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ENGINEERING, PUNE
A
Seminar on
INTRODUCTION :
Friction stir welding (FSW) was invented at The Welding Institute (TWI) of UK in 1991 as a solidstate joining technique, and it was initially applied to aluminium alloys.
The basic concept of FSW is remarkably simple. A non-consumable rotating tool with a specially
designed pin and shoulder is inserted into the abutting edges of sheets or plates to be joined and traversed along the
line of joint.
PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION :
A constantly rotated non consumable cylindrical-shouldered tool with a profiled probe is transversely
fed at a constant rate into a butt joint between two clamped pieces of butted material.
The probe is slightly shorter than the weld depth required, with the tool shoulder riding atop the work
surface.
Fig No. 02 Schematic diagram of the FSW process: (A) Two discrete metal work
pieces butted together, along with the tool (with a probe)
MICROSTRUCTURAL FEATURES :
The stir zone (also nugget, dynamically recrystallised zone) is a region of heavily deformed material
that roughly corresponds to the location of the pin during welding. The grains within the stir zone are roughly equated
and often an order of magnitude smaller than the grains in the parent material.
A unique feature of the stir zone is the common occurrence of several concentric rings which has been
referred to as an "onion-ring" structure. The precise origin of these rings has not been firmly established, although
variations in particle number density, grain size and texture have all been suggested.
Fig No. 03 The progress of the tool through the joint, also showing the
weld zone and the region affected by the tool shoulder.
TOOL GEOMETRY :
Tool geometry is the most influential aspect of process development. The tool geometry plays a
critical role in material flow and in turn governs the traverse rate at which FSW can be conducted..
An FSW tool consists of a shoulder and a pin as shown schematically in Fig. As mentioned
earlier, the tool has two primary functions
TOOL GEOMETRY :
The uniformity of microstructure and properties as well as process loads are governed by the tool design.
Generally a concave shoulder and threaded cylindrical pins are used.
WELDING PARAMETERS :
The rotation of tool results in stirring and mixing of material around the rotating pin and the
translation of tool moves the stirred material from the front to the back of the pin and finishes welding process.
However, it should be noted that frictional coupling of tool surface with work piece is going to
govern the heating.
Fig. 06. Joint configurations for friction stir welding: (a) square butt, (b) edge butt, (c) T butt joint, (d) lap joint, (e) multiple
lap joint, (f) T lap joint, and (g) fillet joint.
PROPERTIES :
Residual stress
Hardness
Mechanical properties
Corrosion behaviour
Copper alloys
ADVANTAGES :
Improved safety due to the absence of toxic fumes or the spatter of molten material.
Easily automated on simple milling machines lower setup costs and less training.
Can operate in all positions (horizontal, vertical, etc.), as there is no weld pool.
Generally good weld appearance and minimal thickness under/over-matching, thus reducing the need for
expensive machining after welding.
DISADVANTAGES :
Often slower traverse rate than some fusion welding techniques, although this may be offset if fewer
welding passes are required.
APPLICATIONS :
Aerospace
Shipbuilding
Automotive
Railways
Fabrication
Robotics
Personal Computers
In these review article current developments in process modelling, microstructure and properties, material
specific issues, applications of friction stir welding/processing have been addressed.
However, at the present stage, tool designs are generally proprietary to individual researchers and only
limited information is available in open literature
From the open literature, it is known that a cylindrical threaded pin and concave shoulder are widely used
welding tool features
CONCLUSION :
In this Seminar learn about various aspects of Friction Stir Welding like Tool geometry,
Microstructure etc.
The basic concept of FSW is remarkably simple. A non-consumable rotating tool with a specially
designed pin and shoulder is inserted into the abutting edges of sheets or plates to be joined and traversed
along the line of joint.
The practical knowledge about process is acquired.
REFERENCES :
R.S. Mishra, Z.Y. Ma, Friction stir welding and processing, science direct Journal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friction_stir_welding.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article
www.esabna.com/us/en/.../what-is-friction-stir-welding-of-alluminum
Thank You!!!