Effect of welding parameters on microstructure and mechanical properties of friction stir spot welded 5052 aluminum alloy

Friction stir spot welding (FSSW) is a newly-developed solid state joining technology. In this study, two types of FSSW, normal FSSW and walking FSSW, are applied to join the 5052-H112 aluminum alloy sheets with 1 mm thickness and then the effect of the rotational speed and dwell time on microstructure and mechanical properties is discussed. The lower sheet material underneath the hook didn’t flow into the upper sheet due to the concave surface in the shoulder and groove in the anvil. The hardness profile of the welds exhibited a W-shaped appearance and the minimum hardness was measured in the HAZ. The results of tensile/shear tests and cross-tension tests indicate that the joint strength decreases with increasing rotational speed, while it’s not affected significantly by dwell time. At the rotational speed of 1541 rpm, the tensile/shear strength and cross-tension strength reached the maximum of 2847.7 N and 902.1 N corresponding to the dwell time of 5 s and 15 s. Two different fracture modes were observed under both tensile/shear and cross-tension loadings: shear fracture and tensile/shear mixed fracture under tensile/shear loadings, and nugget debonding and pull-out under cross-tension loadings. The performance of the welds plays a predominant role in determining the type of fracture modes. In addition, the adoption of walking FSSW brings unremarkable improvements in weld strength.     

Microstructure and failure mechanisms of refill friction stir spot welded 7075-T6 aluminum alloy joints

In this paper, the microstructure and mechanical properties of 7075-T6 aluminum alloy joints joined by refill friction stir spot welding (RFSSW) were investigated. The keyhole was refilled successfully, and the microstructure of the weld exhibited variations in the grain sizes in the width and the thickness directions. There existed defects (hook, voids, bonding ligament, etc.) associated to the material flow in the weld. Mechanical properties of the joint have been investigated in terms of hardness and tensile/shear and cross-tension test, and the fracture mechanisms were observed by SEM (scanning electron microscope). The hardness profile of the weld exhibited a W-shaped appearance in the macroscopic level, which reached the minimum at the boundary of the sleeve and the clamping ring. The variation laws between tensile/shear and cross-tension strength and processing parameters were rather complicated. The void in the weld played an important role in determining the strength of the joint. On the whole, the preferable strength can be obtained at lower rotational speed. Shear fracture mode was observed under tensile–shear loadings, and nugget debonding, plug type fracture (on the upper sheet) and plug type fracture (on the lower sheet) modes were observed under cross-tension loadings. It was also observed that the main feature affecting the mechanical properties of the joint is the alclad between the upper and lower sheets and the connecting qualities between the stir zone and thermo-mechanically affected zone.     

Fatigue properties of self‐piercing riveted multi‐rivet joints in steel and aluminum sheets

Self‐piercing riveting (SPR) is an important joining technology for connecting steel and aluminum sheets. In this paper, AA6111 aluminum alloy and DP780 high‐strength steel were adopted to study the influence of fatigue on remaining static strength and energy absorption properties on self‐piercing riveting multi‐rivet joints. The results showed that energy absorption capacity of the specimens decreased significantly after high cycle fatigue. Fatigue reduced the remaining static lap shear strength of riveted specimens. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to analyze the cross section of fatigue specimens fractured by static tension. The results showed that fretting wear was found at the contact area between rivet and aluminum sheets. Fatigue bands and fatigue cracks appeared in fatigue specimens after high cycle fatigue, while those with low cycle fatigue specimens did not appear. Small cracks weaken the strength of the aluminum sheet, resulting in the static tensile strength of the riveted specimen with high cycle fatigue is lower than that of other fatigue specimens.     

Stress Intensities at Spot Welds

The stress intensities (notch stress, stress intensity factors and J-integral) at spot welds under typical loads of tensile-shear, cross-tension and coach-peel are derived as a number of simple formulas on the basis of an analytic solution where the stress intensities at spot welds are generally determined by the stresses around the spot welds and of some analytic solutions to circular rigid inclusions in plates with the inclusions simulating the weld nuggets. The derived formulas show consistently the trends in the stress intensities with the design parameters for spot welds such as nugget diameter and sheet thickness and additionally with spacing of force for cross-tension spot welds and load eccentricity for coach-peel spot welds. The stress intensities at spot welds under general loading conditions are estimated in terms of the forces and moments transferred by the spot welds based on the derivations. The theoretical predictions from the formulas are compared favorably with the finite element results. As an application example, some fatigue test data for spot welds in the form of load range versus life to failure are transferred into the form of stress intensities range versus life to failure with the scatterband of the fatigue test data being substantially reduced. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Fatigue lifetime and tearing resistance of AA2198 Al–Cu–Li alloy friction stir welds: Effect of defects

The fatigue strength and failure mechanisms of defect-free (“sound”) and flaw bearing friction stir butt-welds of 3.1 mm-thick AA2198-T8 Al–Li–Cu alloy have been investigated via S–N curves at R = 0.1 using cross weld specimens. The fatigue strength of sound welds is only reduced by 10–15% at the aimed lifetime of 10⁵ cycles compared to the base material. Joint Line Remnant (JLR) bearing welds have a similar fatigue strength as sound welds and the JLR is not the crack initiation site. Kissing Bond (KB) bearing welds that have undergone a weld root polishing show a reduction in fatigue strength by 17% compared to sound welds. For specimens loaded at or above yield strength of the weld nugget the crack systematically initiates from the KB during the first cycle, which is interpreted further using fracture mechanics. The strongest reduction, about 28% in fatigue strength, is found for welds with an initial gap between the parent sheets (GAP welds) along with initiation at intergranular surface microcracks. Kahn tear tests show a reduction in tearing resistance for the flaw bearing welds with a similar ranking as for the fatigue strength.     

Fatigue behaviour of the bond interface between carbon fibre‐reinforced polymer sheets and concrete

Externally bonded carbon fibre‐reinforced polymers (CFRPs) have been applied to retrofit and strengthen civil structures. In this study, four‐point bending beams were manufactured and tested to examine the fatigue behaviour of the CFRP–concrete interface. The results indicated that the specimens exhibited debonding failure in the concrete beneath the adhesive layer under static loading. However, when cyclic loads were imposed on the small beams, debonding failure may occur in the adhesive layer. Moreover, fitting expressions were proposed to predict the shear stress–slip relationship between the CFRP sheets and concrete and the flexural strength of the CFRP‐strengthened beams under static loads, and good agreement with the test data was obtained. Finally, a fatigue life prediction model was also presented to capture the fatigue life of the CFRP–concrete interface under cyclic loads. The calculation results showed that the fatigue strength of the CFRP–concrete bond interface was approximately 65% of the ultimate load capacity.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of friction spot welded 6061-T4 aluminum alloy

Friction spot welding (FSpW) is a relatively new solid state joining technology developed by GKSS. In the present study, FSpW was applied to join the 6061-T4 aluminum alloy sheet with 2 mm thickness. The microstructure of the weld can be classified into four regions, which are stir zone (SZ), thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ), heat affected zone (HAZ) and the base material (BM), respectively. Meanwhile, defects such as bonding ligament, hook and voids are found in the weld, which are associated to the material flow. The hardness profile of the weld exhibits a W-shaped appearance and the minimum hardness is measured at the boundary of TMAZ and SZ. Both the tensile/shear strength and cross-tension strength reach the maximum of 7117.0 N and 4555.4 N at the welding condition of the rotational speed of 1500 rpm and duration time of 4 s. Compared to cross-tension strength, the tensile/shear strength were stable with the variation of processing parameters. Three different fracture modes are observed under tensile/shear loading, which are plug type fracture, shear fracture and plug-shear fracture. There are also there different fracture modes under cross-tension loading, which are plug type fracture (on the upper sheet), nugget debonding and plug type fracture (on the lower sheet).     

Effect of governing metal thickness and stack orientation on weld quality and mechanical behaviour of resistance spot welding of AA5754 aluminium

A study was carried out to investigate the effect of governing metal thickness (GMT) and stack orientation on weld quality and mechanical behaviour of resistance spot welded (RSW) AA5754 aluminium. Individual samples from 27 different joint stacks in three test geometries; lap-shear, coach-peel and cross-tension were evaluated for quasi-static and fatigue performance; micro examination was also conducted on some of the samples to assess weld quality. The results derived from over 1000 samples show that: the GMT has a significant effect on welding quality by controlling progression of weld nugget from under-developed to over penetrated. The GMT also determines the feasible quasi-static joint strength regardless of stacks in the three joint geometries tested, though the effect differs with respect to test geometry. The fatigue behaviour is dominated by the effect of GMT on attainable weld size, overall joint stiffness and stress concentration, providing good quality of weld nuggets is achieved. No notable effect of stack orientation on weld quality and joint strength was found with respect to the joint stack asymmetry and welding orientation to the electrodes. These fundamental relationships between weld qualities, joint strength, GMT and stack orientation for RSW of aluminium will have significant relevance to design and manufacturing communities.     

Development of a strength model for the cocured stepped lap joints under tensile loading

The cocured stepped lap joints for composite structures were manufactured and tested under static and fatigue tensile loads. From the tests, it was found that the joints were shear-failed at the joining interfaces. As the length of the stepped lap of the joint increased, the average static tensile strength of the joint increased, while the average static shear strength decreased in proportion to the length of the stepped lap of the joint. The fatigue endurance limit was found to be 30–40% of the static strength.

Also, the cocured stepped lap joints were manufactured by curing plies laid-up on the composite plates which had machined stepped laps. The static strength of the joints manufactured by the latter method was found to be 70–80% of the static strength of the joints manufactured without machining and the fatigue endurance limit was found to be about 25% of the static strength.     

复杂面内应力状态下平面编织高铝纤维增强氧化铝基复合材料强度及疲劳寿命预测方法

针对平面编织氧化铝基复合材料提出了一种复杂面内应力状态下的强度准则和疲劳寿命预测方法。通过拉伸、压缩及纯剪切试验,分别获得了材料的静强度指标。考虑材料拉、压性能的差异和面内拉-剪联合作用对材料强度的影响机制,提出了修正的Hoffman强度理论。采用该强度理论预测得到的偏轴拉伸强度与试验结果基本一致,偏差不超过10%。开展了偏轴角θ=0°、15°、30°、45°,应力比R=0.1,频率f=10 Hz的拉伸疲劳试验,试验结果表明随着偏轴角的增加,相同轴向拉伸载荷下的疲劳寿命逐渐降低。由于面内剪切应力分量的作用,疲劳失效由纤维主导逐渐过渡到纤维和基体共同主导的模式。基于单轴疲劳寿命曲线,采用Broutman-Sahu剩余强度模型表征剩余强度随疲劳循环次数的变化规律,结合剩余强度演化模型和修正的Hoffman强度理论,提出了一种面内复杂载荷条件下的疲劳寿命预测模型,并引入疲劳剪切损伤影响因子表征拉-剪应力联合作用对材料疲劳行为的影响。采用本文提出的疲劳寿命预测模型,预测不同偏轴角拉伸疲劳寿命,预测结果与试验结果基本一致,偏差在1倍寿命范围内。比较结果表明在给定应力比、温度和疲劳载荷频率条件下,该疲劳寿命预测模型可以用来预测平面编织氧化铝基复合材料拉-剪复杂面内载荷条件下疲劳寿命。      

Combined effect of strength & sheet thickness on fatigue behaviour of resistance spot welded joint

Fatigue performance of spot welded lap shear joint is primarily dependent on weld nugget size, sheet thickness and corresponding joint stiffness. Two automotive steel sheets having higher strength lower thickness and lower strength higher thickness are resistance spot welded with established optimum welding condition. The tensile‐shear strength and fatigue strength of lap shear joint of the two automotive steel sheets are determined and compared. Experimental fatigue life of spot welded lap shear joint of each steel are compared with predicted fatigue lives using different stress intensity factor solutions for kinked crack and spot weld available in literature. Micrographs of fatigue fractured surfaces are examined to understand fracture micro‐mechanisms.     

EFFECT OF BIAXIAL MEAN STRESS ON CYCLIC STRESS-STRAIN RESPONSE AND BEHAVIOUR OF SHORT FATIGUE CRACKS IN A HIGH STRENGTH SPRING STEEL

Abstract— Biaxial fatigue tests were conducted on a high strength spring steel using hour-glass shaped smooth specimens. Four types of loading system were employed, i.e. (a) fully reversed cyclic torsion, (b) uniaxial push—pull, (c) fully reversed torsion with a superimposed axial static tension or compression stress, and (d) uniaxial push—pull with a superimposed static torque, to evaluate the effects of mean stress on the cyclic stress—strain response and short fatigue crack growth behaviour. Experimental results indicate that a biaxial mean stress has no apparent influence on the stress—strain response in torsion, however a superimposed tensile mean stress was detrimental to torsional fatigue strength. Similarly a superimposed static shear stress reduced the push—pull fatigue lifetime. A compressive mean stress was seen to be beneficial to torsion fatigue life. The role of mean stress on fatigue lifetime, under mixed mode loading, was investigated through experimental observations and theoretical analyses of short crack initiation and propagation. Using a plastic replication technique the effects of biaxial mean stress on both Stage I (mode II) and Stage II (mode I) short cracks were evaluated and analysed in detail. A two stage biaxial short fatigue crack growth model incorporating the influence of mean stress was subsequently developed and applied to correlate data of crack growth rate and fatigue life.     

Tensile and fatigue evaluation of Ti–15Al–33Nb (at.%) and Ti–21Al–29Nb (at.%) alloys for biomedical applications

In this work the fatigue and tensile behavior of Ti–15Al–33Nb (at.%) and Ti–21Al–29Nb (at.%) was evaluated and compared to that for other titanium-based biomedical implant alloys, in particular Ti–6Al–4V (wt.%). The mechanical properties of interest were fatigue strength, tensile strength, elastic modulus, and elongation-to-failure. Fatigue stress versus life curves were obtained for tests performed at room temperature in air as well as in Ringer's solution at R = 0.1 for maximum stresses between 35% and 90% of the ultimate tensile strength. The results indicated that the fatigue strength and lives and elastic modulus of these alloys is comparable to that for Ti–6Al–4V (wt.%). Considering the data scatter and deformation behavior, the Ringer's solution did not significantly affect the fatigue behavior. Heat treatment reduced the tensile strength and this corresponded to a reduction in the fatigue strength. The tensile strength of the as-processed Ti-Al-Nb alloys was slightly lower than that for Ti–6Al–4V (wt.%), and the Ti–15Al–33Nb (at.%) exhibited lower strengths and higher elongations than Ti–21Al–29Nb. Based on the current results, it is proposed that titanium–aluminum–niobium alloys will be of considerable future interest for biomedical applications.     

Development of response surface model for tensile shear strength of weld-bonds of aluminium alloy 6061 T651

The development of a response surface model to study the influence of process parameters of weld-bonding on tensile shear strength of the weld-bond of 2 mm thick aluminium alloy 6061 T651 sheets has been reported. Significant and controllable process parameters of the weld-bonding (surface roughness, curing time, welding current, welding time and electrode pressure) and their ranges were identified by conducting pilot experiments. Welding current, welding time and welding pressure were identified as significant and controllable parameters. Influence of the significant process parameters and their interaction on the tensile shear strength of the weld-bonds was studied using response surface methodology (RSM). Using model, the optimal combination of weld bonding process parameters for maximum tensile shear strength of the weld bond was obtained. The validity of the model was evaluated on weld bonds developed using different levels of process parameters and testing their tensile shear strength. The model error was found to be in a range of 3–7%.     

Elucidation of fatigue characteristics and fracture mechanism of friction stir spot‐welded tension–shear joint steels

The fatigue life and fracture mechanism of friction stir spot welded tension–shear joints using 590‐MPa class steel as a base material under constant‐amplitude conditions were investigated with focus on welding dimension variations caused by tool wear. The fatigue limit of the friction stir spot welding (FSSW) joint used for this study is significantly low compared with the static tensile strength of the joint itself. It was clarified that the FSSW joint in this study exhibited two different failure morphologies regardless of the applied load level: base metal fracture and weld area fracture. Although the welding state changes due to the tool wear phenomenon that produce two types of fracture modes in relation to the welding rip diameter, they have no effect on the fatigue strength, regardless of the applied load.     

Torsional fatigue resistance of plasma sprayed HA coating on Ti–6Al–4V

The torsional strength of plasma sprayed hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings was studied under static and cyclic loading. The torsional shear tests were conducted in a frustum test device developed in this laboratory, which adapted to various coating thicknesses. The interfacial fatigue resistance was measured in terms of interfacial fatigue strength defined as the average maximum stress (_fmax). A staircase fatigue method was employed to determine the interfacial fatigue strength; this method resolved the uncertainty in detecting coating failure during torsion fatigue. The values for coating shear strength and shear fatigue strength obtained from the torsional tests did not differ from those obtained by previous tensional shear tests in this laboratory. The fatigue strength of one million cycles was about 35% lower than static shear strength. This finding might be used for estimating fatigue life span without cyclic loading tests.     

The effect of pre-straining on the mechanical behaviour of self-piercing riveted aluminium alloy sheets

Self-piercing riveting as an alternative joining method to spot-welding has attracted considerable interest from the automotive industry and has been widely used in aluminium intensive vehicles. Pressing and stamping are important processes in automotive production and result in additional straining on the vehicle body sheet material. It is therefore important to have knowledge of the effect of sheet pre-straining on the quality of the self-piercing riveted joints and on the mechanical behaviour of the riveted aluminium alloy sheets. This paper reports the influence of sheet pre-straining on the static and fatigue behaviour of self-piercing riveted aluminium alloy sheet. Wrought aluminium alloy sheet, NG5754 with a nominal thickness value of 2 mm was used to obtain pre-strained NG5754 sheets with pre-straining levels of 3%, 5% and 10%. Pairs of pre-strained NG5754 sheets were joined to create single-riveted lap joints which subsequently underwent lap-shear and fatigue testing. Microscopic inspection showed that the joint quality was satisfactory despite the increasing sheet straining levels. The results showed that by increasing the pre-straining level up to 10%, the shear and fatigue strength also increased. The rate of increase of the static and fatigue strength differed as the pre-straining levels varied.     

Effect of residual stresses on fatigue strength of high strength steel sheets with punched holes

The effect of residual stresses on the reverse bending fatigue strength of steel sheets with punched holes was studied for steels with tensile strength grades of 540 MPa and 780 MPa. Tensile and compressive residual stresses were induced around the punched holes. Heat treatment of the specimens with punched holes at 873 K for 1 h decreased the residual stresses around the holes and improved the fatigue strength of the sheets. This result means that the tensile residual stresses induced in the sidewalls of the holes and near the hole edges by punching reduced fatigue strength. The effect of the residual stresses on the fatigue limits of the edges was estimated by the modified Goodman relation using the residual stresses after cyclic loading and the ultimate tensile strength at the fatigue crack initiation sites.     

High cycle fatigue properties of cast Mg–xNd–0.2Zn–Zr alloys

The tensile and fatigue strength of cast Mg–xNd–0.2Zn–0.45Zr alloys (x = 0, 1, 2, 3 wt%) in both solution-treated (T4) and solution + 200 °C peak-aged (T6-PA) conditions were investigated in the present study. The results indicate that Neodymium (Nd) is an effective element to improve both the tensile and fatigue properties of cast Mg–0.2Zn–Zr alloys. The strengthening effect depends on its content in a way of power function (σ = σ₀ + K C _Nd ⁿ ), where the power exponent n is about 0.52–0.54 for yield strength (YS) and 0.59–0.61 for fatigue strength. The yield strengthening effect of Nd element in the form of precipitates (T6-PA) is about three times of that as solution atoms (T4), while the fatigue strengthening effect of Nd element in the form of precipitates is only about 50 % higher than that as solution atoms. The improved strength (both YS and ultimate tensile strength) can lead to the same amount improvement of the fatigue strength in T4-treated alloys, while only can cause less than half improvement of the fatigue strength in T6-PA-treated alloys.     

Closed-form structural stress and stress intensity factor solutions for spot welds in commonly used specimens

Closed-form new structural stress and stress intensity factor solutions for spot welds in lap-shear, square-cup, U-shape, cross-tension and coach-peel specimens are obtained based on elasticity theories and fracture mechanics. The loading conditions for spot welds in the central parts of the five types of specimens are first examined. The resultant loads on the weld nugget and the self-balanced resultant loads on the lateral surface of the central parts of the specimens are then decomposed into various types of symmetric and anti-symmetric parts. Closed-form structural stress and stress intensity factor solutions for spot welds under various types of loading conditions are then adopted from the recent work of Lin and Pan to derive new closed-form structural stress and stress intensity factor solutions for spot welds in the five types of specimens. The selection of a geometric factor for square-cup specimens and the decompositions of the loads on the central parts of the U-shape, cross-tension and coach-peel specimens are based on the corresponding three-dimensional finite element analyses of these specimens. The new closed-form solutions are expressed as functions of the spot weld diameter, the sheet thickness, the width and the length of the five types of specimens. The closed-form solutions are also expressed as functions of the angular location along the nugget circumference of spot welds in the five types of specimens in contrast to the limited available solutions at the critical locations in the literature. The new closed-form solutions at the critical locations of spot welds in the five types of specimens are listed or can be easily obtained from the general closed-form solutions for fatigue life predictions.