Electron beam welding

From GAWDAwiki

Electron beam welding fuses metals by applying a high-energy electron beam to the joint, where the beam is transferred into heat, which forms the weld.

Vacuum Environment

The process is typically carried out in a vacuum in order to achieve pure welds with high depth-to-width ratios. However, special orifices designed to provide varying levels of vacuum are sometimes used.

Advantages of Electron Beam Welding

• Thick joints can be welded in a single pass
• Minimal distortion
• Narrow weld zone
• Small heat-affected zone
• Able to join certain dissimilar metals
• No filler metal needed

Disadvantages of Electron Beam Welding

• High equipment and weld preparation costs
• Possible cracking due to rapid solidification
• Welding in vacuum may cause time delay^[1]

Applications of Electron Beam Welding

Electron-beam welding is the preferred method for manufacturing high-value welds in applications in which defects cannot be tolerated. The nuclear energy and aerospace industries, as well as the Department of Energy, rely on electron-beam welding to join critical components; welds created through the electron-beam process are of high reliability, consistency and reproducibility.^[2]

References

1. http://www.weldingengineer.com/1%20Electron%20Beam.htm
2. https://www.llnl.gov/str/MarApr08/elmer.html