Effect of Dwell Time on Fracture Load of Friction Stir Spot Welded Dissimilar Metal Joints

Abstract

The dissimilar materials joining in heavy structural fabrication industries is tedious work for welding and design engineers, since the weld region’s criticality is encountered by hot cracking and its associated problems. Moreover, dissimilar materials are joined by mechanical locking such as rivets, bolt and nuts, and screws. Nowadays, the fasteners are eliminated by friction stir welding (FSW). The friction stir spot welding (FSSW) is a variant of FSW; it can be avoided by seam welding. Hence, in this investigation, FSSW is used for joining AA6061 aluminum alloy with mild steel using tool rotation speed, plunge depth and rate, and shoulder to pin diameter ratio. The experimental method observed that the joint fabricated with a rotational speed of 1000 rpm, plunge rate of 5 mm/min, plunge depth of 6 mm/min, and shoulder diameter to pin diameter ration of 3.0 yielded highest fracture load The optimum heat input could obtain the improvement in FSSW joint strength. Recrystallized grains and favorable intermetallic compound formation are the primary factors for sound welding.