Effects of activating flux on the welded joint characteristics in gas metal arc welding

This paper presents the effect of each welding parameter on the weld bead geometry, and then sets out to determine the optimal process parameters using the Taguchi method to determine the parameters. Three kinds of oxides, Fe₂O₃, SiO₂, and MgCO₃, were used to investigate the effect of activating flux aided gas metal arc welding (GMAW) on weld bead geometry, angular distortion and mechanical properties in AISI 1020 carbon steel. During welding, a charge coupled device (CCD) camera system was used to observe and record images of the welding arc and analyze the relationship between penetration increase and arc profile. The experimental results showed that activating flux aided GMAW increased the weld area and penetration and tended to reduce the angular distortion of the weldment. The MgCO₃ flux produced the most noticeable effect. Furthermore, the welded joint presented better tensile strength and hardness.     

Predicting of bead undercut defects in high-speed gas metal arc welding (GMAW)

In the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, when the welding speed reaches a certain threshold, there will be an onset of weld bead undercut defects which limit the further increase of the welding speed. Establishing a mathematical model for high-speed GMAW to predict the tendency of bead undercuts is of great significance to prevent such defects. Under the action of various forces, the transferred metal from filler wire to the weld pool, and the geometry and dimension of the pool itself decide if the bead undercut occurs or not. The previous model simplified the pool shape too much. In this paper, based on the actual weld pool geometry and dimension calculated from a numerical model, a hydrostatic model for liquid metal surface is used to study the onset of bead undercut defects in the high-speed welding process and the effects of different welding parameters on the bead undercut tendency.     

Predicting of bead undercut defects in high-speed gas metal arc welding (GMAW)

In the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, when the welding speed reaches a certain threshold, there will be an onset of weld bead undercut defects which limit the further increase of the welding speed. Establishing a mathematical model for high-speedGMAWto predict the tendency of bead undercuts is of great significance to prevent such defects. Under the action of various forces, the transferred metal from filler wire to the weld pool, and the geometry and dimension of the pool itself decide if the bead undercut occurs or not. The previous model simplified the pool shape too much. In this paper, based on the actual weld pool geometry and dimension calculated from a numerical model, a hydrostatic model for liquid metal surface is used to study the onset of bead undercut defects in the high-speed welding process and the effects of different welding parameters on the bead undercut tendency.     

Numerical investigation of droplet impact on the welding pool in gas metal arc welding

A transient three‐dimensional model that describes physical phenomena inside a welding pool during gas–metal arc welding process is presented. The model considers such phenomena as heat‐mass transfer, electromagnetics, hydrodynamic processes and deformation of the weld pool free surface. The fluid flow in the weld pool is induced due to the presence of the mechanical impact of the droplets, thermo‐capillary surface tension, thermal buoyancy and electromagnetic forces. The weld pool surface deformation is calculated by considering arc pressure and droplet impact force. A comparative analysis of the impact of the electric current of the welding arc and different force factors causing the motion of liquid metal in the weld pool on the shape of the welded seam was carried out and discussed.     

Numerical simulation of humping phenomenon in high speed gas metal arc welding

It is of great significance to obtain a thorough understanding of the physical mechanisms responsible for humping bead phenomenon in high speed gas metal arc welding (GMAW) in order to raise welding efficiency. Experiments were conducted to observe the weld pool behaviors in high speed GMAW, and it was found that both the severely deformed weld pool surface and strong backward flowing play a dominant role in humping bead formation. In this study, a mathematical model is developed to quantitatively analyze the forming mechanism of humping beads for high speed GMAW through considering both the momentum and heat content distribution of the backward flowing molten metal inside the weld pool. The transient development of temperature profiles in the weld pool with severe deformation demonstrates the humping bead forming process under some welding conditions. The predicted and measured humping bead dimensions are in agreement.     

Activated flux TIG welding of Inconel 718 super alloy in presence of tri-component flux

In this study, we have explored the influence of newly developed tri-component oxide flux (Cr₂O₃, FeO, and MoO₃) on weldability, bead geometry, weld pool temperature variation, and mechanical strength of Inconel 718 welded joints. Moreover, the influence of used flux on weld pool, the surface morphology of electrode and penetration capability of tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding on Inconel 718 plates have been well elucidated. Results indicate that the flux mixture significantly increases the penetration depth as well as aspect ratio almost 200% as compared to conventional TIG welding. The arc constriction caused by newly developed oxide flux upsurges the heat density and the weld pool temperature of joints. The alloying effect caused by entrapped oxide particles greatly improves the hardness as well as the tensile strength of joints. The reported reinforcement in the welding performance may increase potential utility of the developed methods for real-world applications.     

Numerical analysis of weld pool geometry in globular-transfer gas metal arc welding

The weld pool geometry and its dimension in the globular-transfer mode during gas metal arc welding (GMAW) were numerically analyzed by using the thermal conduction model, which considered the influence of the deformation of weld pool surface on heat flow in the quasi-steady state. According to the features of the globular-transfer mode, the additional heat energy from molten metal droplets was treated as a plane or volumetric heat source term to correspond to different welding conditions. The weld pool surface profile was predicted while considering the effect of droplet impingement on the depression of the weld pool. The bead-on-plate GMAW experiments were performed under different welding conditions to validate the model of numerical analysis. It has been found that the predicted results agree well with the measured ones.     

Numerical simulation of variable polarity vertical-up plasma arc welding process

Three-dimensional transient governing equations were developed based on conservation laws of energy, momentum and mass. These equations described physical phenomena of convection in weld pool and heat transfer in workpiece during variable polarity vertical-up plasma arc welding process. Boundary conditions for the developed governing equations were given. Welding energy input for variable polarity vertical-up plasma arc welding process was quantitatively expressed. Free surface deformation of the keyhole molten pool was coupled into calculation. Effect of wire filling on the geometry of molten pool and weld reinforcement was considered in the simulation. Correlations of temperature and thermophysical properties for aluminum alloy 2219 were quantitatively established. A control volume based finite difference method was used to solve the discrete governing equations. Moreover, dynamic evolutions of geometrical profile, dimension and fluid flow for the molten pool and keyhole were simulated through the developed computational routines, which achieved transient solution of fluid flow field coupling with thermophysical properties, temperature field and weld pool free surface deformation. Besides, the effect of the workpiece thickness on the moments of keyhole formation and stable keyhole establishment was analyzed, and thermal cycles for the main welding stage were calculated. In addition, experiments via variable polarity vertical-up plasma arc welding technique were conducted, and the established models were experimentally verified through weld cross-section profiles.     

Optimization of deep penetration laser welding of thick stainless steel with a 10 kW fiber laser

Deep penetration laser welding of 12 mm thick stainless steel plates was conducted using a 10 kW high-power fiber laser. The effect of the processing parameters on the weld bead geometry was examined, and the microstructure and mechanical properties of the optimal joint were investigated. The results show that the focal position is a key parameter in high-power fiber laser welding of thick plates. There is a critical range of welding speed for achieving good full penetration joint. The type of top shielding gas influences the weld depth. The application of a bottom shielding gas improves the stability of the entire welding process and yields good weld appearances at both the top and bottom surfaces. The maximum tensile stress of the joint is 809 MPa. The joint fails at the base metal far from the weld seam with a typical cup–cone-shaped fracture surface. The excellent welding appearance and mechanical properties indicate that high-power fiber laser welding of a 304 stainless steel thick plate is feasible.     

Pulsed MIG welding of AZ31B magnesium alloy

Abstract

Pulsed metal inert gas welding of AZ31B magnesium alloy is carried out, and continuous butt joints of high quality are obtained at optimised parameters. The effects of parameters on weld formation and welding stability are studied. The microstructure, mechanical properties and fracture of weld beads with different filler wires are investigated. The results show that it is a stable drop transition process with optimised parameters, which belongs to globular transfer. The precipitates in fusion zone and heat affected zone (HAZ) are uniform, dispersive and almost granular. The grain size in fusion zone is fine, and the grain size does not grow too large in HAZ compared with the base metal. The ultimate tensile strength of weld beads can be 94% of base metal, and the average elongation is 11%. Dimples and coarse tearing ridges can be observed on the fracture of the weld bead.     

Experimental investigation on the effects of process parameters of GMAW and transient thermal analysis of AISI321 steel

Gas metal arc welding (GMAW) develops an arc by controlling the metal from the wire rod and the input process parameters. The deposited metal forms a weld bead and themechanical properties depend upon the quality of the weld bead. Proper control of the process parameters which affect the bead geometry, the microstructures of the weldments and the mechanical properties like hardness, is necessary. This experimental study aims at developing mathematical models for bead height (HB), bead width (WB) and bead penetration (PB) and investigating the effects of four process parameters
viz: welding voltage, welding speed, wire feed rate and gas flow rate on bead geometry, hardness and microstructure of AISI321 steel with 10 mm thickness. The transient thermal analysis shows temperature and residual stress distributions at different conduction and convection conditions.     

Numerical simulation of fluid flow and temperature field in keyhole double‐sided arc welding process on stainless steel

Double‐sided arc welding process powered by a single supply is a type of novel high‐production process. In comparison with the conventional single‐sided arc welding, this process has remarkable advantages in enhancing penetration, minimizing distortion and improving welding production. In this paper, a three‐dimensional steady numerical model is developed for the heat transfer and fluid flow in plasma arc (PA)–gas tungsten arc (GTA) double‐sided keyhole welding process. The model considers the surface tension gradient, electromagnetic force and buoyancy force. A CCD camera is used to observe the size and shape of the keyhole and weld pool. The acquired images are analysed through image processing to obtain the surface diameters of the keyhole on the two sides. A double‐V‐shaped keyhole geometry is then proposed and its characteristic parameters are derived from the images and cross‐section of weld bead. In the numerical model, the keyhole cavum within the weld pool is treated as a whole quality, whose temperature is fixed at the boiling point of the workpiece material. The heat exchange between the keyhole and weld pool is treated as an interior boundary of the workpiece. Based on the numerical model, the distributions of the fluid flow and temperature field are calculated. A comparison of cross‐section of the weld bead with the experimental result shows that the numerical model's accuracy is reasonable. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The butt-fusion welding of PVDF and its composites

A wide range of mirror plate butt welding conditions were used to join PVDF pipe to pipe and to an injection moulded fitting. The microstructures of the welds were characterized by microtomy and by transmitted light microscopy, and the mechanical properties by tensile testing. The results show that high integrity pipe to pipe joins can be produced for a relatively wide range of welding conditons, and that the integrity of pipe to fitting joins may be reduced because of the adverse influence of the moulded part on weld bead geometry.     

Effects of weaving on temperature distribution in fusion welding

Abstract

A theoretical model has been developed to quantify the specific effects of weaving on the temperature distribution in fusion welding. Satisfactory agreement is obtained between predicted and measured fusion line, Ac₃, and Ac₁ contours, both in the case of high heat input strip electrode surfacing and tungsten inert gas welding at large amplitudes of weaving. Indications are that the present model also can be adapted to normal stringer bead deposition (through proper adjustments of the theoretical amplitude of weaving) to account for the influence of directed metal currents in the weld pool on the resulting bead morphology.

MST/431     

Effects of process parameters on the quality aspects of weld-bead in laser welding of NiTinol sheets

The effects of process variables, like scan speed and laser power, on the quality of bead-on-plate welding of NiTinol sheets were investigated. The measured quality aspects for the weld-bead profile were bead geometry, changes in microstructure, variation of microhardness value along the weld-bead, extent of oxide contamination during welding, Ti/Ni ratio after welding, changes in tensile strength of the welded samples and corrosion behavior of the welded and parent materials. The laser weld-bead profile changed from the shape of a stemless wineglass to that with a prominent leg. Dimensional aspects of weld-bead geometry showed a decreasing trend with increasing scan speed. However, an increasing trend of the same was observed with power. The Ti/Ni ratio on the top surface after welding was found to decrease with scan speed at a particular power. Oxide contamination during welding followed the same pattern of variation as that of the Ti/Ni ratio. Microhardness values gradually increased from the weld centerline to the base metal. Formation of brittle intermetallic compounds reduced the tensile strength of the material after welding. A dual failure mode for the welded sample was observed, whereas a single mode of failure was detected for the parent material. The corrosion properties of the welded samples were better than that of the parent material.     

Keyhole gas tungsten arc welding of AISI 316L stainless steel

Keyhole gas tungsten arc welding (K-TIG) was used to weld AISI 316L stainless steel of mid-thickness (thickness ranging 6–13 mm). 316L plates of 10-mm thickness were jointed using an I-groove in a single pass without filler metal. The effects of welding parameters on the fusion zone profile were investigated. The weld properties, including mechanical properties, microstructure, and corrosion resistance, were analyzed. The primary weld microstructures were austenite and δ-ferrite. The tensile strength and impact property of the weld were almost the same as those of the base metal, while the corrosion resistance of the weld was even better than that of the base metal. High-quality 316L stainless steel joints can be realized through K-TIG welding with high productivity and low processing cost. The practical application of K-TIG welding to join mid-thickness workpieces in industry is well demonstrated and an ideal process for welding AISI 316L of mid-thickness with high efficiency and low cost is presented.     

Optimization of laser welding process parameters for super austenitic stainless steel using artificial neural networks and genetic algorithm

The laser welding input parameters play a very significant role in determining the quality of a weld joint. The quality of the joint can be defined in terms of properties such as weld bead geometry, mechanical properties and distortion. In particular mechanical properties should be controlled to obtain good welded joints. In this study, the weld bead geometry such as depth of penetration (DP), bead width (BW) and tensile strength (TS) of the laser welded butt joints made of AISI 904L super austenitic stainless steel are investigated. Full factorial design is used to carry out the experimental design. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) program was developed in MatLab software to establish the relationship between the laser welding input parameters like beam power, travel speed and focal position and the three responses DP, BW and TS in three different shielding gases (argon, helium and nitrogen). The established models are used for optimizing the process parameters using genetic algorithm (GA). Optimum solutions for the three different gases and their respective responses are obtained. Confirmation experiment has also been conducted to validate the optimized parameters obtained from GA.     

Hybrid laser/arc welding of thick high-strength steel in different configurations

In this investigation, hybrid laser/arc welding (HLAW) was employed to join 8-mm-thick high-strength quenched and tempered steel (HSQTS) plates in the butt-and T-joint configurations. The influences of welding parameters, such as laser power, welding speed, stand-off distance (SD) between the arc of gas metal arc welding, and the laser heat source on the weld quality and mechanical properties of joints, were studied to obtain non-porous and crack-free fully-penetrated welds. The weld microstructure, crosssection, and mechanical properties were evaluated by an optical microscope, and microhardness and tensile tests. In addition, a finite element model was developed to investigate the thermal history and molten pool geometry of the HLAW process to join the HSQTS. The numerical study demonstrated that the SD had a paramount role in good synergy between the heat sources and the stability of the keyhole. For the butt-joint configuration, the results showed that, at a higher welding speed (35 mm/s) and optimum SD between the arc and laser, a fully-penetrated sound weld could be achieved. A non-porous weld in the T-joint configuration was obtained at a lower welding speed (10 mm/s). Microstructural evaluations indicated that the formation of residual austenite and the continuous network of martensitic structure along the grain boundary through the heat affected zone were the primary reasons of the softening behavior of this area. This was confirmed by the sharp hardness reduction and failure behavior of the tensile coupons in this area.The full text can be downloaded at https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40436-017-0193-6     

Weld Shape Variation and Electrode Oxidation Behavior under Ar-(Ar-CO_2) Double Shielded GTA Welding

Double shielded gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW, also known as tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding) of an SUS304 stainless steel with pure inert argon as the inner layer shielding and the Ar-CO₂ or CO₂ active gas as the out layer shielding was proposed in this study to investigate its effect on the tungsten electrode protection and the weld shape variation. The experimental results showed that the inner inert argon gas can successfully prevent the outer layer active gas from contacting and oxidizing the tungsten electrode during the welding process. Active gas, carbon dioxide, in the outer layer shielding is decomposed in the arc and dissolves in the liquid pool, which effectively adjusts the active element, oxygen, content in the weld metal. When the weld metal oxygen content is over 70×10^-6, the surface-tension induced Marangoni convection changes from outward into inward, and the weld shape varies from a wide shallow one to a narrow deep one. The effect of the inner layer gas flow rate on the weld bead morphology and the weld shape was investigated systematically. The results show that when the flow rate of the inner argon shielding gas is too low, the weld bead is easily oxidized and the weld shape is wide and shallow. A heavy continuous oxide layer on the liquid pool is a barrier to the liquid pool movement.     

Effect of Welding Parameters on Dilution and Weld Bead Geometry in Cladding

The effect of pulsed gas metal arc welding （GMAW） variables on the dilution and weld bead geometry in cladding X65 pipeline steel with 316L stainless steel was studied. Using a full factorial method, a series of experiments were carried out to know the effect of wire feed rate, welding speed, distance between gas nozzle and plate, and the vertical angle of welding on dilution and weld bead geometry. The findings indicate that the dilution of weld metal and its dimension i.e. width, height and depth increase with the feed rate, but the contact angle of the bead decreases first and then increases. Meantime, welding speed has an opposite effect except for dilution. There is an interaction effect between welding parameters at the contact angle. The results also show forehand welding or decreasing electrode extension decrease the angle of contact. Finally, a mathematical model is contrived to highlight the relationship between welding variables with dilution and weld bead geometry.