TWI Digital Library

In relation to the production of local metal matrix composites (MMCs) by friction stir processing (FSP), an investigation was undertaken into the influence of tool geometry and process parameters on the shape of the nugget zone and the assessment of…

Butt joints were fabricated between A6063 aluminium alloys and S45C mild steel by friction stir welding (FSW) and the effect of material flow on the weld interface formation was investigated using the stop action technique. FSW experiments were unde…

A review is presented of the application of CFD (computational fluid dynamics) to numerical modelling of the friction stir welding (FSW) process, incorporating coupled physical phenomena such as heat generation, heat transfer and metal flow. Issues …

The effects of multiple overlapping friction stir weld runs (with 100% overlap) on the welding parameters and weld properties during the repair of high-strength AlCuMgZn alloy were investigated. Square butt welds were made in 7050-T7451 alloy (Al, 6…

The StiRoLight Research project (carried out in conjunction with SAAB, ESAB and Volvo) to investigate the use of an industrial robot for friction stir welding of aluminium alloys in the automobile industry, is outlined and studies of path deviations…

Ultrafine grained test pieces of aluminium, copper and steel produced by the accumulative roll bonding process were friction stir butt welded at various revolutionary pitches, and the microstructures and mechanical properties (tensile strength, Vick…

A discussion is presented on research studies carried out to develop friction stir welding (FSW) as a method for the production of thick (50.8-76.2 mm; 2-3 in) aluminium alloy 7050 tailored blanks suitable for use in the aerospace industry. Single r…

The test results are reported for preliminary trials of the feasibility and benefits of applying angular reciprocating (reversal within one revolution) or rotary reversal (reversal after one or more revolutions) motion to the tool during friction st…

Thick section friction stir welds were made in 25.4 mm (1 in) 5083-H131 and in 18.4 mm 2195-T8P4 aluminium alloy plates by single-pass friction stir welding (FSW) using new welding tool designs. The alloys are used for aerospace applications. The sh…

Aluminium alloy A6N01-T5 (Al, 0.63%Mg, 0.53%Si) hollow extrusions suitable for joining by friction stir welding, to be used in the generation of Japanese railway rolling stock, were designed, and the static and fatigue tensile strength of joints wer…

Friction stir welding of UK Ministry of Defence Def Stan 95-22 7017 aluminium alloy (Al, 4.5%Zn, 2.0%Mg) armour plate was evaluated by studying the mechanical properties and cracking of welded joints. Initially plate of 10 mm thickness, locally redu…

A new "stop action" technique was used to investigate material flow during the friction stir welding of aluminium alloy 6061-T6 plate of thickness 6.4 mm (0.25 in). The technique involved stopping the welding process and examining the microstructure…

A review is presented of various models developed to understand the effects of thermal cycles and metal flow behaviour on the microstructure and properties of welded joints fabricated by friction stir welding of steel, and a comprehensive numerical …

An integrated multi-physics model was employed to predict the temperature distribution, the post-weld grain size distribution and the local subgrain size distribution around the pin during friction stir welding (FSW) of 6061 aluminium alloys. The mu…

Metallographic observations, hardness distribution measurements and fatigue tests were undertaken to investigate the discontinuity state related to the crack nucleation site in butt joints fabricated in 2024-T3 aluminium alloys (Al, 3.8-4.9%Cu, 1.2-…

In relation to the application of friction stir welding (FSW) to the production of metallic aircraft fuselages, a report is presented into the evolution of the MUVAX (multi use vacuum assisted exoskeleton) concept within the framework of the LuFo V-…

An investigation is presented into a systematic model based, real time process monitoring framework to analyse the performance and behaviour of the friction stir welding (FSW) process and into the framework's ability to predict weld quality threshol…

The Taguchi method was employed to determine optimum process parameters for friction stir welding of dissimilar joints between AA 6061 (Al, 0.84%Mg, 0.54%Si, 0.4%Fe, 0.24%Cu) and AA 7075 (Al, 5.58%Zn, 2.28%Mg, 1.6%Cu) aluminium alloys. Welding was p…

An investigation is presented into the bending properties of welded joints prepared by friction stir welding (FSW) in various structural aluminium alloys during which the influence of process conditions and alloy composition (Mg, Si, Zn levels) was …

An investigation was undertaken into the efficiency and cost effectiveness of two process chains for the production of an AW-70xx aluminium alloy telescopic beam for a crane boom (length 8 m, sheet thickness 4 mm), and a comparison between friction …