A parametric study of the quasi-steady state temperature field by a moving heat source for surface treating

A three dimensional numerical analysis of a solid irradiated by a moving laser heat source in a quasi-steady state is carried out. The thermophysical properties of the material are considered to be temperature dependent. The dependence of the solution on the radiative and convective heat losses, the latter due to an impinging jet on the upper surface, is highlighted; the dependence of the temperature distribution on the Reynolds number of the jet is also presented. Different thicknesses and widths are shown to have discrepant influences on the induced thermal fields for a Gaussian laser source. The parametric analysis shows the thermal profiles to be strongly dependent on the jet Reynolds number. The thermal field is almost symmetric with respect to the spot center for a Peclet number equal to 0.1. The thermal penetration decreases as the Peclet number increases.