Numerical simulation of RSW temperature field during aluminum alloys LB-RSW

The thermo-structural and thermo-electrical circular order analyses of resistance seam welding(RSW) process in laser beam-resistance seam welding(LB-RSW) were carried out by means of ANSYS, and the influences of RSW current, welding speed and the space between two RSW wheels on temperature field in RSW were studied.The results indicate the surface temperature of aluminum alloy plates and the temperature gradients both in front and back of wheels increase consequently with RSW current increasing.Meanwhile, the maximum temperature value presents direct ratio relationship with the square of current approximately.The surface temperature of aluminum alloy plates reduces with the increase of welding speed.However, the rate of temperature change appears a converse tendency when the welding speed increases.Besides, the maximum surface temperature of aluminum alloys plates decreases with the decrease of the space between two RSW wheels.Furthermore, the temperature gradient behind the RSW wheels also decreases when the space between the two wheels decrease.The simulation results match well with the thermography acquired by infrared thermography technology, which makes it feasible to predict the optimal relative position between laser beam and resistance heat source and to investigate the mechanism of LB-RSW.