Study on CO2 laser weldability of Fe-Mn-Si shape memory alloy

In this study, a cross-flow laser with maximum out power of 5kW was applied to the welding of Fe-Mn-Si shape memory alloys (SMA). The optimal welding processing parameters of 1mm thick Fe-Mn-Si SMA were established by orthogonal experiment. With the optimal processing parameters, power 1600W, welding speed 2.2m/min, defocusing distance 0.6mm, the tensile strength of the welded joint can achieve 93.5% of the base material, and the weld undercut and reinforcement transfer smoothly on the surface of the welding seam and the cross-section of the welding seam morphology presents "X" shape. The fracture appears in the weld fusion zone, so this area is weak during the laser welding. By the metallographic observation, the weld center structure is small equated, and the region of fusion zone is thick cellular crystal that decreases the strength of the welded joint, and the X-ray diffraction (XRD) test proves that the laser welding promotes the grain refinement. The micro-hardness analysis shows that the hardness of the fusion zone is lower than the other area clearly which is also associated to the weld structure. By the fracture scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis, it is found that the fracture of Fe-Mn-Si SMA shows many small dimples with the optimal parameters, and the result is accorded with the base material which belongs to plastic fracture.