Influence of high-energy impact during plasma cutting on structure and properties of surface layers of aluminum and titanium alloys

Introduction. Plasma cutting of various metals and alloys is one of the most productive processes for obtaining workpieces, especially when using reverse polarity plasmatrons. The use of plasma cutting in the production of workpieces of large thicknesses potentially allows to increase the productivity of the process. In the domestic industry plasma cutting equipment of foreign production is widely used, which poses the problem of import substitution of manufactured products and equipment with the corresponding parts of Russian companies. For this reason, at present the Institute of Strength Physics and Materials Science together with the company "ITS Siberia" develops plasma cutting equipment on reverse polarity currents. At the same time, in order to determine the peculiarities of influence of parameters and modes of plasma cutting process on the structure of metal in the cutting zone, it is necessary to conduct comparative studies on different metals and alloys. Aim of the work: is to identify the characteristics of the influence of high energy impact on the structure and properties of surface layers of aluminum and titanium alloys during plasma cutting using a plasma torch operating with reverse polarity currents. The research methods are optical metallography, microhardness measurement and laser scanning microscopy of the surface after plasma cutting. Results and discussions. The conducted researches show a wide range of possibilities to adjust the process parameters of plasma cutting of aluminum alloys AA5056 and AA2124, and titanium alloy Grade2. For the alloys used in this work there are optimal values of process parameters, deviations from which lead to various violations of cut quality. Aluminum alloys show a tendency to significant de-strengthening in the cutting zone, which is associated with the formation of a large crystalline structure and large incoherent secondary phases with simultaneous depletion of the solid solution with alloying elements. Titanium alloys are characterized by quenching effects in the cutting zone with increasing microhardness values. Oxides are also formed in the surface layers despite the use of nitrogen shielding gas. In the alloy Ti-4Al-1Mn, in the previously conducted works, the formation of oxide films with high hardness is not noted, while in the Grade2 alloy at cutting in the surface layers oxides are formed sharply increasing the values of microhardness of the material up to values of about 15 GPa. This situation can complicate mechanical processing of titanium alloys after plasma cutting. The obtained results indicate a rather low value of the allowance for further machining after plasma cutting of aluminum and titanium alloys.