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Fiber Laser Welded AZ31 Magnesium Alloy: The Effect of Welding Speed on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties

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Abstract

This study was aimed at characterizing microstructural change and evaluating tensile and fatigue properties of fiber laser welded AZ31B-H24 Mg alloy with special attention to the effect of welding speed. Laser welding led to the formation of equiaxed dendrites in the fusion zone and columnar dendrites near the fusion zone boundary along with divorced eutectic Mg17Al12 particles and recrystallized grains in the heat-affected zone. The lowest hardness across the weld appeared in the fusion zone. Although the yield strength, ductility, and fatigue life decreased, the hardening capacity increased after laser welding, with a joint efficiency reaching about 90 pct. A higher welding speed resulted in a narrower fusion zone, smaller grain size, higher yield strength, and longer fatigue life, as well as a slightly lower strain-hardening capacity mainly because of the smaller grain sizes. Tensile fracture occurred in the fusion zone, whereas fatigue failure appeared essentially in between the heat-affected zone and the fusion zone. Fatigue cracks initiated from the near-surface welding defects and propagated by the formation of fatigue striations together with secondary cracks.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and AUTO21 Network of Centers of Excellence for providing financial support. This investigation involves part of Canada-China-USA Collaborative Research Project on the Magnesium Front End Research and Development. The authors also thank General Motors Research and Development Center for supplying the test materials, and IPG Photonics Applications Lab, Novi, MI for making and supplying the fiber laser welded joints. One of the authors (D.L. Chen) is grateful for the financial support by the Premier’s Research Excellence Award (PREA), NSERC-Discovery Accelerator Supplement (DAS) Award, Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), and Ryerson Research Chair (RRC) program. The assistance of Q. Li, A. Machin, J. Amankrah, D. Ostrom and R. Churaman (Ryerson University) in performing the experiments is gratefully acknowledged. The authors also thank Dr. X. Cao, Dr. S. Xu, Dr. K. Sadayappan, Dr. J. Jackman, Professor N. Atalla, Professor S. Lambert, Professor H. Jahed, Professor Y.S. Yang, Professor J. Allison, Professor M.F. Horstemeyer, Professor B. Jordon, Dr. A.A. Luo, Mr. R. Osborne, Mr. J.F. Quinn, Dr. X.M. Su, and Mr. L. Zhang for their helpful discussion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, M5B 2K3, Canada

    S. H. Chowdhury (Graduate Student), D. L. Chen (Professor and Ryerson Research Chair) & S. D. Bhole (Professor)

  2. Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada

    E. Powidajko (Graduate Student), D. C. Weckman (Professor) & Y. Zhou (Professor and Canada Research Chair)

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  1. S. H. Chowdhury
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Correspondence to D. L. Chen.

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Manuscript submitted June 7, 2011.

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Chowdhury, S.H., Chen, D.L., Bhole, S.D. et al. Fiber Laser Welded AZ31 Magnesium Alloy: The Effect of Welding Speed on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties. Metall Mater Trans A 43, 2133–2147 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-011-1042-z

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