The grain structure of laser welded AlMgSi-alloys was varied by adapting the welding parameters and alloying additives. The hot cracking susceptibility was determined by the critical strain rate, measured by the application of digital image correlation in a self-restrained hot cracking test. A direct relation was found: The hot cracking susceptibility decreases with increasing number of grain boundaries across the width of the weld seam, i.e. along the effective load direction of transverse strain rates. It was shown, that the hot cracking susceptibility can be reduced by an optimisation of both the welding parameters and the alloying additives, which promote nucleation.

The energy used to melt the material at each layer during laser-directed energy deposition (L-DED) accumulates in the solidified layers upon layer deposition and leads to an increase in the temperature of the part with an increasing number of layers. This heat accumulation can lead to inhomogeneous solidification conditions, increasing residual stresses and potentially anisotropic mechanical properties due to columnar grain structures. In this work, infrared imaging is applied during the directed energy deposition process to capture the evolution of the temperature field in high spatial and temporal evolutions. Image processing algorithms determined the solidification rate and the temperature gradient in the spatial and temporal evolutions and evidenced their change with the proceeding deposition process. Metallographic analysis proves that these changes significantly affect the local grain structure of the L-DED fabricated parts. The study provides comprehensive quantitative measurements of the change in the solidification variables in local and temporal resolutions. The comprehensive comparison of different parameter combinations reveals that applied power, and especially the frequency of the consecutive deposition of the individual layers, are the key parameters to adjusting heat accumulation. These findings provide a methodology for optimising L-DED manufacturing processes and tailoring the local microstructure development by controlling heat accumulation.

Lasers with average powers of several kilowatts have become an important tool for industrial applications. Temporal and spatial beam shaping was demonstrated to improve existing and enable novel applications. A very promising technology for both highly dynamic beam shaping and power scaling is the coherent combining of the beams of an array of high-power fundamental mode fibers. However, the limited number of fibers allows only limited spatial resolution of the common phase front. It is therefore favorable to work with plane or spherical common phase fronts, which generate a “point”, i.e., a diffraction pattern with a strong main lobe in the focal plane. By applying a tilt to the common phase front, points can be positioned in the focal plane with high spatial resolution. The Civan DBL 6–14 kW investigated in this work allows switching between positions of the points with 80 MHz. Sequences of points can be used to create arbitrary shapes. The time constants of points and shapes are very critical for this type of shape generation. The current paper analyzes the relevant time constants for setting points and creating shapes and relates them to time constants in laser processes. This is mandatory to deterministically influence laser processes.