel T1 - Reconstruction of the time-averaged keyhole geometry in laser beam welding with electromagnetic support N2 - In laser beam welding (LBW), the time-averaged keyhole shape provides statistical insights into the process compared to its transient geometry, offering a deeper understanding of the overall keyhole behaviour. However, capturing the time-averaged keyhole shape through experimental methods remains challenging. In this paper, a reconstruction algorithm for the time-averaged keyhole is developed and integrated into a three-dimensional transient multi-physical coupled numerical model. The algorithm can accurately capture the key characteristics of the keyhole, including its diameter and centroid. In addition, it can also successfully reproduce the experimentally observed phenomena of keyhole tailing. The overall shape of the keyhole appears smooth, without exhibiting obvious instability features. Furthermore, the time-averaged keyhole shape is compared under different magnetic flux densities when an external oscillating magnetic field is applied. The results indicate that the application of external magnetic fields does not fundamentally alter the overall keyhole shape. With increasing magnetic flux density, the trailing tail becomes progressively less pronounced and a noticeable increase in the curvature of the rear wall is observed. The standard deviation of the keyhole diameter can serve as an effective index for evaluating the keyhole instability. Keyhole stability in LBW of aluminium alloys is improved under the assistance of electromagnetic fields, and this stabilization is positively correlated with increasing magnetic flux density. T2 - 14th International Seminar Numerical Analysis of Weldability CY - Seggau, Austria DA - 21.09.2025 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Keyhole reconstruction KW - Electromagnetic weld pool support KW - Porosity defects KW - Keyhole stability PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-64257 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bachmann, Marcel T1 - Elucidation of the Laser Beam Energy Attenuation by the Vapor Plume Formation during High Power Laser Beam Welding N2 - In high-power laser beam welding, a common phenomenon is the formation of a keyhole caused by the rapid evaporation of the material. Under atmospheric pressure, this evaporation generates a vapor plume that interacts with the laser beam, leading to energy attenuation and scattering of the laser radiation along its path. These interactions affect the stability of the process and the overall weld quality. This study investigates the influence of the vapor plume on the weld pool and keyhole dynamics during high-power laser beam welding of AlMg3 aluminum alloy through experimental and numerical approaches. The primary goal is to identify key vapor plume characteristics, particularly its length fluctuations, and to improve the accuracy of the numerical models. To achieve this, an algorithm was developed for the automated measurement of the vapor plume length using high-speed imaging and advanced data processing techniques. The measured plume length is then used to estimate the additional vapor heating and laser energy attenuation using the Beer–Lambert law. A refined numerical CFD model, incorporating 3D transient heat transfer, fluid flow, and ray tracing, was developed to evaluate the vapor plume’s impact. Results show that already the time-averaged plume length effectively captures its transient influence and aligns well with experimental weld seam geometries. Additionally, energy scattering and absorption caused by the vapor plume led to a wider weld pool at the top surface. The study also shows an increased percentage of keyhole collapses due to the reduced laser power absorption at the keyhole bottom, further highlighting the importance of accurately modeling vapor plume effects. T2 - International Congress of Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics 2025 CY - Orlando, FL, USA DA - 12.10.2025 KW - Laser beam welding KW - Vapor plume formation KW - Weld pool KW - Keyhole dynamics KW - Numerical modeling PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-64816 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bakir, Nasim A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Gumenyuk, Andrey A1 - Na, S.-J. A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - On the search for the origin of the bulge effect in high power laser beam welding N2 - The shape of the weld pool in laser beam welding plays a major role to understand the dynamics of the melt and its solidification behavior. The aim of the present work was its experimental and numerical investigation. To visualize the geometry of the melt pool in the longitudinal section a butt joint configuration of 15 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass was used. The weld pool shape was recorded by means of a high-speed video camera and two thermal imaging MWIR and VIS cameras. The observations show that the dimensions of the weld pool vary depending on the depth. The regions close to the surface form a teardrop shaped weld pool. A bulge-region and its temporal evolution were observed approximately in the middle of the depth of the weld pool. Additionally, a transient numerical simulation was performed until reaching a steady state to obtain the weld pool shape and to understand the formation mechanism of the observed bulging phenomena. A fixed keyhole with an experimentally obtained shape was used to represent the full-penetration laser beam welding process. The model considers the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature. It was found that the Marangoni convection and the movement of the laser heat source are the dominant factors for the formation of the bulging-region. Good correlation between the numerically calculated and the experimentally observed weld bead shapes and the time-temperature curves on the upper and bottom surface were found. T2 - International Congress on Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics (ICALEO®) CY - Orlando, USA DA - 14.10.2018 KW - Bulging effect KW - High power laser beam welding KW - Numerical modelling KW - Solidification cracking PY - 2019 SP - 1 EP - 8 AN - OPUS4-47139 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - Numerical and experimental investigation of thermo-fluid flow and element transport in electromagnetic stirring enhanced wire feed laser beam welding N2 - The introduction of electromagnetic stirring to laser beam welding can bring several beneficial effects e.g. element homogenization and grain refinement. However, the underlying physics has not been fully explored due to the absence of quantitative data of heat and mass transfer in the molten pool. In this paper, the influence of electromagnetic stirring on the thermo-fluid flow and element transport in the wire feed laser beam welding is studied numerically and experimentally. A three-dimensional transient heat transfer and fluid flow model coupled with dynamic keyhole, magnetic induction and element Transport is developed for the first time. The results suggest that the Lorentz force produced by an oscillating magnetic field and its induced eddy current shows an important influence on the thermo-fluid flow and the keyhole stability. The melt flow velocity is increased by the electromagnetic stirring at the rear and lower regions of molten pool. The keyhole collapses more frequently at the upper part. The additional Elements from the filler wire are significantly homogenized because of the enhanced forward and downward flow. The model is well verified by fusion line shape, high-speed images of molten pool and measured element distribution. This work provides a deeper understanding of the transport phenomena in the laser beam welding with magnetic field. KW - Thermo-fluid flow KW - Element transport KW - Laser beam welding KW - MHD KW - Numerical analysis PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2019.118663 VL - 144 SP - 118663 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-49299 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Meng, Xiangmeng A1 - Artinov, Antoni A1 - Bachmann, Marcel A1 - Rethmeier, Michael T1 - A theoretical study of influence of electromagnetic stirring on transport phenomena in wire feed laser beam welding N2 - The additional element from the filler wire in the laser beam welding is usually distributed inhomogeneously in the final weld due to the high solidification rate of weld pool. It has been found that the electromagnetic stirring produced by an external oscillating magnetic field can enhance the material mixing in the weld pool to achieve a more uniform element distribution. However, the magnetic field has a highly non-linear and multi-coupled interaction with the weld pool behavior, which makes the quantitative explanation of the physical mechanism difficult. In this study, the effect of electromagnetic stirring on the transport phenomena in the wire feed laser beam welding is investigated by a numerical modelling. A 3D transient multi-physical model considering the magnetohydrodynamics, heat transfer, fluid flow, keyhole dynamics and element transport is developed. The multiple reflections and the Fresnel absorption of the laser on the keyhole wall are calculated using the ray tracing method. The numerical results show that a Lorentz force produced by the oscillating magnetic field and its induced eddy current gives significant influence on the transport phenomena in the molten pool. The forward and downward flow is enhanced by the electromagnetic stirring, which homogenizes the distribution of the additional elements from a nickel-based filler wire in a steel weld pool. The numerical results show a good agreement with the high-speed images of the molten pool, the fusion line from the optical micrograph and the element distribution from the energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. This work provides a physical base for the electromagnetic-controlled laser beam welding and some guidance for the selection of electromagnetic parameters. T2 - ICALEO 2019 CY - Orlando, US DA - 07.10.2019 KW - Magnetohydrodynamics KW - Molten pool dynamics KW - Element transport KW - Laser beam welding PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-49300 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -