An Improved Numerical Modeling for Resistance Spot Welding Process and Its Experimental Verification

Abstract

A numerical model of resistance spot welding with spherical tip electrode is developed to incorporate the electro-thermal aspect as well as thermo-elasto-plastic behaviour inherent in this process. The electro-thermal aspect includes the Joule’s resistive heating along the contact surfaces and within the sheet-electrode system due to nonuniform current density distribution in the sheet-electrode. The elasto-plastic deformation of the sheet-electrode interface at higher temperature is included in the thermo-mechanical analysis. The interdependence of those two analyses has been taken care of The model is used to simulate the spot welding in low-carbon steel sheets of 1 mm and 2 mm thickness and HSLA steel sheet of 1 mm thickness. The results are compared with experimental data obtained as a part of this work and also with literature data. The comparison has shown a good agreement in all the cases. The results are later used to draw the thermal cycle curves at different location along the faying surface.