Study of the Correlation between the Process Parameters and the Mechanical Characteristics of the Aluminum Sheets Welded by the FSW Process

Abstract

In recent years, friction stir welding (FSW) methods have been used to obtain good jointmechanical and process properties. The development of FSW for lap joint manufacturing will expand thenumber of applications that can benefit from this technology. The objective of the present work is to themodeling of parameters influencing the temperature during friction stir lap welding joints. The area of physicalunderstanding is the influence of the tool pin geometry and material on the temperature field, microstructuralrefinement, resulting material flow, and the influence of flow variations on the subsequent mechanicalproperties of FSW butt lap joints in aluminum 3003 Alloy. The results obtained allowed us to propose amathematical model to study the interactions between different factors. Thus, it was shown that the mostinfluential parameters are respectively the rotation speed and weld speed. The study also presents the influenceof different parameters welding on the structure of lap joints. The hardness in the welded region is significantlylower with respect to the base material. The fracture shows the characteristics of ductile-brittle mixed fracture.