Research on laser-arc hybrid welding technology for long-distance pipeline construction

In recent years, the research on pipeline laser-arc hybrid welding technology has been the important and difficult in the field of welding all over the world. China Petroleum Pipeline Research Institute Co. Ltd. has firstly developed pipeline laser-arc hybrid welding system in China, and executed the welding tests based on X70/X80 steel. Preliminary experiment results showed that hybrid welding could meet the requirements of related standards such as API1104,ASME,etc., the mechanical properties of girth seam are qualified in the case that there were no internal defects. With the development of high-power fiber laser and the continuous improvement of welding equipment, laser-arc hybrid welding technology for pipeline field welding will be available soon.

Microstructure and properties of laser-arc hybrid welding of high-strength low-alloy steel

Laser-arc hybrid welding has the characteristics of optimal surface formation and greater penetration;it is extensively used in the welding of plates of medium thickness.However, for hybrid welding of lasers, the welding seam cooling rate is rapid;thus, the welding seam has a higher tendency to significantly harden, which has a negative impact on the weld quality of the high-strength low-alloy(HSLA) steel plates of medium thickness.In this study, laser-arc hybrid welding is performed on the BG890 QL HSLA steel produced by Baoshan Iron & Steel Co.,Ltd.,and the quenching tendency of the welded structure is examined.The results demonstrate that the specific growth direction of the columnar crystal structure of the laser-arc hybrid welded joint is obvious.However, at the center and top of the welded seam, there are equiaxed crystals.The impact properties at room temperature and-40 ℃ of the weld area are 58.0 J and 40.0 J,respectively, and those of the heat-affected zone(HAZ) are 147.0 J and 66.5 J,respectively.The impact performance can meet these requirements.Laser-arc hybrid welding of HSLA steel can yield strong and durable welds and the HAZ structure to meet the requirements of engineering applications.

Numerical simulation of temperature field in laser-arc hybrid welding of wear-resistant steel

Using ABAQUS software and cylindrical ellipsoid and body heat sources with a peak-heat-flux- attenuation function, a finite element model of the temperature field in the laser-arc hybrid welding of 4.5-mm BW300TP wear-resistant steel is proposed. The proposed model considers convection, radiation, molten pool flow, and heat conduction effect on temperature. A comparison of the simulation and actual welding test results confirms the reliability of the model. This welding heat-process model can provide the cooling rate at any position in the heat affected zone （HAZ） and can be used as a reference for the analysis of material properties and for process optimization.

Beam oscillating parameters on pore inhibition,recrystallization and grain boundary characteristics of laser-arc hybrid welded AZ31 magnesium alloy

Oscillating laser-arc hybrid welding of AZ31B magnesium alloy was carried out,the effects of beam oscillation parameters on pore inhibition,microstructure,grain boundary characteristics and tensile properties were investigated.The results showed that the pore formation can be inhibited with oscillating frequency higher than 75 Hz and radius smaller than 0.5 mm.The columnar grains neighboring the fusion line can be broken by the beam oscillation behavior,while the grain growth was promoted with the increase of frequency or radius.It should be noted that the coincidence site lattice(CSL)boundaries were mainlyΣ13b andΣ29 boundaries,which were contributed by{10■2}tensile twins and{11■2}compression twins,respectively.The total fraction of CSL boundaries reached maximum at radius of 0.25 mm and frequency of 75 Hz,which was also confirmed as the optimized parameters.In this case,the elongation rate increased up to 13.2%,12.8%higher than that of the weld without beam oscillation.Finally,the pore formation and inhibition mechanisms were illustrated according to the state of melt flow and keyhole formation,the abnormal growth was discussed basing on secondary recrystallization,and the relationship among the pore formation,grain size,boundary characteristics and weld toughness were finally established.

Correlation between laser-wire distance and Nd：YAG laser ＋ P-GMA hybrid welding heat input parameters

In laser ＋ P-GMA hybrid welding, laser-wire distance is an important parameter to describe the distance from laser spot to the center of the pulsed gas metal arc. The experiments results show that the optimal laser-wire distance with the deepest weld penetration increases with welding current and laser power being increased and decreases with welding speed being increased. Welding current, laser power and welding speed determine the hybrid welding heat input in laser ＋ arc hybrid welding process, so there is a correlation between the optimal laser-wire distanee and the hybrid heat input welding parameters for the deepest weld penetration： the optimal laser-wire distance increases with the heat input being increased. The positive correlation between the optimal laser-wire distance and the hybrid welding heat input is induced by the characteristics of the limited influence of P-GMA welding process on laser transmission and the dependence of weld penetration of hybrid welding on laser power.

Microstructure homogeneity and mechanical properties of laser-arc hybrid welded AZ31B magnesium alloy

Laser-arc hybrid welding of AZ31B magnesium alloy was carried out,the effects of welding parameters on weld formation,microstructure homogeneity and mechanical properties were investigated.The results showed that laser-arc hybrid welding was beneficial to improve the weld formation of magnesium alloy by inhibiting the defect of undercut and pores.The weld microstructure was mainly columnar grains neighboring the fusion line and equiaxed grains at the weld center.It was interesting that the grain size at the upper arc zone was smaller than that at the lower laser zone,with the difference mainly affected by laser power rather than welding current and welding speed.The welding parameters were optimized as laser power of 3.5 kW,welding current of 100 A and welding speed of 1.5 m/min.In this case,the weld was free of undercut and pores,and the tensile strength and elongation rate reached 252 MPa and 11.2%,respectively.Finally,the microstructure homogeneity was illustrated according to the heat distribution,and the evolution law of tensile properties was discussed basing on the weld formation and microstructure characteristics.

Three thermal analysis models for laser, GMAW-P and Iaser＋GMAW-P hybrid welding

The temperature fields and the weld pool geometries for laser ＋ GMAW-P hybrid welding, laser welding and pulsed gas metal arc welding （GMAW-P） are numerically simulated in quasi-steady state by using the developed heat source models, respectively. The calculated weld cross-sectious of the three types of welding processes agree well with their respective measured results. Through comparison, it is found that the temperature distribution of laser＋GMAW-P hybrid welding possesses the advantages of those in both laser and GMAW-P welding processes so that the improvement of welding productivity and weld quality are ensured.

High-speed butt welding of magnesium alloy using pulsed laser-arc hybrid heat source

Laser-arc hybrid welding at a speed of 6 000 mm/min is carried out on 2 mm thick magnesium alloy AZ61 plateand completely-penetrated butt joints are obtained, lnvestigations of the influence of parameters on weld formation show that Ihe addition of pulsed laser can effctively enhance tlle heat penetrability attd directivity nf the hybrid heat source. Measurements on microstructures and mechanical properties the joint indicate that grain in the.fhsion zone is refined and the grain size is sensitive to the arc current ; the fitsioa zone exhibits the highest hardaess; the tensile strength of the joint reaches 93% of base metal; there is the brittle fracture along the grain bozmdaries in the fusion zone. High-speed camera images exhibit that although the two adjacent laser pulses can not overlap, the recorery relaxation of the concentrated electric arc after laser intlse action can still maintain the continuous welding process.

Experimental study on gas metal arc welding and laser hybrid welding of WYS700 steel

Gas metal arc welding, laser welding, and laser-metal active gas welding(MAG) hybrid welding methods were applied to WYS700 steel.Different welding procedures were performed and different welding technologies were compared.Macro metallographs of the welded joints were obtained, and the mechanical properties(such as tensile strength, bending property, and hardness) of the joints formed using the different welding technologies were determined.The results revealed that the joint of the WYS700 steel could be formed well through gas metal arc welding, laser welding, and laser-MAG hybrid welding.Furthermore, the softening of the welding heat affected zone can be effectively reduced to obtain good strength and plasticity by using a suitable welding procedure.Laser-MAG hybrid welding allows the realization of high efficiency and deep penetration for the welding of thick plates with specifications above 3 mm.

Characteristic of laser-MIG hybrid welding with filling additional cold wire for aluminum alloy

The weld appearance, deposition rate, welding efficiency, stability of arc, laser keyhole characteristic, and weld property were studied by using a novel laser-MIG hybrid welding process with filling wire of aluminum alloy. The results were also compared with those by conventional laser-MIG hybrid welding process. It was found that with the suitable process parameters this novel welding process for aluminum alloy was stable and final weld bead had fine appearance. Compared to conventional laser-MIG hybrid welding process, during this novel welding process the stability of arc, the laser keyhole characteristic and the weld property were similar, while the keyhole cycle frequency and keyhole opening area had differences of 1.23% and 15.34%, respectively, and the welding efficiency increased by about 31% without increasing heat input.

CO_2 laser-micro plasma arc hybrid welding for galvanized steel sheets

A laser lap welding process for zinc-coated steel has a well-known unsolved problem-porosity formation. The boiling temperature of coated zinc is lower than the melting temperature of the base metal, which is steel. In the autogenous laser welding, the zinc vapor generates from the lapped surfaces expels the molten pool and the expulsion causes numerous weld defects, such as spatters and blow holes on the weld surface and porosity inside the welds. The laser-arc hybrid welding was suggested as an alternative method for the laser lap welding because the arc can preheat or post-beat the weldment according to the arrangement of the laser beam and the arc. CO2 laser-micro plasma hybrid welding was applied to the lap welding of zinc-coated steel with zero-gap. The relationships among the weld quality and process parameters of the laser-arc arrangement, and the laser-arc interspacing distance and arc current were investigated using a full-factorial experimental design. The effect of laser-arc arrangement is dominant because the leading plasma arc partially melts the upper steel sheets and vaporizes or oxidizes the coated zinc on the lapped surfaces. Compared with the result from the laser-TIG hybrid welding, the heat input from arc can be reduced by 40%.

CHARACTERISTICS OF DROPLET TRANSFER IN CO_2 LASER-MIG HYBRID WELDING WITH SHORTCIRCUITING MODE

LF6 aluminum alloy plates with 4.5 mm thickness are welded in this experiment. Welding is carried out by using the CO2 laser-MIG paraxial hybrid welding in fiat position. The experimental results indicate that the inherent droplet transfer cycle time of conventional MIG arc is changed due to the interaction between CO2 laser beam and MIG arc in the short-circuiting mode of laser-MIG hybrid welding. Because of the preheating action of CO2 laser to electrode and base material, the droplet transfer frequency of MIG arc is increased in the hybrid welding process. When laser power is increased to a certain degree, the droplet transfer frequency is decreased due to the effect of laser-induced keyhole. Furthermore, through analyzing the MIG welding current and arc voltage waveforms and the characteristics of droplet transfer in the hybrid welding process, the effect of laser energy and the action point between laser beam and arc on the frequency of droplet transfer and weld appearance is investigated in details.

MODEL OF LASER-TIG HYBRID WELDING HEAT SOURCE

The welding mechanism of laser-TIG hybrid welding process is analyzed. Withthe variation of arc current, the welding process is divided into two patterns: deep-penetrationwelding and heat conductive welding. The heat flow model of hybrid welding is presented. As todeep-penetration welding, the heat source includes a surface heat flux and a volume heat flux. Theheat source of heat conductive welding is composed of two Gaussian distribute surface heat sources.With this heat source model, a temperature field is calculated. The finite element code MARC isemployed for this purpose. The calculation results show a good agreement with the experimental data.

Effect of laser-wire distance on temperature distribution in laser ＋ GMAW-P hybrid welding

The temperature fields in laser ＋ GMAW-P hybrid welding for different laser-wire distances in quasi-steady state were calculated using an developed combined heat source model, and the influence of laser-wire distance on them was analyzed. The results show tbat, at a low level of arc power, the temperature profiles caused by laser and arc energy respecively cannot couple well when the laser-wire distance reaches 4 mm, a trend of separation between them beginning to take place. In the case of high arc power, both the critical laser-wire distance and HAZ width increase.

Novel hybrid method: pulse CO_2 laser-TIG hybrid welding by coordinated control

In continuous wave CO2 laser-TlG hybrid welding process, the laser energy is not fully utilized because of the absorption and defocusing by plasma in the arc space. Therefore, the optimal welding result can only be achieved in a limited energy range. In order to improve the welding performance further, a novel hybrid welding method--pulse CO2 laser-TIG arc hybrid welding by coordinated control is proposed and investigated. The experimental results indicate that, compared with continuous wave CO2 laser-TIG hybrid welding, the absorption and defocusing of laser energy by plasma are decreased further, and at the same time, the availability ratio of laser and arc energy can be increased when a coordinated frequency is controlled. As a result, the weld appearance is also improved as well as the weld depth is deepened. Furthermore, the effect of frequency and phase of pulse laser and TIG arc on the arc images and welding characteristics is also studied. However, the novel hybrid method has great potentials in the application of industrials from views of techniques and economy.

Influence of laser on arcs in alternate arcing during laser-twin-arc hybrid welding process

In this study, multi-information including spectrum, high-speed photograph and electrical signal was adopted to explore the coupling mechanism of alternate burning in laser-twin-arc welding process. Laser provides a conductive, stable plasma channel for arcs. Plasma radiation strengthened especially in the center of the arc after hybrid. High temperature plasma erupting from keyhole provides an upward reacting force which can prevent droplet from transfer. The charged particles consisted in high temperature plasma reduce the voltage that maintains arc ignition or burning. The results show that laser can influence the arc shape, prevent droplet transfer, reduce resistivity and stabilize arcs.

Low-power YAG laser/arc hybrid welding of AZ-based Mg alloy

The results of recent researches on the weldability of laser/arc hybrid welding of AZ-based Mg alloy was presented.Experiments were conducted with a low-power(500 W) Nd:YAG laser and a TIG arc.The synergic effects and mechanical properties of the Mg joints by laser/arc hybrid welding were investigated,and the interaction mechanism of laser to arc was also discussed.The results show that Mg alloys can be easily welded in similar and dissimilar joints by laser/arc hybrid welding technique.With the arc power increasing,a higher weld depth is obtained,and the weld depths for laser and arc acting in combination(laser/arc) are two times higher than that of the total of laser and arc acting separately(laser+arc) in optimal conditions.The tensile strength and fatigue strength of the AZ31B joints welded by laser/arc hybrid process are equivalent to that of the based metal.Besides,the laser-induced plume/plasma images captured by high speed camera were used to study the interaction between laser beam and arc.

Effect of laser power on metal transfer in laser-double arcs P-MAG hybrid welding with single power source

The effect of laser power on metal transfer is studied under conditions of alternating combustion of double arcs in order to develop the welding process of the laser-double arcs pulsed metal active gas （P-MAG） hybrid welding with single power. Different laser power corresponds to different interactive mechanisms of laser and arc and to different methods of metal transfer in the hybrid welding. When the laser power ascends from 500 W to 1 500 W, the methods of metal transfer change from the complex transfer of one droplet per pulse, one droplet two pulses and one droplet much more pulses during the mixture of globular and projected transfer of the lead wire, and from one droplet two pulses and one droplet three pulses during globular transfer of the follow wire to the methods of the metal transfer of both lead wire and follow wire are stable one droplet two pulses and one droplet three pulses when the metal transfer is mainly globular. The arc sharps and pressure of droplet are altered with the laser power changing. The compression of the arcs is strengthened by the laser and the offset of the center of droplet mass is much more obvious with the increasing of the laser power.

Mathematical analysis of the role of recoil pressure in weld pool dynamics during laser-MIG hybrid welding

A mathematical model was established to simulate the weld pool development and dynamic process in stationary iaser-MlG hybrid welding. Surface tension and buoyancy were considered to calculate liquid metal flow patter, moreover, typical phenomena of MIG welding, such as filler droplets impinging weld pool, electromagnetic force in the weld pool, and typical phenomena of laser beam welding, such as recoil pressure, Inverse Bremsstrahlung absorption, Fresnel absorption were all considered in the model. The laser beam and arc couple effect were introduced into this model by the plasma width during hybrid welding. The role of recoil pressure in the weld formation was discussed. Transient weld pool shape and complicated liquid metal velocity distribution from two kinds weld pool to an unified weld pool were calculated. The simulated weld bead geometry with consideration recoil pressure was in good agreement with experimental measurement.

Research on weldability of ZL101/TiB2 MMCs by laser-TIG hybrid welding

The weldability of in situ TiB2 reinforced ZL101 metal matrix composites （ MMCs） was examined using laser-TIG hybrid welding technology. High speed camera was employed to observe the coupled results between laser plume and electric arc. Optical microscope （OM） , scanning electron microscope （SEM） , tensile machine and wearing equipment were used to evaluate the quality of welding joint. The effective hybrid welding was realized and defect-free seam was obtained when the laser power （8 kW）, TIG current （ 100 A） and welding speed （3 nv/min ） were combined. TiB2 distribution became much more homogeneous than the pre-welded, and microstructure of seam was .finer obviously. Tensile and wear resistance test showed that the weld seam presented higher strength and better wear-reslstance properties than the base metal. The results indicated that TiB2 reinforced aluminum matrix composites were successfully welded using the laser-T1G hybrid welding method.