TWI

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…

Friction stir welding (FSW) experiments were undertaken on Cr-containing carbon steels (0.22%C, 0.5%Mn, 0-4%Cr) and the influence of Cr content on joint microstructure and mechanical properties was investigated. FSW was conducted at a tool rotationa…

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…

Using a pin tool made from relatively low cost metallic materials, including heat resistant alloys (e.g. Ni-Cr) with or without surface treatment, suitable conditions were investigated for friction stir welding (FSW) of commercially pure (CP) titani…

Friction stir lap welding of aluminium alloy to magnesium alloy was investigated, emphasising the tensile strength, fracture location in the joint and microstructure evolution in the weld under different welding heat inputs. Dissimilar joints betwee…

The relationship between microstructure and properties, and the influence of microstructure on the fracture toughness of friction stir welded aluminium alloys with weld zone strength undermatching were investigated. Welds were made in 5005-H14, 2024…

Based on lessons learned from the MegaStir research programme devoted to friction stir welding (FSW) of high temperature alloys and with the aim of producing high quality, defect free welded joints while maximising tool life, a report is presented i…

With the aim of overcoming the thickness limitations of conventional friction stir welding (FSW), a multilayer multirun FSW process was developed in which six layers of ASTM A516 G70 (0.18%C, 1.1%Mn, 0.08%Cr, 0.16%Ni, 0.04%Mo, 0.02%Ti, 0.03%Al, 0.32…

Annealed AISI 420 martensitic stainless steel (0.46%C, 0.3%Mn, 13.8%Cr) sheets (thickness 3 mm) were subjected to dry or wet friction stir processing (FSP) and the correlation between microstructure, hardness and process parameters was investigated.…

Friction stir welding (FSW) was conducted on high-strength pipe steel plates (thickness 12.7 mm) using commercially pure tungsten, tungsten-rhenium (W, 25%Re) and polycrystalline cubic boron nitride pin tools; mechanical properties of the welded joi…

A method for incorporating local material property gradients across the weld zone in finite element simulations of friction stir welded 2139-T8 aluminium alloys was developed to predict the time evolution of strain. Local material flow stress was de…

A short review is presented of the development of a friction stir welding process for steel and other hard metals using W-Re tool materials to produce repeatable, thick-section welds with minimal tool deformation. Issues discussed include: W, 25%Re …

Friction stir welding (FSW) was employed to fabricate overlap joints in thin AA 7075-T6 aluminium alloy (Al, 5.1-6.1%Zn, 2.1-2.9%Mg, 1.2-2%Cu) sheets (thickness 0.8 mm) coated with an anticorrosive aluminium layer and the microstructure and mechanic…

An investigation was undertaken to determine the strength and fracture toughness of joints fabricated by friction stir welding (FSW) in commercial X65 (0.07%C, 1.56%Mn, 0.06%Nb, 0.013%Ti) and X80 (0.05%C, 1.52%Mn, 0.26%Cr, 0.26%Cu, 0.1%Nb and 0.07%C…

An investigation was undertaken to evaluate friction stir processing (FSP) as a repair technique for AA 7075-T6 aluminium alloys and to examine the mechanical and fatigue performance of the repaired joints for applications such as repair of MIG and …

An experimental investigation was conducted to examine weldability, material thickness, welding speed and joint geometry aspects of robotic friction stir welding (FSW) of aluminium alloy aircraft structures. An ABB IRB7600-500 serial design robot wa…

Weld initiation experiments were undertaken on various Al-Mg(-Si) alloy extrusions to develop fixed-gap bobbin tool designs and process procedures to facilitate friction stir welding (FSW) of sheet specimens as thin as 3 mm. The alloy grades studied…

Friction stir welding (FSW) was employed to weld Mo and Ti sheets (thickness 1.5 and 2 mm, respectively), the effects of process conditions on weldability as well as mechanical properties and microstructure of joints was investigated, and the import…

A review is presented of the growth in interest in friction stir welding (FSW) as measured by real industry applications and the distribution of related patent filings by time and geography, and case studies are reported to illustrate commonly occur…

A friction stir welding (FSW) process map for AA 7075-T6 aluminium alloy (Al, 5.1-6.1%Zn, 2.1-2.9%Mg, 1.2-2%Cu) was determined using combined NDT techniques such as visual inspection, dye penetrant testing, X-ray radiography and ultrasonic testing a…