Study on weld bead surface profile and angular distortion in 6 mm thick butt weld joints of SS304 using fiber laser

Abstract We deployed a 2 kW continuous wave fiber laser integrated with the 5-axis workstation to understand the effect of various processing parameters (laser power, welding speed, beam spot size and chamfer at welded edges) on depth of penetration, angular distortion and welded bead surface profile during autogenous laser welding of 6 mm thick austenitic stainless steel type 304 plates. Full penetration with reduced weld bead surface undulation ( 0.1 and 235±10 HV 0.1 respectively. The tensile testing of laser welded samples indicated the ultimate strength >605 MPa and these samples could be bent for an angle >170° without noticeable crack during bend test. The study opened the avenues for the deployment of fiber laser welding technology for applications demanding critical values of surface weld bead profile and distortion.