Investigations on the parametric effects of cold metal transfer process on the microstructural aspects in AA6061

Aluminium alloy sheets are find utility in various diversities of industrial sectors due to its multifunctional features and global suitability. There have been several literatures reporting mechanical and microstructure analysis and suitability of joining of this material using various welding techniques. Subsequently, it has been proved successful for several welding processes irrespective of the heat flow phenomenon. However, the width of heat affected zone remains a challenge for all the conventional processes. In view of this, it is observed that cold metal transfer technique appears to reduce the HAZ width due to its low heat input to the base metal which is the most prominent feature of the process. In this paper, the effect of welding current and welding speed on heat input, depth of penetration, weld pool width, reinforcement height, dilution, weld bead contact angle parameters during cold metal transfer (CMT) process is investigated. The outcome of this research study is expected to provide a thorough insight into the heat input, strength, microstructures of weld zone and integrity of the weldments for different trails of welding current and welding speed which facilitates in determining the optimized parameter range. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.