Improvement of performance of Electromagnetic welding process by use of driver materials

Abstract

In Electromagnetic Welding process, the electromagnetic parameters govern the welding process. The collision velocity is the crucial parameter that decides the quality of the weld joint. The EMW process is comparatively less efficient for low electrical conductivity metals. However, the efficiency of the process can be improved by using high electrical conductivity metals, such as copper, aluminum (named as `drivers') which are placed adjacent to the job piece. In this paper, the performance of different driver materials is analyzed. This exercise is important from the point of view of minimization of input energy. The computation of the collision velocity is carried out by commercial software's. The results are verified with experimental observations. The job pieces chosen are flat strips of aluminum, copper and S.S. Needless to say, the conclusions drawn are applicable to any other geometry. Since the EM forming process precedes the EMW process, the conclusions are also applicable in the case of the former process.