Wissenschaftliche Artikel der BAM
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An accurate and efficient description of the spatial distribution of laser energy is a crucial factor for the modeling of laser material processing, e.g., laser welding, laser cutting, or laser-based additive manufacturing. In this study, a 3D heat transfer and fluid flow model coupled with the volume-of-fluid algorithm for free surface tracking is developed for the simulation of molten pool dynamics in high-power laser beam welding. The underlying laser-material interactions, i.e., the multiple reflections and Fresnel absorption, are considered by a raytracing method. Two strategies of free surface reconstruction used in the ray-tracing method are investigated: a typical piecewise linear interface calculation (PLIC)-based method and a novel localized level-set method. The PLIC-based method is discrete, resulting in noncontinuous free surface reconstruction. In the localized level-set method, a continuous free surface is reconstructed, and, thus, the exact reflection points can be determined. The calculated spatial laser energy distribution and the corresponding molten pool dynamics from the two methods are analyzed and compared. The obtained numerical results are evaluated with experimental measurements to assure the validity of the proposed model. It is found that distinct patterns of the beam multiple reflections are obtained with the different free surface reconstructions, which shows significant influence not only on the molten pool behaviors but also on the localized keyhole dynamics.
This study presents mechanisms of the evolution of a narrowed region in the weld pool center during deep penetration laser beam welding. In numerous numerical studies presented in this study, it was also found that the local reduction of the weld pool size can cause detrimental effects on the melt flow behavior and the resulting properties of the welds. A particularly large influence of this effect was identified in three aspects. First, the local variation of the solidification sequence of the weld pool causes an increase in the hot-cracking susceptibility due to a locally delayed solidification. Second, it was proven that a change in the local length and width of the weld pool is associated with an adverse impact on the potential flow routes of the molten material that induces stronger local variations of its solidification. Thus, the element mixing, e.g., during the welding with filler materials, is blocked. This leads to a non-homogeneous chemical composition of the final weld and can cause undesired effects on the final material properties. Finally, another observed effect is related to the reduced ability of process pores to reach the top surface. As this type of porosity is usually produced around the keyhole tip, the change of the fluid flow regime above this area plays a significant role in determining the final path of the pores until the premature solidification in the middle of the weld pool captures them. This study summarizes mainly numerical results that were supported by selected experimental validation results.
Duplex stainless steels combine the positive properties of its two phases, austenite and ferrite. Due to its good corrosion resistance, high tensile strength, and good ductility, it has multiple applications. But laser beam welding of duplex steels changes the balanced phase distribution in favor of ferrite. This results in a higher vulnerability to corrosion and a lower ductility. Herein, different powder combinations consisting of duplex and nickel for coating layers by laser metal deposition (LMD) are investigated. Afterward, laser tracks are welded, and the temperature cycles are measured. The ferrite content of the tracks is analyzed by feritscope, metallographic analysis, and electron backscatter diffraction. The goal is the development of a powder mixture allowing for a duplex microstructure in a two-step process, where first the edges of the weld partners are coated with the powder mixture by LMD and second those edges are laser beam welded. The powder mixture identified by the pretests is tested in the two-step process and analyzed by metallographic analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and
Vickers hardness tests. The resulting weld seams show a balanced duplex microstructure with a homogenous nickel distribution and a hardness of the weld seam similar to the base material.
Study on the transition behavior of the bulging effect during deep penetration laser beam welding
(2022)
The present work is devoted to the study of the transition behavior of the recently confirmed widening of the weld pool, known as the bulging effect, during high-power deep penetration laser beam welding of thick unalloyed steel sheets. A three-dimensional transient multi-physics numerical model is developed, allowing for the prediction of the bulge formation and the study of its temporal behavior. The model is generalized to account automatically for the transition from partial to complete penetration. Several experimental measurements and observations, such as drilling period, weld pool length, temperature, efficiency, and metallographic cross-sections are used to verify the model and assure the plausibility of the numerical results. The analysis of the calculated temperature and velocity distributions, as well as the evolution of the keyhole geometry, shows that the formation of a bulging region strongly depends on the penetration depth of the weld. Based on the numerical results, the bulge is found to occur transiently, having its transition from a slight bulge to a fully developed bulging between penetration depths of 6 mm and 9 mm, respectively.
The study deals with the determination of the influence of an externally applied oscillating magnetic field on the melt pool dynamics in high power laser beam and hybrid laser arc welding processes. An AC magnet was positioned under the workpiece which is generating an upward directed electromagnetic force to counteract the formation of the droplets. To visualise the melt flow characteristics, several experiments were carried out using a special technique with mild steel from S355J2 with a plate thickness of up to 20 mm and a quartz glass in butt configuration. The profile of the keyhole and the melt flow were recorded with a highspeed camera from the glass side. Additionally, the influence of the magnetic field orientation to the welding direction on the filler material dilution on laser hybrid welding was studied with variating oscillation frequency. The element distribution over the whole seam thickness was measured with X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The oscillation frequency demonstrated a great influence on the melt pool dynamics and the mixing of the elements of the filler wire. The highspeed recordings showed, under the influence of the magnetic field, that the melt is affected under strong vortex at the weld root, which also avoids the formation of droplets.
The present contribution is the first research reporting full penetration HLAW joints in 15 mm thick EH36 steel butt T-welds with square grooves on 2F welding position by single-sided welding. The effects of welding parameters were investigated to increase the quality of the joints.
Conditions leading to defect-free full penetration welds fulfilling naval regulations includes a laser power of 12.5 kW, a welding speed of 1.6 m/min and the vertical laser offset distance from the flange of 1 mm. Advanced characterization of selected welds included a microstructural identification by optical microscopy, SEM, and XRD, revealing the presence of acicular, polygonal and Widmanstätten ferrite, lath martensite, and some retained austenite at FZ. Hardness and microhardness mapping tests showed values of 155 HV at base metal and 200 to 380 HV at the fusion zone connecting the web to the flange.
In order to reduce CO2 emissions, an increasing interest in lightweight construction exists in the automotive industry, especially the multi-material-design approach. The main construction materials here are steels and aluminium alloys. Due to their different physical material properties and limited mutual solubility, these two materials cannot be joined thermally without difficulty. This paper presents a new joining approach for dissimilar materials. It uses electromagnetic displacement of a laser-generated melt pool to produce overlap joints between 1 mm steel (1.0330) and 2 mm aluminium alloy (EN AW 5754). Contactless induced Lorentz forces are generated by an alternating current (AC) magnet system. The controlled displacement of the aluminium alloy melt into the hole of the overlying steel sheet is investigated through numerical and experimental studies. The numerical results are compared with cross sections and thermocouple measurements. For the first time, it is possible to achieve a reproducible controlled melt pool displacement on thin sheets to produce overlap joints between dissimilar materials.
The transport phenomena in the wire feed laser beam welding are investigated numerically. A three-dimensional transient heat transfer and fluid flow model coupled with free surface tracing and element transport is developed. A ray-tracing method with local grid refinement algorithm is used to calculate the multiple reflections and Fresnel absorption on the keyhole wall. The filler material flows backward along the lateral side of the weld pool, and subsequently flows forward along the longitudinal plane. The occurrence of the bulging phenomenon may further prevent the downward transfer of the additional elements to the root of the weld pool.
Notch impact toughness of laser beam welded thick sheets of cryogenic nickel alloyed steel X8Ni9
(2020)
The paper deals with the investigations of the impact toughness of laser beam welded 14.5 mm thick sheets made of cryogenic steel X8Ni9 as a function of preheating. This 9% nickel alloyed steel is widely used in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry. An application of highly efficient welding processes such as high-power laser beam welding (LBW) in LNG sector requires an understanding of the interactions between the LBW process parameters and weld properties, in particular the impact toughness. The results show that the original fine-grained martensitic microstructure of the base metal (BM) is significantly changed by melting and crystallization during the LBW, what can lead to a decrease in the impact toughness of the weld metal (WM) below the required level. An optimal preheating temperature range leads to the favorable thermal welding cycle and is of remarkable importance for maintaining the notch impact toughness of laser beam welded joints of these thick steel sheets. A parameter window was identified in which V-notch impact toughness comparable to that of the BM at -196 °C was achieved.
A self-restraint hot cracking test (free edge test) was used in combination with a novel optical measurement technique to determine the critical straining conditions for solidification cracking for the stainless steel grade 1.4828 (AISI 309). The Lucas-Kanade algorithm for the optical flow (OF) calculation was implemented to obtain the full-field displacement and then the full-field strain.
The use of external laser illumination with appropriate filters allows to obtain good image quality with good contrast. The critical straining conditions required for solidification cracking can be obtained by means the proposed technique in the immediate vicinity of the solidification front. A very good repeatability was demonstrated for the used measurement technique. The critical straining conditions for solidification cracking for the tested steel und under this welding conditions has been detected
The development of high energy laser sources enables single-pass welds of thick plates up to 30 mm, but often additional materials are needed to influence the properties of the weld seams. However, the homogenous distribution of filler materials in form of e.g. electrodes is only possible up to 7 mm while the elements are only traceable up to a depth of 14 mm. To overcome this problem a two-step process is used where first the edges of the weld partners are coated with the filler material by laser metal deposition (LMD) and afterwards are welded by laser beam. Single-pass welds with electromagnetic weld pool support of 30 mm thick S355 J2+N-plates with austenitic AISI 316L-coatings were investigated as well as the influence of the coatings to the penetration depth of the laser beam without electromagnetic weld pool support in double-sided joints. The weld seams were tested by X-ray inspection and cross sections.
Recent studies have confirmed the widening of the weld pool interface, known as a bulge effect, during deep penetration high power laser beam welding. The link between such geometric particularities of the weld pool shape and the hot cracking phenomena is significant. The present work seeks to extend the level of understanding by investigating their relationship. A coupled multiphysics, multiscale numerical framework is developed, comprising a series of subsequent analyses. The study examines the influences of the bulge on the three most dominant effects causing hot cracking, namely the thermal cycles, the mechanical loading, and the local microstructure. The bulge in the weld pool shape forms approximately in the middle of the plate, thus correlating with the location of hot cracking. It increases the hot cracking susceptibility by enhancing the three dominant effects. The numerical results are backed up by experimental data.
Among the various welding technologies, resistance spot welding (RSW) and laser beam welding (LBW) play a significant role as joining methods for the automobile industry. The application of RSW and LBW for the automotive body alters the microstructure in the welded areas. It is necessary to identify the mechanical properties of the welded material to be able to make a reliable statement about the material behavior and the strength of welded components. This study develops a method by which to determine the mechanical properties for the weldment of RSW and LBW for two dual phase (DP) steels, DP600 and DP1000, which are commonly used for the automotive bodies. The mechanical properties of the resistance spot weldment were obtained by performing tensile tests on the notched tensile specimen to cause an elongation of the notched and welded area in order to investigate its properties. In order to determine the mechanical properties of the laser beam weldment, indentation tests were performed on the welded material to calculate its force-penetration depth-curve. Inverse numerical simulation was used to simulate the indentation tests to determine and verify the parameters of a nonlinear isotropic material model for the weldment of LBW. Furthermore, using this method, the parameters for the material model of RSW were verified. The material parameters and microstructure of the weldment of RSW and LBW are compared and discussed. The results show that the novel method introduced in this work is a valid approach to determine the mechanical properties of welded high-strength steel structures. In addition, it can be seen that LBW and RSW lead to a reduction in ductility and an increase in the amount of yield and tensile strength of both DP600 and DP1000.
This paper represents the results for proposed optical flow method based on the Lucas-Kanade (LK) algorithm applied to two different problems. The following observations can be made:
- The estimated strain and displacement for conducted tensile test are generally very close to those measured with conventional DIC-technique.
- The LK technique allows measurement of strain or displacement without special selection of a region of interest.
Using a novel optical measurement technique together with the optical flow algorithm, a twodimensional deformation analysis during welding was conducted. This technique is the first to provide a measurement of the full strain field locally in the immediate vicinity of the solidification front. Additionally, the described procedure of the optical measurement allows the real material-dependent values of critical strain characterizing the transition to hot cracking during laser welding processes to be determined.
One of the main factors affecting the use of lasers in the industry for welding thick structures is the process accompanying solidification cracks. These cracks mostly occurring along the welding direction in the welding center, and strongly affect the safety of the welded components. In the present study, to obtain a better understanding of the relation between the weld pool geometry, the stress distribution and the solidification cracking, a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was combined with a thermo-mechanical model. The CFD model was employed to analyze the flow of the molten metal in the weld pool during the laser beam welding process. The weld pool geometry estimated from the CFD model was used as a heat source in the thermal model to calculate the temperature field and the stress development and distributions. The CFD results showed a bulging region in the middle depth of the weld and two narrowing areas separating the bulging region from the top and bottom surface. The thermo-mechanical simulations showed a concentration of tension stresses, transversally and vertically, directly after the solidification during cooling in the region of the solidification cracking.
The paper describes an experimental investigation of high power laser beam welding with an electromagnetic weld pool support for up to 20 mm thick plates made of duplex steel (AISI 2205) and mild steel (S235JR). The results of the welding tests show a successful application of this technology at ferromagnetic metals. Irregular sagging was suppressed successfully. An ac-power of less than 2 kW at oscillation frequencies between 800 Hz and 1.7 kHz is necessary for a full compasation of the hydrostatic pressure. Thus, it was demonstrated that the electromagnetic weld pool support is not only limited to non-ferromagnetic metals like austenitic steels. For future studies with duplex steel, the use of filler material has to take into account with regard to the balance of the mixed austenitic and ferritic phases.
The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of externally applied magnetic fields on the weld quality in laser beam welding. The optimization of the process parameters was performed using the results of computer simulations. Welding tests were performed with up to 20 kW laser beam power. It was shown that the AC magnet with 3 kW power supply allows for a prevention of the gravity drop-out for full penetration welding of 20 mm thick stainless steel plates. For partial penetration welding it was shown that an0.5 T DC magnetic field is enough for a suppression of convective flows in the weld pool. Partial penetration welding tests with 4 kW beam power showed that the application of AC magnetic fields can reduce weld porosity by a factor of 10 compared to the reference joints. The weld surface roughness was improved by 50%.