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Eingeladener Vortrag
- nein (165)
Aktuell werden Prozessmonitoringsysteme in der additiven Fertigung (AM) zur Überwachung der Energiequelle, des Bauraums, des Schmelzbades und der Bauteilgeometrie zumindest im metallbasierten AM schon kommerziell angeboten. Weitere Verfahren aus den Bereichen der Optik, Spektroskopie und zerstörungsfreien Prüfung werden in der Literatur als geeignet für die in-situ Anwendung bezeichnet, es finden sich aber nur wenige Berichte über konkrete Umsetzungen in die Praxis.
Die Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung hat ein neues Projekt gestartet, dessen Ziel die Entwicklung von Verfahren des Prozessmonitorings zur in-situ Bewertung der Qualität additiv gefertigter Bauteile in AM-Prozessen mit Laser- bzw. Lichtbogenquellen ist. Verschiedene Verfahren der zerstörungsfreien Prüfung, wie Thermografie, optische Tomografie, optische Emissionsspektroskopie, Wirbelstromprüfung und Laminografie werden in verschiedenen AM-Prozessen zum Einsatz gebracht und die Ergebnisse fusioniert. Die evaluierten Ergebnisse werden mit Referenzverfahren wie Computertomografie und Ultraschall-Tauchtechnik verglichen. Ziel ist eine deutliche Reduzierung aufwändiger und zeitintensiver, zerstörender oder zerstörungsfreier Prüfungen nach der Fertigung des Bauteiles und zugleich eine Verringerung von Ausschussproduktion.
Hier wird das Projekt als Ganzes vorgestellt und der Fokus auf verschiedene Methoden der Temperaturmessung mit Hilfe der Thermografie gelegt. Anforderungen an die Messtechnik für verschiedene AM-Systeme werden diskutiert und erste experimentelle Ergebnisse werden präsentiert.
The project ProMoAM is presented. The goal of the project is to evaluate which NDT techniques or combination of techniques is suited for in-situ quality assurance in additive manufacturing of metals. To this end, also 3d-data fusion and visualization techniques are applied. Additional ex-situ NDT-techniques are used as references for defect detection and quantification. Feasability studies for NDT-techniques that are presently not applicable for in-situ use are performed as well.
The presentation gives a brief overview of the whole project and the different involved NDT-techniques.
Due to the rapid thermal cycles involved in additive manufacturing of metals, high internal stresses and peculiar microstructures occur, which influence the parts mechanical properties. To systematically examine their formation, in-process measurements of the temperature are needed. Since the part emissivity is strongly inhomogeneous and rapidly changing in the process, the applicability of thermography for the determination of thermodynamic temperatures is limited. Measuring the thermal radiation in different wavelengths simultaneously, temperature and emissivity can be separated. Here, we present results of a preliminary study using multispectral thermography to obtain real temperatures and emissivities in directed energy deposition (DED) processes.
Additive manufacturing offers a range of novel applications. However, the manufacturing process is complex and the production of almost defect-free parts with high reliability and durability is still a challenge. Thermography is a valuable tool for process surveillance, especially in metal additive manufacturing processes. The high process temperatures allow one to use cameras usually operating in the visible spectral range. Here, we compare the results of measurements during the manufacturing process of a commercial laser metal deposition setup using a mid wavelength infrared camera with those from a short wavelength infrared camera and those from a visual spectrum high-speed camera with band pass filter in the near infrared range.
Mathematical analysis of the bulging effect in high power laser beam welding of thick steel sheets
(2021)
The present work is devoted to the mathematical analysis of the bulging effect in high-power laser beam welding of thick steel sheets. The numerical results are based upon experimental results from previous studies, revealing the relationships between the bulging effect, the hot cracking formation, and the distribution of alloying elements in the weld pool. The widening of the molten pool in its middle area is observed for both complete and partial penetration welding of 8 mm - 15 mm thick structural steel sheets. The weld pool shape is extracted from the simulations to evaluate the extent of the necking and bulging of the solidification isotherm and their influence on the hot cracking formation and the mixing behavior of the weld pool. Relying on an earlier numerical study utilizing a fixed keyhole, simulation models considering a dynamic keyhole are developed thereto. The link between the bulge and the studied phenomena is found to be significant.
This article is devoted to the study of the bulging effect in deep penetration laser beam welding. The numerical results of the investigations are based upon experimental results from previous studies to reveal the relationship between the bulging effect and the hot cracking formation, as well as the mixing of alloying elements in the weld pool. The widening of the molten pool in its center area can be observed in full penetration as well as in partial penetration welds on 8 mm and 12 mm thick structural steel plates, respectively. The weld pool shape is extracted from the simulations to evaluate the extent of the necking of the solidification line as well as the bulging phenomena and its influence on the hot cracking phenomena. Relying on an earlier numerical study utilizing a fixed keyhole, simulation models considering a dynamic keyhole are developed thereto. Additionally, the mixing behavior of alloying elements during partial penetration is investigated. The link between the bulge and the studied phenomena is found to be significant.
Numerical study on the formation of a bulging region in partial penetration laser beam welding
(2022)
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 cross-sections. 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.
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.
The weld pool dynamics and shape play a fundamental role in keyhole mode welding. The presented work aims the experimental and numerical investigation of the influence of the weld pool characteristics on the formation of hot cracking. The experimental procedure allows recording the molten pool in the longitudinal section of a butt joint configuration of 15 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass by using a high-speed video camera and two thermal imaging 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 are observed approximately in the middle of the depth of the weld pool, where hot cracking appears. A numerical framework including models for the weld pool dynamics, global temperature field, transient stress state, crystal growth, diffusion and macro-segregation and subroutines for their one-way couplings is developed. The numerically obtained and experimentally observed results are in a good agreement. It is shown that the bulge-region leads to a delay in the solidification behavior, increased temporal tensile stresses and accumulation of impurities in the defect region and hence enhance the probability of hot cracking formation.
The geometrical characteristics of the weld end crater are commonly used for the validation of numerical results in welding simulation. A semi-analytical model calculating the cooling stage of the welding process after the moving energy source is turned off has been developed. A solution for various combinations of heat sources and workpieces has been found. The theoretical limits for the heat transfer of the absorbed energy during cooling in a thin plate and a semi-infinite body were studied. It is shown that after turning off the energy source, an additional melting of the base material in longitudinal direction may occur. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 2 mm thick austenitic chromium-nickel 316L steel plate at a welding speed of 20 mm/s and a laser power of 2.3 kW. The results show a theoretical increase of the weld end crater length in comparison to the length of the steady-state weld pool of up to 19 %. A shift of the centre of the end crater, in which the solidification of the liquid metal ends, towards the tail of the end crater relative to the axis of the heat source at the time of its termination, was computed. The speed and the direction of crystallization of the molten material in the weld pool and the end crater were found to be different. A good agreement between the computational results and the welding experiments was achieved.
A numerical framework simulation of the steady-state thermal behaviour in keyhole mode welding has been developed. It is based on the equivalent heat source concept and consists of two parts: computational thermo-fluid dynamics and heat conduction. The solution of the thermo-fluid dynamics problem by the finite element method for a bounded domain results in a weld pool interface geometry being the input data for a subsequent heat conduction problem solved for a workpiece by proposed boundary element method. The main physical phenomena, such as keyhole shape, thermo-capillary and natural convection and temperaturedependent material properties are taken into consideration. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm thick low-alloyed steel plate at a welding speed of 33 mm/s and a laser power of 18 kW. The fluid flow of the molten metal has a strong influence on the weld pool geometry. The thermo-capillary convection is responsible for an increase of the weld pool size near the plate surfaces and a bulge formation near the plate middle plane. The numerical and experimental molten pools, cross-sectional weld dimensions and thermal cycles of the heat affected zone are in close agreement.
A transient simulation including the impact of the laser energy, the melting of the metal and the development of the weld pool was conducted to observe the evolution of the vapor capillary and the solidification of the melt in pulsed laser beam welding of AISI 304 steel. The phase field method was implemented to investigate the evolution and behavior of the liquid-gas interface during welding and to describe the condensed and vapor phases. The effects of phase transition, recoil pressure, thermo-capillary and natural convection, vaporization and temperature dependent material properties were taken into account. A Gaussian-like heat source under consideration of the Fresnel absorption model was used to model the energy input of the laser beam. The heat source model was extended by a newly developed empirical approach of describing multiple beam reflections in the keyhole. To validate this new model, the numerical results were compared to experimental data and good agreement regarding the size and shape of the weld pool was observed.
A simplified model for numerical simulation of laser metal deposition process with beam oscillation
(2018)
A simplified model for the numerical simulation of the laser metal deposition process with beam oscillation is proposed. The model studies circular and lateral oscillations in order to reduce the porosity of the deposited part, to increase the process efficiency and the gap bridging ability as well. The deposition rate is increased by modifying the shape and the width of the molten pool through an optimized laser beam power distribution and oscillation amplitude. The relationship between the process conditions and the shape of the fabricated part are determined. It is found that an increase of the amplitude by a lateral oscillation of the beam reduces the heat flux and hence the shape of the deposited wall. A good correlation between the numerically calculated results and the experimental measurements is obtained.
This work aims to find the thermal cycles during and after fusion welding through simulation by first calculating the resulting local temperature field in the quasi-stationary part of the process. Here complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding with a laser power of 18 kW on a 15 mm thick slab of a low-alloyed steel at a welding speed of 2 m/min is considered. In order to physically depict the laser material interaction a multi-physics numerical model including the effects of phase transformation, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature is developed.
It uses a fixed keyhole geometry with a right truncated circular cone shape to introduce the laser beam energy to the workpiece. In a subsequent study, the resulting local temperature field is then used as an equivalent heat source in order to predict the unsteady thermal cycle during and after fusion welding. The translational movement of the laser beam through the workpiece is represented by a moving mesh approach. For the simulation, stationary heat transfer and fluid dynamics are described by a system of strongly coupled partial
differential equations. These are solved with the commercial finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics 5.0. The results of the numerical simulation are validated by experiments, where the weld bead shapes and the thermal cycles show good correlation.
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.
The main solidification parameters, namely the crystal axis, the growth rate, and the cross-sectional area of the columnar crystal control the primary microstructure and thus the final weld seam properties.
Limited understanding of solidification parameters due to complexities in experimental and theoretical weld pool boundary determination and
its mathematical description.
Application of local Lamé curves for efficient weld pool boundary reconstruction Derivation of general analytical solutions for the main solidification parameters of a two-dimensional columnar crystal growth during laser beam welding of thin steel sheets.
The Lamé curves approximation technique was successfully applied for the reconstruction of the rear part of the two-dimensional steady-state weld pool boundary. General analytical expressions for the main solidification parameters, namely the crystal axis, the growth rate and the cross-sectional area of the crystal were derived.
The derived expressions and herewith obtained results were verified and validated by comparing them to known theoretical solutions and experimental measurements. Dimensionless analysis of the influence of the size and shape of the rear weld pool boundary on the solidification parameters was provided.
The derived general solutions and the analysis provided allow for critical welding parameters to be estimated and adapted accordingly to improve the welding process.
The present Ph.D. thesis provides a comprehensive experimental and theoretical study of the bulging-cracking relationship in laser beam welding of thick unalloyed steel sheets. It focuses on experimentally proving the existence of the bulging region and on developing a coupled multiphysics mathematical framework to analyze its influence on the three critical factors controlling the susceptibility to solidification cracking, namely the thermal, metallurgical, and mechanical factors.
The research employs a novel experimental setup, utilizing a combination of transparent quartz glass and thick unalloyed steel sheet, enabling real-time visualization of the weld pool geometry and confirming the existence of a distinctive bulging region. To deepen the understanding of these experimental insights, an extensive multiphysics mathematical framework was developed and rigorously verified and validated. This framework introduces an innovative approach using Lamé curves for accurately describing complex three-dimensional weld pool geometries, including the bulging region's characteristics. Through analytical solutions and numerical procedures, it facilitates the computation of solidification parameters, which are crucial for understanding the metallurgical aspects of crack formation. The framework also incorporates a mechanical model to assess and evaluate the local stress distribution within the bulging region.
The findings indicate that an elongated, sharply shaped bulging region significantly increases the susceptibility to solidification cracking. This is attributed to its adverse impact on the distribution and local dwell time of liquid metal residing at grain boundaries during solidification, combined with the localized tensile stresses identified in the bulging region.
In essence, this research contributes to the broader understanding of solidification cracking in laser beam welding of thick unalloyed steel sheets, with a particular focus on the bulging region. The insights and methodologies developed in this thesis are valuable for future research and advancements in the application of the laser beam welding technology for joining high-thickness unalloyed steel components.
This work aims to find the thermal cycles during and after fusion welding through simulation by first calculating the resulting local temperature field in the quasi-stationary part of the process. Here complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding with a laser power of 18 kW on a 15 mm thick slab of a low-alloyed steel at a welding speed of 2 m/min is considered. In order to physically depict the laser material interaction a multi-physics numerical model including the effects of phase transformation, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature is developed. It uses a fixed keyhole geometry with a right truncated circular cone shape to introduce the laser beam energy to the workpiece. In a subsequent study, the resulting local temperature field is then used as an equivalent heat source in order to predict the unsteady thermal cycle during and after fusion welding. The translational movement of the laser beam through the workpiece is represented by a moving mesh approach. For the simulation, stationary heat transfer and fluid dynamics are described by a system of strongly coupled partial differential equations. These are solved with the commercial finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics 5.0. The results of the numerical simulation are validated by experiments, where the weld bead shapes and the thermal cycles show good correlation.
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.
A three-dimensional multi-physics numerical model was developed for the calculation of an appropriate equivalent volumetric heat source and the prediction of the transient thermal cycle during and after fusion welding. Thus the modelling process was separated into two studies. First, the stationary process simulation of full-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm low-alloyed steel thick plate in flat position at a welding speed of 2 m/min and a laser power of 18 kW was performed. A fixed keyhole with a right circular cone shape was used to consider the energy absorbed by the workpiece and to calibrate the model. In the calculation of the weld pool geometry and the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature were taken into account. The obtained local temperature field was then used in a subsequent study as an equivalent heat source for the computation of the transient thermal field during the laser welding process and the cooling stage of the part. The system of partial differential equations, describing the stationary heat transfer and the fluid dynamics, were strongly coupled and solved with the commercial finite element software COMSOL Multiphysics 5.0. The energy input in the transient heat transfer simulation was realised by prescription of the nodes temperature. The prescribed nodes reproduced the calculated local temperature field defining the equivalent volumetric heat source. Their translational motion through the part was modelled by a moving mesh approach. An additional remeshing condition and helper lines were used to avoid highly distorted elements. The positions of the elements of the polygonal mesh were calculated with the Laplace’s smoothing approach. Good correlation between the numerically calculated and the experimentally observed weld bead shapes and transient temperature distributions was found.
Der vorgestellte Modellierungsprozess dient zur Abschätzung einer geeigneten äquivalenten Wärmequelle und Berechnung des thermischen Verhaltens beim Laserstrahlschweißen. Die Methode Kombiniert die Vorteile von gägngigen Simulationsverfahren und reduziert die berücksichtigte Anzahl an physikalischen Aspekten und Kalibrierungsparameter. Durch die modellierten physikalischen Phänomene konnten die Informationen über die Strömung im Schmelzbad und dessen Einfluss auf die resultierende lokale Temperaturverteilung und folglich auf das transiente Temperaturfeld gewonnen werden. Dadurch wurde die Simulatioszeit(inkl. Kalibrierungsaufwand) auf weniger als einen Tag Rechenzeit verringert.
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.
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.
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.
The geometry of the melt pool in laser beam welding plays a major role to understand the dynamics of the melt and its solidification behavior. In this study, a butt configuration of 15 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass was used to observe the weld pool geometry by means of high-speed camera and an infrared camera recording. The observations show that the dimensions of the weld pool vary depending on the depth. The areas close to the weld pool surface take a teardrop-shape. A bulge-region and its temporal evolution were observed approximately in the middle of the depth of the weld pool. Additionally, a 3D transient thermal-fluid numerical simulation was performed to obtain the weld pool shape and to understand the formation mechanism of the observed bulging effect. The model takes into account the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature. The numerical results showed good accordance and were furthermore used to improve the understanding of the experimentally observed bulging effect.
The geometrical characteristics of the weld end crater are commonly used for the validation of numerical results in welding simulation. A semi-analytical model calculating the cooling stage of the welding process after the moving energy source is turned off has been developed. A solution for various combinations of heat sources and workpieces has been found. The theoretical limits for the heat transfer of the absorbed energy during cooling in a thin plate and a semi-infinite body were studied. It is shown that after turning off the energy source, an additional melting of the base material in longitudinal direction may occur. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 2 mm thick austenitic chromium-nickel 316L steel plate at a welding speed of 20 mm/s and a laser power of 2.3 kW. The results show a theoretical increase of the weld end crater length in comparison to the length of the steady-state weld pool of up to 19 %. A shift of the centre of the end crater, in which the solidification of the liquid metal ends, towards the tail of the end crater relative to the axis of the heat source at the time of its termination, was computed. The speed and the direction of crystallization of the molten material in the weld pool and the end crater were found to be different. A good agreement between the computational results and the welding experiments was achieved.
The geometrical characteristics of the weld end crater are commonly used as a means of validating numerical results in welding simulations.
In this paper, an analytical model is developed for calculating the cooling stage of the welding process after the moving energy source is turned off. Solutions for various combinations of heat sources and heated bodies are found. It is shown that after turning off the Energy source, additional melting of the base material in the longitudinal direction may occur due to the overheated liquid metal. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of 2 mm thick austenitic stainless-steel plate 316L at a Welding speed of 20 mm/s and a laser power of 2.3 kW. The results show a theoretical increase in the weld end crater length of up to 19% compared to the length of the steady-state weld pool. It is found that at the moment of switch off, the weld end crater center, where solidification of the liquid metal ends, is shifted from the heat source axis toward the weld pool tail. The solidification rate and the direction of crystallization of the molten material during the welding process and those in the weld end crater differ significantly. A good agreement between the computational results and the welding experiments is achieved.
A novel approach for the reconstruction of an equivalent volumetric heat source from a known weld pool shape is proposed. It is based on previously obtained weld pool geometries from a steady-state thermo-fluid dynamics simulation. Hereby the weld pool dimensions are obtained under consideration of the most crucial physical phenomena, such as phase transformations, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties. The algorithm provides a time and calibration efficient way for the reproduction of the weld pool shape by local Lamé curves. By adjusting their parameters, the identification of the finite elements located within the weld pool is enabled. The heat input due to the equivalent heat source is assured by replacing the detected nodes’ temperature by the melting temperature.
The model offers variable parameters making it flexible and adaptable for a wide range of workpiece thicknesses and materials and allows for the investigation of transient thermal effects, e.g. the cooling stage of the workpiece. The calculation times remain acceptably short especially when compared to a fully coupled process simulation. The computational results are in good agreement with performed complete-penetration laser beam welding experiments.
A novel approach for the reconstruction of an equivalent volumetric heat source from a known weld pool shape is proposed. It is based on previously obtained weld pool geometries from a steady-state thermo-fluid dynamics simulation. Hereby, the weld pool dimensions are obtained under consideration of the most crucial physical phenomena, such as phase transformations, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection, and temperature-dependent material properties. The algorithm provides a time and calibration efficient way for the reproduction of the weld pool shape by local Lamé curves. By adjusting their parameters, the identification of the finite elements located within the weld pool is enabled. The heat input due to the equivalent heat source is assured by replacing the detected nodes’ temperature by the melting temperature. The model offers variable parameters making it flexible and adaptable for a wide range of workpiece thicknesses and materials and allows for the investigation of transient thermal effects, e.g., the cooling stage of the workpiece. The calculation times remain acceptably short especially when compared to a fully coupled process simulation. The computational results are in good agreement with performed complete-penetration laser beam welding experiments.
A numerical framework for simulation of the steady-state thermal behaviour in keyhole mode welding has been developed. It is based on the equivalent heat source concept and consists of two parts: computational thermo-fluid dynamics and heat conduction. The solution of the thermo-fluid dynamics problem by the finite element method for a bounded domain results in a weld pool interface geometry being the input data for a subsequent heat conduction problem solved for a workpiece by a proposed boundary element method. The main physical phenomena, such as keyhole shape, thermo-capillary and natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties are taken into consideration. The developed technique is applied to complete-penetration keyhole laser beam welding of a 15 mm thick low-alloyed steel plate at a welding speed of 33 mm/s and a laser power of 18 kW. The fluid flow of the molten metal has a strong influence on the weld pool geometry. The thermo-capillary convection is responsible for an increase of the weld pool size near the plate surfaces and a bulge formation near the plate middle plane. The numerical and experimental molten pools, cross-sectional weld dimensions and thermal cycles of the heat affected zone are in close agreement.
A technique for calculating the main solidification parameters for a two-dimensional columnar crystal growth during complete penetration laser beam welding of thin steel sheets was developed. Given that the weld pool interface is described by Lamé curves (superellipses) within the horizontal plane of growth, general analytical solutions were derived for the geometry of the crystal axis and the corresponding growth rate and cross-sectional area of the crystal. A dimensionless analysis was performed to provide insights on the dependence of the solidification parameters on the shape and dimensions of the rear part of the weld pool boundary. The derived solutions were applied for the case of complete penetration laser beam keyhole welding of 2 mm thick 316L austenitic chromium-nickel steel sheets. It was shown that the reconstruction of the weld pool boundary with Lamé curves provides higher accuracy and flexibility compared to results obtained with elliptical functions. The validity of the proposed technique and the derived analytical solutions was backed up by a comparison of the obtained solutions to known analytical solutions and experimentally determined shapes and sizes of the crystals on the top surface of the sheet. The dimensions of the calculated crystal axis correlated well with the experimentally obtained results.
Приведено аналитическое решение задачи теплопроводности после прекращения действия подвижного источника теплоты для различных комбинаций источника и свариваемого тела. Показано, что после выключения источника возможно дополнительное плавление основного металла за счет перегретого жидкого металла сварочной ванны. Например, при лазерной сварке со сквозным проплавлением стальной пластины толщиной 2 мм длина кратера шва может быт на 19% больше установившейся длины сварочной ванны. Установлено, что центр кратера, в котором заканчивается затвердевание жидкого металла, смещен в сторону хвостовой части кратера относительно оси теплового источника в момент прекращения его действия. Скорость и направление кристаллизации металла сварочной ванны и кратера различны.
МОДЕЛИРОВАНИЕ ГИДРОДИНАМИЧЕСКИХ И ТЕПЛОВЫХ ПРОЦЕССОВ ПРИ ЛАЗЕРНОЙ СВАРКЕ СО СКВОЗНЫМ ПРОПЛАВЛЕНИЕМ
(2020)
Разработана модель физических процессов при сварке плавлением на основе концепции эквивалентных источников теплоты. Модель включает в себя две части: термогидродинамику сварочной ванны и теплопроводность свариваемого тела вне ванны. В задаче термогидродинамики учитываются температурные зависимости свойств материала, форма парогазового канала, термокапиллярная и естественная конвекция, фазовые превращения и другие физические явления.Приведено решение задачи термогидродинамики методом конечных элементов на примере сварки стальной пластины толщиной 15 мм со сквозным проплавлением лазерным лучом (по технологии "замочная скважина"). Показано, что термокапиллярная конвекция жидкого металла является основной причиной сложной выпукло-вогнутой формы границы ванны с увеличенными размерами в приповерхностных областях. Получено удовлетворительное совпадение расчетных и экспериментальных размеров сварочной ванны.
A method of solving the thermo-fluid dynamics problem is presented, enabling the prediction of the shape and dimensions of the weld pool during keyhole laser welding of thick plates. It is shown that the rear weld pool boundary can be satisfactorily approximated by a set of superellipses (Lamé curves). The presence of a convex rear weld pool boundary in the mid-plane has been observed experimentally and reproduced numerically. It was shown that in this zone the concentration of liquating impurities increases and the local solidification temperature decreases, contributing to the susceptibility to hot cracking.
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.
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 present work is devoted to the numerical analysis of the high-power laser beam welding of thick sheets at different welding speeds. A three-dimensional transient multi-physics numerical model is developed, allowing for the prediction of the keyhole geometry and the final penetration depth. Two ray tracing algorithms are implemented and compared, namely a standard ray tracing approach and an approach using a virtual mesh refinement for a more accurate calculation of the reflection points. Both algorithms are found to provide sufficient accuracy for the prediction of the keyhole depth during laser beam welding with process speeds of up to 1.5 m/min. However, with the standard algorithm, the penetration depth is underestimated by the model for a process speed of 2.5 m/min due to a trapping effect of the laser energy in the top region. In contrast, the virtually refined ray tracing approach results in high accuracy results for process speeds of both 1.5 m/min and 2.5 m/min. A detailed study on the trapping effect is provided, accompanied by a benchmark including a predefined keyhole geometry with typical characteristics for the high-power laser beam welding of thick plates at high process speed, such as deep keyhole, inclined front keyhole wall, and a hump.
Numerical study on the formation of a bulging region in partial penetration laser beam welding
(2023)
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.
The present work deals with the recently confirmed widening of the weld pool interface, known as a bulging effect, and its relevance in high power laser beam welding. A combined experimental and numerical approach is utilized to study the influence of the bulge on the hot cracking formation and the transport of alloying elements in the molten pool. A technique using a quartz glass, a direct-diode laser illumination, a high-speed camera, and an infrared camera is applied to visualize the weld pool geometry in the longitudinal section. The study examines the relevance of the bulging effect on both, partial and complete penetration, as well as for different sheet thicknesses ranging from 8 mm to 25 mm. The numerical analysis shows that the formation of a bulge region is highly dependent on the penetration depth and occurs more frequently during partial penetration above 6 mm and complete penetration above 8 mm penetration depth, respectively. The location of the bulge correlates strongly with the cracking location. The obtained experimental and numerical results reveal that the bulging effect increases the hot cracking susceptibility and limits the transfer of alloying elements from the top of the weld pool to the weld root.
Die Untersuchung und Charakterisierung der Entwicklung/Änderung der Mikrostruktur, der mechanischen Eigenschaften sowie der Lebensdauer additiv gefertigter metallischer Werkstoffe hat bisher, vor allem im Hinblick auf die komplexe Belastungsfälle bei sicherheitsrelevanten Anwendungen, mit der rasanten Entwicklung der Fertigungstechniken nicht Schritt gehalten. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurde eine Charakterisierung des Ermüdungsverhaltens von additiv gefertigten TiAl6V4 im Low-Cycle-Fatigue Bereich (niederzyklische Ermüdung) nach Norm ISO 12206 mit Dehnungsamplituden von 0.3 bis zu 1.0 % und bei Raumtemperatur, 250°C und 400°C durchgeführt. Die TiAl6V4 Proben wurden aus zylindrischen Halbzeugen gefertigt, welche durch Laser-Pulver-Auftragsschweißen mit einer optimierten Aufbaustrategie hergestellt wurden. Die optimierte Aufbaustrategie beinhaltet variierende Spurüberlappungsgraden, die die Fertigung der dünnen zylindrischen Körper ohne weitere Ausgleichslagen ermöglicht. Das Werkstoffverhalten wird anhand von Wechselverformungskurven sowie einer Darstellung der Lebensdauer in einem Wöhler-Diagramm beschrieben. Ein Fitting der Lebensdauer-Daten erfolgt anhand der Manson-Coffin-Basquin Beziehung. Eine Eingangscharakterisierung der mikrostrukturellen Merkmale inklusive Bindefehler aus dem Herstellungsprozess wird durch Lichtmikroskopie und hochauflösende Computertomographie (CT) durchgeführt. Der Versagensmechanismus während der Belastung wird anhand von Zwischenuntersuchungen mit CT und einem unterbrochenen Versuch mit ausgewählten Versuchsparametern beschrieben. Nach dem Versagen wurden die Proben am REM, mit Lichtmikroskopie und mit CT fraktographisch in Längs- und Querrichtung untersucht. Die erfassten Lebensdauern sind ähnlich zu denen aus herkömmlichen Studien und liegen unter derjenigen von dem konventionell hergestellten (geschmiedeten) Werkstoff. In dieser Arbeit wurden für den untersuchten Werkstoff bei anwendungs- und sicherheitsrelevanten Belastungszuständen (hohe Temperaturen, zyklische Plastizität) neue experimentelle Daten und Kennwerte ermittelt und Verständnis über das mechanische Verhalten und die Entwicklung der Mikrostruktur aufgebaut. Darüber hinaus wurde Verständnis über die Rolle von Bindefehlern und anderen typisch für AM auftretenden Gefügemerkmalen auf das Versagensverhalten von DED-L TiAl6V4 gewonnen.
Despite of the significant advances in AM process optimization there is still a lack of experimental results and understanding regarding the mechanical behavior and microstructural evolution of AMparts, especially in loading conditions typical for safety-relevant applications e.g. in the aerospace or power engineering. Within the scope of the presented investigations, a characterization of the fatigue behavior of additively manufactured Ti-6Al-4V in the low cycle fatigue regime was carried out in the range of 0.3 to 1.0 % strain amplitude at room temperature, 250°C and 400°C. The Ti-6Al-4V specimens are machined out of lean cylindrical rods, which were fabricated using powder laser metal deposition (LMD) with an improved build-up strategy. The improved strategy incorporates variable track overlap ratios to achieve a constant growth in the shell and core area. The low-cycle-fatigue behavior is described based on cyclic deformation curves and strain-based fatigue life curves. The lifetimes are fitted based on the Manson-Coffin-Basquin relationship. A characterization of the microstructure and the Lack-of-Fusion (LoF)-defect-structure in the as-built state is performed using optical light microscopy and high-resolution computed tomography (CT) respectively. The failure mechanism under loading is described in terms of LoF-defects-evolution and crack growth mechanism based on an interrupted LCF test with selected test parameters. After failure, scanning electron microscopy, digital and optical light microscopy and CT are used to describe the failure mechanisms both in the longitudinal direction and in the cross section of the specimens. The fatigue lives obtained are comparable with results from previous related studies and are shorter than those of traditionally manufactured (wrought) Ti-6Al-4V. In this study new experimental data and understanding of the mechanical behavior under application-relevant loading conditions (high temperature, cyclic plasticity) is gained. Furthermore, a better understanding of the role of LoFdefects and AM-typical microstructural features on the failure mechanism of LMD Ti-6Al-4V is achieved.
Die Untersuchung und Charakterisierung der Entwicklung/Änderung der Mikrostruktur, der mechanischen Eigenschaften sowie der Lebensdauer additiv gefertigter metallischer Werkstoffe hat bisher, vor allem im Hinblick auf die komplexe Belastungsfälle bei sicherheitsrelevanten Anwendungen, mit der rasanten Entwicklung der Fertigungstechniken nicht Schritt gehalten. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurde eine Charakterisierung des Ermüdungsverhaltens von additiv gefertigten TiAl6V4 im Low-Cycle-Fatigue Bereich (niederzyklische Ermüdung) nach Norm ISO 12206 mit Dehnungsamplituden von 0.3 bis zu 1.0 % und bei Raumtemperatur, 250°C und 400°C durchgeführt. Die TiAl6V4 Proben wurden aus zylindrischen Halbzeugen gefertigt, welche durch Laser-Pulver-Auftragsschweißen mit einer optimierten Aufbaustrategie hergestellt wurden. Die optimierte Aufbaustrategie beinhaltet variierende Spurüberlappungsgraden, die die Fertigung der dünnen zylindrischen Körper ohne weitere Ausgleichslagen ermöglicht. Das Werkstoffverhalten wird anhand von Wechselverformungskurven sowie einer Darstellung der Lebensdauer in einem Wöhler-Diagramm beschrieben. Ein Fitting der Lebensdauer-Daten erfolgt anhand der Manson-Coffin-Basquin Beziehung. Eine Eingangscharakterisierung der mikrostrukturellen Merkmale inklusive Bindefehler aus dem Herstellungsprozess wird durch Lichtmikroskopie und hochauflösende Computertomographie (CT) durchgeführt. Der Versagensmechanismus während der Belastung wird anhand von Zwischenuntersuchungen mit CT und einem unterbrochenen Versuch mit ausgewählten Versuchsparametern beschrieben. Nach dem Versagen wurden die Proben am REM, mit Lichtmikroskopie und mit CT fraktographisch in Längs- und Querrichtung untersucht. Die erfassten Lebensdauern sind ähnlich zu denen aus herkömmlichen Studien und liegen unter derjenigen von dem konventionell hergestellten (geschmiedeten) Werkstoff. In dieser Arbeit wurden für den untersuchten Werkstoff bei anwendungs- und sicherheitsrelevanten Belastungszuständen (hohe Temperaturen, zyklische Plastizität) neue experimentelle Daten und Kennwerte ermittelt und Verständnis über das mechanische Verhalten und die Entwicklung der Mikrostruktur aufgebaut. Darüber hinaus wurde Verständnis über die Rolle von Bindefehlern und anderen typisch für AM auftretenden Gefügemerkmalen auf das Versagensverhalten von DED-L TiAl6V4 gewonnen.
Despite of the significant advances in additive manufacturing (AM) process optimization there is still a lack of experimental results and understanding regarding the mechanical behavior and its relationship with the microstructural features of AM-parts, especially in loading conditions typical for safety-relevant applications. Within the scope of the presented ongoing investigations, a basic microstructural characterization, tensile tests at room and elevated temperature (400°C) as well as a characterization of the fatigue behavior of additively manufactured Ti-6Al-4V in the low cycle fatigue regime are carried out in the as-built state. After failure, different techniques are used to describe the failure mechanisms of the specimens. The AM-Specimens are provided by the Fraunhofer institute for production systems and design technology and investigated at the BAM following the philosophy of the TF-Project AGIL.
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 hotcracking 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 nonhomogeneous 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.
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.
A novel approach for the reconstruction of an equivalent volumetric heat source from a known weld pool shape is proposed. It is based on previously obtained weld pool geometries from a steady-state thermo-fluid dynamics simulation. Hereby the weld pool dimensions are obtained under consideration of the most crucial physical phenomena, such as phase transformations, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties. The algorithm provides a time and calibration efficient way for the reproduction of the weld pool shape by local Lamé curves. By adjusting their parameters, the identification of the finite elements located within the weld pool is enabled. The heat input due to the equivalent heat source is assured by replacing the detected nodes’ temperature by the melting temperature.
The model offers variable parameters making it flexible and adaptable for a wide range of workpiece thicknesses and materials and allows for the investigation of transient thermal effects, e.g. the cooling stage of the workpiece. The calculation times remain acceptably short especially when compared to a fully coupled process simulation. The computational results are in good agreement with performed complete-penetration laser beam welding experiments.
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 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 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 the 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.
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 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 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 the 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.
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.
This article is devoted to the study of the bulging effect in deep penetration laser beam welding. The numerical results of the investigations are based upon experimental results from previous studies to reveal the relationship between the bulging effect and the hot cracking formation, as well as the mixing of alloying elements in the weld pool. The widening of the molten pool in its center area can be observed in full penetration as well as in partial penetration welds on 8 mm and 12 mm thick structural steel plates, respectively. The weld pool shape is extracted from the simulations to evaluate the extent of the necking of the solidification line as well as the bulging phenomena and its influence on the hot cracking phenomena. Relying on an earlier numerical study utilizing a fixed keyhole, simulation models considering a dynamic keyhole are developed thereto. Additionally, the mixing behavior of alloying elements during partial penetration is investigated. The link between the bulge and the studied phenomena is found to be significant.
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. Firstly, 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. Secondly, 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 which were supported by selected experimental validation results.
Herein, an improved ray-tracing routine using a virtual mesh refinement approach is adopted in a 3D transientmultiphysics computational fluid Dynamics model for deep penetration wire feed laser beam welding. In a previous study, it was shown that the improved localization of the reflection points of the subrays within the keyhole leads to a more realistic development of the keyhole Depth being validated with experimental results. Another effect investigated in Detail herein is a drastic change in the flow behavior in the weld pool, which promotes the occurrence of a necking area in the solidification line and subsequent bulging under specific circumstances. This has a detrimental effect on the filler material element transport in the weld pool, leading to an inhomogeneous dilution of the added material. The numerical observations are backed up by experimentally obtained data, allowing to provide a clear physics-based explanation of the reduced mixing behavior of the filler wire in the melt pool.
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.
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.
Die Entstehung von Erstarrungsrissen stellt ein in der Schweißtechnik lange bekanntes Problem dar. Diese prozessseitige Herausforderung ist selbst nach dem heutigen Wissenstand schwer zu beherrschen und gefährdet die Sicherheit der gefügten Bauteile. Dieses Problem erweist sich als besonders schwierig beim einlagigen Hochleistungslaserstrahlschweißen von Metallteilen hoher Blechstärke, welche eine essentielle Rolle in vielerlei industriellen Anwendungen spielen.
Gegenstand des hier bearbeiteten Forschungsprojekts war die numerische Untersuchung der Entstehungsmechanismen des Mittelrippendefekts beim Laserstrahlschweißen niedriglegierter Stähle. Mittels mehrerer gekoppelter Simulationen, für welche sowohl kommerziellen Softwares, wie COMSOL Multiphysics und ANSYS, als auch in-house entwickelte Programme eingesetzt worden sind, wurden die am stärksten ausgeprägten Mechanismen der Erstarrungsrissbildung und deren Zusammenspiel aufgeklärt. Begleitend zur Simulation wurden mehrere experimentelle Untersuchungen für den niedriglegierten Baustahl S355 an den Blechdicken 12 mm und 15 mm zu deren Validierung durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse der Simulation des Kristallwachstums, der Diffusion und der Makroseigerung von Schwefel zeigen, dass die Risse für bestimmte Werkstoffe mit einer hohen Konzentration an Verunreinigungen
hauptsächlich metallurgisch bedingt entstehen können. Allerdings zeigte die Untersuchung des Einflusses der Ausbauchung (Bulging) im Mittenbereich der Schweißnaht auf das transiente Temperaturfeld und die transienten Transversalspannungen im risskritischen Bereich auch, dass die Rissbildung nicht nur metallurgisch bedingt und insbesondere auch für aus metallurgischer Sicht eigentlich rissunkritische Materialien auftreten kann.
Der Bulging-Bereich hat sich in der Untersuchung als besonders kritisch in allen Teilen der Simulationskette gezeigt. Die Einflüsse dieser geometrischen Besonderheit konnten bei allen physikalischen Teilaspekten der Problematik als heißrissinduzierend identifiziert werden. Von besonderer Bedeutung wird an dieser Stelle das erkannte Zusammenspiel dieser Einflüsse hervorgehoben. Bisher wurde die Bildung der Erstarrungsrisse hauptsächlich durch einen einzelnen physikalischen Aspekt, wie z.B. rein metallurgisch oder rein thermomechanisch bedingt, isoliert betrachtet. Die gewonnen Erkenntnisse über die Einflüsse des Bulgings auf die unterschiedlichen Teilaspekte zeigen deutlich, dass alle Entstehungsmechanismen auch die Schmelzbadgeometrie als Ursprung haben. Von dieser hängen die transienten Temperatur- und Spannungsfelder, die Kristallwachsrichtung, die Erstarrungsgeschwindigkeit und die Konzentration von Verunreinigungen, welche zur Entstehung von niedrigschmelzenden Phasen führt, ab.
Die Ergebnisse des Forschungsvorhabens sind vielfach in referierten Zeitschriften und auf Fachtagungen veröffentlicht worden. Hervorzuheben dabei ist der „Best Presentation Award“ auf der LANE Conference 2018 in Fürth, wodurch die Thematik einem breiten Publikum bekannt gemacht werden konnte.
Solidification cracking is still a serious problem in laser beam welding, especially in the welding of thick-walled plates. The influence of weld pool geometry on solidification cracking in partial penetration welding of thick plates is investigated within scope of this study. Therefore, a specific experimental setup of steel and quartz glass in butt configuration and on the side with high-speed camera were used to record the weld pool shape. In addition, the influence of laser inclination angle on the weld pool geometry and on solidification crack formation was investigated. The results show a bulge in the weld pool root, which is separated from an upper region by a necking region. This leads to a case where there are three different longitudinal region lengths with different solidification zones. This temporal sequence of solidification strongly promotes the formation of solidification cracks in the weld root.
Solidification cracking is still a particular problem in laser beam welding, especially in the welding of thick-walled plates. In this study, the influence of weld pool geometry on solidification cracking in partial penetration welding of thick plates is a subject of discussion. For this purpose, a special experimental setup of steel and quartz glass in butt configuration and lateral with high speed camera was used to capture the weld pool shape. Additionally, laser beam welding experiments were carried out to compare the crack positions and the cross section with the high-speed camera observations. The results showed a bulge in the weld pool root separated from the upper region by a nick area. This leads to the fact that three different longitudinal lengths with different solidification areas are taking place. This temporal sequence of solidification strongly promotes the solidification cracks in the weld root.
In this study, the influence of the welding speed and the arc power on the solidification crack formation for partial penetration laser hybrid welded Thick-Walled plates were investigated. Experimentally, a linear correlation between the welding velocity and the crack number was observed. That is by reducing the welding velocity the crack number was reduced.
The reduced welding velocity showed a strong impact on stress, as the model demonstrated a very lower stress amount in comparison to the reference case. The reduction of the welding speed could be a helpful technique to reduce the hot cracking. The wire feed speed showed a very slight influence on the crack formation. That can be returned to the large distance between the critical region for cracking and the arc region.
In this study, the influence of the welding speed, the arc power and the laser focal position on the solidification crack formation for partial penetration laser hybrid welded thick-walled plates were investigated. Experimentally, a direct correlation between the welding speed and the crack number was observed. That is by reducing the welding velocity the crack number was decreased. The focal position shows also a significant influence on the crack number. Since by focusing the laser on the specimen surface, the crack number has been significantly diminished.
The wire feed speed showed a very slight influence on the crack formation. That is due to the large distance between the critical region for cracking and the arc region.
The numerical model shows a high-stress concentration in the weld root for both components (vertical and transversal).
Numerically, the reduced welding speed showed a strong impact on stress, as the model demonstrated a lower stress amount by decreasing the welding speed. The solidification cracking in the weld root is a result of interaction between metallurgical and geometrical and thermomechanical factors.
Using a novel optical measurement technique together with the OF algorithm, a two-dimensional deformation analysis during welding was conducted.
The OF technique was the first of its kind to provide a measurement of the full strain field locally in the immediate vicinity of the solidification front. The local critical strain and strain rate in vicinity of the solidification front has observed 1.57%, 28 %/s, respectively.
The geometry of the melt pool in laser beam welding plays a major role to understand the dynamics of the melt and its solidification behavior. In this study, a butt configuration of 20 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass was used to observe the weld pool geometry in the partial penetration mode by means of a high-speed camera. The observations show that the dimensions of the weld pool vary depending on the depth. The areas close to the weld pool surface take a teardrop-shape. A bulge-region and its temporal evolution were observed approximately in the weld pool root. Additionally, a 3D transient thermal-fluid numerical simulation was performed to obtain the weld pool shape and to understand the formation mechanism of the observed bulging effect. The model considers the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties. The numerical results showed good accordance and were furthermore used to improve the understanding of the experimentally observed bulging effect.
The geometry of the melt pool in laser beam welding plays a major role to understand the dynamics of the melt and its solidification behavior. In this study, a butt configuration of 15 mm thick structural steel and transparent quartz glass was used to observe the weld pool geometry by means of high-speed camera and an infrared camera recording. The observations show that the dimensions of the weld pool vary depending on the depth. The areas close to the weld pool surface take a teardrop-shape. A bulge-region and its temporal evolution were observed approximately in the middle of the depth of the weld pool. Additionally, a 3D transient thermal-fluid numerical simulation was performed to obtain the weld pool shape and to understand the formation mechanism of the observed bulging effect. The model takes into account the local temperature field, the effects of phase transition, thermo-capillary convection, natural convection and temperature-dependent material properties up to evaporation temperature. The numerical results showed good accordance and were furthermore used to improve the understanding of the experimentally observed bulging effect.
In this study, a three-dimensional CFD-simulation model was developed to simulate the fluid flow in the weld pool. The CFD-model showed a bulging region in the middle of the depth, which is separated from the top surface and bottom surface by two narrowing regions. It can be concluded that the interaction of the movement of the laser source with the Marangoni vortex leads to a teardrop shape at the upper and bottom surface of the workpiece. Additionally, it shows that the bulging in the weld is a result of the backflows on the upper and lower sides due to the thermo-capillary-driven flows. The weld pool shape was used as a heat source in a two-dimensional thermomechanical model, which allows a highly accurate transformation of the weld pool dimensions obtained from the CFD model. This developed technique allows the consideration of physical aspects, which cannot be considered when using traditional heat sources. The mechanical model has shown that the chronological order of the solidification of the weld has a significant influence on the nature and distribution of the stresses in the weld. High tensile stress has been observed in the bulging region, i.e. in the susceptible region for solidification cracking, when compared to the other narrowing regions, which show compressive stress.
In this study, a three-dimensional CFD-simulation model was developed to simulate the fluid flow in the weld pool. The CFD-model showed a bulging region in the middle of the depth, which is separated from the top surface and bottom surface by two narrowing regions. It can be concluded that the interaction of the movement of the laser source with the Marangoni vortex leads to a teardrop shape at the upper and bottom surface of the workpiece. Additionally, it shows that the bulging in the weld is a result of the backflows on the upper and lower sides due to the thermo-capillary-driven flows. The weld pool shape was used as a heat source in a two-dimensional thermomechanical model, which allows a highly accurate transformation of the weld pool dimensions obtained from the CFD model. This developed technique allows the consideration of physical aspects, which cannot be considered when using traditional heat sources. The mechanical model has shown that the chronological order of the solidification of the weld has a significant influence on the nature and distribution of the stresses in the weld. High tensile stress has been observed in the bulging region, i.e. in the susceptible region for solidification cracking, when compared to the other narrowing regions, which show compressive stress.
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.
In this study, the influence of the welding speed and the arc power on the solidification crack formation for partial penetration laser hybrid welded Thick-Walled plates were investigated. Experimentally, a linear correlation between the welding velocity and the crack number was observed. That is by reducing the welding velocity the crack number was reduced.
The reduced welding velocity showed a strong impact on stress, as the model demonstrated a very lower stress amount in comparison to the reference case. The reduction of the welding speed could be a helpful technique to reduce the hot cracking. The wire feed speed showed a very slight influence on the crack formation. That can be returned to the large distance between the critical region for cracking and the arc region.
In recent years, laser beam welding has found wide applications in many industrial fields. Solidification cracks are one of the most frequently encountered welding defects that hinder obtaining a safe weld joint. Decades of research have shown that one of the main causes of such cracks are the strain and the strain rate. Obtaining meaningful measurements of these strains has always been a major challenge for scientists, because of the specific environment of the measurement range and the many obstacles, as well as the high temperature and the plasma plume. In this study, a special experimental setup with a high-speed camera was employed to measure the strain during the welding process. The hot cracking susceptibility was investigated for 1.4301 stainless steel, and the critical strain required for solidification crack formation was locally and globally determined.
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.
Using a novel optical measurement technique together with the optical flow algorithm, a two-dimensional deformation analysis during welding was conducted. The presented 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 and strain rate characterizing the transition to hot cracking during laser welding processes to be determined. Furthermore, the above-mentioned technique is independet on the welding process, which means, it can be also used for arc welding processes. Dependency between the external strain rate and the critical local strain and strain rate has been observed. That is to say, the critical local strain and strain rate is increased with an increase of the strain rate.Moreover, this technique allows automatic identification of the cases that can be critical for the solidification crack formation by monitoring the state of strain on the crack-sensitive region within the mushy zone.
Solidification cracking is still a serious problem in laser beam welding, especially in the welding of thick-walled plates. The influence of weld pool geometry on solidification cracking in partial penetration welding of thick plates is investigated within scope of this study. Therefore, a specific experimental setup of steel and quartz glass in butt configuration and on the side with high-speed camera were used to record the weld pool shape. In addition, the influence of laser inclination angle on the weld pool geometry and on solidification crack formation was investigated. The results show a bulge in the weld pool root, which is separated from an upper region by a necking region. This leads to a case where there are three different longitudinal region lengths with different solidification zones. This temporal sequence of solidification strongly promotes the formation of solidification cracks in the weld root.
In this study, steel-glass experiments were conducted to observe the melt pool geometry using a high-speed camera. The high-speed recordings and optical flow analysis show that two main flows take place in form of vortices. The lower vortex drives the melt backwards from the front keyhole wall and thus causes an extension of the melt pool, which is called bulging. This bulging promotes solidification cracking by forming a closed area filled with melt and the accumulation of impurities in the final solidification phase, resulting in low-melting phases which are under tensile stress at the end of solidification.
In this study, the influence of the welding speed, the arc power, and the laser focal position on the solidification crack formation for partial penetration laser hybrid–welded thick-walled plates was investigated.
The solidification cracking in the weld root is a result of interaction between metallurgical and geometrical and thermomechanical factors.
Experimentally, a direct correlation between the welding speed and the crack number was observed. That is by reducing the welding velocity, the crack number was decreased. The focal position shows also a significant influence on the crack number. By focusing the laser on the specimen surface, the crack number has been significantly diminished.
The wire feed speed showed a very slight influence on the crack formation. That is due to the large distance between the critical region for cracking and the arc region.
The numerical model shows a high stress concentration in the weld root for both components (vertical and transversal).
Numerically, the reduced welding speed showed a strong impact on stress, as the model demonstrated a lower stress amount by decreasing the welding speed.
The metallurgical factors, such as the assumed accumulation of the low-melting eutectics in the weld root, should be a contribution for solidification cracking, where the tensile stress is acting.
Der Trend zum Leichtbau und die Transformation zur E-Mobilität in der
Automobilindustrie befeuern die Entwicklung neuer hochfester Stähle für den Karosseriebau. Derartige Werkstoffe sind beim Widerstandspunktschweißen besonders rissanfällig (LME). Das Schweißen unter Zug stellt eine effektive Methode um die LME-Anfälligkeit unterschiedlicher Werkstoffe qualitativ zu bestimmen.
Components distort during directed energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing (AM) due to the repeated localised heating. Changing the geometry in such a way that distortion causes it to assume the desired shape – a technique called distortion-compensation – is a promising method to reach geometrically accurate parts. Transient numerical simulation can be used to generate the compensated geometries and severely reduce the amount of necessary experimental trials. This publication demonstrates the simulation-based generation of a distortioncompensated DED build for an industrial-scale component. A transient thermo-mechanical approach is extended for large parts and the accuracy is demonstrated against 3d-scans. The calculated distortions are inverted to derive the compensated geometry and the distortions after a single compensation iteration are reduced by over 65%.
Due to rapid, localized heating and cooling, distortions accumulate in additive manufactured laser metal deposition (LMD) components, leading to a loss of dimensional accuracy or even cracking. Numerical welding simulations allow the prediction of these deviations and their optimization before conducting experiments. To assess the viability of the simulation tool for the use in a predictive manner, comprehensive systems as well as to choose the optimal product matches, product analysis methods are needed. Indeed, most of the known methods aim to analyze a product or one product family on the physical level. Different product families, however, may differ largely in terms of the number and nature of components. This fact impedes an efficient comparison and choice of appropriate product family combinations for the production system. A new methodology is proposed to analyze existing products in view of their functional and physical architecture. The aim is to Cluster these products in new assembly oriented product families for the optimization.
Distortions in Additive Manufacturing (AM) Laser Metal Deposition (LMD) occur in the newly-built component due to rapid heating and solidification and can lead to shape deviations and cracking. This paper presents a novel approach to quantify the distortions experimentally and to use the results in numerical simulation validation. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) is applied together with optical filters to measure in-situ distortions directly on a wall geometry produced with LMD. The wall shows cyclic Expansion and shrinking with the edges bending inward and the top of the sample exhibiting a slight u-shape as residual distortions. Subsequently, a structural Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of the experiment is established, calibrated against experimental temperature profiles and used to predict the in-situ distortions of the sample. A comparison of the experimental and numerical results reveals a good agreement in length direction of the sample and quantitative deviations in height direction, which are attributed to the material model used. The suitability of the novel experimental approach for measurements on an AM sample is shown and the potential for the validated numerical model as a predictive tool to reduce trial-and-error and improve part quality is evaluated.
Rapid localized heating and cooling during additive manufacturing using laser deposition method (LMD) lead to loss of dimensional accuracy as well as cracking of built parts. Finite-Element welding simulations allow prediction of geometrical deviations and accumulated residual stresses as well as their optimization before conducting experiments. Due to the great length of stacked welds, calculation times for fully transient thermomechanical simulations are currently long, the calculation stability suffers from the high number of contact bodies in the model and the modelling effort is high, as the geometries need to be sliced and positioned layer-wise.
In this contribution, an integrated modelling approach is demonstrated for a thin-walled LMD component made from 30 layers of 1.4404 (316L) stainless steel: Instead of the layer-by-layer modelling strategy commonly found in the literature, the whole component mesh is kept in one piece and the fully transient, layer-by-layer material deposition is implemented via element sets. In contrast to prior simulations, nonlinear contact between the layers does not have to be considered, significantly decreasing calculation times. The calculated distortions are compared to recently published, in-situ digital image correlation (DIC) measurements as well as numerical simulations conducted with the established layer-wise modelling strategy to judge result quality. Finally, the improvement in calculation time and ease-of-use is compared between both modelling approaches and conclusions regarding future usage for industrial-scale components are drawn.
Die numerische Simulation hilft, Probleme bei additiven Bauprozessen früh zu erkennen und Optimierungspotentiale auszuschöpfen. Ziel ist, im additiven Auftragschweißen (DED) die Zahl der nötigen Versuche durch Vorhersagen zu verringern und Prozessgrößen zu visualisieren. Eine besondere Anwendung der Simulation ist die Generierung verzugskompensierter Geometrien: Durch die Berechnung des Bauteilverzugs kann die Geometrie vor dem Bauen so verändert werden, dass sie mit Verzug die gewünschte Toleranz erreicht. So kann Zerspanvolumen und Aufmaß reduziert werden.
In additive manufacturing (AM) Laser Metal Deposition (LMD), parts are built by welding layers of powder feedstock onto a substrate. Applications for steel powders include forging tools and structural components for various industries. For large parts, the choice of tool-paths influences the build-rate, the part performance and the distortions in a highly geometry-dependent manner. With weld-path lengths in the range of hundreds of meters, a reliable, automated tool path generation is essential for the usability of LMD processes.
In this contribution, automated tool-path generation approaches are shown and their results are discussed for arbitrary geometries. The investigated path strategies are the classical approaches: “Zig-zag-” and “contour-parallel-strategies”. After generation, the tool-paths are automatically formatted into g-code for experimental build-up and ASCII for a numerical simulation model. Finally, the tool paths are discussed in regards to volume-fill, microstructure and porosity for the experimental samples.
This work presents a part of the IGF project 18737N “Welding distortion simulation” (FOSTA P1140)
In additive manufacturing (AM) directed energy deposition (DED), parts are built by welding layers of powder or wire feedstock onto a substrate with applications for steel powders in the fields of forging tools, spare parts, and structural components for various industries. For large and bulky parts, the choice of toolpaths influences the build rate, the mechanical performance, and the distortions in a highly geometry-dependent manner. With weld-path lengths in the range of hundreds of meters, a reliable, automated tool-path generation is essential for the usability of DED processes. This contribution presents automated tool-path generation approaches and discusses the results for arbitrary geometries. Socalled “zig-zag” and “contour-parallel” processing strategies are investigated and the tool-paths are automatically formatted into machine-readable g-code for experimental validation to build sample geometries. The results are discussed in regard to volume-fill, microstructure, and porosity in dependence of the path planning according to photographs and metallographic cross-sections.
With the recent rise in the demand for additive manufacturing (AM), the need for reliable simulation tools to support experimental efforts grows steadily. Computational welding mechanics approaches can simulate the AM processes but are generally not validated for AM-specific effects originating from multiple heating and cooling cycles. To increase confidence in the outcomes and to use numerical simulation reliably, the result quality Needs to be validated against experiments for in-situ and post-process cases. In this article, a validation is demonstrated
for a structural thermomechanical simulation model on an arbitrarily curved Directed Energy Deposition (DED)part: at first, the validity of the heat input is ensured and subsequently, the model’s predictive quality for in-situ
deformation and the bulging behaviour is investigated. For the in-situ deformations, 3D-Digital Image Correlation measurements are conducted that quantify periodic expansion and shrinkage as they occur. The results show a strong dependency of the local stiffness of the surrounding geometry. The numerical Simulation model is set up in accordance with the experiment and can reproduce the measured 3-dimensional in-situ displacements. Furthermore, the deformations due to removal from the substrate are quantified via 3D-scanning, exhibiting considerable distortions due to stress relaxation. Finally, the prediction of the deformed shape is discussed in regards to bulging simulation: to improve the accuracy of the calculated final shape, a novel Extension of the model relying on the modified stiffness of inactive upper layers is proposed and the experimentally observed bulging could be reproduced in the finite element model.
Gut kombiniert: Laser-Plasma-Auftragschweißen
Für den Schutz vor starkem abrasiven Verschleiß (Panzern) oder vor korrosiven Medien (Plattieren) sowie für das Auftragen einer Pufferlage können das Laser-Pulver-Auftragschweißen oder das Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißen zum Einsatz kommen. Während das Laser-Pulver-Auftragschweißen eine geringe thermische Belastung verspricht, ermöglicht das Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißen hohe Auftragraten. Wissenschaftler des Fraunhofer IPK erarbeiten neuartige Verfahrenskombinationen und Düsenkonzepte, die die jeweiligen Vorteile dieser bestehenden Verfahren vereinen und somit eine hohe Qualität und Effizienz garantieren. So kann beispielsweise die punktgenaue Energie der Laserstrahlung den Plasmalichtbogen stabilisieren und den Wärmeeintrag in das Bauteil besser kontrollieren.
Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) welding is a process that enables high deposition rates, but also causes increased thermal 9 load on the component. Laser based Direct Energy Deposition (DED) welding, on the other hand, achieves a high level of 10 precision and thus comparatively low deposition rates, which can lead to high processing costs. Combining laser and arc 11 energy aims to exploit the respective advantages of both technologies. 12 In this study, different possibilities of this process combination are presented using a PTA system and a 2 kW disk laser. 13 This includes the combination in a common process zone as a highspeed plasma laser cladding technology (HPLC), which 14 achieves process speeds of 10 m/min. Besides that it is being examined whether a pre-running plasma arc can be used to 15 coat difficult-to-weld rail steel with a carbon content of 0.8 % due to a preheating effect. Furthermore, a smoothing of the 16 coating by a plasma arc following the laser is investigated.
Das Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißen ist ein Verfahren, dass hohe Auftragraten ermöglicht, jedoch auch eine erhöhte thermische Belastung des Bauteiles verursacht. Laser-Pulver-Auftragschweißen hingegen erreicht eine hohe Präzision und eine geringe Aufmischung, erfordert jedoch ein kostspieliges Hochleistungslasersystem und erreicht im Vergleich nur geringe Auftragraten, was zu hohen Verarbeitungskosten führt. Eine Kopplung von Laser- und Lichtbogenenergie in einer gemeinsamen Prozesszone zielt darauf ab, die jeweiligen Vorteile beider Technologien zu nutzen. Dies betrifft insbesondere die Effizienz der Wärmeausnutzung und der Nutzung des Zusatzwerkstoffs.
Es wird ein Plasma-Laser-Hybrid-Prozess als Highspeed-Plasma-Laser-Cladding-Technologie (HPLC) für Beschichtungs- sowie Instandsetzungszwecke vorgestellt. Gezeigt werden Ergebnisse mit Prozessgeschwindigkeiten von 10 m/min bei Laserleistungen von 2 kW, dabei können Flächenraten von mehr als 1 m2/h erreicht werden. Effiziente Beschichtungen von großen Flächen, beispielsweise auf rotationssymmetrischen Bauteilen stellen ein relevantes Anwendungsfeld für diesen Technologieansatz dar. Die Nickelbasislegierung Inconel 625 wird als Korrosionsschutzwerkstoff eingesetzt. Im Rahmen der Verfahrensprüfung werden die hergestellten Beschichtungen einer EDX Messung unterzogen.
Prozesscharakteristische Kenngrößen wie z.B. die Auftragrate werden vorgestellt und vor dem Hintergrund wirtschaftlicher Kennzahlen diskutiert. Zusätzlich werden die Aufmischung, Spurgeometrie und Wärmeeinflusszone der Spuren und Schichten ausgewertet. Im Vergleich zum Laser-Pulver-Auftragschweißen werden Spuren bei hohen Prozessgeschwindigkeiten mit einer hohen Auftragrate erzeugt.
Das Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißen ist ein Verfahren, dass hohe Auftragraten ermöglicht, jedoch auch eine erhöhte thermische Belastung des Bauteiles verursacht. Laser-Pulver- Auftragschweißen hingegen erreicht eine hohe Präzision und eine geringe Aufmischung, erfordert jedoch ein kostspieliges Hochleistungslasersystem und erreicht im Vergleich nur geringe Auftragraten, was zu hohen Verarbeitungskosten führt. Eine Kopplung von Laser- und Lichtbogenenergie in einer gemeinsamen Prozesszone zielt darauf ab, die jeweiligen Vorteile beider Technologien zu nutzen. Dies betrifft insbesondere die Effizienz der Wärmeausnutzung und der Nutzung des Zusatzwerkstoffs.
Es wird ein Plasma-Laser-Hybrid-Prozess als Highspeed-Plasma-Laser-Cladding-Technologie (HPLC) für Beschichtungs- sowie Instandsetzungszwecke vorgestellt. Gezeigt werden Ergebnisse mit Prozessgeschwindigkeiten von 10 m/min bei Laserleistungen von 2 kW, dabei können Flächenraten von mehr als 1 m2/h erreicht werden. Effiziente Beschichtungen von großen Flächen, beispielsweise auf rotationssymmetrischen Bauteilen stellen ein relevantes Anwendungsfeld für diesen Technologieansatz dar. Die Nickelbasislegierung Inconel 625 wird als Korrosionsschutzwerkstoff eingesetzt. Im Rahmen der Verfahrensprüfung werden die hergestellten Beschichtungen einer EDX Messung unterzogen.
Prozesscharakteristische Kenngrößen wie z.B. die Auftragrate werden vorgestellt und vor dem Hintergrund wirtschaftlicher Kennzahlen diskutiert. Zusätzlich werden die Aufmischung, Spurgeometrie und Wärmeeinflusszone der Spuren und Schichten ausgewertet. Im Vergleich zum Laser-Pulver-Auftragschweißen werden Spuren bei hohen Prozessgeschwindigkeiten mit einer hohen Auftragrate erzeugt.
Dieser Beitrag stellt Ergebnisse der Untersuchungen zum Auftragschweißen als Plasma-Laserstrahl-Hybrid-Prozess dar. Es hat sich gezeigt, dass ein Laserstrahl, der in einer gemeinsamen Prozesszone mit einem Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißprozess vorlaufend angeordnet ist, diesem Prozess eine erhebliche Geschwindigkeitssteigerung sowie eine Verbesserung der Stabilität ermöglicht. Der Hybrid-Prozess konnte mit Verschleißschutzwerkstoffen
sowie dem Korrosionsschutzwerkstoff Inconel 625 bei Vorschubgeschwindigkeiten von bis zu 10 m/min erfolgreich validiert werden.
Im Hinblick auf die aktuellen Entwicklungen zu Hochgeschwindiglceits-Laserstrahlauftragschweißen kann der Plasma-Laserstrahl-Hybrid-Prozess
zwischen diesen und den konventionellen Verfahren eingeordnet werden.
Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) welding is a process that enables high deposition rates, but also causes increased thermal load on the component. Laser based Direct Energy Deposition (DED) welding, on the other hand, achieves a high level of precision and thus comparatively low deposition rates, which can lead to high processing costs. Combining laser and arc energy aims to exploit the respective advantages of both technologies.
In this study, different possibilities of this process combination are presented using a PTA system and a 2 kW disk laser. This includes the combination in a common process zone as a highspeed plasma laser cladding technology (HPLC), which achieves process speeds of 10 m/min. Besides that it is being examined whether a pre-running plasma arc can be used to coat difficult-to-weld rail steel with a carbon content of 0.8 % due to a preheating effect. Furthermore, a smoothing of the coating by a plasma arc following the laser is investigated.
Hybrides Auftragschweißen: Potentiale des laserunterstützten Plasma-Pulver-Auftragschweißens (PTA)
(2018)
In diesem Beitrag wurden Untersuchungen zu einem neuartigen hybriden Laser-Plasma-Beschichtungsverfahren vorgestellt. Mit dem Ziel, die Produktivität und Wirtschaftlichkeit von Korrosions- und Verschleißschutzschichten zu steigern, wurde das kostengünstige PTA-Verfahren durch einen Laser als zweite Energiequelle ergänzt. Die vorlaufende Laserstrahlung stabilisiert den Plasmalichtbogen und ermöglicht erst eine Auftragsschweißung bei hohen Geschwindigkeiten. Die hohen Auftragraten von 4,2-5,7 kg/h bei gleichzeitig Streckenenergien von 630-720 J/cm zeigen das mögliche Potential des vorgestellten hybriden Ansatzes. In weiteren Untersuchungen muss der Prozess z.B. in Bezug auf die Oberflächenwelligkeit der Beschichtungen über eine Parameteroptimierung weiter verbessert werden. Nach den bisherigen gesammelten Erfahrungen mit dem Hybridprozess ist davon auszugehen, dass durch eine Anpassung der Energiedichteverteilung das Lasers, die Prozessgeschwindigkeiten noch einmal gesteigert werden können.
Laser-Metal-Deposition (LMD) and Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) are well known Technologies which can be used for cladding purposes. The prime objective in combining LMD and PTA as a Hybrid Metal Deposition-Technology (HMD) is to achieve high Deposition rates at low thermal Impact. Possible applications are coatings for wear protection or repair welding for components made of steel. The two energy sources (laser and Plasma arc) build a Joint process Zone and are configurated to constitute a stable process at laser powers between 0.4-1 kW (defocused) and Plasma currents between 75-200 A. Stainless steel 316L serves as filler material. For this HMD process, a Plasma Cu-nozzle is designed and produced by powder bed based Selective Laser Melting. The potential of the HMD Technology is investigated and discussed considering existing process. This paper demonstrates how the interaction of the two energy sources effects the following application-relevant properties: Deposition rate, powder Efficiency and energy Input.
Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) welding is a process that enables high deposition rates, but also causes increased thermal load on the component. Laser metal deposition (LMD) welding, on the other hand, reaches a high level of precision and thus achieves comparatively low deposition rates, which can lead to high processing costs. Combining laser and arc energy aims to exploit the respective advantages of both technologies. In this study, a novel approach of this process combination is presented using a PTA system and a 2 kW disk laser. The energy sources are combined in a common process zone as a high-speed plasma laser cladding technology (HPLC), which achieves process speeds of 10 m/min at deposition rates of 6.6 kg/h and an energy per unit length of 39 J/mm.
The contact between train wheels and rail tracks is known to induce material degradation in the form of wear, and rolling contact fatigue in the railhead. Rails with a pearlitic microstructure have proven to provide the best wear resistance under severe wheel-rail interaction in heavy haul applications. High speed laser cladding, a state-of-the-art surface engineering technique, is a promising solution to repair damaged railheads. However, without appropriate preheating or processing strategies, the utilized steel grades lead to martensite formation and cracking during deposition welding.
In this study, laser cladding of low-alloy steel at very high speeds was investigated, without preheating the railheads. Process speeds of up to 27 m/min and laser power of 2 kW are used. The clad, heat affected zone and base material are examined for cracks and martensite formation by hardness tests and metallographic inspections. A methodology for process optimization is presented and the specimens are characterized for suitability. Within the resulting narrow HAZ, the hardness could be significantly reduced.
During resistance spot welding of zinc-coated advanced high-strength steels (AHSSs) for automotive production, liquid metal embrittlement (LME) cracking may occur in the event of a combination of various unfavorable influences. In this study, the interactions of different welding current levels and weld times on the tendency for LME cracking in third-generation AHSSs were investigated. LME manifested itself as high penetration cracks around the circumference of the spot welds for welding currents closely below the expulsion limit. At the same time, the observed tendency for LME cracking showed no direct correlation with the overall heat input of the investigated welding processes. To identify a reliable indicator of the tendency for LME cracking, the local strain rate at the origin of the observed cracks was analyzed over the course of the welding process via finite element simulation. While the local strain rate showed a good correlation with the process-specific LME cracking tendency, it was difficult to interpret due to its discontinuous course. Therefore, based on the experimental measurement of electrode displacement during welding, electrode indentation velocity was proposed as a descriptive indicator for quantifying cracking tendency.
Advanced high strength steels are usually coated by a zinc layer for an increased resistance against corrosion. During the resistance spot welding of zinc coated steel grades, liquid metal embrittlement (LME)mayoccur. As a result, cracking inside and around the spot weld indentation is observable. The extent of LME cracks is influenced by a variety of different factors. In this study, the impact of the used electrode geometry is investigated over a stepwise varied weld time.
A spot welding finite element simulation is used to analyse and explain the observed effects. Results show significant differences especially for highly increased weld times. Based on identical overall dimensions, electrode geometries with a larger working plane allow for longer weld times, while still preventing LME within the investigated material and maintaining accessibility.
Liquid metal embrittlement (LME) cracking can occur during resistance spot welding (RSW) in zinc-coated advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) for automotive production. In this study, a methodological variation of hold time is performed to investigate the process-related crack influence factors. A combination of numerical and experimental investigations confirms, that the extent of heat dissipation and re-heating of the sheet surface can be influenced and thus the degree of crack formation can be controlled in a targeted manner by the parameterisation of the hold time. The temperature and stress history of crack-free and crack-afflicted spot welds are analysed and a conclusion on the borders defining the LME active region is derived.
The underlying cause of mechanical anisotropy in additively manufactured (AM) parts is not yet fully understood and has been attributed to several different factors like microstructural defects, residual stresses, melt pool boundaries, crystallographic and morphological textures. To better understand the main contributing factor to the mechanical anisotropy of AM stainless steel 316L, bulk specimens were fabricated via laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). Tensile specimens were machined from these AM bulk materials for three different inclinations: 0◦, 45◦, and 90◦ relative to the build plate. Dynamic Young’s modulus measurements and tensile tests were used to determine the mechanical anisotropy. Some tensile specimens were also subjected to residual stress measurement via neutron diffraction, porosity determination with X-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT), and texture analysis with electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). These investigations revealed that the specimens exhibited near full density and the detected defects were spherical. Furthermore, the residual stresses in the loading direction were between −74 ± 24 MPa and 137 ± 20 MPa, and the EBSD measurements showed a preferential ⟨110⟩ orientation parallel to the build direction. A crystal plasticity model was used to analyze the elastic anisotropy and the anisotropic yield behavior of the AM specimens, and it was able to capture and predict the experimental behavior accurately. Overall, it was shown that the mechanical anisotropy of the tested specimens was mainly influenced by the crystallographic texture.
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.
the joints throughout the structure. The flat units are constituted by butt welded flat plates, on which longitudinal T-welded reinforcements are placed to rigidize the structure. Among the different welding technologies, Hybrid Laser Arc Welding (HLAW) is becoming a mature process, profitable and highly productive. In addition, more innovative welding equipment are being developed nowadays, offering greater work flexibility, and raising expectations of achieving better quality, and economic viability. Another key point of HLAW to keep in mind is that structural distortions are reduced, resulting in decreasing the cost and time of straightening work.
In the present contribution, the influence of HLAW parameters on the quality of fillet joints of naval steel has been analysed. Experimental HLAW tests were performed with a high power disk laser to join EH36 naval steel plates, with a T configuration. The influence of different processing parameters has been analysed, as the laser power, welding speed, wire feed rate and the configuration of the HLAW processes (including head angle and laser/arc leading process). In addition, FEM simulations were carried out in order to estimate residual stresses and distortion of welded part. The distortion values provided by FEM presented excellent agreement with the measured experimental results. To evaluate the welds, non destructive tests including X-ray tests, metallographic analysis of cross sections, and microhardness mapping tests were performed.
Full penetration 8 mm T welds were obtained for the first time at an industrially applicable 2F position with a reasonable HLAW head angle, in one single step without sealing root, and using zero gap square groove Edge preparation. The present contribution presents welding rates up to 2.2 m/min for 2F T-joints of this steel thickness, a much higher processing velocity than previously reported for industrial applications.
Motivated by the loss of tensile strength in 9%Ni steel arc-welded joints performed using commercially available Ni-based austenitic filler metals, the viability of retaining tensile strength using an experimentally produced matching ferritic filler metal was confirmed. Compared to the austenitic Ni-based filler metal (685 MPa), higher tensile strength in gas metal arc (GMA) welded joints was achieved using a ferritic filler metal (749 MPa) due to its microstructure being similar to the base metal (645 MPa). The microstructure of hard martensite resulted in an impact energy of 71 J (-196 °C), which was two times higher than the specified minimum value of _>34 J. The
tensile and impact strength of the welded joint is affected not only by its microstructure, but also by the degree of its mechanical mismatch depending on the type of filler metal. Welds with a harder microstructure and less mechanical mismatch are important for achieving an adequate combination of tensile strength and notched impact strength. This is achievable with the cost-effective ferritic filler metal. A more desirable combination of mechanical properties is guaranteed by applying low preheating temperature (200 °C), which is a more practicable and economical solution compared to the high post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) temperature (580 °C) suggested by other research.
The present research work encloses results of experimental investigations of the interaction between welding process parameters for laser-beam and hybrid-laser-arc as well as type of the filler metal and the achievable mechanical properties of the weld joints on steel grade X8Ni9+QT640 for cryogenic service containing 9% nickel. The results obtained contribute to the development and conversion in the industrial practice a new laser beam-based welding technology for the automated manufacturing of facilities for the liquefaction, storage and the transport of natural gases (LNG facilities). The results show, that the martensitic microstructure of the laser weld metal including low amount of retained austenite not exceeding 3.5% leads to the relatively low V-notch impact energy. The remarkable heterogeneity in the chemical composition of the weld metal through the weld thickness could be recognized in the case of hybrid-laser-arc welding with ERNiCrMo-3 austenitic filler metal, what also led to insufficient impact toughness of the weld metall. The most promising results could be achieved by using 11%Ni filler wire, which is similar to the base metal and provides a homogeneous microstructure with uniform distribution of Ni through the weld seam. It is remarkable, that a correlation between Charpy impact toughness and wire feeding speed and respectively process heat input exists. The highest toughness values were 134±58 J at -196C. The both laser as well as laser-hybrid welds passed the tensile test. The failure stress of 720±3 MPa with a fracture location in the base material was achieved for all samples tested.