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- Englisch (7) (entfernen)
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- High power laser beam welding (3)
- Keyhole (3)
- Local reduced pressure (3)
- Mobile vacuum (3)
- Electromagnetically controlled laser beam welding (2)
- Porosity prevention (2)
- Vapor plume (2)
- Vapour plume (2)
- Aluminium alloys (1)
- Laser beam welding (1)
An oscillating (AC) magnet field was used to suppress porosity formation and to stabilize the surface of the weld pool in bead-on-plate partial penetration 4.4 kW Nd:YAG laser beam welding of AW-5754 plates in PA position. The magnet was mounted on the laser welding head. The magnet field (up to 0.4 T and 10 kHz) was oriented perpendicular the welding direction.
The analysis of the weld cross-sections and x-ray images shows a drastic reduction (up to 90%) of porosity contents in the welds. The observed effects can be explained in terms of electromagnetically (EM)
induced 'Archimedes' forces as well as the EM stirring flow in the weld pool. Moreover, usage of AC magnetic fields results in a significant reduction (up to 50%) of the surface roughness of the welds. This effect can be explained in terms of electromagnetic (EM)
contribution to the surface tension (the Garnier-Moreau effect)
The main characteristic feature of deep penetration laser beam welding is a large temperature difference between the plasma cavity (keyhole) in the centre of the weld pool and the melting/solidification front. Large temperature gradients in the weld pool result in a very intensive thermocapillary (Marangoni) convection. The weld pool surface width becomes very large and unstable. However, an externally applied oscillating magnetic field can stabilize the surface of the melt (the Garnier-Moreau effect, 1983). In the present work this technology was used to stabilize the surface of the weld pool in partial penetration 4.4 kW Nd:YAG laser beam welding of AW-5754 alloyin PA position. The AC magnet was mounted on the laser welding head. The oscillating magnet field was oriented perpendicular to the welding direction. It was found that the AC magnet field can drastically reduce the surface roughness of welds. The analysis of the x-ray images shows a rastic reduction of porosity content in the welds. This effect can be explained as a result of electromagnetic ectification of the melt.
During laser beam welding of aluminum alloys an electromagnetic field may favour pore outgassing through the top oxide layer. High frequencies cause a small penetration depth and thus exert a stabilizing effect on the weld surface. The point at which the laser beam between the two magnetic poles hits the workpiece surface is crucial to the influence of the magnetic field on the weld surface roughness. Using analyzed parameters for different laser points of application cause a change in weld surface roughness could be observed. The weld surface roughness could be reduced by 50%. The outgassing effect in terms of a reduction of pores could be observed for all parameter sets investigated.
The ever larger requirements of the material selection in the range of maritime industry necessitate the application of high-tech materials. Titanium because of its excellent mechanical properties at low weight is an attractive alternative for the construction of ships. The goal of this investigation was to design a welding method for joining samples of 16 mm thick Ti3Al2.5 V. The welding experiments with a 20 kW Yb-fiber laser source and varying combinations of parameters were intended to qualify the laser beam welding process. The welding results were analyzed by non-destructive and destructive testing. In addition, the welding tests were recorded with two high-speed cameras to observe the weld pool and the vapor plume. The evaluation of the high-speed images in correlation with the results of non-destructive testing shows, that a significant improvement of process stability and weld quality can be achieved by the suppression of the vapor plume.
The development of the vapour plume during the laser beam welding of metals with propagation directions along the laser beam axis leads to a reduction of the absorbed laser power in the keyhole. The main reasons are the scattering of the laser radiation on the condensed phase of metallic vapour as well as the defocusing of the laser beam due to the density gradient in the vapour plume. These unfavourable effects can be significantly mitigated by the application of a reduced ambient pressure thus decreasing the interaction between the laser beam and evaporation products, which leads to more stable welding process and results in increased penetration depth, as known from previous studies. A conventional technique use a vacuum chamber principle, similar to that, used for electron beam welding. Application of this technique is restricted by the chamber size and reduces thus the advantages of this approach especially for large components. We demonstrate a possibility of mobile local vacuum application, which allows to generate a reduced pressure only in small region around the keyhole. By using of specially designed mobile pressure lock which can be moved along the welding direction absolute pressure of around 200 mbar could be obtained. This is sufficient to increase the welding depth by around 50%. Coupons from S355 were welded with an incremental laser power from 5 kW to 12 kW at atmospheric pressure and compared to those welded at ambient pressure of 200 mbar. The evaluation of the longitudinal section revealed an increase of the welding depth by about 35%. Furthermore, the welding trials in butt joint configuration on 15 mm thick plates at various laser beam power performed for atmospheric and reduced ambient pressure of around 200 mbar. The increase in welding depth up to 40% was established for reduced pressure. Particularly, low welding speeds under reduced pressure were especially advantageous in terms of increasing the welding depth.
The presented apparatus enables laser beam welding of thick materials under local reduced pressure conditions, thus improving the quality of welds and reducing the laser beam power necessary for complete penetration welding. The vacuum cap presented in this article uses a local reduced ambient pressure environment in a tight zone around the welding area and, in contrast to a conventional vacuum chamber, it is movable in the welding direction. The mobile installation is very compact and reaches pressure values of around 200 mbar. The reduced pressure in the vacuum cap is sufficient to generate 50 % higher penetration depth in comparison to welding under ambient pressure conditions. The low pressure around the keyhole reduces the vapour-plasma plume and therefore prevents a defocusing and scattering of the laser radiation. This allows to raise the amount of laser beam power entering the keyhole as well as the effective power density.
The development of the vapour plume during the laser beam welding of metals with propagation directions along the laser beam axis leads to a reduction of the absorbed laser power in the keyhole. These unfavourable effects can be significantly mitigated by the application of a reduced ambient pressure thus decreasing the interaction between the laser beam and evaporation products, which leads to more stable welding process and results in increased penetration depth. A conventional technique use a vacuum chamber principle, similar to that, used for electron beam welding. Application of this technique is restricted by the camera size and reduces thus the advantages of this approach especially for large components. We demonstrate a possibility of mobile local vacuum application, which allows to generate a reduced pressure only in small region around the keyhole. By using of specially designed mobile pressure lock which can be moved along the welding direction absolute pressure of around 200 mbar could be obtained. This is sufficient to increase the welding depth by around 50%. Coupons from S355 were welded with an incremental laser power from 5 kW to 12 kW at atmospheric pressure and compared to those welded at ambient pressure of 200 mbar. The evaluation of the longitudinal section revealed an increase of the welding depth by about 35%. Furthermore, the welding trials in butt joint configuration on 15 mm thick plates at various laser beam power performed for atmospheric and reduced ambient pressure of around 200 mbar. The increase in welding depth up to 40% was established for reduced pressure. Particularly, low welding speeds under reduced pressure were especially advantageous in terms of increasing the welding depth.