Microstructure and pitting corrosion resistance of AA2219 Ale Cu alloy friction stir welds e Effect of tool profile

AA2219 Ale Cu alloy is widely used in defence and aerospace applications due to required combination of high strength-to-weight ratio and toughness.Fabrication of components used for defence always involves welding.Even though the mechanical properties of the base metal are better,but the alloy suffers from poor mechanical and corrosion properties during fusion welding.To overcome the problems of fusion welding,friction stir welding(FSW) is recognized as an alternative solid state joining method aimed to improve the mechanical and corrosion properties.Tool profile is one of the important variables which affect the performance of the friction stir weld.In the present work the effect of tool profile on the microstructure and pitting corrosion of AA2219 aluminiumecopper alloy was studied.Electron backscattered diffraction results established that the grain size and orientation of weld nugget of triangle profile is finer than that of conical profile.Differential scanning calorimetric results show the evidence of precipitate dissolution during FSW.It was found that the microstructure changes,such as grain size and its orientation precipitate dissolution during FSW influence the hardness and corrosion behaviour.Pitting corrosion resistance of friction stir welds of AA2219 was found to be better for triangle profile tool compared to conical profile which is attributed to material flow and strengthening precipitate morphology in various zones.Higher amount of heat generation during FSW made using triangle profile tool may be the reason for greater dissolution of strengthening precipitates in nugget zone and coarsening in thermo mechanically affected zone(TMAZ) and heat affected zone(HAZ).     

Microstructure,mechanical and corrosion behavior of high strength AA7075aluminium alloy friction stir welds-Effect of post weld heat treatment

High strength aluminium alloy AA7075(Al-Zn-Mg-Cu) is a precipitate hardenable alloy widely used in the aerospace,defense,marine and automobile industries.Use of the heat treatable aluminium alloys in all these sectors is ever-increasing owing to their excellent strength-toweight ratio and reasonably good corrosion resistance.The shortage in corrosion resistance,however,usually poses negative concern about their reliability and lifetime when they service in the variable marine environments.These alloys also exhibit low weldability due to poor solidification microstructure,porosity in fusion zone and lose their mechanical properties when they are welded by fusion welding techniques.Friction stir welding(FSW) is a reliable technique to retain the properties of the alloy as the joining takes place in the solid state.The welds are susceptible to corrosion due to the microstructural changes in the weld nugget during FSW.In this work,the effect of post weld treatments,viz.,peak aging(T6) and retrogression reaging(RRA),on the microstructure,mechanical properties and pitting corrosion has been studied.Friction stir welding of 8 mm-thick AA7075 alloy was carried out.The microstructural changes of base metal and nugget zone of friction stir welds were studied using optical microscopy,scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy.Tensile and hardness test of base metal and welds has been carried out.Pitting corrosion resistance was determined through dynamic polarization test.It was observed that the hardness and strength of weld were observed to be comparatively high in peak aged(T6) condition but the welds showed poor corrosion resistance.The resistance to pitting corrosion was improved and the mechanical properties were maintained by RRA treatment.The resistance to pitting corrosion was improved in RRA condition with the minimum loss of weld strength.     

Microstructure and pitting corrosion of armor grade AA7075 aluminum alloy friction stir weld nugget zone-Effect of post weld heat treatment and addition of boron carbide

Friction stir welding(FSW) of high strength aluminum alloys has been emerged as an alternative joining technique to avoid the problems during fusion welding.In recent times FSW is being used for armor grade AA7075 aluminum alloy in defense,aerospace and marine applications where it has to serve in non uniform loading and corrosive environments.Even though friction stir welds of AA7075 alloy possess better mechanical properties but suffer from poor corrosion resistance.The present work involves use of retrogression and reaging(RRA) post weld heat treatment to improve the corrosion resistance of welded joints of aluminum alloys.An attempt also has been made to change the chemical composition of the weld nugget by adding B4C nano particles with the aid of the FSW on a specially prepared base metal plate in butt position.The effects of peak aged condition(T6),RRA and addition of B4C nano particles on microstructure,hardness and pitting corrosion of nugget zone of the friction stir welds of AA7075 alloy have been studied.Even though RRA improved the pitting corrosion resistance,its hardness was slightly lost.Significant improvement in pitting corrosion resistance was achieved with addition of boron carbide powder and post weld heat treatment of RRA.     

Optimization of process parameters of aluminum alloy AA 2014-T6 friction stir welds by response surface methodology

The heat treatable aluminum-copper alloy AA2014 finds wide application in the aerospace and defence industry due to its high strength-toweight ratio and good ductility. Friction stir welding(FSW) process, an emerging solid state joining process, is suitable for joining this alloy compared to fusion welding processes. This work presents the formulation of a mathematical model with process parameters and tool geometry to predict the responses of friction stir welds of AA 2014-T6 aluminum alloy, viz yield strength, tensile strength and ductility. The most influential process parameters considered are spindle speed, welding speed, tilt angle and tool pin profile. A four-factor, five-level central composite design was used and a response surface methodology(RSM) was employed to develop the regression models to predict the responses.The mechanical properties, such as yield strength(YS), ultimate tensile strength(UTS) and percentage elongation(%El), are considered as responses. Method of analysis of variance was used to determine the important process parameters that affect the responses. Validation trials were carried out to validate these results. These results indicate that the friction stir welds of AA 2014-T6 aluminum alloy welded with hexagonal tool pin profile have the highest tensile strength and elongation, whereas the joints fabricated with conical tool pin profile have the lowest tensile strength and elongation.     

Effect of tool pin profile on microstructure and tensile properties of friction stir welded dissimilar AA 6061e AA 5086 aluminium alloy joints

Joints between two different grades of aluminium alloys are need of the hour in many light weight military structures.In this investigation,an attempt has been made to join the heat treatable(AA 6061) and non-heat treatable(AA 5086) aluminium alloys by friction stir welding(FSW)process using three different tool pin profiles like straight cylindrical,taper cylindrical and threaded cylindrical.The microstructures of various regions were observed and analyzed by means of optical and scanning electron microscope.The tensile properties and microhardness were evaluated for the welded joint.From this investigation it is founded that the use of threaded pin profile of tool contributes to better flow of materials between two alloys and the generation of defect free stir zone.It also resulted in higher hardness values of 83 HV in the stir zone and higher tensile strength of 169 MPa compared to other two profiles.The increase in hardness is attributed to the formation of fine grains and intermetallics in the stir zone,and in addition,the reduced size of weaker regions,such as TMAZ and HAZ regions,results in higher tensile properties.     

Numerical modeling of friction stir welding using the tools with polygonal pins

Friction stir welding using the tools with polygonal pins is often found to improve the mechanical strength of weld joint in comparison to the tools with circular pins. However, the impacts of pin profile on the peak temperature, tool torque and traverse force, and the resultant mechanical stresses experienced by the tool have been rarely reported in a systematic manner. An estimation of the rate of heat generation for the tools with polygonal pins is challenging due to their non-axisymmetric cross-section about the tool axis. A novel methodology is presented to analytically estimate the rate of heat generation for the tools with polygonal pins. A three-dimensional heat transfer analysis of friction stir welding is carried out using finite element method. The computed temperature field from the heat transfer model is used to estimate the torque, traverse force and the mechanical stresses experienced by regular triangular, square, pentagon and hexagon pins following the principles of solid mechanics. The computed results show that the peak temperature experienced by the tool pin increases with the number of pin sides. However, the resultant maximum shear stress experienced by the pin reduces from the triangular to hexagonal pins.     

Dissimilar friction stir spot welding of AA2024-T3/AA7075-T6 aluminum alloys under different welding parameters and media

This paper studies the friction stir spot welding of AA2024-T3/AA7075-T6 Al alloys in the ambient and underwater environments by clarifying the nugget features,microstructure,fracture and mechanical properties of the joints.The results show that the water-cooling medium exhibits a significant heat absorption capacity in the AA2024-T3/AA7075-T6 welded joint.Nugget features such as stir zone width,circular imprints,average grain sizes,and angular inter-material hooking are reduced by the water-cooling effect in the joints.Narrower whitish(intercalated structures)bands are formed in the under-water joints while Mg2Si and Al2CuMg precipitates are formed in the ambient and the underwater welded joints respectively.An increase in tool rotational speed(600-1400 rpm)and plunge depth(0.1-0.5 mm)increases the tensile-shear force of the welded AA2024-T3/AA7075-T6 joints in both the ambient and underwater environments.The maximum tensile-shear forces of 5900 N and 6700 N were obtained in the ambient and the underwater welds respectively.     

Comparative study on transverse shrinkage,mechanical and metallurgical properties of AA2219 aluminium weld joints prepared by gas tungsten arc and gas metal arc welding processes

Aluminium alloy AA2219 is a high strength alloy belonging to 2000 series. It has been widely used for aerospace applications, especially for construction of cryogenic fuel tank. However, arc welding of AA2219 material is very critical. The major problems that arise in arc welding of AA2219 are the adverse development of residual stresses and the re-distribution as well as dissolution of copper rich phase in the weld joint.These effects increase with increase in heat input. Thus, special attention was taken to especially thick section welding of AA2219-T87 aluminium alloy. Hence, the present work describes the 25 mm-thick AA2219-T87 aluminium alloy plate butt welded by GTAW and GMAW processes using multi-pass welding procedure in double V groove design. The transverse shrinkage, conventional mechanical and metallurgical properties of both the locations on weld joints were studied. It is observed that the fair copper rich cellular(CRC) network is on Side-A of both the weldments. Further, it is noticed that, the severity of weld thermal cycle near to the fusion line of HAZ is reduced due to low heat input in GTAW process which results in non dissolution of copper rich phase. Based on the mechanical and metallurgical properties it is inferred that GTAW process is used to improve the aforementioned characteristics of weld joints in comparison to GMAW process.     

Effect of post weld heat treatment on tensile properties and microstructure characteristics of friction stir welded armour grade AA7075-T651 aluminium alloy

This paper reports the effects of post weld heat treatments, namely artificial ageing and solution treatment followed by artificial ageing, on microstructure and mechanical properties of 12 mm thick friction stir welded joints of precipitation hardenable high strength armour grade AA7075-T651 aluminium alloy. The tensile properties, such as yield strength, tensile strength, elongation and notch tensile strength, are evaluated and correlated with the microhardness and microstructural features. The scanning electron microscope is used to characterie the fracture surfaces. The solution treatment followed by ageing heat treatment cycle is found to be marginally beneficial in improving the tensile properties of friction stir welds of AA7075-T651 aluminium alloy.     

Microstructure and corrosion behaviour of gas tungsten arc welds of maraging steel

Superior properties of maraging steels make them suitable for the fabrication of components used for military applications like missile covering, rocket motor casing and ship hulls. Welding is the main process for fabrication of these components, while the maraging steels can be fusion welded using gas tungsten arc welding(GTAW) process. All these fabricated components require longer storage life and a major problem in welds is susceptible to stress corrosion cracking(SCC). The present study is aimed at studying the SCC behaviour of MDN 250(18% Ni) steel and its welds with respect to microstructural changes. In the present study, 5.2 mm thick sheets made of MDN 250 steel in the solution annealed condition was welded using GTAW process. Post-weld heat treatments of direct ageing(480 C for 3 h), solutionizing(815 C for 1 h) followed by ageing and homogenizing(1150 C for 1 h) followed by ageing were carried out. A mixture of martensite and austenite was observed in the microstructure of the fusion zone of solutionized and direct aged welds and only martensite in as-welded condition. Homogenization and ageing treatment have eliminated reverted austenite and elemental segregation. Homogenized welds also exhibited a marginal improvement in the corrosion resistance compared to those in the as-welded, solutionized and aged condition. Constant load SCC test data clearly revealed that the failure time of homogenized weld is much longer compared to other post weld treatments, and the homogenization treatment is recommended to improve the SCC life of GTA welds of MDN 250 Maraging steel.     

Effect of friction stir processing on mechanical properties and heat transfer of TIG welded joint of AA6061 and AA7075

Tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding is the most commonly used joining process for aluminum alloy for AA6061 and AA7075 which are highly demanded in the aerospace engineering and the automobile sector, but there are some defects occur during TIG welding like micro-crack, coarse grain structure, and porosity. To improve these defects, the TIG welded joint is processed using friction stir processing (FSP). This paper presents the effect of friction stir processing on TIG welding with filler ER4043 and ER 5356 for dissimilar aluminum alloy AA6061 and AA7075. The mechanical characterization, finite element formulation and mathematical equations of heat transfer of TIG + FSP welded joints are investigated using ANSYS Fluent software by adjusting process parameters of FSP. The results show that the maximum compressive residual stress 73 MPa was obtained at the fusion zone (FZ) of the TIG weldment with filler ER4043, whereas minimum compressive residual stress 37 MPa was obtained at stir zone (SZ) of the TIG+FSP with filler 5356. The maximum heat flux 5.33 × 106 W/m2 and temperature 515 ℃ have observed at tool rotation 1600 rpm with a feed rate of 63 mm/min. These results give a satisfactory measure of confidence in the fidelity of the simulation     

Friction welding of AA6061 to AISI 4340 using silver interlayer

The present work pertains to the study on joining of AA6061 and AISI 4340 through continuous drive friction welding. The welds were evaluated by metallographic examination, X-ray diffraction, electron probe microanalysis, tensile test and microhardness. The study reveals that the presence of an intermetallic compound layer at the bonded interface exhibits poor tensile strength and elongation. Mg in AA6061 near to the interface is found to be favourable for the formation and growth of Fe2Al5 intermetallics. Introduction of silver as an interlayer through electroplating on AISI 4340 resulted in accumulation of Si at weld interface, replacing Mg at AA6061 side, thereby reducing the width of intermetallic compound layer and correspondingly increasing the tensile strength. Presence of silver at the interface results in partial replacement of Fe-Al based intermetallic compounds with Ag-Al based compounds. The presence of these intermetallics was confirmed by X-ray diffraction technique. Since Ag-Al phases are ductile in nature, tensile strength is not deteriorated and the silicon segregation at weld interface on AA6061 in the joints with silver interlayer acts as diffusion barrier for Fe and further avoids formation of Fe-Al based intermetallics. A maximum tensile strength of 240 MPa along with 4.9% elongation was obtained for the silver interlayer dissimilar metal welds. The observed trends in tensile properties and hardness were explained in relation to the microstructure.     

Effect of welding processes on mechanical and microstructural characteristics of high strength low alloy naval grade steel joints

Naval grade high strength low alloy(HSLA) steels can be easily welded by all types of fusion welding processes. However, fusion welding of these steels leads to the problems such as cold cracking, residual stress, distortion and fatigue damage. These problems can be eliminated by solid state welding process such as friction stir welding(FSW). In this investigation, a comparative evaluation of mechanical(tensile, impact,hardness) properties and microstructural features of shielded metal arc(SMA), gas metal arc(GMA) and friction stir welded(FSW) naval grade HSLA steel joints was carried out. It was found that the use of FSW process eliminated the problems related to fusion welding processes and also resulted in the superior mechanical properties compared to GMA and SMA welded joints.     

Effect of fusion welding processes on tensile properties of armor grade,high thickness,non-heat treatable aluminium alloy joints

AA5059 is one of the high strength armor grade aluminium alloy that finds its applications in the military vehicles due to the higher resistance against the armor piercing (AP) threats. This study aimed at finding the best suitable process among the fusion welding processes such as gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) and gas metal arc welding (GMAW) by evaluating the tensile properties of AA5059 aluminium alloy joints. The fracture path was identified by mapping the low hardness distribution profile (LHDP) across the weld cross section under tensile loading. Optical and scanning electron microscopies were used to characterize the microstructural features of the welded joints at various zones. It is evident from the results that GTAW joints showed superior tensile properties compared to GMAW joints and this is primarily owing to the presence of finer grains in the weld metal zone (WMZ) and narrow heat-affected zone (HAZ). The lower heat input associated with the GTAW process effectively reduced the size of the WMZ and HAZ compared to GMAW process. Lower heat input of GTAW process results in faster cooling rate which hinders the grain growth and reduces the evaporation of magnesium in weld metal compared to GMAW joints. The fracture surface of GTAW joint consists of more dimples than GMAW joints which is an indication that the GTAW joint possess improved ductility than GMAW joint.     

Effect of tool rotational speed on the particle distribution in friction stir welding of AA6092/17.5 SiCp-T6 composite plates and its consequences on the mechanical property of the joint

This study investigates the effect of tool rotational speed (TRS) on particle distribution in nugget zone (NZ) through quantitative approach and its consequences on the mechanical property of friction stir welded joints of AA6092/17.5 SiC_p-T6 composite. 6 mm thick plates are welded at a constant tool tilt angle of 2° and tool traverse speed of 1 mm/s by varying the TRS at 1000 rpm, 1500 rpm and 2000 rpm with a taper pin profiled tool. Microstructure analysis shows large quantity of uniformly shaped smaller size SiC particle with lower average particle area which are homogeneously distributed in the NZ. The fragmentation of bigger size particles has been observed because of abrading action of the hard tool and resulting shearing effect and severe stress generation due to the rotation of tool. The particles occupy maximum area in the matrix compared to that of the base material (BM) due to the redistribution of broken particles as an effect of TRS. The migration of particles towards the TMAZ-NZ transition zone has been also encountered at higher TRS (2000 rpm). The microhardness analysis depicts variation in average hardness from top to bottom of the NZ, minimum for 1500 rpm and maximum for 2000 rpm. The impact strength at 1000 rpm and 1500 rpm remains close to that of BM (21.6 J) while 2000 rpm shows the accountable reduction. The maximum joint efficiency has been achieved at 1500 rpm (84%) and minimum at 1000 rpm (68%) under tensile loading. Fractographic analysis shows mixed mode of failure for BM, 1000 rpm and 1500 rpm, whereas 2000 rpm shows the brittle mode of failure.     

7A52铝合金便携式搅拌摩擦焊接头的组织与性能分析

采用便携式搅拌摩擦焊设备,对3mm厚的7A52铝合金薄板进行了焊接,对焊接头的显微组织和机械性能进行了观察测试。研究结果表明:焊接头可分为动态再结晶区、热-机影响区和母材3个区域,而没有明显的热影响区。动态再结晶区组织发生再结晶,生成细小的等轴晶粒;热-机影响区有塑性变形流线,且范围较窄;母材区保持着原来的轧制组织。接头硬度的最薄弱环节在热-机影响区。接头抗拉强度达到母材的70%左右,能够满足战场应急抢修的需求。     

Effect of welding processes and consumables on fatigue crack growth behaviour of armour grade quenched and tempered steel joints

Quenched and Tempered (Q&T) steels are widely used in the construction of military vehicles due to its high strength to weight ratio and high hardness. These steels are prone to hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) in the heat affected zone (HAZ) after welding. The use of austenitic stainless steel (ASS) consumables to weld the above steel was the only available remedy because of higher solubility for hydrogen in austenitic phase. The use of stainless steel consumables for a non-stainless steel base metal is not economical. Hence, alternate consumables for welding Q&T steels and their vulnerability to HIC need to be explored. Recent studies proved that low hydrogen ferritic steel (LHF) consumables can be used to weld Q&T steels, which can give very low hydrogen levels in the weld deposits. The use of ASS and LHF consumables will lead to distinct microstructures in their respective welds. This microstructural heterogeneity will have a drastic influence in the fatigue crack growth resistance of armour grade Q&T steel welds. Hence, in this investigation an attempt has been made to study the influence of welding consumables and welding processes on fatigue crack growth behaviour of armour grade Q&T Steel joints. Shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) and Flux cored arc welding (FCAW) were used for fabrication of joints using ASS and LHF consumables. The joints fabricated by SMAW process using LHF consumable exhibited superior fatigue crack growth resistance than all other joints.     

Characterization of magnetically impelled arc butt welded T11 tubes for high pressure applications

Magnetically impelled arc butt(MIAB) welding is a pressure welding process used for joining of pipes and tubes with an external magnetic field affecting arc rotation along the tube circumference. In this work, MIAB welding of low alloy steel(T11) tubes were carried out to study the microstructural changes occurring in thermo-mechanically affected zone(TMAZ). To qualify the process for the welding applications where pressure could be up to 300 bar, the MIAB welds are studied with variations of arc current and arc rotation time. It is found that TMAZ shows higher hardness than that in base metal and displays higher weld tensile strength and ductility due to bainitic transformation. The effect of arc current on the weld interface is also detailed and is found to be defect free at higher values of arc currents. The results reveal that MIAB welded samples exhibits good structural property correlation for high pressure applications with an added benefit of enhanced productivity at lower cost.The study will enable the use of MIAB welding for high pressure applications in power and defence sectors.     

Microstructure and pitting corrosion of shielded metal arc welded high nitrogen stainless steel

The present work is aimed at studying the microstructure and pitting corrosion behaviour of shielded metal arc welded high nitrogen steel made of Cromang-N electrode. Basis for selecting this electrode is to increase the solubility of nitrogen in weld metal due to high chromium and manganese content. Microscopic studies were carried out using optical microscopy(OM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy(FESEM). Energy back scattered diffraction(EBSD) method was used to determine the phase analysis, grain size and orientation image mapping. Potentio-dynamic polarization testing was carried out to study the pitting corrosion resistance in aerated 3.5% NaCl environment using a GillAC electrochemical system. The investigation results showed that the selected Cr-Mn-N type electrode resulted in a maximum reduction in delta-ferrite and improvement in pitting corrosion resistance of the weld zone was attributed to the coarse austenite grains owing to the reduction in active sites of the austenite/delta ferrite interface and the decrease in galvanic interaction between austenite and delta-ferrite.     

Stress corrosion cracking behaviour of gas tungsten arc welded super austenitic stainless steel joints

Super 304 H austenitic stainless steel with 3% of copper posses excellent creep strength and corrosion resistance, which is mainly used in heat exchanger tubing of the boiler. Heat exchangers are used in nuclear power plants and marine vehicles which are intended to operate in chloride rich offshore environment. Chloride stress corrosion cracking is the most likely life limiting failure with austenitic stainless steel tubing. Welding may worsen the stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of the material. Stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of Super 304 H parent metal and gas tungsten arc(GTA) welded joints were studied by constant load tests in 45% boiling Mg Cl2 solution. Stress corrosion cracking resistance of Super 304 H stainless steel was deteriorated by GTA welding due to the formation of susceptible microstructure in the HAZ of the weld joint and the residual stresses. The mechanism of cracking was found to be anodic path cracking, with transgranular nature of crack propagation. Linear relationships were derived to predict the time to failure by extrapolating the rate of steady state elongation.