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The effect of beam oscillations on the microstructure and mechanical properties of electron beam welded steel joints

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Abstract

The influence of beam oscillations on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low-carbon steels, subjected to electron beam welding, was investigated. Beam oscillations created a dynamic distribution of power around the stationary position of the beam resulting in the enhanced flow of heat inside the keyhole and yielded wider fusion and heat-affected zones. A reduction in the undercutting at the weld root was also achieved through beam oscillation. The weld microstructure consisted of large columnar grains in the fusion zone and equiaxed grains of varying sizes in the heat-affected zone. The variation in grain size across the weld joint was attributed to the steep temperature gradients produced during electron beam welding. High hardness was seen in the fusion and heat-affected zones due to the occurrence of martensite. Weld samples fabricated using beam oscillations showed lower microhardness compared with joints produced by stationary beam welding. This decrease in hardness arose from enhanced grain growth and additional diffusion of carbon out of the austenite lattice due to beam oscillations. Beam oscillations did not introduce any significant morphological changes to the weld microstructure, but resulted in enhanced tensile strength and lower microhardness in the weld joints.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the German Research Foundation (DFG) for their continued support of our research in the Collaborative Research Centre SFB1120 ‘Precision Melt Engineering’.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Steel Institute IEHK, RWTH Aachen University, Intzestr. 1, 52072, Aachen, Germany

    Krishna Komerla

  2. Welding and Joining Institute ISF, RWTH Aachen University, Pontstr. 49, 52062, Aachen, Germany

    Stefan Gach & Uwe Reisgen

  3. The Foundry Institute GI, RWTH Aachen University, Intzestr. 5, 52072, Aachen, Germany

    Thomas Vossel & Andreas Bührig-Polaczek

  4. Central Facility for Electron Microscopy GFE, RWTH Aachen University, Ahornstr. 55, 52074, Aachen, Germany

    Alexander Schwedt

  5. Steel Institute IEHK, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany

    Wolfgang Bleck

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  1. Krishna Komerla
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Correspondence to Krishna Komerla.

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Appendix

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Fig. 11
figure 11

Tensile test setup depicting the load cell, holding grips, tensile specimen and the video extensometer used to measure the elongation; A high-speed camera was also employed to study the nucleation and growth of Lüders band

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Komerla, K., Gach, S., Vossel, T. et al. The effect of beam oscillations on the microstructure and mechanical properties of electron beam welded steel joints. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 102, 2919–2931 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-019-03355-4

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