Numerical analyses of molten pool evolution in laser polishing Ti6Al4V

Abstract As one advanced manufacturing process, laser polishing has been widely used in precision machining of metal or nonmetal materials. However, the evolution mechanism of molten pool formed during polishing process has not been thoroughly studied. This paper studies the polishing process of Ti6Al4V with a continuous wave (CW) fiber laser under the top-hat distributed heat source. A two-dimensional (2D) axisymmetric numerical transient model is established to simulate the formation process of the surface of Ti6Al4V after laser heating to form a molten pool and then cooling. It reveals that the evolution mechanism of physical processes involved in heat transfer, heat radiation, heat convection, melting and solidification during the polishing process. Particularly, the capillary and thermocapillary regimes (Marangoni flow) play a key role in smoothing the free-form surface of molten pool. The freedom surface can be smoothed effectively before the solidification of molten pool. In order to verify the correctness of the simulation model and explore the influence of laser irradiation duration on the material, the surface topography of the polished sample was investigated. It is found that the errors of the depth and width of the remelting zone are respectively less than 8 % and 22 % by the comparison of simulation and experimental results. Likewise, the depth and width of molten pool expand with the laser radiation duration increasing. Meanwhile, the polished surface topography becomes smoother.