Heat Flow in Fusion Welding^[1]

The finished product, after fusion welding, may contain physical discontinuities due to excessively rapid solidification, adverse microstructures due to inappropriate cooling, or residual stress and distortion due to the existence of incompatible plastic strains. To analyze these problems, this article presents an analysis of the welding heat flow, with focus on the fusion welding process. It discusses the analytical heat-flow solutions and their practical applications. The article concludes with a description of the effects of material property and welding condition on the temperature distribution of weldments.