Characteristics of droplet transfer in CO₂ laser-MIG hybrid welding with short-circuiting mode

LF6 aluminum alloy plates with 4.5 mm thickness are welded in this experiment. Welding is carried out by using the CO₂ laser-MIG paraxial hybrid welding in flat position. The experimental results indicate that the inherent droplet transfer cycle time of conventional MIG arc is changed due to the interaction between CO₂ laser beam and MIG arc in the short-circuiting mode of laser-MIG hybrid welding. Because of the preheating action of CO₂ laser to electrode and base material, the droplet transfer frequency of MIG arc is increased in the hybrid welding process. When laser power is increased to a certain degree, the droplet transfer frequency is decreased due to the effect of laser-induced keyhole. Furthermore, through analyzing the MIG welding current and arc voltage waveforms and the characteristics of droplet transfer in the hybrid welding process, the effect of laser energy and the action point between laser beam and arc on the frequency of droplet transfer and weld appearance is investigated in details.