Laser welding of aeronautical and automobile aluminum alloys

Laser beam welding (LBW) show clear advantages compared with other techniques, as the low heat input, the high localization ability, the high welding speed, the high flexibility, the high weld quality and the high production rate. However, its applicability to aluminum alloys is limited, as they generally have high reflectivity, high thermal conductivity and low viscosity. In the present study, it is analyzed the laser weldability of four aluminum alloys (2024, 5083, 6082 and 7075). High penetration butt welds could be obtained with a high power diode laser under conduction regime. The properties of the weld beads such as the microstructure and microhardness were analyzed. A linear function between the input laser fluence and the volume of melted material was obtained for the four alloys.