2008Microstructure and mechanical properties of magnesium alloy AZ31B laser beam welds.pdf

Am t i d d ? K 1 t u t t i b t [ i p p m m o a 0 dMaterials Science and Engineering A 485 (2008) 20–30 Microstructure and mechanical properties of magnesium alloy AZ31B laser beam welds R.S. Coelho a, A. Kostka a,?, H. Pinto a, S. Riekehr b, M. Koc?ak b, A.R. Pyzalla a a Max-Planck-Institut fu?r Eisenforschung GmbH, 40237 Du?sseldorf, Germany b GKSS Research Center GmbH, 21502 Geesthacht, Germany Received 9 March 2007; received in revised form 17 July 2007; accepted 20 July 2007 bstract Microstructure and properties of a Mg AZ31B laser beam weld without filler are studied using electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and echanical tests. The microstructure of the weld is characterized by a narrow heat affected zone, columnar grains and precipitate coarsening inhe fusion zone. Texture in the fusion zone is significantly different from the texture of the base material. The residual stress distribution observed s similar at the top and the bottom of the weld, maximum tensile residual stress values are observed in the fusion zone. Tensile tests reveal ifferences in the mechanical behavior of the fusion zone and the parent material, which can be related to the differences of texture and the resulting eformation mechanisms. 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V. ropert b r s p p a i b a d r s r a meywords: Magnesium; Microstructure; Texture; Laser welding; Mechanical p . Introduction Because of their extremely low weight in combination with heir good castability, workability and damping capacity [1], the se of magnesium and its alloys in specific structural applica- ions increases, often replacing aluminium alloys [2,3]. In order o further widen the field of application of Mg alloys, join- ng processes such as tungsten inert gas welding (TIG), laser eam welding (LBW), friction stir welding (FSW) and elec- ron beam welding have been applied to weld magnesium alloys 4–7]. Among these processes LBW is particularly attractive for nnovative and cost-effective applications, which req