About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2026 AWS Professional Program
|
| Symposium
|
2026 AWS Professional Program
|
| Presentation Title |
Advances in Computational Fluid Dynamics Based Welding Process Modeling of Residual Stress, Solidification Cracking, Thermal Damage and Electrode Cooling |
| Author(s) |
Wei Zhang, Aryan Aryan, Andrew Tong, Tarasankar DebRoy, Todd Palmer, Tuhin Mukherjee |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Wei Zhang |
| Abstract Scope |
Many welding process models in the literature consider solely heat conduction and do not directly treat the effect of liquid convection on heat transfer. Instead, such effect is indirectly accounted for using a prescribed heat flux distribution such as the ever-popular Goldak double-ellipsoidal heat source. However, the heat source parameters require calibration against experimental data, thus decreasing the models’ predictive capability. This talk first reviews the fundamentals of weld pool convection such as how it affects the fusion zone shape focusing on the role of dimensionless numbers. Then, recent advances in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) based welding process models are discussed using several examples. In Example 1, a well-tested heat transfer and fluid flow model is used to accurately calculate temperature history during laser additive manufacturing. The temperature field is mapped into a mechanical model to predict the residual stress and distortion. The effect of material properties and printing parameters on the residual stress is evaluated. The same approach is used in Example 2 where the susceptibility to unusual occurrence of horizontal fusion zone cracks in laser welds of Inconel 740H and 690 is compared. Example 3 studies the thermal damage to electrical insulation coating during keyhole laser welding of copper hairpins in electric motors. A local CFD melt pool model is used to predict the net laser energy absorbed via Fresnel absorption, which is then used in a global heat conduction model where the temperature evolution in the enamel coating is analyzed. Example 4 studies electrode cooling in resistance spot welding, where thermo-electro-mechanical finite element simulation is coupled with fluid-structure interaction simulation. Taken together, these examples illustrate how the advanced CFD based welding process models can significantly enhance the predictive capability, which are crucial for computer aided engineering and optimization to achieve defect free and sound welds. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Undecided |