A study on heat source equations for the prediction of weld shape and thermal deformation in laser microwelding

In the area of laser welding, numerous studies have been performed in the past decades using either analytical or numerical approaches, or both combined. However, most of the previous studies were process oriented and modeled conduction and keyhole welding differently. In this research, various heat source equations that have been proposed in previous studies were calculated and compared with a new model. This is to address the problem of predicting, by numerical means, the thermomechanical behavior of laser spot welding for thin stainless steel plates. A finite-element model (FEM) code, ABAQUS, is used for the heat transfer and mechanical analysis with a three-dimensional plane assumption. Experimental studies of laser spot welding and measurement of thermal deformation have also been conducted to validate the numerical models presented. The results suggest that temperature profiles and weld deformation vary according to the heat source equation of the laser beam. For this reason, it is essential to incorporate an accurate model of the heat source.