TWI Digital Library

In relation to the challenges involved in temperature data acquisition and transmission associated with rotation of the friction stir welding (FSW) tool, an investigation is presented into a wireless temperature monitoring system based on thermocoup…

In relation to the requirement for automatic inspection of weld quality during the friction stir welding (FSW) process, the "MonStir" process monitoring system was developed to analyse measured process forces and their frequency spectra, and an inve…

Friction stir welding (FSW) tools, equipment and auxiliary devices were developed for application to heavy section aluminium alloy plate (thickness 40-70 mm), and the microstructure and mechanical properties of welded joints fabricated by the proced…

Electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) was employed to examine the grain refinement during rapid cooling friction stir welding of commercially pure copper sheets (thickness 2 mm) and the application of a liquid CO2 cooling technique to reduce th…

Friction stir welding (FSW) experiments were undertaken on AA 6061-T6 aluminium alloys to investigate the effects of liquid cooling of tooling on spindle speed, spindle torque, spindle power, forge force, and the amount of material plastically defor…

The friction stir spot welding of automotive aluminium alloy and Zn-coated steel was investigated. Welds were made in 6000 series AlMgSi alloys (1.2 mm thickness) and galvanised steel (1.1 mm thickness) using a multi-step friction stir spot process.…

Friction stir welding (FSW) experiments were undertaken to investigate the feasibility of joining a metal matrix composite (MMC), comprising an AA 2124 matrix and 25 vol.% SiC particles, to itself and to a monolithic alloy (AA 2024-T3), and the micr…

Friction stir welding was employed to fabricate butt joints in Ti-6%Al-4%V sheets (thickness 2 mm) and the effect of process parameters on joint microstructure and plastic deformation behaviour was investigated. Welding experiments were conducted at…

An experimental investigation was undertaken into the preparation and mechanical properties of two candidate substitutes to MP 159 Ni-Co alloy as tool materials for friction stir welding of high strength aluminium alloys. The alloys studied were "Ae…

With regard to the dependence of welded joint properties on tool probe shape during friction stir welding (FSW) of dissimilar butt joints between aluminium and steel, an investigation was undertaken into the interface formation mechanism by conducti…

A simplified friction stir welding (FSW) tool equipped with an adjustable probe was developed, FSW trial results with prototype tools were obtained and were analysed in terms of weldability. The simplified tools were realised by devising shoulders f…

A high rotational speed friction stir welding (FSW) procedure based on the use of a fixed shoulder tool was developed to facilitate the production of strong metallurgical joints at comparatively low process forces, and microstructural observations a…

To understand the influence of dwell time in friction stir welding (FSW) and thus to optimise its value, spot welds were produced between superposed sheets of 6008 aluminium alloy and industrial steel (thickness 2.5 and 2 mm, respectively), and thei…

An investigation is presented into the fatigue properties of welded joints in various structural aluminium alloys prepared by friction stir welding (FSW) and the results are compared with those measured on MIG welded joints. The experimental specime…

The tolerance of operational accuracy and optimum tool control in 3D friction stir welding (FSW) was investigated in relation to joint mechanical properties. A five-axis controlled FSW machine was developed for 3D welding. The material studied was a…

A flat heat pipe with Al2O3 nanofluid or deionised water as the working medium was designed, the relationship between pipe parameters and heat transfer characteristics was analysed, and the application of the heat pipe to friction stir welding was e…

The effects of friction stir welding (FSW) on the microstructure, hardness, residual stress state and grain distribution of 2124 Al-SiC composite alloy were investigated. The composite was of AMC225xe aerospace AW2124 alloy reinforced with 25% SiC p…

A nonlinear dynamic model to study the axial force and torque in the tool of a friction stir welding (FSW) process was developed by training an artificial neural network (ANN) multi-perceptron layer structure with a nonlinear autoregressive exogenou…

Friction stir welding experiments were undertaken on butt joints of AA6063 alloys (Al, 0.45-0.9%Mg, 0.2-0.6%Si) and AA6063 matrix reinforced with 6 and 10.5 vol.% B4C, and the effect of particle concentration on welded joint microstructure and micro…

A description is presented of a 5-axis gantry machine for friction stir welding (FSW) of full-size aluminium structures for applications ranging from armoured vehicle chassis and other military vehicles to more delicate 3D aircraft structures. The g…