New general double ellipsoid heat source model

Based on the tridimensional Gauss distribution of power density, a general double ellipsoid welding heat source model has been developed. This model not only consists of all the characteristics of a double ellipsoid model, but also can deal with the situation where, under an external disturbance, the arc's backbone is not perpendicular to the work surface. This general double ellipsoid model is validated by measured results of the temperature field during twin wire welding. Using the non-linear finite element software Marc, the temperature field during twin wire welding was calculated using both the double ellipsoid heat source and the general double ellipsoid heat source. The thermal cycling curves and the weld pool cross-section obtained by the general double ellipsoid heat source tally well with the experimental results.