Optimization of laser butt welding parameters based on the orthogonal array with fuzzy logic and desirability approach

This paper presents the study carried out on 3.5 kW cooled slab laser welding of 904 L super austenitic stainless steel. The joints had butts welded with different shielding gases like argon, helium and nitrogen at a constant flow rate. Super austenitic stainless steel (SASS) normally contains high amount of Mo, Cr, Ni, N and Mn. The mechanical properties are controlled to obtain good welded joints. The quality of the joint is evaluated by studying the features of weld bead geometry such as bead width (BW) and depth of penetration (DOP). In this paper, the tensile strength and bead profiles (BW and DOP) of laser welded butt joints made of AISI 904 L SASS are investigated. Taguchi approach is used as statistical design of experiment (DOE) technique for optimizing the selected welding parameters. Fuzzy logic and desirability approach are applied to optimize the input parameters considering multiple output variables simultaneously. Confirmation experiment has also been conducted for both the analyses to validate the optimized parameters.