Stir zone microstructure and strain rate during Al 7075-T6 friction stir spot welding

The factors determining the temperature, heating rate, microstructure, and strain rate in Al 7075-T6 friction stir spot welds are investigated. Stir zone microstructure was examined using a combination of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) microscopy, while the strain rate during spot welding was calculated by incorporating measured temperatures and the average subgrain dimensions in the Zener-Hollomon relation. The highest temperature during friction stir spot welding (527 °C) was observed in spot welds made using a tool rotational speed of 3000 rpm. The stir zone regions comprised fine-grained, equiaxed, fully recrystallized microstructures. The calculated strain rate in Al 7075-T6 spot welds decreased from 650 to about 20 s⁻¹ when the tool rotational speed increased from 1000 to 3000 rpm. It is suggested that the decrease in strain rate results when tool slippage occurs when the welding parameter settings facilitate transient local melting during the spot welding operation. Transient local melting and tool slippage are produced when the welding parameters produce sufficiently high heating rates and temperatures during spot welding. However, transient local melting and tool slippage is not produced in Al 7075-T6 spot welds made using a rotational speed of 1000 rpm since the peak temperature is always less than 475 °C.     

A Study on Friction Stir Multi Spot Welding Techniques to Join Commercial Pure Aluminum and Mild Steel Sheets

To achieve significant improvement in the shear strength of dissimilar joints between aluminum and mild steel sheets, four methods of friction stir multi-spot welding processes, were investigated. Initially, in all these methods, plasticized aluminum layer was deposited on the steel side by friction surfacing. Subsequently, the deposited aluminum was compacted by friction forming. After dressing, spot welding with different tool configurations was performed. Tool rotational speeds of 900, 1120, 1400 and 1800 rpm were used to analyze their effects on the weld nugget. Different mechanical and metallurgical characterizations were done on the welds thus made. The process with aluminum layer on grooved mild steel followed by friction stir multi-spot welding using concave tipped welding tool resulted in welds. These welds had better metallurgical bonding characteristics and higher shear strength, which at a rotational speed of 1120 rpm was more than twice that of the welds made with conventional friction stir spot welding.     

Parameters controlling microstructure and hardness during friction-stir welding of precipitation-hardenable aluminum alloy 6063

The aluminum (Al) alloys 6063-T5 and T4 were friction-stir welded at different tool rotation speeds (R), and then distributions of the microstructure and hardness were examined in these welds. The maximum temperature of the welding thermal cycle rose with increasing R values. The recrystallized grain size of the weld increased exponentially with increasing maximum temperature. The relationship between the grain size and the maximum temperature satisfied the static grain-growth equation. In the as-welded condition, 6063-T5 Al was softened around the weld center, whereas 6063-T4 Al showed homogeneous hardness profiles. Different R values did not result in significant differences in the hardness profile in these welds, except for the width of the softened region in the weld of 6063-T5 Al. Postweld aging raised the hardness in most parts of the welds, but the increase in hardness was small in the stir zone produced at the lower R values. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations detected a similar distribution of the strengthening precipitates in the grain interiors and the presence of a precipitation-free zone (PFZ) adjacent to the grain boundaries in all the welds. Microstructural analyses suggested that the small increase in hardness in the stir zone produced at the lower R values was caused by an increase in the volume fraction of PFZs.     

Microstructural factors governing hardness in friction-stir welds of solid-solution-hardened Al alloys

Microstructural factors governing hardness in friction-stir welds of the solid-solution-hardened Al alloys 1080 and 5083 were examined by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The effect of grain boundary on the hardness was examined in an Al alloy 1080 which did not contain any second-phase particles. The weld of Al alloy 1080 had a slightly greater hardness in the stir zone than the base material. The maximum hardness was located in the thermomechanically affected zone (TMAZ). The stir zone consisted of recrystallized fine grains, while the TMAZ had a recovered grain structure. The increase in hardness in the stir zone can be explained by the Hall-Petch relationship. On the other hand, the hardness profiles in the weld of Al alloy 5083 were roughly homogeneous. Friction-stir welding created the fine recrystallized grains in the stir zone and recovered grains in the TMAZ in the weld of this alloy. The stir zone and the TMAZ had slightly higher dislocation densities than the base material. Many small Al₆(Mn,Fe) particles were detected in all the grains of the weld. The hardness profiles could not be explained by the Hall-Petch relationship, but rather by Orowan hardening. The results of the present study suggest that the hardness profile is mainly affected by the distribution of small particles in friction-stir welds of Al alloys containing many such particles.     

Al-to-Cu Friction Stir Lap Welding

Recently, friction stir welding (FSW) has been used frequently to join dissimilar metals, for instance, Al to Mg, Cu, and steel. The formation of brittle intermetallic compounds often severely limits the strength and ductility of the resultant welds. In the present study, Al-to-Cu lap FSW was studied by welding 6061 Al to commercially pure Cu. Conventional lap FSW was modified by butt welding a small piece of Al to the top of Cu, with a slight pin penetration into the bottom of Al. At travel speeds up to 127 mm/min (5 ipm), the modified welds were about twice the joint strength and five to nine times the ductility of the conventional lap welds. In the conventional lap welds, voids were present along the Al–Cu interface, and fracture occurred along the interface in tensile testing. No such voids were observed in the modified lap welds, and fracture occurred through Cu. Thus, as in the case of Al-to-Mg lap FSW recently studied by the authors, modified lap FSW significantly improved the weld quality in Al-to-Cu lap FSW. At the relatively high travel speed of 203 mm/min (8 ipm), however, modified lap FSW was no longer superior because of channel formation.     

X-Ray and Neutron Diffraction Measurements of Dislocation Density and Subgrain Size in a Friction-Stir-Welded Aluminum Alloy

The dislocation density and subgrain size were determined in the base material and friction-stir welds of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy. High-resolution X-ray diffraction measurement was performed in the base material. The result of the line profile analysis of the X-ray diffraction peak shows that the dislocation density is about 4.5 × 10¹⁴ m⁻² and the subgrain size is about 200 nm. Meanwhile, neutron diffraction measurements have been performed to observe the diffraction peaks during friction-stir welding (FSW). The deep penetration capability of the neutron enables us to measure the peaks from the midplane of the Al plate underneath the tool shoulder of the friction-stir welds. The peak broadening analysis result using the Williamson–Hall method shows the dislocation density of about 3.2 × 10¹⁵ m⁻² and subgrain size of about 160 nm. The significant increase of the dislocation density is likely due to the severe plastic deformation during FSW. This study provides an insight into understanding the transient behavior of the microstructure under severe thermomechanical deformation.     

Precipitation and grain refinement in a 2195 Al friction stir weld

The microstructure across a friction stir weld in aluminum alloy 2195 was analyzed to reveal the precipitation processes, grain evolution mechanisms, and crystallographic texture within that weld. The complex microhardness variations across the weld are explained by the observed precipitation sequence, in which the original precipitates coarsen and dissolve during welding, and are then replaced by different precipitates, which form during cooling. The grain development from the thermomechanically affected zone (TMAZ) into the weld nugget reveals that subgrains form within the TMAZ grains and develop increasing boundary misorientations through continuous dynamic recrystallization by subgrain rotation to eventually form the refined grains observed within the weld nugget. Within the weld nugget, a {112}〈110〉 texture is observed, corresponding to a high strain/high temperature shear strain component.     

Al-to-Mg Friction Stir Welding: Effect of Material Position,Travel Speed,and Rotation Speed

Because joining dissimilar metals is often difficult by fusion joining, interest has been growing rapidly in using friction stir welding (FSW), which is considered a revolutionary solid-state welding process, as a new way to join dissimilar metals such as Al alloys to Mg alloys, Cu, and steels. Butt FSW of Al to Mg alloys has been studied frequently recently, but the basic issue of how the welding conditions affect the resultant joint strength still is not well understood. Using the widely used alloys 6061 Al and AZ31 Mg, the current study investigated the effect of the welding conditions, including the positions of Al and Mg with respect to the welding tool, the tool travel speed, and the tool rotation speed on the weld strength. Unlike previous studies, the current study (1) determined the heat input by both torque and temperature measurements during FSW, (2) used color metallography with Al, Mg, Al₃Mg₂, and Al₁₂Mg₁₇ all shown in different colors to reveal clearly the formation of intermetallic compounds and material flow in the stir zone, which are known to affect the joint strength significantly, and (3) determined the windows for travel and rotation speeds to optimize the joint strength for various material positions. The current study demonstrated clearly that the welding conditions affect the heat input, which in turn affects (1) the formation of intermetallics and even liquid and (2) material flow. Thus, the effect of welding conditions in Al-to-Mg butt FSW on the joint strength now can be explained.     

Microstructure Evolution during Friction Stir Welding of Mill-Annealed Ti-6Al-4V

In this study, mill-annealed Ti-6Al-4V plates were successfully friction stir welded over a wide range of processing parameters using a tungsten-1 pct La₂O₃ tool. Two K-type thermocouples embedded in the tool indicated that approximately 25 pct of the heat generated during welding was transferred out of the workpiece and into the tool. The thermocouple data, combined with observations of the microstructure, indicated that the stir zone of all welds exceeded the β transus. The microstructure and texture of two representative welds made just above and high above the β transus were investigated with scanning electron microscopy and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The β phase orientations were reconstructed with a fully automated technique from the as-collected α phase data through knowledge of the Burgers orientation relationship. The results suggest that the fine β grains in the stir zone are formed from the base material ahead of the advancing tool by dissolution of secondary and primary α phase, and there is no further recrystallization. These grains subsequently deform by slip and rotate toward the orientations that are most stable with respect to the shear deformation induced by the tool. In the highest temperature weld, diffusion tool wear in the form of periodically spaced bands provided an internal marker of the tool/workpiece interface during welding. The flow patterns evident within the tungsten-enriched bands suggest that flow is considerably more chaotic on the advancing side than in the central stir zone.     

Structure and mechanical properties of 1570C alloy welds produced by friction stir welding

The effect of the conditions of friction stir welding (FSW) of 1570C aluminum alloy sheets on the structure and mechanical properties of the welded joints is studied. A recrystallized fine-grained structure with a grain size changing with the rate of welding tool rotation forms in a weld during FSW. As compared to the base metal, the yield strength of the weld metal decreases by 9–22% depending on the rate of welding tool rotation, and the ultimate tensile strength is almost independent of the FSW conditions and accounts for ～90% of the ultimate tensile strength of the base metal. The plasticity of the weld metal is >13% for all rates of welding tool rotation. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the weld zone are discussed.     

Tensile ductility of several commercial aluminum alloys at elevated temperatures

One experimental and five commercial aluminum alloys were tested in tension at elevated temperatures (225 °C to 500 °C) over a range of strain rates (2×10⁻⁵ to 10⁻¹ s⁻¹). The experimental alloy contained 5 wt pct Zn with a balance of Al. The commercial alloys included AA 5182, 5754, 7150, 6111, and 6022. Two 5182 materials were examined, one produced by standard ingot-processing methods and the other by continuous casting. The 5754 and 5182 alloys exhibited a deformation regime consistent with solute-drag creep for values of diffusivity-compensated strain rate less than 10¹³ m⁻². Within this regime, the 5754 and ingot-metallurgy 5182 materials exhibited tensile ductilities up to 140 pct. The continuously cast 5182 material exhibited lower ductility in this regime than the 5754 and ingot-metallurgy 5182 materials, despite similar stress exponents. Ductility was reduced in the continuously cast 5182 because of significant dynamic grain growth and cavitation. The 7150, Al-5Zn, 6111, and 6022 materials exhibited significantly higher stress exponents and lower tensile ductilities than the 5000-series materials.     

Effect of friction stir processing on the kinetics of superplastic deformation in an Al-Mg-Zr alloy

The effect of friction stir processing on the superplastic behavior of extruded Al-4Mg-1Zr was examined at 350 °C to 600 °C and at initial strain rates of 1×10⁻³ to 1 s⁻¹. A combination of a fine grain size of 1.5 μm and high-angle grain boundaries in the friction stir-processed (FSP) alloy led to considerably enhanced superplastic ductility, much-reduced flow stress, and a shift to a higher optimum strain rate and lower optimum temperature. The as-extruded alloy exhibited the highest superplastic ductility of 1015 pct at 580 °C and an initial strain rate of 1×10⁻²s⁻¹, whereas a maximum elongation of 1280 pct was obtained at 525 °C and an initial strain rate of 1×10⁻¹s⁻¹ for the FSP alloy. The FSP alloy exhibited enhanced superplastic deformation kinetics compared to that predicted by the constitutive relationship for superplasticity in fine-grained aluminum alloys. A possible origin for enhanced superplastic deformation kinetics in the FSP condition is proposed.     

Optimization of friction stir spot welding process parameters of dissimilar Al 5083 and C 10100 joints using response surface methodology

Using response surface methodology, optimization of friction stir spot welding process parameters of dissimilar Al 5083 and C 10100 joints were experimented. The predominant requirement was to obtain reduced interface hardness and increased tensile shear failure load. For specification of experimental conditions, central composite design matrix was used, with three factors and five levels. With Al 5083 alloy and C 10100 copper twenty joints were made. Experimentally, tensile shear failure load and interface hardness were measured. Significant main parameters and interaction process parameters were evaluated using analysis of variance (ANOVA) method. Regression analysis was used for development of empirical relationship. Design expert software was used for optimization of friction stir spot welding process parameters by using response graphs and constructing contour plots. At 95% confidence level, prediction of tensile shear failure load and interface hardness of the dissimilar Al 5083—C 10100 joints were done using the empirical relations that were developed. The optimum conditions of Al 5083—C 10100 joints by friction stir spot welding process were evaluated using contour plots.     

Autogenous gas tungsten arc weldability of cast alloy Ti−48Al−2Cr−2Nb (Atomic percent) versus extruded alloy Ti−46Al−2Cr−2Nb−0.9Mo (Atomic percent)

This study examines procedures for consistently producing sound (crack and void free) welds using the autogenous (without filler metal) gas tungsten arc (GTA) welding process. Cast alloy Ti−48Al−2Cr−2Nb (at. pct) and extruded alloy Ti−46Al−2Cr−2Nb−0.9Mo (at. pct) have been examined to determine if sound welds can be produced using autogenous GTA welding without any preheat. Experimentation consisted of GTA spot welding samples of gamma titanium aluminide at weld current levels of 45, 55, 65, and 75 A for a duration of 3 seconds. For the cast alloy, current levels of 45, 55, and 65 A for 3 seconds produced similar fusion zone microstructures, which consisted of a dendritic solidification structure. The fusion zone microstructure of the 75A for 3 seconds current level differed significantly from the lower current levels. It also consisted of a dendritic solidification structure; however, the morphology was quite different. For the extruded alloy, current levels of 45 and 55 A for 3 seconds produced fusion zone microstructures similar to the lower current level samples of the cast γ-TiAl, which consisted of a dendritic solidification structure. The fusion zone microstructures of the 65 and 75 A samples were similar to each other, but they had a dendritic solidification structure of a different morphology than that of the 45 and 55 A samples. For both alloys at all current levels, microhardness profiles showed an increase in hardness from the base metal to the fusion zone. There were no significant differences in the average fusion zone hardness as a function of increasing current level. However, nanoindentation testing did show that certain phases and microconstituents in the fusion zone did have significant variations in hardness in relation to the enrichment and depletion of chromium. This article is based on a presentation made in the symposium “Fundamentals of Gamma Titanium Aluminides,” presented at the TMS Annual Meeting, February 10–12, 1997, Orlando, Florida, under the auspices of the ASM/MSD Flow & Fracture and Phase Transformations Committees.     

Characterization of plastic flow and resulting microtextures in a friction stir weld

In friction stir welding (FSW), a rotating threaded pin tool is inserted into a weld seam and literally stirs the edges of the seam together. The dynamically recrystallized zone (DXZ) of a polished and etched FSW cross section exhibits contrasting bands (the “onion-ring” structure), the origins of which are unclear. An orientation image mapping (OIM) study suggests that the bands may correspond, respectively, to a “straight-through” current of metal bypassing the pin tool in a single rotation or less and a “maelstrom” current rotating a number of times around the pin tool.     

Investigation on Metallurgical Structure and Mechanical Properties of Dissimilar Al 2024/Cu FSW T-joints

In this research, T-joining of AA2024-T4 and commercially pure copper were performed successfully using friction stir welding. Effect of welding parameters on metallurgical and mechanical characteristics of the joints was studied. For this purpose, tensile strength, microhardness, and macro- and microstructures of the joints were investigated. Also, the fracture surfaces were examined using XRD and SEM. The best results were obtained for the 1130 rpm rotation speed (ω) and 12 mm/min travel speed (v), with the UTS of 156 MPa (~70% of Cu strength). The microhardness test showed that TMAZ and base metal of Al side had the maximum hardness amounts (148 and 155 HV, respectively). Generally, increase in the ω²/v ratio caused the nugget zone and HAZ grain size to increase. The results revealed the formation of Al₂Cu and Al₄Cu₉ intermetallic compounds in the border zone of the joints. The fractography results showed the occurrence of cleavage fracture in all the samples.     

Effect of Tool Offset and Tool Rotational Speed on Enhancing Mechanical Property of Al/Mg Dissimilar FSW Joints

Friction stir welding (FSW) is a promising solid-state joining technique for producing effective welds between Al alloy and Mg alloy. However, previously reported Al/Mg dissimilar FSW joints generally have limited strength or barely any ductility with relatively high strength, which was blamed on the brittle intermetallics formed during welding. In this study, effective joints with comparably high strength (163 MPa) and large elongation (~6 pct) were obtained. Three crucial/weak zones were identified in the welds: (1) Al/Mg bottom interface (BI) zone that resulted from the insufficient materials’ intermixing and interdiffusion; (2) banded structure (BS) zone which contains intermetallic particles possibly formed by constitutional liquation; and (3) softened Al alloy to the retreating side (SAA-RS) zone due to the dissolution and coarsening of the strengthening precipitates. Three fracture modes observed in the tensile specimens perpendicular to the weld seam were found closely related to these zones. Their microstructure evolution with the change of tool rotational speed and tool offset was characterized and the consequent effect on the fracture mode alteration was studied. It turned out that enhancing the strengths of all these zones, but keeping the strength of the SAA lowest, is an effective way for enhancing ductility while keeping comparatively high strength in Al/Mg FSW joints. Also, suggestions for further improving the mechanical property of the Al/Mg dissimilar FSW joints were made accordingly for practical applications.