Experimental investigation and numerical simulation of fiber laser welding of Ti-6Al-4V alloy and SS-316L

Abstract

The full form of Laser is ‘Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation’. The most attractive and important properties of laser beam which are significant in material processing are high power, low divergence, directional, coherent and monochromatic beam. One of the most important characteristics of laser beam is its high energy density due to which it is widely used in welding of materials having high melting point. Titanium and its alloys serve as a bridge between the ideal properties of aluminum and steel. It is recognized as a workhorse for aerospace and automotive industries and is widely used in many areas such as aerospace, medicinal, chemical and aviation industries etc. due to its excellent combination of both high strength and ductility, low density, better corrosion resistance and excellent biocompatibility. The main goal of ongoing research work is to investigate the weldability of similar materials of Ti-6Al-4V alloy having thicknesses of 5, 2 and 1.5 mm and austenitic stainless steel of grade 316L (SS-316L) having thickness of 3 mm using fiber laser autogenously.