Friction stir welding

• Friction-stir welding (FSW) is a solid-state

joining process (meaning the metal is not
melted during the process) and is used for
applications where the original metal
characteristics must remain unchanged as far
as possible. This process is primarily used on
aluminium, and most often on large pieces
which cannot be easily heat treated post weld
to recover temper characteristics.
 Principle of operation
• In FSW, a cylindrical-shouldered tool, with a profiled threaded/unthreaded probe
(nib or pin) is rotated at a constant speed and fed at a constant traverse rate into
the joint line between two pieces of sheet or plate material, which are butted
together. The parts have to be clamped rigidly onto a backing bar in a manner that
prevents the abutting joint faces from being forced apart. The length of the nib is
slightly less than the weld depth required and the tool shoulder should be in
intimate contact with the work surface. The nib is then moved against the work, or
vice versa.
• Frictional heat is generated between the wear-resistant welding tool shoulder and
nib, and the material of the work pieces. This heat, along with the heat generated
by the mechanical mixing process and the adiabatic heat within the material,
cause the stirred materials to soften without reaching the melting point (hence
cited a solid-state process), allowing the traversing of the tool along the weld line
in a plasticised tubular shaft of metal. As the pin is moved in the direction of
welding, the leading face of the pin, assisted by a special pin profile, forces
plasticised material to the back of the pin while applying a substantial forging
force to consolidate the weld metal. The welding of the material is facilitated by
severe plastic deformation in the solid state, involving dynamic recrystallization of
the base material.
Schematic diagram of the set up
 Advantages and disadvantages
• The solid-state nature of FSW immediately leads to several advantages over fusion
welding methods since any problems associated with cooling from the liquid phase
are immediately avoided. Issues such as porosity, solute redistribution,
solidification cracking and liquation cracking are not an issue during FSW. In
general, FSW has been found to produce a low concentration of defects and is
very tolerant to variations in parameters and materials.
• Nevertheless, FSW is associated with a number of unique defects. Insufficient weld
temperatures, due to low rotational speeds or high traverse speeds, for example,
mean that the weld material is unable to accommodate the extensive deformation
during welding. This may result in long, tunnel-like defects running along the weld
which may occur on the surface or subsurface. Low temperatures may also limit
the forging action of the tool and so reduce the continuity of the bond between
the material from each side of the weld. The light contact between the material
has given rise to the name "kissing-bond". This defect is particularly worrying since
it is very difficult to detect using nondestructive methods such as X-ray or
ultrasonic testing. If the pin is not long enough or the tool rises out of the plate
then the interface at the bottom of the weld may not be disrupted and forged by
the tool, resulting in a lack-of-penetration defect. This is essentially a notch in the
material which can be a potent source of fatigue cracks.
 Continued..
• A number of potential advantages of FSW over conventional fusion-welding processes have been
identified:
• Good mechanical properties in the as welded condition
• Improved safety due to the absence of toxic fumes or the spatter of molten material.
• No consumables — A threaded pin made of conventional tool steel, e.g., hardened H13, can weld
over 1000m of aluminium, and no filler or gas shield is required for aluminium.
• 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.
• Low environmental impact.
• However, some disadvantages of the process have been identified:
• Exit hole left when tool is withdrawn.
• Large down forces required with heavy-duty clamping necessary to hold the plates together.
• Less flexible than manual and arc processes (difficulties with thickness variations and non-linear
welds).
• Often slower traverse rate than some fusion welding techniques, although this may be offset if
fewer welding passes are required.
Important parameters
 Tool rotation and traverse speed
• There are two tool speeds to be considered in friction-stir welding; how fast the
tool rotates and how quickly it traverses the interface. These two parameters have
considerable importance and must be chosen with care to ensure a successful and
efficient welding cycle. The relationship between the welding speeds and the heat
input during welding is complex but, in general, it can be said that increasing the
rotation speed or decreasing the traverse speed will result in a hotter weld. In
order to produce a successful weld it is necessary that the material surrounding
the tool is hot enough to enable the extensive plastic flow required and minimise
the forces acting on the tool. If the material is too cold then voids or other flaws
may be present in the stir zone and in extreme cases the tool may break.
• Excessively high heat input, on the other hand may be detrimental to the final
properties of the weld. Theoretically, this could even result in defects due to the
liquation of low-melting-point phases (similar to liquation cracking in fusion
welds). These competing demands lead onto the concept of a "processing
window": the range of processing parameters viz. tool rotation and traverse
speed, that will produce a good quality weld. Within this window the resulting
weld will have a sufficiently high heat input to ensure adequate material plasticity
but not so high that the weld properties are excessively deteriorated.
 Tool tilt and plunge depth
• The plunge depth is defined as the depth of the lowest point of the
shoulder below the surface of the welded plate and has been found to be
a critical parameter for ensuring weld quality.[6] Plunging the shoulder
below the plate surface increases the pressure below the tool and helps
ensure adequate forging of the material at the rear of the tool. Tilting the
tool by 2-4 degrees, such that the rear of the tool is lower than the front,
has been found to assist this forging process. The plunge depth needs to
be correctly set, both to ensure the necessary downward pressure is
achieved and to ensure that the tool fully penetrates the weld. Given the
high loads required the welding machine may deflect and so reduce the
plunge depth compared to the nominal setting, which may result in flaws
in the weld. On the other hand an excessive plunge depth may result in
the pin rubbing on the backing plate surface or a significant undermatch
of the weld thickness compared to the base material. Variable load
welders have been developed to automatically compensate for changes in
the tool displacement while TWI have demonstrated a roller system that
maintains the tool position above the weld plate.
Tilt and plunge drawing
 Welding forces
• During welding a number of forces will act on the tool:
• A downwards force is necessary to maintain the position of the tool at or below the material
surface. Some friction-stir welding machines operate under load control but in many cases the
vertical position of the tool is preset and so the load will vary during welding.
• The traverse force acts parallel to the tool motion and is positive in the traverse direction. Since
this force arises as a result of the resistance of the material to the motion of the tool it might be
expected that this force will decrease as the temperature of the material around the tool is
increased.
• The lateral force may act perpendicular to the tool traverse direction and is defined here as
positive towards the advancing side of the weld.
• Torque is required to rotate the tool, the amount of which will depend on the down force and
friction coefficient (sliding friction) and/or the flow strength of the material in the surrounding
region (sticking friction).
• In order to prevent tool fracture and to minimize excessive wear and tear on the tool and
associated machinery, the welding cycle should be modified so that the forces acting on the tool
are as low as possible, and abrupt changes are avoided. In order to find the best combination of
welding parameters it is likely that a compromise must be reached, since the conditions that favour
low forces (e.g. high heat input, low travel speeds) may be undesirable from the point of view of
productivity and weld properties.
 Flow of material
• Early work on the mode of material flow around the tool used inserts of a different alloy, which had a different
contrast to the normal material when viewed through a microscope, in an effort to determine where material was
moved as the tool passed.The data was interpreted as representing a form of in-situ extrusion where the tool,
backing plate and cold base material form the "extrusion chamber" through which the hot, plasticised material is
forced. In this model the rotation of the tool draws little or no material around the front of the pin instead the
material parts in front of the pin and passes down either side. After the material has passed the pin the side
pressure exerted by the "die" forces the material back together and consolidation of the join occurs as the rear of
the tool shoulder passes overhead and the large down force forges the material.
• More recently, an alternative theory has been advanced that advocates considerable material movement in
certain locations. This theory holds that some material does rotate around the pin, for at least one rotation, and it
is this material movement that produces the "onion-ring" structure in the stir zone. The researchers used a
combination of thin Cu strip inserts and a "frozen pin" technique, where the tool is rapidly stopped in place. They
suggested that material motion occurs by two processes:
• Material on the advancing front side of a weld enters into a zone that rotates and advances with the pin. This
material was very highly deformed and sloughs off behind the pin to form arc-shaped features when viewed from
above (i.e. down the tool axis). It was noted that the copper entered the rotational zone around the pin, where it
was broken up into fragments. These fragments were only found in the arc shaped features of material behind the
tool.
• The lighter material came from the retreating front side of the pin and was dragged around to the rear of the tool
and filled in the gaps between the arcs of advancing side material. This material did not rotate around the pin and
the lower level of deformation resulted in a larger grain size.
• The primary advantage of this explanation is that it provides a plausible explanation for the production of the
onion-ring structure.
 Generation and flow of heat
• For any welding process it is, in general, desirable to increase the travel speed and minimise the heat input as this
will increase productivity and possibly reduce the impact of welding on the mechanical properties of the weld. At
the same time it is necessary to ensure that the temperature around the tool is sufficiently high to permit
adequate material flow and prevent flaws or tool fracture.
• When the traverse speed is increased, for a given heat input, there is less time for heat to conduct ahead of the
tool and the thermal gradients are larger. At some point the speed will be so high that the material ahead of the
tool will be too cold, and the flow stress too high, to permit adequate material movement, resulting in flaws or tool
fracture. If the "hot zone" is too large then there is scope to increase the traverse speed and hence productivity.
• The welding cycle can be split into several stages during which the heat flow and thermal profile will be different
• Dwell. The material is preheated by a stationary, rotating tool in order to achieve a sufficient temperature ahead of
the tool to allow the traverse. This period may also include the plunge of the tool into the workpiece.
• Transient heating. When the tool begins to move there will be a transient period where the heat production and
temperature around the tool will alter in a complex manner until an essentially steady-state is reached.
• Pseudo steady-state. Although fluctuations in heat generation will occur the thermal field around the tool remains
effectively constant, at least on the macroscopic scale.
• Post steady-state. Near the end of the weld heat may "reflect" from the end of the plate leading to additional
heating around the tool.
 Continued..
• Heat generation during friction-stir welding arises from two main sources: friction at the surface of
the tool and the deformation of the material around the tool. The heat generation is often
assumed to occur predominantly under the shoulder, due to its greater surface area, and to be
equal to the power required to overcome the contact forces between the tool and the workpiece.
The contact condition under the shoulder can be described by sliding friction, using a friction
coefficient μ and interfacial pressure P, or sticking friction, based on the interfacial shear strength
&tor; at an appropriate temperature and strain rate. Mathematical approximations for the total
heat generated by the tool shoulder Q total have been developed using both sliding and sticking
friction models
• (Sliding)
• (Sticking)
• where ω is the angular velocity of the tool, R shoulder is the radius of the tool shoulder and R pin that of
the pin. Several other equations have been proposed to account for factors such as the pin but the
general approach remains the same.
• A major difficulty in applying these equations is determining suitable values for the friction
coefficient or the interfacial shear stress. The conditions under the tool are both extreme and very
difficult to measure. To date, these parameters have been used as "fitting parameters" where the
model works back from measured thermal data to obtain a reasonable simulated thermal field.
While this approach is useful for creating process models to predict, for example, residual stresses
it is less useful for providing insights into the process itself.
 Applications
• Shipbuilding and Offshore
• Aerospace
• Automotive
• Railway Rolling Stock
• Fabrication