Experimental and numerical investigation of a gouging heat source model and gouging/welding residual stress and deformation

Gouging is generally used for groove preparation of multi-pass welding and repair welding. Arc gouging is one of the most efficient gouging methods which utilizes an arc heat source and a trailing air blower. To date, the heat effects from the arc gouging are not clear especially when it is coupled with subsequent welding. In this study, a new heat source model considering the blown molten metal as well as the increased heat transfer by the blowing air was proposed. A 3D finite element model for gouging and welding was employed to analyze the thermal behavior, welding distortion and residual stresses. The transient temperature predicted by the proposed heat source model has good agreement with thermocouple measurements, both featuring multiple peaks in the thermal profile. The predicted distortion and residual stress due to gouging show similar trends as those in experiment. The proposed analysis approach can provide necessary insights, with high accuracy, in the evaluation of welding distortion and residual stresses in practical manufacturing.