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The necessity for precise prediction of penetration depth in the context of electron beam welding (EBW) cannot be overstated. Traditional statistical methodologies, including regression analysis and neural networks, often necessitate a considerable investment of both time and financial resources to produce results that meet acceptable standards. To address these challenges, this study introduces a novel approach for predicting EBW penetration depth that synergistically combines computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling with artificial neural networks (ANN). The CFD modelling technique was proven to be highly effective, yielding predictions with an average absolute percentage deviation of around 8%. This level of accuracy is consistent across a linear electron beam (EB) power range spanning from 86 J/mm to 324 J/mm. One of the most compelling advantages of this integrated approach is its efficiency. By leveraging the capabilities of CFD and ANN, the need for extensive and costly preliminary testing is effectively eliminated, thereby reducing both the time and financial outlay typically associated with such predictive modelling. Furthermore, the versatility of this approach is demonstrated by its adaptability to other types of EB machines, made possible through the application of the beam characterisation method outlined in the research. With the implementation of the models introduced in this study, practitioners can exert effective control over the quality of EBW welds. This is achieved by fine-tuning key variables, including but not limited to the beam power, beam radius, and the speed of travel during the welding process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In-process penetration monitoring of the pulsed laser welding process remains a great challenge for achieving uniform and reproducible products due to the highly complex nature of the keyhole dynamics within the intense laser-metal interactions. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of acoustic emission (AE) measurement for penetration monitoring based on acoustic wave characteristics and deep learning. Firstly, a series of laser welding experiments on aluminum alloys were conducted using high-speed photography and AE techniques. This allowed us to in-situ visualize the complete keyhole dynamics and elucidate the generation mechanism of acoustic waves originating from pressure fluctuations at the keyhole wall. Then, an adaptive time-frequency technique namely VMD (Variational Mode Decomposition) was proposed to characterize the acoustic energy distribution among the nine subsignals with low-frequency and high-frequency components under different welding penetrations. Lastly, a novel hybrid model combing CNN (Convolutional Neural Network) and LSTM (Long Short Term Memory) was designed to deeply mine the spatial and temporal acoustic features from the extracted frequency components. Extensive experiments demonstrate that our proposed approach yields a remarkable classification performance with a test accuracy of 99.8% and a standard deviation of 0.21, which obtains a high recognition rate. This work is a new paradigm in the digitization and intelligence of the laser welding process and contributes to an alternative way of developing an efficient end-to-end penetration monitoring system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: Wire arc additive manufacturing has been applied in aerospace (such as stiffened panels, wing ribs), nuclear energy, marine (such as ship's propeller) and architecture (such as steel bridge) industries. Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) has been considered as a promising technology for the production of large metallic structures with high deposition rates and low cost. Stainless steels are widely applied due to good mechanical properties and excellent corrosion resistance. This paper reviews the current status of stainless steel WAAM, covering the microstructure, mechanical properties, and defects related to different stainless steels and process parameters. Residual stress and distortion of the WAAM manufactured components are discussed. Specific WAAM techniques, material compositions, process parameters, shielding gas composition, post heat treatments, microstructure, and defects can significantly influence the mechanical properties of WAAM stainless steels. To achieve high quality WAAM stainless steel parts, there is still a strong need to further study the underlying physical metallurgy mechanisms of the WAAM process and post heat treatments to optimize the WAAM and heat treatment parameters and thus control the microstructure. WAAM samples often show considerable anisotropy both in microstructure and mechanical properties. The new in-situ rolling + WAAM process is very effective in reducing the anisotropy, which also can reduce the residual stress and distortion. For future industrial applications, fatigue properties, and corrosion behaviors of WAAMed stainless steels need to be deeply studied in the future. Additionally, further efforts should be made to improve the WAAM process to achieve faster deposition rates and better-quality control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Inconel 625 (IN625) superalloy has a high strength, excellent fatigue, and creep resistance under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions, and is one of the critical materials used for manufacturing high-temperature bearing parts of aeroengines. However, the poor workability of IN625 alloy prevents IN625 superalloy to be used in wider applications, especially in applications requiring high geometrical complexity. Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is a powerful additive manufacturing process which can produce metal parts with high geometrical complexity and freedom. This paper reviews the studies that have been done on LPBF of IN625 focusing on the microstructure, mechanical properties, the development of residual stresses, and the mechanism of defect formation. Mechanical properties such as microhardness, tensile properties, and fatigue properties reported by different researchers are systematically summarized and analyzed. Finally, the remaining issues and suggestions on future research on LPBF of IN625 alloy parts are put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, laser additive manufacturing technology has evolved rapidly and has been applied in many industrial sectors. The current Special Issue entitled "Recent Advances in Metal Powder-Based Additive Manufacturing" collects the recent research outcomes addressing the main challenges and aiming to provide possible solutions that may revolutionize the metal powder-based additive manufacturing technology and its applications. Significant technical advances have been made in the field of metal powder-based additive manufacturing, and a range of high-performance materials have been successfully developed [[2]]. [Extracted from the article]

H13 steel is often damaged by wear, erosion, and thermal fatigue. It is one of the essential methods to improve the service life of H13 steel by preparing a coating on it. Due to the advantages of high melting point, good wear, and corrosion resistance of Mo, Mo coating was fabricated on H13 steel by electro spark deposition (ESD) process in this study. The influences of the depositing parameters (deposition power, discharge frequency, and specific deposition time) on the roughness of the coating, thickness, and properties were investigated in detail. The optimized depositing parameters were obtained by comparing roughness, thickness, and crack performance of the coating. The results show that the cross-section of the coating mainly consisted of strengthening zone and transition zone. Metallurgical bonding was formed between the coating and substrate. The Mo coating mainly consisted of Fe9.7Mo0.3, Fe-Cr, FeMo, and Fe2Mo cemented carbide phases, and an amorphous phase. The Mo coating had better microhardness, wear, and corrosion resistance than substrate, which could significantly improve the service life of the H13 steel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of the aerospace and automotive industries, high heat exchange efficiency is a challenge facing the development of various industries. Pure copper has excellent mechanical and physical properties, especially high thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity. These excellent properties make pure copper the material of choice for the manufacture of heat exchangers and other electrical components. However, the traditional processing method is difficult to achieve the production of pure copper complex parts, so the production of pure copper parts through additive manufacturing has become a problem that must be overcome in industrial development. In this article, we not only reviewed the current status of research on the structural design and preparation of complex pure copper parts by researchers using selective laser melting (SLM), selective electron beam melting (SEBM) and binder jetting (BJ) in recent years, but also reviewed the forming, physical properties and mechanical aspects of pure copper parts prepared by different additive manufacturing methods. Finally, the development trend of additive manufacturing of pure copper parts is also prospected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Martensitic stainless steels are widely used in industries due to their high strength and good corrosion resistance performance. Precipitation-hardened (PH) martensitic stainless steels feature very high strength compared with other stainless steels, around 3-4 times the strength of austenitic stainless steels such as 304 and 316. However, the poor workability due to the high strength and hardness induced by precipitation hardening limits the extensive utilization of PH stainless steels as structural components of complex shapes. Laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) is an attractive additive manufacturing technology, which not only exhibits the advantages of producing complex and precise parts with a short lead time, but also avoids or reduces the subsequent machining process. In this review, the microstructures of martensitic stainless steels in the as-built state, as well as the effects of process parameters, building atmosphere, and heat treatments on the microstructures, are reviewed. Then, the characteristics of defects in the as-built state and the causes are specifically analyzed. Afterward, the effect of process parameters and heat treatment conditions on mechanical properties are summarized and reviewed. Finally, the remaining issues and suggestions on future research on L-PBF of martensitic precipitation-hardened stainless steels are put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aluminum (Al) and copper (Cu) have been widely used in many industrial fields thanks to their good plasticity, high thermal conductivity and excellent electrical conductivity. An effective joining of dissimilar Al and Cu materials can make full use of the special characteristics of these two metals. Friction stir spot welding (FSSW), as an efficient solid-state welding method suitable for joining of dissimilar metal materials, has great prospects in future industrial applications. In this paper, the FSSW studies on Al-Cu dissimilar materials are reviewed. The research progress and current status of Al-Cu FSSW are reviewed with respect to tool features, macroscopic characteristics of welded joints, microstructures, defects in welds and mechanical properties of joints. In addition, some suggestions on further study are put forward in order to promote the development and progress of Al-Cu FSSW studies in several respects: material flow, thermal history, addition of intermediate layer, auxiliary methods and functionalization of Al-Cu FSSW joint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a nickel-based amorphous composite coating was obtained on the carbon steel surface by the laser cladding process. The thermal field and stress distribution were simulated by using ANSYS finite element software where the moving heat source and powder feeding were modelled by the "Element birth and death" method. The simulation results were verified by comparing the cross-sectional profile of fusion lines and X-ray stress measurements, respectively. The results on thermal field showed that the cooling rate of the coating could reach up to 10389.15 K/s and it gradually decreased from the outside surface to the interior, which promoted the formation of amorphous phase. The simulated stress field showed that the coating was in the state of tensile stress after cladding and the longitudinal stress was larger than the transverse stress. The coating was experienced with tensile plastic deformation along the laser scanning direction, which resulted in longitudinal residual stress. A higher stress concentration was occurred between the coating layer and substrate, which increased the susceptibility of crack formation. The test results on transverse residual stress were generally consistent with the simulation. On the contrary, the measured longitudinal stress was nearly close to zero, which was not in agreement with the model due to the formation of cracks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aluminum (Al) and copper (Cu) have been widely used in many industrial fields thanks to their good plasticity, high thermal conductivity and excellent electrical conductivity. An effective joining of dissimilar Al and Cu materials can make full use of the special characteristics of these two metals. Friction stir spot welding (FSSW), as an efficient solid-state welding method suitable for joining of dissimilar metal materials, has great prospects in future industrial applications. In this paper, the FSSW studies on Al-Cu dissimilar materials are reviewed. The research progress and current status of Al-Cu FSSW are reviewed with respect to tool features, macroscopic characteristics of welded joints, microstructures, defects in welds and mechanical properties of joints. In addition, some suggestions on further study are put forward in order to promote the development and progress of Al-Cu FSSW studies in several respects: material flow, thermal history, addition of intermediate layer, auxiliary methods and functionalization of Al-Cu FSSW joint.