The 6061-T6 aluminum alloy welding joints were fabricated using gas metal arc welding (GMAW) of various laser powers, and the effect of laser power on the microstructure evolution of the welding joints was investigated. The corrosion behaviors of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy welding joints were investigated in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The results showed that the micro-galvanic corrosion initiation from Mg₂Si or around the intermetallic particles (Al-Fe-Si) is observed after the immersion test due to the inhomogeneous nature of the microstructure. The preferential dissolution of the Mg₂Si and Al-Fe-Si is believed to be the possible cause of pitting corrosion. When the laser power reached 5 kW, the microstructure of the welded joint mainly consisted of Al-Fe-Si rather than the Mg₂Si at 2 kW. The relatively higher content of Al-Fe-Si with increasing in laser power would increase the volume of corrosion pits.

Laser–MIG hybrid welding is increasingly used in shipbuilding for medium-thick steel plates, where assembly-induced gaps and misalignment often compromise weld quality. In this study, a three-dimensional transient numerical model is established to simulate the molten pool dynamics during full-penetration laser–MIG hybrid welding of 10CrNiCu steel under varying gaps and misalignment conditions. The model incorporates coupled heat transfer, fluid flow, keyhole behavior, and droplet transfer and is validated against experimental weld profiles. The simulation results reveal that increasing gap size broadens the heat distribution, reduces keyhole depth, and decreases the bridging capacity of the filler metal. Larger misalignment enhances the step effect, promotes gravity-driven downward flow of liquid metal, and increases keyhole instability and porosity risk. The adaptability to assembly errors is further assessed. As welding current increases, the gap tolerance slightly improves from 1.61 mm to 1.65 mm, whereas the misalignment tolerance markedly decreases from 3.00 mm to 1.82 mm due to the earlier onset of porosity defects. These findings provide quantitative guidance for optimizing welding parameters to accommodate realistic assembly variations in marine steel fabrication.