Comparison of joint designs for laser welding of cast metal plates and wrought wires

The purpose of the present study was to compare joint designs for the laser welding of cast metal plates and wrought wire, and to evaluate the welded area internally using X-ray micro-focus computerized tomography (micro-CT). Cast metal plates (Ti, Co-Cr) and wrought wires (Ti, Co-Cr) were welded using similar metals. The specimens were welded using four joint designs in which the wrought wires and the parent metals were welded directly (two designs) or the wrought wires were welded to the groove of the parent metal from one or both sides (n = 5). The porosity and gap in the welded area were evaluated by micro-CT, and the maximum tensile load of the welded specimens was measured with a universal testing machine. An element analysis was conducted using an electron probe X-ray microanalyzer. The statistical analysis of the results was performed using Bonferroni's multiple comparisons (alpha = 0.05). The results included that all the specimens fractured at the wrought wire when subjected to tensile testing, although there were specimens that exhibited gaps due to the joint design. The wrought wires were affected by laser irradiation and observed to melt together and onto the filler metal. Both Mo and Sn elements found in the wrought wire were detected in the filler metal of the Ti specimens, and Ni was detected in the filler metal of the Co-Cr specimens. The four joint designs simulating the designs used clinically were confirmed to have adequate joint strength provided by laser welding.