TWI

With regard to the production of wear resistant friction stir welding (FSW) tools by laser implantation of ceramic particles, an investigation was undertaken to examine the effect of laser implantation on tool surface hardness, abrasive wear and lifetime. Welding experiments were conducted on AA 6082-T6 aluminium alloy sheets at a rotational speed of 2500 rpm, feed rate of 950 mm/min, welding force of 10 kN and tilt angle of 2 degrees using a PTG Powerstir FSW machine in a force controlled process. Tools made from X40CrMoV5-1 tool steel with a concave shoulder diameter of 14 mm were used with and without B4C implants. Implantation was performed with a pulsed Nd:YAG laser (maximum pulse power 500 W). Reference weldments were characterised by tensile and metallographic tests. In order to analyse the modified surface structure of the implanted tools, the process temperature was measured with thermocouples.

12th International Symposium, 26-28 Jun 2018, Session 4A: FSW Tools, Paper 05