Two-beam Laser Brazing of Thin Sheet Steel for Automotive Industry Using Cu-base Filler Material

This work shows the potential of two-beam laser brazing for joining both Zn-coated steel and 22MnB5. Brazing of Zn-coated steel sheets using Cu-Si filler wire is already state of the art in car manufacturing. New press-hardened steels like 22MnB5 are more and more used in automotive industry, offering high potential to save costs and improve structural properties (reduced weight / higher stiffness). However, for joining of these ultra-high strength steels investigations are mandatory. In this paper, a novel approach using a two-beam laser brazing process and Cu-base filler material is presented. The use of Cu-base filler material leads to a reduced heat input, compared to currently applied welding processes, which may result in benefits concerning distortion, post processing and tensile strength of the joint. Reliable processing at desired high speeds is attained by means of laser-preheating. High feed rates prevent significant diffusion of copper into the base material.