Numerical simulation of AC plasma arc welding

Abstract

A plasma arc is a kind of the plasma torch. Since it has a water-cooled copper nozzle in front of the cathode to constrict the arc plasma, the arc plasma with high energy density and high arc pressure can be produced. Therefore it is suitable especially for welding and cutting. The heat source property of the plasma arc can be controlled by an input current waveform. DC arc is generally applicable to welding process for almost all kind of metal except for aluminum and magnesium. In case of aluminum and magnesium AC arc is utilized to remove an oxide layer on a base metal surface. However, the energy source property of AC plasma arc is still not fully understood because of the complexity. In this paper, numerical simulation result of heat source property of AC plasma arc welding is reported