Studies on the weldability, microstructure and mechanical properties

of ux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

K. Devendranath Ramkumar,a) Gangineni Chaitanya, Jelli Lakshmi Narasimha Varma,
Ayush Choudhary, N. Arivazhagan, and R. Oyyaravelu

School of Mechanical & Building Sciences, VIT University, Vellore 632014, Tamil Nadu, India
(Received 16 May 2015; accepted 25 June 2015)

This research article investigates the effect of SiO2 ux on Nd:YAG laser welding of 5 mm thick
plates of super-austenitic stainless steel, AISI 904L. Microstructure studies revealed multidirectional grain growth comprising columnar and cellular dendrites along with a prominent, ne
equiaxed dendritic growth at the centerline of the fusion zone. Tensile studies showcased the
fracture at the fusion zone in all the trials. The average tensile strength reported for the ux
assisted laser weldments was found to be 587 MPa which was slightly lower than the parent
metal. The impoverishment of tensile strength could be attributed to the formation of centerline
equiaxed grains. Similarly the impact toughness of the joints was found to be 58 J. The studies
demonstrated the possibility of using a 2 kW Nd:YAG laser welding machine to weld 5 mm thick
plate with the use of SiO2 ux. A detailed study on the structureproperty relationship of ux
assisted Nd:YAG laser weldment was carried out using the combined techniques optical
microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive x-ray analysis.

I. INTRODUCTION

Improving the depth of penetration capability is one of

the primary goals of the welding processes adopted in
industries. In the recent past, activated ux assisted
welding has been one of the promising, notable techniques for joining various metal combinations, with a focus
on maximizing the depth of penetration. In general, the
uxes such as sulphides, halides, and/or oxides which are
dissolved in the solvents, such as carbinol, ethanol, or
acetone. This ux is precoated on the plates to be joined
using a paint brush or dispenser. Researchers addressed
that the arc constriction and marangoni convection are the
underlying mechanisms, contributing for the improved depth
of penetration. Although a deep weld penetration could be
obtained from activated ux tungsten inert gas (A-TIG)
welding process, the oxidization of the tungsten electrode
often occurs simultaneously. It was proven that the penetration capability of A-TIG welding had been increased to
200300% compared to conventional TIG welding.
Similarly, several researchers have addressed the use
of laser welding for joining versatile materials. Some
of the typical advantages include the narrow beads with
lesser or nil heat affected zone (HAZ), lower distortion,
improved mechanical properties, and higher productivity.
However, the use of low kW capacity laser welding

Contributing Editor: Jrgen Eckert

a)
Address all correspondence to this author.
e-mail: deva@vit.ac.in
DOI: 10.1557/jmr.2015.209
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machine for joining high thickness materials is

cumbersome task. Kuo et al.1 performed the ux
assisted laser welding of mild steel, austenitic, and
duplex stainless steels. The authors used a 3 kW CO2
laser welding equipment for carrying out the studies.
According to the authors, more than one penetration
mechanism is involved in the laser welding with the use
of ux. The investigations showed that the activating ux not only improved the penetration depth
through arcing characteristics in the TIG and plasma
welding processes but also that it was benecial for the
laser welding technique itself in the conduction mode.
Sun et al.2 carried out laser welding of Mg-AZ31B
alloy using three different uxes namely SiO2, TiO2,
and Cr2O3. The authors reported that for the same
power, the weld penetration decreases with increasing
welding speed both with and without ux. The authors
used 500 W Nd:YAG laser welding equipment for this
alloy. As indicated by Ma et al.,3 laser welding with
activating ux is a very complex heat transfer and uid
ow process.
Super-austenitic stainless steel, AISI 904L, is one of
the emerging stainless steel grade, which has unique
applications in marine, defense, and nuclear industries.
Due to the presence of higher amounts of molybdenum,
chromium, nickel, nitrogen, these grades of stainless steel
exhibit better weldability and higher corrosion resistance
than the conventional austenitic stainless steel grades.
A complete austenitic structure would be existing
throughout the transformation from liquid to solid for
this typical stainless steel due to the presence of higher
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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

amounts of Ni and N. Although these materials exhibit

good weldability, one of the major drawbacks associated
with the welding of AISI 904L is the segregation of Mo.
Researchers addressed the Mo segregation could be
reduced on using overalloyed ller metals or by using
faster cooling rates in the welding process.
Devendranath Ramkumar et al.4 observed the existence
of Mo-rich phase during the A-TIG welding of AISI 904L.
The authors further claimed that although the Mo-rich
phases were present, they were found to be in lower
amounts while using A-TIG welding compared to the
conventional TIG welding process. In a study, Zambon
et al.5 used CO2 laser welding for joining 3 mm thick sheet
of AISI 904L and investigated the microstructure, tensile
properties, and the residual stresses of the welded joints.
The authors observed the formation of an imperceptible
HAZ. Sathiya et al.6 carried out CO2 lasergas metal arc
welding hybrid welding process for joining 5 mm
thick AISI 904L plates using super-austenitic solid
ller metal. The authors investigated the effect of
shielding gases on the bead morphology, mechanical
properties of AISI 904L laser hybrid weldments.
Further, the authors noticed that the use of 50%
He 1 50% Ar resulted in better tensile properties, whereas
the shielding gas mixture containing 50% He 1 45%
Ar 1 5% O2 welded joints exhibited higher impact
toughness values.
From the open literature, it is opined that limited
efforts have been addressed on the ux assisted laser
welding hitherto. This study addresses the possibility of
utilizing a low power Nd:YAG laser welding machine
with the aid of oxide ux to obtain a complete penetration. Although some studies have been reported on the
ux assisted laser welding process for joining metals, the
assessment of metallurgical and mechanical properties of
AISI 904L super-austenitic stainless steel has not been
carried out so far. The outcomes of the present study will
be highly benecial to the industries using AISI 904L.
II. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

The chemical composition of the as-received AISI

904L has been tested using dry spectroscopic methods
and is represented in Table I. The bead on trials was
carried out on the 904L plates whose dimensions were

200 mm  60 mm  5 mm. A 2 kW Nd:YAG laser

welding equipment (Model: JK2003SM) was used for the
welding trials. The diameter of the laser beam is 300 lm
and the focus distance was maintained at 200 mm. The
laser welding was conducted using keyhole mode. As
described by Kuo et al.,1 a keyhole would be formed
when laser welding energy density exceeds a critical
value. The high energy density in laser welding would
transfer the heat from the laser source to the material and
not to a point on the surface, but to a line extending
through the material thickness. Hence, the welds would
be deeper and narrower. Commercially available pure
SiO2 ux was used in the study, which was mixed with
carbinol, a carrier solvent, to obtain paint like consistency. A uniform coating was applied on the plates using
the paint brush. The bead on trial welds was carried out
using different welding speeds 200, 250, and 300 mm/min
as the researchers reported that lower welding speeds
result in better penetration (Table II). Incomplete penetration was noticed on increasing the welding speed
above 300 mm/min. The bead on test trial coupons was
subjected to x-ray radiography nondestructive testing
(NDT) technique to determine for porosity defects. The
studies revealed the occurrence of porosities for the
speeds 200 and 250 mm/min. The porosities of dimensions 25 and 30 lm for 200 mm/min and 1.7 lm for
250 mm/min were observed. Zambon et al.5 also observed similar types of porosities while CO2 laser
welding of 3 mm thick sheets of AISI 904L. While
evaluating the beads, welded with a speed of 300 mm/min
as per EN 462/1 standard, porosities of dimension greater
than 150 lm were not detected.
Based on the bead trial results, the welding speed of
300 mm/min was chosen for the butt welding of AISI
904L plates. Before welding, the plates were cleaned with
sand papers followed by cleaning with acetone. A 15 mm
wide ux coating was applied throughout the length of
the plates, keeping joint line at the center. The ux
quantity applied on the plate was 56 mg/cm2, as the
coating thickness has signicant impact on the depth of
penetration as reported by Ahmadi and Ebrahimi.7 The
butt joints of AISI 904L were obtained using the ux
assisted laser welding in a 2 kW capacity Nd:YAG laser
machine. The parameters used in the ux assisted laser
welding are given in Table III.

TABLE I. Chemical composition and mechanical properties of base metal, AISI 904L.
Chemical composition (by wt%)
C

Cr

0.017

19.64

Ni

24.82

Mo

4.02

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Fe

Rem.

Cu

1.27

Mechanical property
Other elements

P 0.018; S 0.003; N 0.037; Si 0.374; Mn 1.33

0.2% proof strength

Ultimate tensile strength
% Elongation at break
Impact toughness

Unit

Value

MPa
MPa
%
J

312
617
62.1
61.0

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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

TABLE II. Macrostructure of the beads obtained from SiO2 ux assisted laser welding of AISI 904L.
Laser power: 1900 W
Mode: Keyhole plasma
Dwell time: 8 s
Mean power: 96%
Focus distance: 200 mm
Welding speed: 200 mm/min.
Shielding gas ow rate: 30 lpm
Heat input: 0.57 kJ/mm

Laser power: 1900 W

Mode: Keyhole plasma
Dwell time: 8 s
Mean power: 96%
Focus Distance: 200 mm
Welding speed: 250 mm/min.
Shielding gas ow rate: 30 lpm
Heat input: 0.456 kJ/mm

Laser power: 1900 W

Mode: Keyhole plasma
Dwell time: 8 s
Mean power: 96%
Focus Distance: 200 mm
Welding speed: 300 mm/min.
Shielding gas ow rate: 30 lpm
Heat input: 0.38 kJ/mm

The same NDT technique was again followed for the

butt joints of AISI 904L. Ensued to the results, the
coupons were cut from the weldment using wire-cut
electrical discharge machining process. The coupons were
fabricated according to the standards prescribed by ASTM.
Optical Microscopy and scanning electron microscopy

(SEM) analyses were carried out on the cross-sectional

coupons of dimensions 28 mm  10 mm  5 mm.
Standard metallographic procedures were adopted and
electrolytic etching (10% oxalic acid; 6 V DC supply;
1.6 A/cm2) was used to reveal the microstructure of the
laser weldment. Hardness measurements were carried out

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TABLE III. Process parameters used for ux assisted laser welding.

Input parameters
Beam power
Focus distance
Beam diameter
Beam angle
Mean power
Travel speed
Waveform
Heat input
Shielding gas
Shielding gas ow rate
Flux

Unit

Value

W
mm
lm

%
mm/min
...
kJ/mm
...
lpm
...

18801900
200
600
5
96
300
Sinusoidal; continuous wave
0.4536
Argon
30
Commercially pure SiO2

on the cross-sectional coupons both in the longitudinal as

well as in the transverse sections of the weldments using
Vickers microhardness tester. A standard load of 500 gf
was applied for a dwell time of 10 s and the readings were
made at the regular intervals of 0.25 mm. Tensile studies
were carried out on the weldments prepared as per the
ASTM E8/8M standard using Instron Universal Testing
machine. The cross-head velocity was maintained as
2 mm/min to induce a slow strain rate of 3.3  10 4 s 1.
Charpy V-notch impact test was conducted on the coupons
fabricated in accordance with ASTM E23:12C standard.
Three trials in each test were conducted to ensure the
repeatability of the results. Further, the fractured samples
are investigated to assess the mode of fracture using SEM
analysis.
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A. Effect of flux on the weld penetration and
porosity

Despite the use of lower welding speed and a lower

kW capacity laser welding machine, the use of SiO2 ux
and adequate dwell time for the keyhole formation during
laser welding resulted in full penetration. As pointed out
by Qin et al.,8 the absorption of laser energy by the
oxides is more than that by uorides which was indicated
by comparing the weld width for full penetration weld.
According to Sun et al.,2 the SiO2 ux had better
absorptivity for YAG laser. X-ray radiography and
macrostructure studies divulged the presence of porosities
while using the welding speeds 200 and 250 mm/min
[Figs. 1(a) and 1(b)]; whereas operating with 300 mm/min
speed resulted in complete penetration along with the
absence of gas porosities [Fig. 1(c)] while performing
the bead on studies. With the same power, lowering the
welding speeds improved the weld penetration. Similar
results have been reported by Sun et al.2 The authors
further added the heat input should be nominal and not to
be increased beyond the critical value. This would be due
to the fact that the increase in heat input shall vaporize the
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ux coat, thereby the energy reaching the surface would

be shielded, making it harder for the laser energy to be
absorbed by the weld pool, and decreasing the penetration. It is evident from the current study that a nominal
amount of heat input is provided to establish the beads
with complete penetration. This could be attributed to the
surface tension and arc constriction effect. In conventional arc welding process such as TIG, the surface
tension would be higher at the edges of the weld pool
than at the center under the arc. Hence, the ow of the
molten metal would be outwards and results in shallow
and broader beads. However, with the use of oxide ux,
the surface tension would be higher at the center than at
the edges, forcing the uid ow inwards and causing the
deeper penetration. This is well in agreement with Qin
et al.8 According to the authors, the Marangoni convection induced by surface tension difference drives the
molten metal ow from the edges to the center of the
weld pool. This pattern of uid ow brings the energy to
the interior of the molten pool, resulting in a deeper
penetration.
While using the welding speed of 300 mm/min, for the
butt welding using SiO2 ux assisted laser process, the
formation of gas pore was witnessed closer to the root
portion of the weld zone. The pore size is much smaller
of #1 lm compared to the works carried out by other
researchers. Moreover, the porosity was observed at the
location where the keyhole emerged and the rest of the
weldment was free from any porosities which was
conrmed by both x-ray radiography and dye penetrant
NDT inspection methods. However, further studies are
needed to investigate the effect of activating ux on the
penetration and porosity. Matsunawa et al.9 investigated
the keyhole dynamics and melting during laser welding.
According to the authors, the instability of the keyhole
would cause the formation of porosity or cavities in the
weld metal. Further, the authors observed that the
keyhole opening quickly and closes after laser power
termination. This in turn suggested that the sudden
collapse of the keyhole led to the entrapment of metal
vapor and shielding gas. Therefore, it would be necessary
to stabilize the keyhole during cooling to prevent
collapse. This could be also due to the presence of some
or all the bubbles in the weld pool, mainly metallic vapor
and shielding gas and sometimes captivated air, could be
trapped by the instability and collapse of the keyhole
during welding, causing porosity in the welds. Similar
studies have been reported elsewhere.10,11 The content of
the trapped bubbles would depend on many factors such
as, nature of shielding gas, vapor pressure of the metal,
viscosity of the molten metal, and dynamics of the
keyhole during the welding process. Similarly, the oatability of bubbles could be affected by the type of
waveform (continuous or pulsed), surface tension of the
molten metal, direction of the molten metal ow as

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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

FIG. 1. Micrograph of the ux assisted Nd:YAG laser welded AISI 904L at (a) 200 mm/min, (b) 250 mm/min, and (c) 300 mm/min welding
speed.

described by several researchers.10,1216 It is well understood that the porosity in the laser welds shall be
attributed to any of these factors. Also, the study attested
that the complete penetration of 5 mm thick plates could
be achievable using SiO2 ux and also by utilizing low
power (2 kW) continuous wave laser welding process.
B. Interfacial and weld microstructure

Metallurgical and mechanical characterization studies

were carried out on the porosity free zone of the
weldment as similar type of study had been reported by
Zambon et al.5 during the CO2 laser welding of AISI
904L. The macrostructure and the microstructures of the
ux assisted laser welded joint are shown in Figs. 2 and 3.
Interfacial microstructure showed the absence of HAZ
and/or any other formation of secondary phases which
could be due to the low heat input as well as presence of
Cu alloying element in AISI 904L and also the use of

FIG. 2. Macrograph of the ux assisted Nd:YAG laser welded

AISI 904L.

copper back plate which effectively dissipated the heat.

Microstructure of the fusion zone was observed to have

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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

various grain growths, such as columnar dendrite, cellular

dendrites, and equiaxed grains. Both the formation of
elongated and ne cellular along with the columnar

dendrites was observed at the interface of AISI 904L;

whereas the formation of uniform, ner equiaxed grains
was witnessed along the centerline of the fusion zone.

FIG. 3. (a) Microstructure of ux assisted laser welded AISI 904L. (b) Interface microstructure of ux assisted laser welded AISI 904L. (c) Weld
microstructure of ux assisted laser welded AISI 904L.

FIG. 4. (a) SEM photograph at the weld interface of AISI 904L. (b) SEM showing fusion zone microstructure showing columnar dendrites at the
weld interface and (c) equiaxed grains at the centerline of the weld zone.
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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

The higher magnication images of microstructure at the

interface and the fusion zone are shown in Figs. 4(a) and 4
(b). As reported by Norman et al.,11 the formation of a ne
equiaxed dendritic microstructure in the center of autogenous welds shall be due to the development of an
undercooled liquid ahead of the moving solidliquid
interface, which provides the correct thermal conditions
for the nucleation and growth of new grains. Moreover, as
described in the earlier section, the surface tension gradient
would be greatest at the center than at the edges.
Therefore, as the molten uid ows inwards due to the
surface tension gradient, the solidication rate would
be greater at the center of the weld pool than at the edges.
The ner grain structure at the centerline of the fusion zone
could be seen in the high energy beam welds or arc welds
made with low welding speeds. Similar observations are
reported elsewhere.17 Although several mechanisms, such
as grain detachment, dendrite fragmentation, and heterogeneous nucleation for nucleating equiaxed grains near the
weld centerline have been proposed, the recent experiments divulged that the dominant mechanism for equiaxed
growth could be heterogeneous nucleation.18
SEM/energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDAX) point
analysis at the fusion zone adjacent to weld interface and
the middle is shown in Figs. 5(a) and 5(b). The matrix of
both the fusion zones was found enriched with elements
containing Fe, Ni, Cr, and Mo. It could be understood

well that fully austenitic structure would be prevailing in

the fusion zone of the ux assisted laser welding.
Similarly, the elemental mapping carried out at the fusion
zone signies that the grain body was enriched with
higher amounts of Ni and Mo apart from Fe and Cr
[Figs. 6(a) and 6(b)]. However, excessive Mo segregation
was not observed between the matrix and the grain body.
This clearly elucidated the Mo segregation could be
reduced on using faster cooling rates. Also the elemental
line mapping analysis was carried out at the weld
interface and in the centerline of the fusion zone to
investigate the elemental movement across the zones. It is
inferred from Fig. 7(a), the elemental migration from
AISI 904L to the fusion zone was very meager; whereas
a closer observation on Fig. 7(b) clearly portrayed the
migration of Mo, which was found to be more at the grain
body which appeared as white shiny facets.
C. Mechanical characterization of the weldment

Hardness measurements were carried out on the crosssectioned coupons across their entire length as well as at
the centerline of the fusion zone. The hardness prole of
the activated ux assisted laser welded AISI 904L is
shown in Figs. 8(a) and 8(b). It is evident from the studies
that there was not much difference in the observed
hardness values of the parent metal and the fusion zone.
The average hardness of the parent metal and the fusion

FIG. 5. SEM/EDAX point analysis at the fusion zone of ux assisted laser weldments of AISI 904L.
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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

FIG. 6. (a) Elemental mapping analysis at the fusion zone adjacent to the interface of AISI 904L. (b) Elemental mapping analysis at the centerline
of the fusion zone of AISI 904L.

FIG. 7. (a) Line mapping analysis at the interface of AISI 904L. (b) Line mapping analysis at the fusion zone of AISI 904L.
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K. Devendranath Ramkumar et al.: Studies on the properties of flux assisted Nd:YAG laser welds of AISI 904L

FIG. 8. Hardness trend of the ux assisted laser welds of AISI 904L.

zone was found to be 168 and 164 HV, respectively. The

average hardness at the centerline of the fusion zone was
found to be 162 HV. On the basis of the microstructure
and hardness measurements, it is clearly understood that
there was no much elemental segregation or the formation of any new secondary phases at the fusion zone. It
was inferred from the tensile studies that the fracture
occurred at the fusion zone of the weldment for all the
trials [Fig. 9(a)]. However, the tensile strength and
ductility of the ux assisted laser weldment of AISI
904L were found to be 587 MPa and 37.3%, respectively,
which were greater than that of the earlier works of the
authors [MSEA paper]. The joint efciency [dened as
(UTSweld joint)/(UTSbase metal)  100] of the ux assisted
weldment laser welded AISI 904L was established to be
95.14%. The strength slightly degraded due to the band
of ne, equiaxed grains present in the centerline of the
fusion zone. As reported by several researchers, this
could be attributed to the relatively high level of
constitutional supercooling during the solidication and
faster cooling rates, which would impart the reduction in
strength.19 Also, the hardness data are in agreement with
the tensile properties. SEM fractograph clearly divulged
the presence of microvoids along with the dimpled facets
coalesced to undergo ductile fracture [Fig. 9(b)].
Impact studies divulged that the average impact
toughness of the weldments was found to be 58 J, which
is closer to the parent metal (61 J). It is inferred from the
charpy v-notch studies that the weldments had undergone
notch deformation and did not completely rupture
[Fig. 10(a)]. This indicated that the weldments have
adequate ability to store impact energy. This study
attested an improvement in toughness while using the
ux assisted laser welding process. It could be attributed
to the reduction or almost nil amount of oxides present in
the fusion zone compared to the earlier works of the
authors.4 It is well understood from the various research
works that the use of oxide ux improves the weld

FIG. 9. (a) Tensile photographs of activated ux assisted laser welded

AISI 904L showing the fracture at the fusion zone. (b) SEM fractograph showing the tensile tested AISI 904L ux assisted laser
weldment.

penetration and deteriorates the weld toughness. SEM

fractograph vividly showed the presence of scarce voids
along with dome shaped cleavage facets, which attested
for mixed mode of fracture [Fig. 10(b)]. Table IV shows
the average tensile and impact properties of SiO2 ux
assisted laser weldments of AISI 904L.
As a whole, this study addressed the use of SiO2 ux for
joining the AISI 904L plates using a 2 kW Nd:YAG laser

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ux assisted laser welding, very few attempts have been

reported on high thickness materials. One of the problems
attested from the current study was the formation of
a typical gas pore which was observed in the beginning
of the weldment i.e., the location at which the keyhole
plasma emerged. Hence, the appropriate use of shielding
gas, varying the dwell time in providing the plasma as
well as beam oscillations may eradicate such problems.
The mechanical and metallurgical characterization was
accomplished on the ux assisted laser weldment. The
tensile strength of the weldments has been improved as
compared to the earlier works of the authors.4 A detailed
structureproperty relationship of the weldments
addressed in this study would be highly benecial to
the end users demanding the use of AISI 904L.
IV. CONCLUSIONS

FIG. 10. (a) Impact test photographs of activated ux assisted laser

welded AISI 904L showing v-notch deformation. (b) SEM fractograph showing the impact tested AISI 904L ux assisted laser
weldment.
TABLE IV. Cumulative tensile and impact properties of activated ux
laser welded AISI 904L.
Mechanical property

Unit

Value

0.2% yield strength

Ultimate tensile strength
Ductility
Fracture zone
Impact toughness

MPa
MPa
%
...
J

250.12
587
37.3
Weld zone
58

machine. Due to the faster cooling rates developed in the

high energy processes, such as EB and laser welding
process, the grain growth will be uniform. This study
successfully addresses the welding of 5 mm thick plates
by coupling the use of ux as well as the laser welding.
Although several research works have been attempted in the
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The following conclusions could be drawn from the

present investigation.
(1) Successful joints of AISI 904L with 5 mm thick
plate could be accomplished using ux assisted low
power (2 kW) laser welding process.
(2) Multidirectional grain growth containing cellular
and columnar dendrites along with the presence of
centerline ne equiaxed grains was observed.
(3) A small porosity was observed at the specic
location (near keyhole) of the weldment not throughout
the entire length of the weldment.
(4) Tensile strength of the ux assisted laser welded
AISI 904L was reported to be 587 MPa. The impoverishment of tensile strength could be attributed to the
centerline equiaxed grains.
(5) Impact toughness of the weldment was closer to the
parent metal, which would be due to the absence of
oxides in the fusion zone.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors sincerely thank the Department of Science

and Technology (DST) - Science & Engineering Research
Board (SERB) for funding this project under the Young
Scientist Scheme (Project No. YSS/2014/000706). The
authors also sincerely thank the DST for funding the laser
welding machine and Instron Universal Testing facility to
our University under DST-FIST scheme.
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