TWI

Following an overview of friction stir spot welding (FSSW) for potential automotive applications (including robotic FSSW in poke welding and C-frame configurations, and pedestal FSSW machines for manual, automatic or robotic use), a FSSW process dev…

With regard to the development of a hybrid structure tool holder to facilitate chatter vibration suppression in metal cutting processes, an investigation was undertaken into the use of friction stir girth welding (FSGW) to fabricate dissimilar joint…

With regard to the development of Al-Mg-Sc alloys for aerospace applications, an investigation is presented into friction stir welding (FSW) of thick plates (thickness 35 mm) and thick-walled pipes made from 1570C alloy (Al, 5.7%Mg, 0.29%Mn, 0.2%Sc,…

Vertical and angular truss extrusions made from 6082-T6 aluminium alloy (Al, 0.7-0.74%Mg, 1.04-1.14%Si, 0.53-0.54%Mn) were friction stir welded in a half-overlap configuration to fabricate panels for marine applications and their fatigue performance…

An investigation is presented into the use of a friction stir welding/forging process to fabricate tee and I-beam shapes with integral radial shaped fillets, the optimisation of process parameters for different alloys and shapes, and the results of …

Friction stir welding (FSW) experiments were undertaken on sheet specimens (thickness 5 mm) of 5454-H111 aluminium alloys and the relationships between process forces, spindle power and tool geometry were investigated. Twelve FSW tools with specifie…

With regard to the development of dissimilar aluminium-steel joint fabrication for automotive applications such as body-in-white, an investigation incorporating experiment and numerical simulation was undertaken to examine the dissimilar friction st…

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…

With regard to the development of friction stir shaping as a modified friction stir welding (FSW) process to maximise material flow within the weld zone and redistribute it into new shapes or features outside of or on top of the weld zone, an invest…

An experimental study was carried out to characterise the types of defect which may occur in friction stir welding (FSW) when operating outside the standard processing window and to determine the causes of these defects. Friction stir welds were mad…

Results are presented from tests carried out to determine the mechanical and corrosion properties of friction stir welds in sheets of thickness 4 mm of two aerospace aluminium alloys AA-6056 and AA-6013. The specimens included alloys in the T6 condi…

Dissimilar butt joints between die-cast ADC12 aluminium alloy (Al, 11.53%Si, 2.02%Cu) and S45C carbon steel (0.46%C, 0.64%Mn, 0.12%Cu) were fabricated by friction stir welding and their static strength and fatigue properties were investigated. Weldi…

A friction stir welding (FSW) procedure using a W-Re alloy tool, magnetic welding fixture and a high-speed steel backing bar was developed for application to precipitation-hardened martensitic stainless steel (13.7%Cr, 7.1%Ni) thin sheet (thickness …

A methodology incorporating friction stir processing (for plasticising) and friction stir welding (for joining components) was developed to fabricate T-shaped copper conductor rails. Experiments were undertaken on copper plate specimens (thickness 8…

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a relatively new technique which utilizes frictional heating combined with a forging pressure to produce virtually defect-free high strength bonds. Although considerable experimental work has been reported in the liter…

An finite element method (FEM) model, considering variables such as tensioning level, heat input and sheet geometry but ignoring mechanical tool effects, was developed to investigate the efficacy of the mechanical tensioning technique for controllin…

With regard to the fabrication of closure welds for used fuel containers, a series of experiments was undertaken to demonstrate the feasibility of creating defect-free partial penetration welds by friction stir welding (FSW) in A516 Grade 70 steel (…

The application of suitable friction stir welding (FSW) tools and procedures to common structural geometries in industry, with emphasis of FSW of hard metals including steel, titanium and nickel based alloys in butt, T-joint, corner joint and circum…

Extruded AZ31 (Mg, 3%Al, 1%Zn) alloy plates (thickness 6 mm) were joined by one-run or two-run friction stir welding (FSW) and the microstructure, mechanical properties and residual stress characteristics of the welded joints were investigated. FSW …

With regard to the occurrence of residual oxide defects associated with friction stir welding (FSW) of aluminium alloys, an investigation is presented into a possible alternative mechanism for oxide formation within the weld nugget involving enhance…