Effect of Laser Beam Oscillation on Weld Integrity and Mechanical Properties of Dissimilar Aluminum Alloys
摘要
The present study investigates the effects of laser beam oscillation on the integrity and mechanical behavior of the weld joint by combining both experimental and numerical methodologies for the dissimilar aluminum alloys (AlMg3 & AlSiMg). To produce butt joints with different laser power (4-5 kW), speed (67-100 mm/s), oscillation amplitude (0-3 mm), and frequency (0-300 Hz), a high-power single-mode laser was used. A hybrid volumetric heat source was used to develop a fully coupled 3D thermo-mechanical model in COMSOL Multiphysics software to analyze the temperature distribution, weld morphology, residual stresses, and post-solidification distortion. It was found that the sample with power 5 kW and speed 67 mm/s showed the highest tensile strength (249 MPa) but the overall optimum weld performance was achieved when the amplitude of the oscillation was 0.6 mm and the frequency was 200-300 Hz, which minimized residual stresses (from 185 to 172 MPa) and displacements (from 0.036 to 0.017 mm) compared to non-oscillating welds without compromising the tensile strength. Extreme oscillation levels (> 1.8 mm) resulted in poor mechanical behavior. The developed numerical model is an effective and cost-saving tool to minimize the extensive physical experiments to further optimize the weld parameters.