TWI

The effects of pre and post weld heat treatments on the strength, fracture toughness and fatigue crack propagation of welds made by friction stir welding (FSW) in aluminium alloy 6013-T6 sheet material, which may replace the 2024-T3 skin alloy for f…

The microstructure and age hardening of friction stir welds in aluminium alloy plate 2014A-T651 (Al, 4.42%Cu, 0.79%Si, 0.62%Mg) and 7075-T651 (Al, 5.99%Zn, 2.72%Mg, 1.46%Cu) were investigated. Single sided butt welds were produced, temperatures bein…

An experimental and numerical analysis of the wear of a polycrystalline boron nitride (PCBN) friction stir welding (FSW) tool is overviewed as presentation slides. Topics highlighted include: FSW plunge trials of EH46 shipbuilding steel at a plunge …

The integration of friction stir welding (FSW) into the manufacturing sequence of spinformed domes of aluminium alloys is presented in terms of its optimisation and the specific iterations required with the prior and follow-up procedures of the manu…

Friction stir spot welding (FSSW) was employed to fabricate dissimilar lap joints between a 6000 series aluminium alloy (Al, 1%Si, 0.5%Mg) in the T4 condition and SPCC mild steel (0.05%C, 0.01%Si, 0.14%Mn) without formation of intermetallic compound…

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 …

With regard to the application of friction stir welding (FSW) to the production of launcher tanks holding cryogenic liquids, an investigation was undertaken to establish a robust and industrialised FSW process for AA 2219 alloys in T87 and T851 cond…

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…

A friction stir welding (FSW) methodology incorporating laser tracking and constant force control technologies was developed in order to fabricate large, thin-walled aircraft floor structures. The material chosen for study comprised sheet specimens …

The bobbin tool or self-reacting tool variant of the friction stir welding process was investigated on butt joints of various 2000 series aluminium alloys for aircraft fuselage applications; welding feasibility tests were conducted in pin length con…

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…

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…

A stop-action technique was used to stop tool motion during friction stir welding of aluminium alloys in order to study the interactions between the parent material and welding tool pin in the keyhole. Welds were made in 25 mm thick Al-Cu-Li 2195 pl…

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…