Multiphysics Modelling and Verification of Pulse Laser Surface Treatment (LST) of an Al Alloy
S-Y. Sun, Y-L. Zhang, G-S. Liu and R. Yang
Pulsed lasers have been widely used to treat the material surface to form a regular microstructure, which has significant effects on the service performance. A finite element analysis (FEA) simulation model was established to investigate the influences of Nd:YAG pulsed laser surface treatment as the function of heat flux. The laser absorbance of the Al alloy surface was determined by measuring surface roughness. The temperature field of single pulse laser with different output efficiency and surface morphology at 100% output efficiency were analysed. The surface morphologies of Al alloy were obtained by changing the laser scanning rate and spot spacing. The numerical results demonstrated similar surface morphologies and trend compared to the processing experiment. Increasing the scanning rate and spot spacing can enhance the peak and trough on the surface, thereby increasing the surface roughness.
Keywords: Nd:YAG laser, Al alloy, laser surface treatment, surface morphology, roughness, simulation, numerical analysis, finite element analysis (FEA)