In continuous wave keyhole-mode laser welding of high strength steel alloys hot cracking can occur. The hot crack susceptibility depends on the mutual interaction of several factors like the welding parameters, the alloy composition and the weld fixturing. In this paper we focus on the influence of the welding parameters and investigate the dependency of the laser power, the welding speed and the laser wavelength on the crack formation. X-ray images are used to visualize the hot crack patterns, which exhibit a pronounced periodicity. To influence the hot crack formation, the incident energy input into the process was adapted. For specific welding parameters, we show exemplarily the prevention of hot cracking by the use of a twin-spot optics.
|