Numerical investigation of the effect of oblique laser shock processing parameters on the residual stress and deformation characteristics of TC6 titanium alloy

Oblique laser shock processing (OLSP) can provide a new solution for improving the mechanical properties of complex structural elements. In this paper, a spatial distribution model of OLSP shock wave pressure is established and validated to study the residual stress (RS) field and surface morphology of titanium alloy TC6 treated by OLSP using the finite element method. The effects of the incident angle, overlapping rate, and scanning pattern on the RS field and surface morphology were investigated. The OLSP results indicate that the overlapping rate should be at least 50%. The RS field and surface morphology obtained with the interval scanning pattern are more uniform compared to snake and spiral. With a 50% overlapping rate and interval scanning pattern, the surface roughness was found to be 0.16, and the surface residual compressive stress fluctuation amplitude was reduced by 40.07%. The results provide a theoretical basis for complex structures of LSP.