Abstract: TC4 titanium alloy was welded by double-sided gas tungsten arc welding(GTAW) process in comparison with conventional GTAW process, the microstructure and mechanical performance of weld were also studied. The results indicate that double-sided GTAW is superior over regular single-sided GTAW on the aspects of increasing penetration, reducing welding deformation and improving welding efficiency. Good weld joint was obtained, which can reach 96.14% tensile strength and 70.85% elongation percentage of the base metal. The grains in heat-affected zone(HAZ) are thin and equiaxed and the degree of grain coarsening increases as one moves to the weld center line, and the interior of grains are α and α′ structures. The coarse columned and equiaxed grains, which interlace martensitic structures α′ and acicular α structures, are observed in weld zone. The fracture mode is ductile fracture.

Key words: double-sided arc welding; gas tungsten arc welding; TC4 titanium alloy; microstructure