PARAMETRIC STUDY OF THE 2-DIMENSIONAL KEYHOLE MODEL FOR HIGH-POWER DENSITY WELDING PROCESSES

This study presents a parametric study of the two-dimensional steady-state keyhole model for high power density welding processes. Keyhole formation is common to electron beam welding, laser welding, and plasma arc welding, all of which are important techniques for high-quality, high-precision welding. Computation was performed by adopting a recently developed concept of the position correction and modifying it suitably for the problem of interest. The dimensionless parameters pertaining to the model were identified and the influence of each parameter was investigated separately. Although the mathematical model employed here has been used in previous studies, a thorough investigation successfully revealed new features that have not been previously recognized in the literature.