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Influences of pin profile and rotational speed of the tool on the formation
of friction stir processing zone in AA2219 aluminium alloy
K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian ∗
Department of Manufacturing Engineering, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar 608002, Tamil Nadu, India
Received 23 October 2006; received in revised form 13 December 2006; accepted 27 December 2006
Abstract
AA2219 aluminium alloy has gathered wide acceptance in the fabrication of light weight structures requiring a high strength-to-weight ratio.
Compared to the many fusion welding processes that are routinely used for joining structural aluminium alloys, friction stir welding (FSW) process
is an emerging solid state joining process in which the material that is being welded does not melt and recast. The welding parameters and tool pin
profile play a major role in deciding the weld quality. In this investigation an attempt has been made to understand the influences of rotational speed
and pin profile of the tool on friction stir processed (FSP) zone formation in AA2219 aluminium alloy. Five different tool pin profiles (straight
cylindrical, tapered cylindrical, threaded cylindrical, triangular and square) have been used to fabricate the joints at three different tool rotational
speeds. The formation of FSP zone has been analysed macroscopically. Tensile properties of the joints have been evaluated and correlated with
the FSP zone formation. From this investigation it is found that the square tool pin profile produces mechanically sound and metallurgically defect
free welds compared to other tool pin profiles.
© 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: AA2219 aluminium alloy; Friction stir welding; Rotational speed; Tool pin profile; FSP zone; Tensile properties
1. Introduction Though AA2219 has got an edge over its 6000 and 7000 series
counterparts in terms of weldability, it also suffers from poor as
AA2219 is most widely used material for the construction of welded joint strength. The joint strength is only about 40% when
liquid cryogenic rocket fuel tanks. It has a unique combination compared to the base metal strength in T87 condition. This is
of properties such as good weldability, high strength-to-weight true both in autogenous welds as well as those welded with the
ratio and superior cryogenic properties [1]. The preferred weld- matching filler 2319, which contains slightly higher contents of
ing processes for AA2219 aluminium alloy are frequently gas Ti and Zr. The loss of strength is due to the melting and quick
metal arc welding (GMAW) and gas tungsten arc welding resolidification, which renders all the strengthening precipitates
(GTAW) due to their comparatively easier applicability and bet- to dissolve and the material is as good as a cast material with
ter economy [2]. However, plasma arc welding (PAW) with a solute segregation and large columnar grains [5].
positive polarity electrode and high welding current allows alu- Compared to many of the fusion welding processes that are
minium components to be joined economically with an excellent routinely used for joining AA2219 aluminum alloy, friction stir
weld quality [3]. In comparison with the TIG and MIG arcs, welding (FSW) is an emerging solid state joining process in
the electron beam is characterized by higher power density and which the material that is being welded does not melt and recast
thus permits the single pass welding of square butt joints with [6]. Friction stir welding (FSW) was invented at The Welding
thickness up to approximately 8 mm in the flat position [4]. Institute (TWI), UK in 1991. Friction stir welding is a contin-
uous, hot shear, autogenous process involving non-consumable
rotating tool of harder material than the substrate material [7].
Fig. 1 explains the working principle of FSW process. Defect
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 4144 239734;
free welds with good mechanical properties have been made in
fax: +91 4144 239734/4144 238275.
a variety of aluminium alloys, even those previously thought
E-mail addresses: elamko@rediffmail.com (K. Elangovan), to be not weldable. When alloys are friction stir welded, phase
visvabalu@yahoo.com (V. Balasubramanian). transformations that occur during cool down of the weld are of a
0921-5093/$ – see front matter © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.msea.2006.12.124
8 K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18
solid state type. Due to the absence of parent metal melting, the
new FSW process is observed to offer several advantages over
fusion welding [8]. Fig. 4. FSW tool dimensions.
FSW joints usually consist of four different regions as shown
in Fig. 2. They are: (a) unaffected base metal; (b) heat affected Table 1a
zone (HAZ); (c) thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) Chemical composition (wt%) of base metal
and (d) friction stir processed (FSP) zone. The formation of
Cu 6.7
above regions is affected by the material flow behaviour under Mn 0.27
the action of rotating non-consumable tool. However, the mate- Si 0.01
rial flow behaviour is predominantly influenced by the FSW Zn 0.04
tool profiles, FSW tool dimensions and FSW process param- Ti 0.05
Fe 0.13
eters [9,10]. The available literature focusing on the effect of
Zr 0.12
welding parameters and tool profiles on FSP zone formation in Mg 0.01
AA2219 aluminum alloy is very scant. Hence, in this investiga- Al Bal
tion an attempt has been made to understand the effect of tool pin
profiles and rotational speed on FSP zone formation. This paper
presents the relation between the FSP zone formation and ten- ing procedure was used to fabricate the joints. Non-consumable
sile properties of friction stir welded AA2219 aluminium alloy tools made of high carbon steel were used to fabricate the joints.
joints. The tool dimensions are shown in Fig. 4. The chemical com-
position and mechanical properties of base metal are presented
2. Experimental Work in Table 1. An indigenously designed and developed machine
(15HP; 3000 rpm; 25 kN) was used to fabricate the joints. Five
The rolled plates of 6 mm thickness, AA2219 aluminium different tool pin profiles, as shown in Fig. 5 were used to fab-
alloy, were cut into the required size (300 mm × 150 mm) by ricate the joints. Using each tool, 3 joints were fabricated at 3
power hacksaw cutting and grinding. Square butt joint con- different rotational speeds and in total 15 joints (5 × 3) were
figuration, as shown in Fig. 3 was prepared to fabricate FSW fabricated in this investigation. Trial experiments were carried
joints. The initial joint configuration was obtained by securing out to find out the working limits of welding parameters. Three
the plates in position using mechanical clamps. The direction of different welding speeds (0.32 mm/s, 0.76 mm/s and 1.25 mm/s)
welding was normal to the rolling direction. Single pass weld- and three different axial force levels (10 kN, 12 kN and 14 kN)
were used to fabricate the joints. Then the joints were visually
inspected for exterior weld defects and it was found that the joints
Table 1b
Mechanical properties of AA2219-T87
Yield strength (MPa) 310
Ultimate tensile strength (MPa) 408
Fig. 2. Different regions of FSW joint: (a) unaffected base metal; (b) heat Elongation (%) 23
affected zone (HAZ); (c) thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ); (d) fric- Vickers hardness (0.5 kg) 140
tion stir processed (FSP) zone.
K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18 9
Table 2 and the load versus displacement was recorded. The 0.2%
Welding parameters and tool dimensions offset yield strength, ultimate tensile strength and percentage
Process parameters Values of elongation were evaluated. Vicker’s microhardness testing
Rotational speed (rpm) 1500, 1600, 1700
machine (Make: Matzusawa, Japan and Model: MMT-X7) was
Welding speed (mm/s) 0.76 employed for measuring the hardness across the joint with 0.5 kg
Axial force (kN) 12 load.
D/d ratio of tool 3.0 Macro- and microstructural analysis was carried out using
Pin length (mm) 5.7 a light optical microscope (VERSAMET-3) incorporated with
Tool shoulder diameter, D (mm) 18
Pin diameter, d (mm) 6
an image analyzing software (Clemex–Vision). The specimens
Tool inclined angle (◦ ) 0 for metallographic examination were sectioned to the required
Shoulder deepness inserted into the surface 0.2 sizes from the joint comprising FSP zone, TMAZ, HAZ and
of base metal (mm) base metal regions and polished using different grades of
Included angle of taper pin 7.5 emery papers. Final polishing was done using the diamond
Pitch (mm) and included angle (◦ ) of 1 and 60
threaded pin
compound (1 m particle size) in the disc polishing machine.
Specimens were etched with Kellers reagent to reveal the
macro- and microstructures. The fractured surface of the ten-
sile tested specimens was analysed using digital scanner at
fabricated at the welding speed of 0.76 mm/s and axial force of low magnification to study the general mode of fracture pat-
12 kN was free from any external defects. Similar welding speed tern to establish the relationship between FSP zone and the
was used by the other investigator [8] also to weld AA2219 alu- fracture.
minium alloy. The welding parameters and tool dimensions are
presented in Table 2. 3. Results
The welded joints were sliced using power hacksaw and
then machined to the required dimensions to prepare ten- 3.1. Macrostructure
sile specimens as shown in Fig. 6. American Society for
Testing of Materials (ASTM) guidelines were followed for In fusion welding of aluminium alloys, the defects like poros-
preparing the test specimens. Tensile test was carried out ity, slag inclusion, solidification cracks, etc. deteriorates the
in 100 kN, electro-mechanical controlled Universal Testing weld quality and joint properties. Usually, friction stir welded
Machine. The specimen was loaded at the rate of 1.5 kN/min joints are free from these defects since there is no melting takes
as per ASTM specifications, so that tensile specimen under- place during welding and the metals are joined in the solid
goes deformation. The specimen finally fails after necking state itself due to the heat generated by the friction and flow of
metal by the stirring action. However, FSW joints are prone to
other defects like pinhole, tunnel defect, piping defect, kissing
bond, cracks, etc. due to improper flow of metal and insuffi-
cient consolidation of metal in the FSP region. All the joints
fabricated in this investigation are analysed at low magnifica-
tion (10×) using optical microscope to reveal the quality of FSP
regions.
The macrostructure of the joints and the observations (FSP
Fig. 6. Dimensions of tensile specimen. zone shape, FSP zone height (H), FSP zone width (W) at three
10 K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18
Table 3
Effect of rotational speed on macrostructure of the joints fabricated by straight cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational Macrostructure Size of FSP Shape of Name of the Quality of Probable reasons
speed (rpm) zone (mm) FSP zone defect and weld metal
location consolidation
RS AS W H
different locations, quality of the FSP zone, etc.) made from the to be defective irrespective of rotational speeds used. In the
macrostructure are presented in Tables 3–7. All the three joints case of threaded cylindrical pin profiled tool (Table 5) and tri-
fabricated using straight cylindrical pin profiled tool (Table 3) angular pin profiled tool (Table 7), the joints fabricated at a
and tapered cylindrical pin profiled tool (Table 4) are found rotational speed of 1500 rpm are found to be defective. On the
Table 4
Effect of rotational speed on macrostructure of the joints fabricated by tapered cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational Macrostructure Size of FSP Shape of FSP Name of the Quality of Probable
speed (rpm) zone (mm) zone defect and weld metal reasons
location consolidation
RS AS W H
Table 5
Effect of rotational speed on macrostructure of the joints fabricated by threaded cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational Macrostructure Size of FSP Shape of FSP Name of the Quality of Probable reasons
speed (rpm) zone (mm) zone defect and weld metal
location consolidation
RS AS W H
other hand, the joints fabricated using square pin profiled tool is 3.2. Tensile properties
found to be free from defects (Table 6). From the macrostruc-
ture analysis, it can be inferred that the formation of defect Transverse tensile properties of FSW joints such as yield
free FSP zone is a function of tool profile and rotational speed strength, tensile strength, percentage of elongation and joint
used. efficiency were evaluated. Three specimens were tested at each
Table 6
Effect of rotational speed on macrostructure of the joints fabricated by square pin profiled tool
Rotational Macrostructure Size of FSP Shape of FSP Name of the Quality of Probable reasons
speed (rpm) zone (mm) zone defect and weld metal
location consolidation
RS AS W H
Table 7
Effect of rotational speed on macrostructure of the joints fabricated by triangular pin profiled tool
Rotational Macrostructure Size of FSP Shape of FSP Name of the Quality of Probable reasons
speed (rpm) zone (mm) zone defect and weld metal
location consolidation
RS AS W H
condition and average of the results of three specimens is pre- properties compared to other joints, irrespective of tool rota-
sented in Fig. 7. From the figure, it can be inferred that the tional speed. Similarly, the joints fabricated by threaded pin
tool profile and tool rotational speed are having influence on profiled tool are also showing almost matching tensile prop-
tensile properties of the FSW joints. Of the five joints, the erties to that of square tool profile. But the joints fabricated by
joints fabricated by square tool profile exhibited superior tensile straight cylindrical tool profile exhibited inferior tensile proper-
Table 8
Effect of rotational speed on fracture surface of the joints fabricated by straight cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational speed (rpm) Fracture surface Location of Fracture surface Orientation of defects
fracture appearance
Fig. 7. Effect of rotational speed on tensile properties: (a) tensile strength; (b) yield strength; (c) percentage of elongation; (d) joint efficiency.
ties compared to their counterparts, irrespective of tool rotational concerned, the joints fabricated at a rotational speed of 1600 rpm
speed. are showing superior tensile properties compared to other joints,
The joints fabricated at the rotational speed of 1500 rpm have irrespective of tool profiles. The fractured surfaces of the tensile
shown lower tensile strength and elongation compared to the test specimens were scanned using a digital scanner and the
joints fabricated at a rotational speed of 1600 rpm and this trend fracture patterns of all the joints and observations made from
is common for all the tool profiles. Similarly, the joints fabricated the fractured surface are presented in Tables 7–12. From the
at the rotational speed of 1700 rpm have also shown lower tensile fractured surface analysis, it can be inferred that the defect free
strength and elongation compared to the joints fabricated at a welds are showing uniform deformation across the weld before
rotational speed of 1600 rpm. The effect of rotational speed is failure (Table 11).
14 K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18
Table 9
Effect of rotational speed on fracture surface of the joints fabricated by tapered cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational speed (rpm) Fracture surface Location of Fracture surface Orientation of
fracture appearance defects
From the experimental results (macrostructure, tensile prop- The primary function of the non-consumable rotating tool
erties and fracture surface), it is found that the joint fabricated pin is to stir the plasticized metal and move the same behind
using square pin profiled tool at a rotational speed of 1600 rpm it to have good joint. Pin profile plays a crucial role in mate-
exhibited superior tensile properties compared to other joints. rial flow and in turn regulates the welding speed of the FSW
The reasons for the better performance of these joints are process [11,12]. The pin generally has cylindrical plain, frus-
explained below. tum tapered, threaded and flat surfaces. Pin profiles with flat
Table 10
Effect of rotational speed on fracture surface of the joints fabricated by threaded cylindrical pin profiled tool
Rotational Fracture surface Location of Fracture surface Orientation of
speed (rpm) fracture appearance defects
Table 11
Effect of rotational speed on fracture surface of the joints fabricated by square pin profiled tool
Rotational Fracture surface Location of Fracture surface Orientation of defects
speed (rpm) fracture appearance
Table 12
Effect of rotational speed on fracture surface of the joints fabricated by triangular pin profiled tool
Rotational Fracture surface Location of Fracture surface Orientation of defects
speed (rpm) fracture appearance
Fig. 9. Effect of tool pin profiles on FSP zone microstructure: (a) straight cylindrical; (b) taper cylindrical; (c) threaded cylindrical; (d) square; (e) triangular.
is no such pulsating action in the case of cylindrical, tapered and the joints fabricated at a rotational speed of 1600 rpm for com-
threaded pin profiles. parison purpose. Of the five joints, the highest hardness value
During tensile test, most of the specimens failed in the FSP of 105 Hv has been recorded in the joint fabricated using square
region but the exact location of failure is either at the retreating pin profiled tool and the lowest hardness value of 82 Hv has
side (RS) or at the advancing side (AS) and it is also evident been recorded in the joint fabricated using straight cylindrical
from the fracture surface analysis. Hence, microhardness mea- pin profiled tool. Similarly, the FSP region of the joint fabri-
surement and microstructural analysis have been carried out in cated using square pin profile tool contains finer grains (Fig. 9d)
the FSP region of all the joints. Fig. 8 shows the microhardness compared to other joints. The higher number of pulsating action
values and Fig. 9 displays the microstructure of FSP region of all experienced in the stir zone of square pin profiled tool produces
K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18 17
Fig. 11. Effect of rotational speed on microstructure of FSP zone (tool profile: square pin).
18 K. Elangovan, V. Balasubramanian / Materials Science and Engineering A 459 (2007) 7–18