Plate Welding Research Articles

Calibration and validation of extended back-face strain compliance for a wide range of crack lengths in SENB-4P specimens

Compliance equations based on back-face strain or crack mouth opening displacement, and potential drop techniques are widely used to calculate fatigue crack growth rate. Standard ASTM E647 for fatigue crack growth rate testing does not include compliance based equations for single edge notched four-point bending (SENB-4P) specimens. Equations developed based on finite element (FE) analysis have been reported in literature; however, they are limited to the long crack propagation regime (i.e., relative crack length ratios a/W > 0.15). No compliance relations for crack growth in the physically short crack regime were found in literature. This work reports on a complementary numerical-experimental study towards the development of compliance equations with an extended application range in terms of relative crack length. FE simulations have been used to calibrate a back-face strain compliance equation for calculation of relative crack length in the range 0.05 ≤ a/W ≤ 0.5 for SENB-4P specimens. Four point bending fatigue tests were performed on SENB specimens extracted from 50 mm thick welded steel plates. Direct current potential drop (DCPD) for crack monitoring was used as benchmark and validation of the crack lengths determined from a back-face strain gage.

A brief review on the Tube-to-Tube plate welding process

Weld settings play an awfully important part in influencing the standard of welded joints. The joint standard is defined as supported properties like weld geometry, mechanical characteristic, and deformation. Usually, all welding processes get a welded joint with the specified welding parameters, perfect mechanical characteristics, and minimal deformation. Today, applying the design of experiments (DoE), evolutionary formulas, and computational networks is widely wont to improve the mathematical relationship between the welding process's input settings and the weld joint's output variables to see the weld quality required cause weld input parameters. This text presents a comprehensive review of the literature on the appliance of those methods within the field of welding. The revision is classed in line with the output characteristics of the weld, that is, the weld's geometry and the weld's mechanical properties.

Assumptions for Modeling of the Hot Plate Welding Process Considering the Automatic Welding Machine Design

Drive and conveyor belts are widely used in processing and mining industries. One of their types, which are often used in light-duty applications, are the belts with round cross-section and several millimeters in diameter. They are often made of thermoplastic elastomers, in particular ofweldable polyurethane. Their production process requires to carry out the operation of joining the belt ends to obtain a closed loop. This operation is often carried out by means of butt welding utilizing the hot plate method. This process is often performed by hand using simple tools. Authors took an effort to design the automatic welding machine, which can make durable joints of this type automatically. The design works comprise control system configuration which calls for identifying the technological parameters of the process, being the reason for undertaking the research works on the hot plate welding process. The main aim of this activity was to formulate of the mathematical model of the hot plate welding of round drive belts which is necessary to identify the process parameters and the correlations between them. In the paper, the assumptions for the hot plate welding process modeling were presented. During their formulating, technical conditions were taken into consideration resulting from some of the characteristics observed in an automatic welding device prototype which had been implemented for industry production.

The concept of improvement high-strength aluminum alloys FSW joint properties via post-weld explosive treatment

The study describes the theoretical background and technological aspects of the post-weld explosive treatment of high-strength aluminum alloy FSW joints. Although FSW allows to effective join high-strength aluminum alloys, the heat generated during the process causes undesirable changes in the strengthening phase, giving a joint efficiency of about 80%. The load-carrying capabilities of these joints can be increased via post-weld treatment (e.g. shot peening, laser shock peening). The new, potential post-weld treatment that is presented in this paper is based on the affection of the welded joint by a shock wave generated during the detonation of explosive material. Such post-weld explosive treatment would result in the hardening of the low-hardness zone, which often determines the mechanical properties of precipitation-hardened aluminum alloy FSW joints. Studies show that explosive welding of annealed aluminum alloys increases their microhardness by about 25% as the result of a high-velocity collision. If a similar effect can be achieved in explosive hardening, the microhardness of the low-hardness zone will increase entailing an improvement of entire joint mechanical properties. The variety of explosives materials used in metalworking (covering the values of detonation velocity from about 2000 m/s to 8000 m/s) and different systems for shock-wave affection gives many technological possibilities. In this work are discussed two different explosive hardening systems: with direct placement of explosive material on a treated welded plate and with an additional driven plate, which provides a higher pressure impulse. Considering that affecting of high amplitude shock wave introduces defects into the structure and decreases residual stresses in the welded joints, the application of an appropriate technological system creates a potential for improving the load-carrying capacities of discussed joints, especially in a condition of cyclic loading.

Friction stir processing of nanofiller assisted AISI 1010 steel-CDA 101 copper dissimilar welds: a strength factor approach

In this research study the effects of adding nano fillers such as SiO2, graphene nanoplatelets (Gnps) and biochar on to the weld pool of dissimilar AISI-SAE 1010 Steel- CDA 101 copper were investigated. The main aim of this research study was to investigate the effect of adding ceramic and carbon rich secondary reinforcements on to the friction stir weld (FSW) pool of dissimilar metals and its relative outcomes. The mechanical properties such as tensile strength, yield strength, % of elongation, hardness and fatigue strength were investigated in the form of the strength factor approach. According to the results, the highest strength factor of 98 was obtained for welds made using Gnps of about 1.0 wt.% with constant axial load of 5 kN, traverse speed of 30 mm/min, rotational speed of 900 rpm, dwell time of 5 s and plunging depth of 0.2 mm. The highest tensile strength of 225 MPa and a fatigue strength of 168 MPa was noted for the weld using 2 wt.% Gnps in the weld pool. However, the biochar addition of 2.0 wt.% on to the weld bead positioned the second highest strength factor of 88 due to its solid lubricity. In all the welding processes, large doses of fillers produced undesirable strength factor values. The microstructure of both the weld and tool shows desirable effects for nanoparticle assisted welds. The HAZ and TMAZ grains were refined due to the inclusion of the nanoparticles. The result shows that naturally acquired biochar nanoparticles have the potential of replacing high cost nanofillers in joining metals with more than 85% close to the high cost fillers for the same output. These properties improved dissimilar copper-steel welded plate joints that could be used in automotive, defence, aerospace and structural applications.

The tensile properties of 2219 aluminum alloy plate butt joint welded by novel laser mirror welding

For thicker weldments, penetration requires higher welding heat input. The significant difference in temperature between the front and back of the weldment will inevitably produce more significant welding distortion. The symmetrical double laser heat sources act on the flat plate butt joint structure during the laser mirror welding process, which can realize the deformation-free and high-efficiency welding of thick plates. Due to the particular welding method of laser mirror welding, there are complex interactions of double keyholes and double-sided joint pools during the welding process. However, there is no relevant research on laser mirror welding of aluminum alloys. Therefore, experimental analysis on laser mirror welding of the 2219 aluminum alloy is performed in this paper. The relationship between welding process parameters and weld bead formation is explored by quantitative research about the macro morphology of the weld seam. Then, the typical microstructure distribution is studied by the microstructure of laser mirror welded joints. Finally, the tensile test experiment is performed to observe the microscopic morphology of the tensile fracture to analyze the fracture mode of the joint. This article discussed the intrinsic relationship between the stability of the molten pool and the tensile properties. The study found that when the molten pool is formed, the stability of the keyhole is the worst, and the tensile performance is poor.

Influence of Surface Preparation on Cracking Phenomena in TIG-Welded High and Medium Entropy Alloys

Multi-element systems with defined entropy (HEA—high entropy alloy or MEA—medium entropy alloy) are rather new material concepts that are becoming increasingly important in materials research and development. Some HEA systems show significantly improved properties or combinations of properties, e.g., the overcoming of the trade-off between high strength and ductility. Thus, the synthesis, the resulting microstructures, and properties of HEA have been primarily investigated so far. In addition, processing is crucial to achieve a transfer of potential HEA/MEA materials to real applications, e.g., highly stressed components. Since fusion welding is the most important joining process for metals, it is of vital importance to investigate the weldability of these materials. However, this has rarely been the subject of research to date. For that reason, in this work, the weldability depending on the surface preparation of a CoCrFeMnNi HEA and a CoCrNi MEA for TIG welding is investigated. The fusion welding of longer plates is described here for the first time for the CoCrNi alloy. The welds of both materials showed distinct formation of cracks in the heat affected zone (HAZ). Optical and scanning electron microscopy analysis clearly confirmed an intergranular fracture topography. However, based on the results, the crack mechanism cannot be conclusively identified as either a liquid metal embrittlement (LME) or hot cracking-like liquid film separation.

Influences of Friction stir tool parameters for joining two similar AZ61A alloy plates

The welding of magnesium alloy plates is highly important to utilize lightweight applications such as aircraft, automotive, and space sectors. In this research, Friction stir welding (FSW) of two similar AZ61A Magnesium alloy plates has been performed to obtain the maximum micro-hardness and tensile strength. The tool parameters such as tool revolving speed, Tool traveling speed, tool force, tool pin, and shoulder diameters have been modified during the welding experiments. The percentage of contributions and significant various tool parameters on micro-hardness and tensile strength have been analysed using Taguchi’s technique. The tool pin diameter and tool revolving speed are highly contributed factors to enhance the micro-hardness and tensile strength than tool revolving speed and shoulder diameter. The predicted best tool parameters values have been evaluated by confirmation experiments.

Laser Welding of AISI 316L Stainless Steel Produced by Additive Manufacturing or by Conventional Processes

Among all the additive manufacturing techniques, Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LBPF), also called Selective Laser Melting (SLM), is the most common technique due to its high capability of building complex parts with generally improved mechanical properties. One of the main drawbacks of this technique is the sample size limitation, which depends on elaborating chamber dimensions. In this study, we investigate the viability of obtaining large parts with the laser welding of additive manufactured plates. A comparison of the microstructure and the tensile mechanical properties of SLM-welded plates and cold-rolled welded plates was performed. This paper shows the possibility of obtaining defect-free parts. Even if welding has a low impact on the microstructure of the SLM samples, fractures are located on the fusion zone, and a decrease in ductility of around 30% compared to the base metal is observed.

Experimental Study on Bead on Plate (BOP) Welding of 6 mm Thick 9% Nickel Steel by Fiber Laser Welding

Nine percent nickel steel has excellent properties in a cryogenic environment, so it has recently been used as a tank material for most LNG fuel-powered ships. However, 9% nickel steel causes arc deflection due to its tendency of magnetization during manual FCAW welding and the currently used filler metal is 10–25 times more expensive as a base metal compared to other materials, depending on manufacturers. Furthermore, the properties of its filler metal cause limitation in the welding position. To overcome these disadvantages, in this study, the tendency of penetration shape was analyzed through a fiber laser Bead on Plate (BOP) welding for 9% nickel steel with a thickness of 6 mm and a range of welding conditions for 1-pass laser butt welding of 6 mm thick 9% nickel steel with I-Groove were derived. Through this study, basic data capable of deriving optimal conditions for laser butt welding of 9% nickel steel with a thickness of 6 mm were obtained.

Conduction mode laser welding with beam shaping using a deformable mirror

This study explores the possibility of tailoring the fusion zone in conduction mode laser welding using a deformable mirror for beam shaping of multi-kilowatt continuous wave laser sources. Three power density distributions were shaped and used in bead on plate welding of Ti64 plates in conduction mode at three travel speeds. The effect on melt pool free surface geometry, cross section, microstructure and hardness profiles was measured and studied. It is shown that the geometry of the melt pool can be modified using a deformable mirror. A narrower and longer melt pool or a wider, shorter and shallower one were indeed obtained forming Gaussian-elliptical power density distributions oriented along and transverse to the travel direction, respectively. The latter distribution could be a favourable option for laser beam additive manufacturing as it could improve process efficiency while reducing remelting of the previous layer. This system has also a promising potential for adaptive process control since it could change fundamentally the beam shape at a rate faster than 10 ms.

Experimental approach to modeling of the plasticizing operation in the hot plate welding process

The paper discusses the topic of butt welding of polyurethane drive belts by the hot plate method in the context of modeling the process of this technological operation. Based on the analysis of the butt welding process, a series of studies of the thermomechanical properties of the material from which the belt is made has been planned. The results will be used for mathematical modeling of the welding process, and in particular its most important phase: the plasticizing operation. On this basis, the study of the compression of cylindrical specimens taken from the belt has been performed at two different speeds. Their result is the relationship between the compressive stress σc and the modulus of longitudinal elasticity Ec at compression and: deformation εc, temperature value T, as well as the compressive velocity vc. In the next step, dynamic viscosity η of the belt material was determined based on the results of dynamic thermomechanical analysis. The research work culminated in the attempts to plasticize the material on a hot plate, in conditions similar to the process of industrial welding. These studies were performed at different speeds vpl, resulting in the correlation between the force required for plasticizing Fpl and the value of the speed of the belt end vpl relative to the hot plate heated to a temperature Tp. The obtained results will be used to formulate a mathematical model of plasticizing the material, based on the selected mechanical deformation models.

High-Precision Adjustment of Welding Depth during Laser Micro Welding of Copper Using Superpositioned Spatial and Temporal Power Modulation

For joining metallic materials for battery applications such as copper and stainless steel, laser beam micro welding with beam sources in the near-infrared range has become established in recent years. In laser beam micro welding, spatial power modulation describes the superposition of the linear feed motion with an oscillating motion. This modulation method serves to widen the cross-section of the weld seam as well as to increase the process stability. Temporal power modulation refers to the controlled modulation of the laser power over time during the welding process. In this paper, the superposition of both temporal and spatial power modulation methods is presented, which enables a variable control of the weld penetration depth. Three weld geometries transverse to the feed direction are part of this investigation: the compensation of the weld penetration depth due to the asymmetric path movement during spatial power modulation only, a W-shaped weld profile, and a V-shaped. The weld geometries are investigated by the bed on plate weld tests with CuSn6. Furthermore, the use of combined power modulation for welding tests in butt joint configuration between CuSn6 and stainless steel 1.4301 with different material properties is investigated. The study shows the possibility of precise control of the welding depth by this methodology. Depending on the material combination, the desired regions with maximum and minimum welding depth can be achieved by the control of local and temporal power modulation on the material surface.

Investigation the Ultrasonic Vibration on Tin Soldering Welding of Copper Wires and Plates

Ultrasonic-assisted soldering welding is widely applied for joining difficult materials. The cavitation phenomenon in liquid always occurs during the ultrasonic excitation. Base metals are striked by ultrasonic cavitation, creating erosion on the surface. The soft solder materials are penetrated on the rough surface, generated inter-metallic compounds. This work expresses the design of ultrasonic soldering machine using 20 kHz source and steel sonotrode. The curvature of reflecting plates with specific radius and their location are also condidered. The major technological parameters of ultrasonic soldering welding such as ultrasonic exciting time, power and curvature radii of reflecting plate are discussed. Tin soldering material is utilized for joining copper wires and plates are investigated. SEM images on the surface of tin soldering on cooper plates and tensile strength are investigated.

Friction Stir Welding of Thick Plates of 4Y3Gd Mg Alloy: An Investigation of Microstructure and Mechanical Properties.

Applications of non-ferrous light metal alloys are especially popular in the field of aerospace. Hence it is important to investigate their properties in joining processes such as welding. Solid state joining process such as friction stir welding (FSW) is quite efficient for joining non-ferrous alloys, but with thick plates, challenges increase. In this study, Mg alloy plates of thickness 11.5 mm were successfully welded via single-pass FSW. Due to the dynamic recrystallization, grain size in the stir zone was reduced to 16 µm which is ≈15 times smaller than the parent material. The optimized rotational speed and traverse speed for optimum weld integrity were found to be 710 rpm and 100 mm/min, respectively. A sound weld with 98.96% joint efficiency, having an Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS) of 161.8 MPa and elongation of 27.83%, was accomplished. Microhardness of the nugget was increased by 14.3%.

Study on Fatigue Performance of Non-Uniform Thickness Markless Laser Lap Welding

In this paper fatigue properties of three groups of unequal thickness unmarked overlap laser welding of the external wallboard connected of type A and B vehicle were studied. In addition, a group of overlap penetration welded structures of 1.5mm-301L-HT+0.8mm-301L-DLT is designed to study the impact of penetration rate to the mechanical properties. The influence of the weld geometry and plate combination on fatigue fracture behavior and fatigue property is studied based on the combination of fatigue test and simulation stress analysis. Fatigue studies have shown that in spite of the thickness of the two lap unequal thickness welded plate is disparities -- unmarked non-penetration welding outer plate is thicker but it appears fatigue fracture on the outer plate. The safety fatigue limit of three different non-penetration welded structures of plate combinations and weld structures is close which further proofs that the stress state and microstructure of non-penetration outer plate is not conducive to fatigue fracture. It is consistent with the results of the finite element simulation. The fatigue limit of lap welded structure increase with the increase of plate thickness.

Study on temperature- microstructure- stress fields of thick-walled plate welded by hybrid laser arc welding

The 25mm DH36 steel was welded by hybrid laser arc welding (HLAW), and a sequence coupled thermal-metallurgical-mechanical (TMM) model was developed based on SYSWELD. The temperature-microstructure-stress fields are predicted by simulation verified by experiment. The ratio between the arc and laser energy showed a significant effect on weld profile. The laser provided the main power and ensured deep penetration, and the arc power showed a dominant effect on the bead width of the hybrid weld during HLAW. For the hybrid welding of a thick-walled plate, the microstructure and thermal cycles varied along with the thickness. The weld profile and microstructure were experimentally characterized. The 3-pass welding procedure produced larger welding residual stress than the 9-pass welding procedure, and the process stability is poorer than the 3-pass welding process. Overall, numerical results matched well with experimental results.

Root formation and mechanical properties in laser keyhole welding of 15 mm thick HSLA steel

Deep penetration laser welding is promising in joining thick (> 10 mm) steel sections. Focused laser beam by drilling vapour cavity, the keyhole, generates deep and narrow welds. Full penetration single-pass joining has a persistent problem with root quality where humping is one of the most frequent imperfection. This strongly hampers the use of high-power laser for thick plate welding. A 16 kW disk laser was used for single-pass welding of 15 mm thick plates in a butt joint configuration. Root humping occurred within a wide range of welding parameters. This provides narrow processing window. By adding an arc source to the laser beam process, the tendency of root humping increases. To achieve humping-free welds and consistent root quality over length, a delicate balance of process parameters is required. High heat input (> 0.50 kJ/mm) was positive to achieve a combination of low hardness (< 325 HV) and good Charpy toughness at -50 °C (> 50 J).

Study of arc characteristics using varying shielding gas and optimization of activated-tig welding technique for thick AISI 316L(N) plates

• In-house developed activated flux for welding of 316L(N) stainless steel. • Identification of optimum shielding gas mixture based on arc stability studies. • Full-depth of penetration in 11 mm thick plate in single pass welding with optimised parameters at reduced heat input. • Joining of 20 mm thick plate by double side A-TIG welding technique. In the present study, type 316L(N) bead-on-plates were welded using Activated-Tungsten Inert Gas (A-TIG) welding process with argon and helium gas at various ratios to evaluate the arc characteristics. The welding process parameters including shielding gas composition were optimized using the design of experiments to join 11 mm thick plate in a single pass. In addition, the A-TIG welding technique using optimized process parameters was developed to weld plates up to 20 mm thickness with significantly reduced heat input. High power density of helium arc shielding leads to constricted arc column that enhances arc efficiency and produces deeper penetration.

On the Solution to Pre- Buckling of a Thin Rectangular Plate Subjected to a Thick Strip in-plane Loading

The current paper deals with the problem of the simply supported thin rectangular plate subjected to the intermediate strip in-plane loading. Based on the strain energy method (Fourier ansatz), the critical (minimum value) of buckling stress occurrence was determined in a general form dependent only on the strip thickness, strip location, plate width and stress magnitude. Compatible with the classical columns Euler method it was found that the plate stability is decreased with the increasing of the plate width due to larger induced stresses. Also, strip location relative to the support region was found to influence the buckling (same analogy to the Euler buckling theory; consider the strip as a both sides pressed rod). Additionally, the strip width parameter increase is likely to cause larger buckling stress. Moreover, expressions that includes both axial and transverse loads for different extended cases configurations were also derived and examined based on the strain energy method alongside explanation for possible applications (thin aluminum plate welding). In a general view, it was found that the cases of combined axial and perpendicular loading action are less stabilized than cases where only one kind of loading configuration is participated. Finally, the buckling stress was found to agree qualitatively with the cited literature.