Titanium constitutes approximately 60% of the weight of steel and exhibits strength comparable to steel's but with a higher strength-to-weight ratio. Titanium alloys possess excellent corrosion resistance due to a thin oxide layer at room temperature; however, their reactivity increases above 600°C, leading to oxidation and nitridation. Welding titanium alloys presents challenges such as porosity issues. Laser welding minimizes the heat-affected zone (HAZ) by emitting high output in a localized area for a short duration. This process forms a narrow and deep HAZ, reducing the deterioration of mechanical properties and decreasing the contact area with oxygen. In this study, fiber laser welding was conducted on 8.0mm thick Ti-6Al-4V alloy using the Bead On Plate (BOP) technique. A total of 25 welding conditions were experimented with to observe bead shapes. The results demonstrated successful penetration within the 0.792mm to 8.000mm range. It was concluded that this experimental approach can predict diverse welding conditions for Ti-6Al-4V alloys of various thicknesses.
Research into lightweighting to improve vehicle fuel efficiency and reduce exhaust emissions continues as environmental regulations become increasingly stringent. Magnesium alloys, chosen for their lightweight properties, are more than 35% lighter than aluminum alloys and also exhibit excellent mechanical characteristics. While magnesium alloys are commonly utilized in arc welding processes like GTAW and GMAW, they pose challenges such as high residual stresses and welding defects. Laser welding, on the other hand, offers the advantage of precise heat input, enabling deep and high-quality welds while minimizing welding distortion. In this study, fiber laser welding was employed to weld a 4.0mm thick AZ31B-H24 using the Bead on Plate technique. A total of 10 different welding conditions were tested with fiber laser welding, and the cross-sections of the weld beads were examined. Weld bead shapes were measured based on five parameters. The results allowed for an evaluation of the weldability of AZ31B-H24 using fiber laser welding.
The multi-layered heat source model is a model that can cover most of existing studies and can be defined with a simple formula. Based on the methodology performed in previous studies, the welding heat source was found through experiments and FEM under the welding power conditions of three cases and the parameters of the welding heat source were analyzed according to the welding power. In this study, parameters of fiber laser welding heat source according to welding power were searched through optimization algorithm and finite element analysis, and the correlation was analyzed. It was confirmed that the concentration of the welding heat source in the 1st layer was high regardless of the welding power, and it was confirmed that the concentration of the welding heat source in the 5th layer (last layer) increased as the welding power increased. This reflects the shape of the weld bead that appears during actual fiber laser welding, and it was confirmed that this study represents the actual phenomenon.