Investigation of structural-phase transformations of weld metal and in the heat-affected zone during laser welding

Abstract

The use of laser equipment is one of the promising ways to create innovative and highly efficient technologies in the production of ship structures. The main advantages of using laser technologies in the production of marine equipment are increased productivity by increasing the speed and reducing the number of welding passes, improving the quality of welded joints due to the accuracy of the assembly of structures and the level of automation, reducing the level of residual stresses, warping and leash due to significant localization of the heating and penetration zone compared with arc welding technologies, a significant reduction in the consumption of welding materials or their complete exclusion due to the smaller dimensions of the geometry of the cutting edges and the width of the assembly gaps. The mechanical properties of the welded joint are determined by the composition of the steel and its structure. The structural- phase transformations of the weld metal are determined by the temperature-time parameters that occur in the seam zone itself and in the heat-affected zone. Laser welded joints are formed under conditions in which thermal cycles differ significantly in depth and width of the weld, so the mechanical properties of the joint are determined by local changes in the structure of the seam metal and heat-affected zone. The issues of formation of the phase composition of the seam zone and heat-affected zone during laser welding are examined in the paper. On the basis of numerical modeling of thermal processes and structural- phase transformations of weld metal and heat-affected zone accompanying laser welding, a method for quantifying the volume fraction of structural- phase components of weld metal and heat-affected zone is proposed. The proposed calculation algorithm avoids solving the equation for the amount of the volume fraction of the structural- phase components of the metal at each step of the calculations.