Fatigue Life Prediction of LF6 Aluminum Alloy Laser-Arc Hybrid Welded Joints Based on Energy Dissipation Method

Abstract

To accurately characterize the heat dissipation behavior of LF6 aluminum alloy laser arc composite welded joint under low cycle fatigue, two fatigue life prediction methods based on dissipated energy were proposed. The experimental investigation has revealed four stages in the evolution of surface temperature increment, including initial temperature increase, subsequent decline, attainment of thermal equilibrium, and sudden temperature escalation leading to failure. Based on the energy dissipation method, two models predicting lifespan of welded joints have been formulated. Model I incorporates the effects of stress amplitude and mean stress, on lifetime demonstrating a strong linear correlation particularly under high-stress level according to experimental comparisons. Model II introduces a relationship between plastic strain amplitude and inherent dissipated energy to assess fatigue life of welded joints. Digital imaging correction technique has been utilized to quantify plastic strain amplitude. The predicted results from Model II agree well with experimental data.