TWI Digital Library

A spot FSW robot system was developed and used to weld lap joints in aluminium alloys (used mainly in car body assembly) and the static strength of the welded joints was compared with resistance spot welded joints. A prototype spot FSW gun was combi…

The floating bobbin friction stir welding (FSW) technique was employed to develop high performance aluminium floor slabs for road bridges and experiments were undertaken to investigate the influence of heat input on fracture location. Butt joints we…

A review of an experimental study of friction stir welded (FSW) 5456-H1 16 aluminium plate of 19 mm thickness, is presented and the formation of a pre-rotation defect and its effect on the mechanical properties of welds is discussed. Welds were made…

Friction stir welding tool developments to enhance the range of process applications, welding speed and quality are described. The scroll shoulder tool has a shoulder profile which moves surface material towards the probe. It improves surface qualit…

Dissimilar butt joints were fabricated between two aluminium alloys, 2017A-T451 (Al, 4.14%Cu, 0.72%Mg) and AlSi9Mg (Al, 8.6%Si, 0.31%Mg), by friction stir welding (FSW) using a dual-speed tool and their microstructure and mechanical properties were …

Friction stir welding (FSW) was carried out on A-6N01-T5 aluminium alloy of thickness 15 mm in various restraint conditions, and the amount of deformation before and after welding was investigated. Vertical distortion and lateral shrinkage of the we…

In the last fifteen years, friction stir welding has developed from a laboratory curiosity to an important fabrication technique for lightweight, lower softening temperature alloys. Industrial implementation of joining magnesium has been limited alm…

The relationship between microstructure and hardness was investigated in friction stir welded aluminium alloy 6063-T5. The alloy thickness was 6 mm. Hardness profiles were measured across the stir zone. The microstructure of the as-welded and postwe…

An investigation was undertaken to examine the effect of adding aluminium to magnesium on the strength of dissimilar joints between steel and magnesium fabricated by friction stir welding. The materials studied were pure 3N magnesium, AZ31 (Mg, 2.9%…

A scanning nonlinear acoustic NDT method was employed to detect the presence of kissing bonds in a friction stir welded 2000 series aluminium alloy and experimental results were validated using coupons taken from the scan area and inspected by optic…

A technique was developed to fill the exit hole during the retraction phase of a friction stir welding (FSW) sequence which, by using existing equipment functionality and designing a hollow FSW tool, syringe-type delivery system and pre-loaded alumi…

With regard to the use of friction pull plug welding to close out the termination hole associated with pin tool retraction during friction stir welding of circumferential welds in pressurised cryogenic propellant tanks, an investigation is presented…

In order to develop a method for microjoining by friction stir welding (FSW), micro-FSW trials were conducted on Mg alloy AZ31 (2.97%Al, 0.83%Zn) thin sheets (0.4 mm thickness), and the welding performance was assessed. The micro-FSW system incorpor…

Abrasion circle and modified refill friction stir spot welding (FSSW) techniques were employed to fabricate dissimilar joints between 6111-T4 (Al, 0.75%Mg, 0.69%Si, 0.75%Cu) and AZ31 (Mg, 3%Al, 1%Zn, 0.5%Mn) alloy sheets (thickness 0.9 mm) with the …

The development of three-dimensional column-type friction stir welding (FSW) equipment for robotic FSW of joints with complex shapes is described. The process requires a large force and precision control for tool penetration. The specification of th…

Analytical modelling and experimental measurements were undertaken to investigate a dual-loop temperature control algorithm for friction stir processing, incorporating an inner loop to maintain constant power and an outer loop to set the power based…

Friction stir processing (FSP) was employed to fabricate oxide dispersion strengthened copper composites and the microstructure and mechanical properties of the materials were investigated in order to clarify the effect of process parameters on mate…

Control equipment for the friction stir welding process was developed and evaluated for the production of a 8.4 m (27.5 ft) diameter, 0.32 in (8.13 mm) wall thickness 2195-T8 aluminium alloy space vehicle external fuel tank. The use of a computer-ba…

An investigation was carried out in order to examine the feasibility of producing friction stir welded FSW T-joints using the corner fillet geometry. A specific tool comprising a rotating pin (made of MP159) with a 45 degree inclination to the two p…

The SCIENZE (Supply Chain Innovation Engineering for Net Zero) Project aims to create a UK based supply chain that is capable of manufacturing the next generation of power electronic components at volumes higher than is currently feasible to do toda…