Vaporizing foil actuator welding

Vaporizing foil actuator welding is a form of impact welding, which can be carried out without the use of chemical explosives. Operating at smaller length scales, but with similar driving pressures as explosive welding, vaporizing foil actuator welding is capable of welding a wide variety of advanced and dissimilar metal combinations. With negligible heating developing during the process, thermal distortion does not occur, and the base-metal properties are retained in the weld. In this article, vaporizing foil actuator welding of an automotive grade aluminum and steel pair is discussed. A currently functional and complete welding system that can be used for research as well as low volume production is also discussed.