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Welding breakthrough could transform manufacturing
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:05 am
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:05 am
I think there are enough welders and tradesmen to post this.
Scientists from Heriot-Watt University have welded glass and metal together using an ultrafast laser system, in a breakthrough for the manufacturing industry.
Various optical materials such as quartz, borosilicate glass and even sapphire were all successfully welded to metals like aluminium, titanium and stainless steel using the Heriot-Watt laser system, which provides very short, picosecond pulses of infrared light in tracks along the materials to fuse them together.
The new process could transform the manufacturing sector and have direct applications in the aerospace, defence, optical technology and even healthcare fields.
Professor Duncan Hand, director of the five-university EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Laser-based Production Processes based at Heriot-Watt, said: "Traditionally it has been very difficult to weld together dissimilar materials like glass and metal due to their different thermal properties—the high temperatures and highly different thermal expansions involved cause the glass to shatter.
"Being able to weld glass and metals together will be a huge step forward in manufacturing and design flexibility.
"At the moment, equipment and products that involve glass and metal are often held together by adhesives, which are messy to apply and parts can gradually creep, or move. Outgassing is also an issue—organic chemicals from the adhesive can be gradually released and can lead to reduced product lifetime.
"The process relies on the incredibly short pulses from the laser. These pulses last only a few picoseconds—a picosecond to a second is like a second compared to 30,000 years.
"The parts to be welded are placed in close contact, and the laser is focused through the optical material to provide a very small and highly intense spot at the interface between the two materials—we achieved megawatt peak power over an area just a few microns across.
LINK
Scientists from Heriot-Watt University have welded glass and metal together using an ultrafast laser system, in a breakthrough for the manufacturing industry.
Various optical materials such as quartz, borosilicate glass and even sapphire were all successfully welded to metals like aluminium, titanium and stainless steel using the Heriot-Watt laser system, which provides very short, picosecond pulses of infrared light in tracks along the materials to fuse them together.
The new process could transform the manufacturing sector and have direct applications in the aerospace, defence, optical technology and even healthcare fields.
Professor Duncan Hand, director of the five-university EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Laser-based Production Processes based at Heriot-Watt, said: "Traditionally it has been very difficult to weld together dissimilar materials like glass and metal due to their different thermal properties—the high temperatures and highly different thermal expansions involved cause the glass to shatter.
"Being able to weld glass and metals together will be a huge step forward in manufacturing and design flexibility.
"At the moment, equipment and products that involve glass and metal are often held together by adhesives, which are messy to apply and parts can gradually creep, or move. Outgassing is also an issue—organic chemicals from the adhesive can be gradually released and can lead to reduced product lifetime.
"The process relies on the incredibly short pulses from the laser. These pulses last only a few picoseconds—a picosecond to a second is like a second compared to 30,000 years.
"The parts to be welded are placed in close contact, and the laser is focused through the optical material to provide a very small and highly intense spot at the interface between the two materials—we achieved megawatt peak power over an area just a few microns across.
LINK
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:09 am to autauga
quote:
a picosecond to a second is like a second compared to 30,000 years.
Pretty arbitrary measurement
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:10 am to autauga
This is going to wield so much opportunity.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:12 am to autauga
This is pretty awesome if you ask me
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:13 am to High C
quote:
a picosecond to a second is like a second compared to 30,000 years.
I'm trying to wrap my mind around this.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:13 am to autauga
Waiting for El Gaucho to explain this in baw terms we can relate to
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:15 am to autauga
quote:
applications in the aerospace, defence, optical technology and even healthcare fields.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:17 am to Open Dore Policy
I take it to be .00000000000002592 of a second. Could likely be wrong.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:20 am to autauga
China will steal the tech and beat everyone to market.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:23 am to autauga
I been able to weld glass and metal
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:26 am to autauga
How does this overcome the thermal coefficients? Most of the failures I’ve seen with glass lined piping and equipment has been the connections.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:27 am to High C
quote:
a picosecond to a second is like a second compared to 30,000 years.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:29 am to autauga
It's big for companies that have millions of dollars to invest in these systems and already use robotic laser welding equipment. This technology is meaningless to 99.9% of metal fabrication shops and welders though.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:37 am to Open Dore Policy
quote:
I'm trying to wrap my mind around this.
They are saying it's not a very long time.
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:38 am to autauga
Yea but can they weld a wooden dick on a snowman
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:42 am to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
can they weld a wooden dick on a snowman
Papa can you hear me?
Posted on 3/6/19 at 10:42 am to Jim Rockford
quote:
Waiting for El Gaucho to explain this in baw terms we can relate to
Welding together dissimilar materials normally destroys one of them. We figured out a way to weld dissimilar materials with fancy lasers in a way that won’t destroy either material. It’s good.
frick Gaucho
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