Impact of Different Parameters for Pulsed-Laser Welding of the Austenitic Stainless Steel 304

• Published in: Chemical engineering & technology 2015-12, Vol.38 (12), p.2189-2197
• Main Authors: Gietzelt, Thomas, Wunsch, Torsten, Eichhorn, Lutz, Dittmeyer, Roland
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Austenitic stainless steels; Deviation; Distortion; Laser welding; Pulse width; Pulsed laser; Seams; Sheet material; Stainless steel 304; Welded joints; Welding; Welding parameters
• ISSN: 0930-7516; 1521-4125
• DOI: 10.1002/ceat.201500212

For welding of delicate apparatuses made of thin sheet material, the distortion is strongly governed by the heat input. Parameter variations for pulsed‐laser welding were performed to study the influence of the energy input per unit length and per time as well as the impact of the pulse width and other parameters on the weld seam geometry. Even for a constant energy input per unit length, deviations of the cross section of the weld seam were observed due to different dissipation of the deposited energy. For the same energy input per unit length the geometry of the weld seam is strongly influenced by the pulse width. Also deviations from expected behavior were found and could be explained, e.g., by a shortfall in energy density to melt the material. Distortions in welding of fragile apparatuses consisting of thin sheet material strongly depend on the heat input. Key parameters for pulsed‐laser welding were varied in order to investigate the influence of the energy input per unit length and time as well as of the pulse width and other factors on the weld seam geometry. Deviations from expected performance are explained.