Analysis of the Heat Affected Zone and Surface Roughness during Laser Micromachining of Metals

Abstract

The current research focuses on the characterization of the produced heat affected zone when laser heats AISI H13 steel, AISI 1045 steel and Ti6Al4V alloy workpieces via finite element simulations and experimental investigation. The surface roughness designedly varies on the surface of the samples and its influence on the absorption of laser light is investigated. Experiments are conducted at 1-4 W laser power and for two scanning speeds of 2 and 100 mm/min. A 3D transient thermo-structural finite element model for a moving Gaussian laser heat source is developed to simulate the micromachining process and predict the depth and width of the heat affected zone. The Johnson-Cook material model that takes into account the effect of plastic strain, strain rate and temperature, along with a fracture model, is adapted to the simulations. A good agreement between the experimental data and the simulation results is found. The depth and width of the heat affected zone strongly depend on the laser parameters and material properties of the irradiated samples. This study constitutes the basis to the optimization and improvement of the laser assisted micromachining process parameters and provides key insights on the roughness-absorptivity relation for the three metallic materials.