COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF DIFFERENT WELDING METHODS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF PLATINUM JEWELLERY

摘要

The relatively recent'application of laser welding and spot welding to platinum has supplemented the traditional joining techniques of conventional welding and brazing with a gas torch. Several recent publications (1÷3) have promoted the use of laser welding because of the superior strength of the joints compared to that of the joints obtained by conventional welding and brazing. In this paper we compare welds in three dijferent platinum alloys, produced with three different welding techniaues: conventional welding, laser welding and spot welding. Laser and spot welding produced very narrow heat af-fected zones, with correspondingly narrow regions of diminished hardness, while the conventional welding resulted in sam-ples being annealed and softened over their full lengths. Complete joining was difficult to achieve by laser and particularly spot welding, which could be problematic in joining thicker sections. With this knowledge, jewellers can design appropri-ately their products taking advantage of the novel joining techniaues.