Multicriteria decision-making for optimization of welding parameters in cold metal transfer and pulse metal-inert gas weld bead of AA2099-T86 alloy using CRITIC and ROV methods

Purpose The criteria importance through intercriteria correlation (CRITIC) and range of value (ROV) combined methods were used to determine a single index for all multiple responses. Design/methodology/approach This paper used cold metal transfer (CMT) and pulse metal-inert gas (MIG) welding processes to study the weld-on-bead geometry of AA2099-T86 alloy. This study used Taguchi's approach to find the optimal setting of the input welding parameters. The welding current, welding speed and contact-tip-to workpiece distance were the input welding parameters for finding the output responses, i.e. weld penetration, dilution and heat input. The L9 orthogonal array of Taguchi's approach was used to find out the optimal setting of the input parameters. Findings The optimal input welding parameters were determined with combined output responses. The predicted optimum welding input parameters were validated through confirmation tests. Analysis of variance showed that welding speed is the most influential factor in determining the weld bead geometry of the CMT and pulse MIG welding techniques. Originality/value The heat input and weld bead geometry are compared in both welding processes. The CMT welding samples show superior defect-free weld beads than pulse MIG welding due to lesser heat input and lesser dilution.