Grain refining in weld metal using short-pulsed laser ablation during CW laser welding of 2024-T3 aluminum alloy

Abstract

Abstract The 2024 aluminum alloy is used extensively in the aircraft and aerospace industries because of its excellent mechanical properties. However, the weldability of 2024 aluminum alloy is generally low because it contains a high number of solutes, such as copper (Cu), magnesium (Mg), and manganese (Mn), causing solidification cracking. If high speed welding of 2024 aluminum alloy without the use of filler is achieved, the applicability of 2024 aluminum alloys will expand. Grain refining is one of the methods used to prevent solidification cracking in weld metal, although it has never been achieved for high-speed laser welding of 2024 aluminum alloy without filler. Here, we propose a short-pulsed, laser-induced, grain-refining method during continuous wave laser welding without filler. Bead-on-plate welding was performed on a 2024-T3 aluminum alloy at a welding speed of 1 m min−1 with a single mode fiber laser at a wavelength of 1070 nm and power of 1 kW. Areas in and around the molten pool were irradiated with nanosecond laser pulses at a wavelength of 1064 nm, pulse width of 10 ns, and pulse energy of 430 mJ. The grain-refinement effect was confirmed when laser pulses were irradiated on the molten pool. The grain-refinement region was formed in a semicircular shape along the solid–liquid interface. Results of the vertical section indicate that the grain-refinement region reached a depth of 1 mm along the solid–liquid interface. The Vickers hardness test results demonstrated that the hardness increased as a result of grain refinement and that the progress of solidification cracking was suppressed in the grain refinement region.