| 2006 №06 (05) | 2006 №06 (07) |
The Paton Welding Journal, 2006, #6, 25-28 pages
Laser welding and formability study of tailor-welded blanks of different thickness combinations and welding orientations
C.H. Cheng1, L.C. Chan1, C.L. Chow2, T.C. Lee1
1Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China2University of Michigan-Dearborn, USA
Abstract
Tailor-welded blanks (TWBs) are tailor-made for different complex component designs by welding multiple metal sheets with different thicknesses, shapes or strengths prior forming. However, the forming performance of an intrinsic TWB is critically related to its own structures and designs, such as the thickness combination, as well as the location and orientation of weldment. In this study, a 2 kW Nd:YAG laser were used to butt-weld approximately 180 samples of stainless steel (AISI 304) TWBs with different dimensions (from 12.7 to 165.1 mm in width), thickness combinations (1/1, 1/1.2, 1/1.5, 1.2/1.2, 1.2/1.5 and 1.5/1.5 mm) and welding orientations (0°, 45° and 90°). Subsequently, Swift forming tests were carried out to study the forming performance of those TWBs. It was found that the formability of TWBs critically related to the quality of weld was very much affected by the welding parameters of the Nd:YAG laser. Also, the effects of different thickness combinations on the formability of TWBs were investigated through the constructed forming limit diagrams (FLDs). The results showed that the thinner part of TWBs dominated the majority of deformation similar to the FLD of the parent metal. The effects of different welding orientations on the forming performance of TWBs were examined from the failure analysis.
Keywords: laser welding, tailor-welded blanks, stainless steel, welding orientation, thickness combinations, formability, forming limit
References
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