Towards better understanding of explosive welding by combination of numerical simulation and experimental study

In this study, using a combination of several experimental and computational methods, an attempt to improve the understanding of some important phenomena accompanying the process of explosive welding is made. The high-speed shooting was used to observe the formation of a re-entrant jet. Various methods of the materials characterization were used to estimate the morphology of the interface, the distribution of the liquid phase and analyze the evolution of the structure in the process of high-velocity oblique collision. Simulating the process of high-velocity collision using the smoothed particles hydrodynamics (SPH) method allowed us to accurately reproduce formation of the wave boundary, vortex zones, as well as the formation of a jet moving ahead of the collision point. Based on the simulation results, several significant modifications of the Bahrani-Black-Crossland model of the waves formation were done, and a new explanation for the vortex zones formation was proposed. Numerical simulation of the cooling process showed that the solidification of the liquid phase occurs under conditions of the rapid solidification during melt spinning. Combining several numerical-based approaches, a welding window for the steel-steel system was built. The results obtained show a good agreement with currently existing concepts of welding during the high-velocity collisions. (C) 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.