Effects of heat distribution during cold metal transfer arc welding on galvanized steel using volumetric heat source model

Abstract

This research article deals with an advanced cold metal transfer welded galvanized steel, intending to predict the heat distribution using ANSYS workbench during the welding. The excessive heat distribution during the welding forms broader and softer heat affected zone, especially in the steel joints. Hence, the joint strength reduces drastically with the increased failure rate. Controlling the wider and softer heat affected zone in joining of steel is a challenging process due to inappropriate techniques on heat supply by the existing fusion welding process. The cold metal transfer welding is an emerging welding process to join the sheet metal and to overcome the above problems. Therefore, the thermal history of the cold metal transfer welded galvanized steel temperature is measured using an infrared thermometer and compared with finite element analysis using the volumetric heat source model. The comparative results showed that only ±5% error between them with narrow heat affected zone and the hardness at the same zone has been increased to 30% than the other fusion welding. The integrity of the joints are analyzed using advanced facilities and the mechanical, metallurgical and physical properties are correlated with heat distribution.

Keywords

• CMT welding
• Galvanized steel
• Volumetric heat source
• Tensile strength
• EBSD analysis
• Hardness