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Abstract
Magnesium alloys have been used increasingly in various areas of industry, such as the automotive sector, electronic components. A reliable method for joining components produced with these materials will definitely allow for a wider use of these alloys. In this article, the laser welding process with an Nd:YAG laser using a maximum power of 2 kW was studied and reported. The effect of welding parameters, such as laser and welding, was analysed. Metal sheets of 1 mm thickness in AZ31B magnesium alloy were butt-welded with helium and argon as shielding gas in the absence of filler material. The mechanical characteristics were measured during tensile tests, using digital image correlation (DIC) as a deformation measurement technique. After a preliminary experimental plan aimed at exploring the range of process parameters, the welding process was optimized using an approach based on the design of experiments (DoE). Consecutive experimental plans led to optimized butt joints, which, following a tensile test, showed a sound weld bead with fracturing in the base material. Local strain analysis by DIC highlighted different tensile behaviours, in terms of deformation of the weld bead, in the optimized butt joints with respect to those that were not optimized.
Acknowledgements
This research was carried out within the framework of the LACER project funded by the Ministry for Education, the Universities and Research. The authors express their gratitude to the Authorities of the Apulia Region for having supported the research activities through the formation of the TRASFORMA laboratories network. The authors also thank the technicians of the Consorzio CALEF, R. De Bonis and E. Putignano, for their contribution.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
M. Brandizzi
M. Brandizzi, Director of the CALEF Consorzio, was awarded a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1989. He has worked as investigator at the RTM (1989) and researcher at the CRF (1990) in the field of laser applications. In 1993, he was a manager of the CRF Laser Centre, also conducting training courses on laser technology and, from 1994, director of projects for the development and application of innovative technologies in the areas of automotive mechanics, coachwork and components. Since 1998, he has been the CALEF and CRF coordinator and manager of numerous national and European projects in various industrial sectors (automotive, aeronautical and naval). He is the author of over 20 scientific works and was the industrial supervisor for over 40 university dissertations.
S. Renna
S. Renna was awarded a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Technologies and Production Processes at the Bari Polytechnic in April 2010. She has been qualified as a professional engineer since November 2010. From May 2010, she collaborated with GSE Industria Aeronautica Srl in the Program Management sector. In March 2011, she began her professional career at Avio SpA in the Repair Section, where she is involved in Planning and the Management of External Work.
A. Satriano
A. Satriano, who was awarded a degree in Mechanical Engineering at the Bari Polytechnic following her presentation of a special technologies thesis entitled ‘An experimental, numerical approach for the characterization of sheet metal welded with laser beam technology’ in 1998. In 1999, she was accepted for a stage of employment at the FIAT Research centre, where she was involved in experimental activities concerning laser technologies and the development of injection components. At the end of 1999, she was employed by CRF Powertrain research & Technology and in 2008, she joined ELASIS Manufacturing & Processes. She is a European co-inventor with 14 patents in the automotive sector, some of which are extended to other countries. She has been an industrial supervisor for a number of degree theses on special technologies. She currently carries out research activities on laser technologies at the Consorzio CALEF.
D. Sorgente
D. Sorgente, University Researcher in Technologies and Processing Systems at the Faculty of Engineering of the Bari Polytechnic, acquired the title of Dottore di Ricerca in Advanced Production Systems in March 2007. Until October 2007, he worked at the laboratories and workshops of the Department of Mechanical and Management Engineering of the Bari Polytechnic under a temporary employment contract. From October 2007 to March 2008, he worked at the Valenzano branch of the FIAT Research Centre, carrying out activities relating to the ‘Advanced Manufacturing & Materials’ business line. From March 2008 to the present, he has been involved in research activities at the Bari Polytechnic within the field of research projects co-funded by public bodies and private firms. His research activities have primarily focused on the optimization of production processes with particular attention to the processing of metallic materials.
L. Tricarico
L. Tricarico is a Professor in Processing Technologies and Systems at the Faculty of Engineering of the Bari Polytechnic, where he teaches and carries out research in the area of mechanical technologies. From 1984 to the present, he has written over 100 scientific works and articles published at both the national and international levels in the areas of research close to mechanical characterization, materials technology and non-conventional processing. He is currently a supervisor of research projects concerning planning and optimization with experimental numerical techniques of forming technologies in the plastics and superplastics sectors and laser-beam cutting and welding operations.