Effect of post-weld heat treatment on joint properties of dissimilar friction stir welded 2024-T4 and 7075-T6 aluminum alloys

The effect of post-weld heat treatment on dissimilar friction stir welded AA7075 and AA2024 joints was studied. After welding in constant parameters, solution heat treatment and various aging treatments were given to the welded joints. Microstructural and phase characterizations were done using optical microscope, SEM, FE-SEM, XRD and EDS techniques. Finally, mechanical properties of post-weld heat treated joints were evaluated and compared with as-welded joints. Results show that both 2024-T6 and 7075-T6 post-weld heat treatment procedures considerably improve the mechanical strength of the welded joint, with higher strength obtained for the 7075-T6 procedure, in comparison with the as-welded joint. This is explained by the formation of fine precipitates during the aging process, despite the abnormal grain growth. Fracture occurs at the interface between thermo-mechanical affected zone (TMAZ) and heat affected zone (HAZ) on the retreating side (AA7075) of as-welded joint, while by applying post-weld heat treatment fracture location shifts towards the stir zone (SZ) of the welded joint. Also, for post-weld heat treated samples, fracture surface is predominantly inter-granular, while in as-weld joint, fracture surface is mostly trans-granular. This is explained by dissolution and coarsening of precipitates within grains in post-weld heat treated joints.