Blue Diode Laser Welding of Commercially Pure Titanium Foils

Abstract

The need for thin foil welding is increasing significantly, particularly in the electronic industries. The technologies that are currently available limit the joining processes in terms of materials and their geometries. In this paper, a series of trials of fusion welding (bead-on- plate) of commercially pure titanium (CPTi) foils were conducted using a blue diode laser (BDL) welding method. The power used was 50 W and 100 W for 0.1 mm and 0.2 mm thick foils, respectively. Following welding, various samples were prepared to examine the weld profiles, microstructures, hardness, tensile strength, and fracture surface characteristics. The results showed that the base metal (BM) had an annealed microstructure with equiaxed grains, while the weld zones contained martensite (α’) with large grains. The hardness increased in both regions, from around 123 HV to around 250 HV, in the heat-affected zone (HAZ) and fusion zone (FZ) areas. The tensile tests revealed that the strengths of the welded samples were slightly lower than the unwelded samples, i.e., UTS = 300–350 MPa compared with 325–390 MPa for the unwelded samples. Fracture took place within the BM area. All of the samples, welded and unwelded, showed identical fracture mechanisms, i.e., microvoid coalescence or ductile fracture. The weld zone experienced very small strains (elongation) at fracture, which indicates a good weld quality.