Study of Pulsed Micro Plasma Arc welding parameters on Weld Bead Geometry of AISI 304L Sheets using Factorial Method

Abstract

Pulsed Micro Plasma Arc Welding (MPAW) is a metal joining technique widely used in manufacturing of thin sheet components due to its inherent properties. The present problem is related to fusion butt joint of 0.25 mm thick AISI 304L sheets using the Micro Plasma Arc welding process. The paper discusses the development of mathematical models for weld bead geometry of AISI 304L sheets. Design of experiments based on full factorial design is employed for the development of a mathematical model correlating the important controlled pulsed MPAW process parameters like peak current, back current, pulse rate, and pulsem width with front width, back width, front, height, and back height. The developed mode has been checked for adequacy using the Analysis of Varience (ANOVA) technique. Weld bead geometry parameters obtained by the models are found to confirm actual values with high accuracy. Using these models, the effect of pulsed MPAW process parameters on weld bead geometry are studied.

Keywords: Pulsed Current MPAW, AISI 304L, Mathematical Model,
Design of Experiments, ANOVA, Weld Bead Geometry.