TWI Digital Library

A project to introduce friction stir welding for aluminium shipbuilding in Taiwan is described. The advantages of FSW compared with arc welding for this application are summarised. Stages of the project are outlined, covering work with local tool fa…

The use of a full-length welding process to repair defective friction stir welded (FSW) butt joints in aerospace aluminium alloys was evaluated. Lack of penetration, offset and tunnel defects were investigated in AA6156-T6, AA2198-T8 and AA2024-T3 a…

Friction stir welding was employed to fabricate bead-on-plate welds on AA 6063 aluminium alloy sheets (thickness 5 mm) and dissimilar joints between AA 6063 and S45C carbon steel plates (thickness 6 mm), and the influence of weld shape on microstruc…

An indirect temperature measurement system was developed based on the acquisition of torque and process forces during friction stir welding (FSW) and a mathematical model incorporating a grey box approach was formulated to determine the correlation …

Friction stir welding was employed to fabricate welded joints in Ni-free 18%Cr, 2%Mo, 0.85%N austenitic steel sheets (thickness 3 mm) and the gradient characteristics of the microstructures and mechanical properties were investigated along transvers…

The concept and theoretical principles of friction flow welding are presented. Numerical simulation using 'Deform-3D' software was used to compared and optimise the process. The applicability of friction flow welding to different aluminium alloys wa…

In relation to the industrialisation of the friction stir welding process to facilitate qualification of welding machines for different applications, a methodology is presented based on the interactions between tool, workpiece and material. Issues d…

A report is presented into the "RoboFSW" project, intended to qualify a high payload articulated arm robot for friction stir welding (FSW); hardware modification and control system integration are described and 3D FSW capability is reported for circ…

Two abutting plates (thickness 6 mm) of Al 6061-T6 and cold rolled AISI 1018 mild steel were friction stir welded along the butt joint with the steel and aluminium, respectively, on advancing and retreating sides, and the relationship between proces…

The surface quality, microstructure and crystallographic texture were investigated as a function of traverse speed for friction stir welds of Ti-6Al-4V, produced using static shoulder tools consisting of a tungsten-rhenium probe and a silicon nitrid…

A review is presented of process development work undertaken with regard to a machine concept assessment and the realisation of a fully 3D-capable 5-axis parallel kinematic friction stir welding machine, a so-called pentapod, suitable for large and …

Butt welding experiments were undertaken to investigate the feasibility of joining a metal matrix composite (MMC), comprising an Al-10%Si matrix and 20 vol.% SiC particles, to an AA-6063-T5 alloy by friction stir welding (FSW). Optimum process param…

Friction stir spot welding experiments were conducted on dissimilar metal joints between AA5052 aluminium alloy and three kinds of zinc coated steel, and weldability analysis, microstructure observations and mechanical tests were undertaken. The coa…

Friction stir processing (FSP) experiments were undertaken to modify the microstructure of Ti-6%Al-4%V parent metal specimens, in both alpha/beta and beta processed conditions, and TIG weld overlays deposited onto Ti, 6%Al, 4%V alloy using matching …

Similar and dissimilar joints between 2014-T6 (Al, 4.67%Cu) and 6061-T6 (Al, 0.9%Mg, 0.63%Si) aluminium alloys were fabricated by friction stir welding (FSW) with various sets of process parameters, and the microstructure and mechanical properties o…

An investigation is presented into the fatigue characteristics of friction stir welded (FSW) lap joints made from artificially aged Al alloy 6082 (Al, 0.6-1.2%Mg, 0.7-1.3%Si) using a tool based on the "Triflute" concept with either convex or concave…

A 16-run screening design of experiments (DOE) was conducted to analyse the effects of nine factors during friction stir welding on process forces, temperatures and shoulder depth. The factors were spindle speed, feed rate, plunge depth, pin length,…

Friction stir welding was conducted on Al alloy 6005A-T6 plates of 6 mm thickness. The power input was determined from torque measurements. The effects of advancing speed and rotation speed on total power input were examined. Thermal cycles were mea…

An experimental study was carried out to evaluate the acoustic emission (AE) method as a means of monitoring the welding state and identifying weld defects during the friction stir welding (FSW) process. FSW was carried out on 6061 aluminium alloy p…

An experimental study was carried out to investigate the properties of FSW joints in AA-6056 aluminium alloy, looking at the effects of surface preparation, tool geometry and welding speed and the correlation between these factors. FSW was carried o…