Microstructure of Laser-MAG Hybrid Welds of Sintered P/M Steel

The microstructure and mechanical properties of iron-based powder metallurgical steels jointed by CO2 laser-metal active gas (MAG) hybrid welding were investigated. The cross-sectional morphology of hybrid weld bead consisted of arc zone and laser zone. The microstructure of arc zone consisted of columnar dendrite and fine acicular dendrite between the columnar dendrites, but that of laser zone was composed of fine equiaxed dendrite. The MAG weld had obvious heat-affected zone (HAZ) zone, while hybrid weld had very narrow HAZ zone because of the rapid cooling rate. The phase constitutions of the joint determined by x-ray diffraction were alpha-Fe (ferrite) and Cu. The 2 theta value of alpha-Fe (200) peaks of hybrid weld was smaller than that of sintering compact. Compared to MAG weld, hybrid weld had finer grain size, higher micro-hardness, and higher micro-strain, which was caused by the difference of cooling rate and crystallizing.