Alloying elemental change of SS-316 and Al-5754 during laser welding using real time laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) accompanied by EDX and PIXE microanalysis

Experimental studies of pulsed laser welding of stainless steel 316 in keyhole mode was done to examine a vaporization model based on the kinetic theory of gases and the thermodynamic laws. A long pulsed Nd:YAG laser with variable duration of 1–12 ms and 9–17 Gw/cm2 was employed. The undesirable loss of volatile elements affects on the weld metal compositions and the alloy properties. The model predicts that the loss of alloying elements strongly takes place at higher peak powers and longer pulse durations. On the other hand, the model shows the rapid migration of Mn and Cr based on the pressure and concentration gradients from the molten pool. Accordingly, the concentrations of iron, chromium, nickel and manganese were determined in the weld pool by means of the energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDX) and proton induced X ray characteristics (PIXE) microanalysis. The change of weld metal composition of aluminium alloy 5754 in keyhole mode laser welding, was investigated using the model and was supported by the successive measurements. The model predicts that the concentration of magnesium in the weld metal decreases, while the aluminium concentration increases. Moreover, the real time concentrations of aluminium and magnesium elements in the weld metal were determined by laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) at different conditions. We conclude that variation of the Al to Mg concentration ratio is negligible with various laser power densities while it is strongly correlated to the pulse duration.