Experiments and simulation of Al-alloy plate deforming by laser shock forming

In order to study the dynamic response of sheet metal to the laser shockwave loading,the characteristics of laser shock forming,the effect of pulse energy on sheet metal deformation and the distribution of shockwave pressure in irradiated zone,single laser shock forming of LD31 aluminum alloy was carried out with high-power Q-switched,pulsed neodymium-glass laser.Then the process of laser shock forming was simulated with ABAQUS.The results reveal that viscoplastic deformation happens in sheet metal under laser shocking,the deformation of sheet metal increases with the increase of pulse energy in nonlinear way,and pressure in irradiated zone decreases along radius.