%0 conference lecture
%@ 
%A Avgeri, V.,Examilioti, T.,Kashaev, N.,Karanikolas, D.,Kourkoulis, S.,Alexopoulos, N.

%D 2019
%J 3rd International Conference on Structural Integrity
%N 
%P  

%T Effect of filler wire on the fracture toughness of laser beam welded 2198 joints
%U 
 
%X Many decades ago, aluminum - copper (Al-Cu) 2024 alloy has been widely used in,the wings and barrel sections of aircraft structures due to its high damage tolerance capabilities.,Innovative aluminum - copper - lithium (Al-Cu-Li) alloys such as 2198, have been recently,developed and is supposed to replace aluminum alloy (AA) 2024 in aerospace industry applications.,The current trend of the aerospace industries is to further reduce the airframe structural,weight and respective manufacturing costs as well as to introduce advanced welding methods,as alternative to the classical riveting process for manufacturing of primary aircraft structures.,Laser beam welding (LBW) of fuselage structures from aluminum alloys is already established,in the aircraft industry for lower fuselage panels since the welded panels provide higher,buckling strength and lower weight when compared to the classical riveted designs.,The mechanical behavior of both non-welded and laser beam welded aluminum-lithium,alloy 2198 specimens are examined in the present work. Sheets with nominal thickness of 3.2,mm were laser beam butt welded using two different filler wires, namely AA4047 (Al-Si) and,AA2319 (Al-Cu), of diameters 1.2 mm and 1.0 mm, respectively. The specimens were,machined from the two types of welded sheets, according to the ASTM standards. Some of,the specimens were artificially aged before and post to the welding process at 170 oC and for,different ageing times so as to bring the material in all possible ageing conditions.,The specimens were examined with the aid of light optical microscope to investigate the,morphology formation of the precipitations on the fusion zone and the heat-affected zone for,the different filler materials.,It was shown that the different filler wire plays a critical role on the fracture properties of,the welded joint and especially for the fracture toughness. The Al-Cu filler wire responded,more accurately to the artificial ageing conditions compared to the respective Al-Si filler wire.