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Temperature and Traverse Force Analysis During Underwater Friction Stir

Welding

Chapter · January 2019

DOI: 10.1007/978-981-13-6469-3_4

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Temperature and Traverse Force
Analysis During Underwater Friction
Stir Welding

Mohd Atif Wahid, Nidhi Sharma, Pankul Goel, Zahid A. Khan

and Arshad N. Siddiquee

Abstract Friction stir welding (FSW) is an auspicious clean welding method to

join marine grade aluminum alloys (AAs). Underwater Friction Stir Welding
(UFSW), can extend the marine application of the FSW due to its superior
mechanical properties over its contemporary FSW. In FSW/UFSW the weld ther-
mal cycles and tool forces exhibit a noteworthy effect on the weld properties. Force
and temperature measurement during UFSW process play a pivotal role in under-
standing the process, prediction of tool life, microstructure and mechanical prop-
erties of the welded joints. As such an attempt has been made in this study to
investigate the effect of welding speed (50–80 mm/min) on temperature distribution
and traverse force during UFSW of AA 6082–T6. The results revealed that increase
in welding speed caused high traverse force and low peak temperature.
Furthermore, the increase in temperature was observed as the tool approaches the
thermocouple near the weld center. After that, the temperature reduces due to a
decrease in the thermal gradient. The maximum peak temperature of 137 °C was
observed at the retreating side (RS) in heat affected zone (HAZ) at a low welding
speed of 50 mm/min due to high heat input and slow cooling rate. Additionally, the
maximum traverse force of 103 kgf was attained at a high welding speed of 80 mm/
min due to high material flow stresses resulting from high strain rate and low
temperature.

Keywords Friction stir welding (FSW) Underwater friction stir welding



(UFSW) Temperature Traverse force Welding speed

M. A. Wahid (&)
N. Sharma
P. Goel
Z. A. Khan
A. N. Siddiquee

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
e-mail: wahidatif89@gmail.com

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2019 41

A. Prasad et al. (eds.), Advances in Engineering Design,
Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6469-3_4
42 M. A. Wahid et al.

1 Introduction

A number of welding techniques have been developed in the past few years; still,
welding of AAs seems to be challenging due to its high thermal conductivity and
relatively low melting temperature [1, 2]. A recent joining technique, FSW has
extended the application of AAs in different sectors, i.e., aerospace, automobile,
and marine. FSW is a non-fusion joining technique developed by The Welding
Institute (TWI) in 1991 [3]. This process does not cause melting of the material.
Thus, undesirable fusion welding (FW) defects like solidification cracking,
hydrogen embrittlement, etc. occurring due to the microstructural changes do not
exist in FSW resulting in improved mechanical properties as compared to FW.
In FSW, a specifically profiled tool with a shoulder and pin are inserted into the
abutting faces of the base material (BM) and navigated along the joint line. The
frictional heat generated amid the tool and the BM causes material softening leading
to plastic deformation. Also, the material is transported from one side of the pin to
the other side due to rotational and traverse movement of the tool. Intrinsically due
to frictional heating and plastic deformation solid-state joining takes place [4–6] as
shown in Fig. 1.
The FSW process is affected to a great extent by the heat generation and flow.
Although the heat produced in FSW is less in comparison to FW, still it is sufficient
enough to reduce the mechanical efficiency of the joints due to the dissolution and
coarsening of the precipitates in heat treatable AAs. FSW regions most affected by
this phenomenon are the HAZ and thermo–mechanically affected zone (TMAZ).
So, the control of thermal cycles during FSW becomes necessary and this high heat
generated can be overcome using different coolant, for instance, water, liquid
nitrogen, etc. [7, 8]. In UFSW, water as a coolant is used to stabilize the temper-
ature existing in the joints (see Fig. 2). Due to excellent absorption and transmis-
sion characteristic of water the heat is transferred readily from the HAZ and TMAZ

Fig. 1 Schematic
representation of FSW
Temperature and Traverse Force Analysis During … 43

Fig. 2 The setup of UFSW

leading to lowering in the level of precipitate deterioration and improving the

mechanical performance of the joints [8]. UFSW can be applicable in marine,
shipbuilding, and several offshore construction and repair.
In recent years, UFSW has been adopted and investigated by some of the
researchers due to its good joints efficiency as compared to FSW. Wahid et al. [9]
recently FSWed AA–6082 using three cooling media (air, water, and water with
crushed ice) and concluded that the controlled temperature distribution during water
cooling ensured the maximum tensile strength of the joint. Fratini et al. [10] have
also shown the potential use of water during UFSW of AA 7075 for improving joint
strength and hardness due to low peak temperature. The effect of welding speed on
temperature was investigated by Buchibabu et al. [11]. They stated a reduction in
peak temperature as the welding speed was increased. The different forces
encountered during FSW/UFSW are also influenced by the temperature generated
and distribution [12, 13]. The traverse and axial forces were found to be signifi-
cantly increased in water as compared to air during FSW of AA 7075 due to the
lowering of peak temperature [12]. Leitão et al. [13] noted a substantial increase in
tool torque with an increase in both plate thickness and welding speed. From the
reported literature it is observed that both cooling media and the welding parameters
offer substantial effect on the temperature generation and force measurement in
FSW [9–14]. The available literature reveals very few studies on the UFSW process
and also information about broad range of AAs are not available. Most of the
studies target the role of thermal profiles on the properties of the joint and negligible
information is reported on the measurement of forces.
During FSW/UFSW the temperature generated significantly affects the welded
joint mechanical properties, and its measurement can provide the foundation for
process improvement. The measurement of forces acting on the tool is also a prime
requirement during FSW process as it may be used to design the optimum tool,
predict tool life, understand the material flow, etc. Hence, considering the advan-
tages of UFSW over FSW and importance of temperature and force measurement
during FSW/UFSW, the present work aims at analyzing the influence of welding
44 M. A. Wahid et al.

speed on temperature and traverse force acting on the tool during UFSW of AA
6082–T6.

2 Experimental Procedure

The BM selected for the research work was AA6082–T6 of the dimension
180  50  3 mm and the butt joint configuration was considered for UFSW.
AA6082–T6 is a marine grade AA having high corrosion resistance and good
strength to weight ratio. The BM alloy composition and the other important
properties are specified in Table 1 and Table 2 respectively. A tri-flute tool of
17 mm shoulder and 6 mm pin diameter was used to conduct welding on a robust
vertical milling machine retrofitted to perform UFSW (see Fig. 3). The tests were
performed at a fixed rotation speed of 1120 rpm, plunge depth of 0.25 mm, tilt
angle of 2° and varying welding speed (50, 63 and 80 mm/min) after careful
assessment of the trial runs.

Table 1 The alloy composition of the BM (wt%)

Mg Mn Cr Si Fe Zn Ti Cu Al
0.75 0.58 0.021 1.10 0.29 0.042 <0.005 0.051 Balance

Table 2 The important properties of the BM

UTS (MPa) Microhardness (HV) % Elongation Melting point (°C)
305 105 13 550 approx

Fig. 3 FSW arrangement

with temperature and load cell
measuring unit
Temperature and Traverse Force Analysis During … 45

Fig. 4 The location of

different thermocouples

The temperature measurement was carried out using K type thermocouples (0 to

1200 °C, Mod: TDI-96) which were fixed on advancing side (AS) and RS during
the welding. The thermocouple locations are demonstrated in Fig. 4. The traverse
force experienced by the tool was measured as a function of distance during each
experiment using a calibrated static load cell (10 kN, U9B) attached to the fixture
(see Fig. 3).

3 Results and Discussion

Measurement of temperature and traverse force was successfully carried out, and
the results were analyzed for investigating the influence of welding speed on the
response variables. The results obtained are presented in Table 3 below.

3.1 Temperature Distribution

The degree of alteration in microstructure and mechanical properties during UFSW

is reliant on the thermal history, which is influenced by welding parameters and

Table 3 Measured values of temperature and traverse force

Experiment Welding Peak temperature Peak temperature Maximum traverse
no. speed (°C) location force (kgf)
(rpm)
01 50 137 RS 72.33
02 63 123 AS 85.66
03 80 112 RS 103.00
46 M. A. Wahid et al.

cooling media involved during the welding [8, 10, 12, 14]. The temperature profiles
generated at different parametric combinations are shown below in Fig. 5. During
the initial tool plunging and dwelling the material below the surface of the tool gets
properly stirred and the material undergoes extensive preheating and as the tool
traverses the trailing portion of the tool is subjected to cooling. At the start the tool
tries to push the cold material ahead of the stirred softens material resulting in initial
peak values. As the preheating effect starts diminishing, further movement of the
tool lowers the temperature and finally, temperature stabilizes. As such peak values
are obtained initially and these values stabilize as the welding progresses.

(a) The distribution of temperature along (b) Peak temperature along the transverse
the direction of weld for Experiment 1 direction for Experiment 1

(c) The distribution of temperature along the (d) Peak temperature along the transverse
direction of weld for Experiment 2 direction for Experiment 2

(e) The distribution of temperature along the (f) Peak temperature along the transverse
direction of weld for Experiment 3 direction for Experiment 3

Fig. 5 The thermal cycle curves at a different welding speed

Temperature and Traverse Force Analysis During … 47

The increase in temperature is observed in all the welds when the tool approa-
ches the thermocouples (T1–T6) [15]. A sudden decrease in temperature is
observed as the tool moves away from the thermocouples (see Fig. 5a, c, e) because
the cooling rate exceeds the rate of heat input rate just after the tool passes the
thermocouples [15]. The rate of heat input decreases due to the increase in distance
for heat conduction after the tool passes the thermocouples leading to a decrease in
thermal gradient. The peak temperature was observed closest to the weld center in
all the welds corresponding to the AS (T1) or RS (T4) during the UFSW (see
Fig. 5b, d, f) [14, 15]. The peak temperature reduces due to heat dissipation as the
distance from the weld center increases [14]. The peak temperature on AS was
found to be higher than the RS in experiment no.2. This may be due to greater
plastic deformation owing to the higher relative velocity of the tool at the AS in
comparison to RS. In experiments, no.1 and 3 peaks temperature of RS were
observed to be higher. In UFSW, the boiled water near the weld at AS is driven to
move ahead opposing the cold water neighboring the weld and cools down rapidly
and mandatorily while RS receives the warm water coming from AS, thus UFSWed
joint show high temperature on RS. From the Fig. 5, it is also observed that with
increasing welding speed the peak temperature decreases. The welding speed in
UFSW governs the heat generation and material movement among which heat
generation is significantly influenced by the welding speed. At higher welding
speed less time is available for softening of the BM leading to a reduction in the
heat input per unit length. Further, the cooling rate increases which causes lowering
of the temperature. With the upsurge in welding speed, the strain rate also increases
which lowers the temperature. As reported in the literature, a significantly low peak
temperature and a thermal gradient is observed in UFSW as compared to FSW
limiting coarsening of precipitates and causing enhancement in strength and
hardness [8, 12, 14].

3.2 Traverse Force Generation

The synchronize traverse and rotational movement of the tool through the
deforming material in UFSW process imposes a force and couple on the tool
respectively. Material flow around the pin exerts traverse force during tool traverse
in UFSW. The traverse force depends on the material flow stress which is linked to
the temperature produced during the welding. Traverse force increases with a
decrease in temperature due to increase in flow stress of the material [12].
The variation in traverse force for different welding speed is depicted in Fig. 6
and the corresponding peak values are given in Table 3. It is observed that the
traverse force rises with the rise in welding speed [16]. The higher welding speed
causes a rise in strain rate and a decrease in temperature. Both these situations
augment the flow stress and lead to increase in traverse force [12, 17].
Initial peak and low values are observed as the tool traverse movement starts (see
Fig. 6). At the starting, the tool tries to push the cold material ahead of the stirred
48 M. A. Wahid et al.

Fig. 6 Traverse Force plots

at the different welding speed

material resulting in initial peak values. The continuous deformation of the material
ahead induces additional heat which leads to a drop in flow stress of the material
causing a decrease in traverse force up to some limit. The force then stabilizes up to
some distance due to preheating effect of the tool dwell. As the preheating effect
starts diminishing, the further movement of the tool causes an increase in traverse
force due to the adequate stirring of the cold material [12].

4 Conclusion

UFSW of AA 6082–T6 was successfully performed on 3 mm thick plates at dif-

ferent welding speed. Following are some of the noticeable conclusions drawn from
the study:
• A higher welding speed resulted in lower heat generation leading to low peak
temperature.
• The distribution of temperature during UFSW showed an identical trend as one
moves away from the weld center at different welding speed.
• The increase in temperature was observed as the tool approaches the thermo-
couple near to the weld center. After that, reduction in temperature is observed
due to a decrease in thermal gradient.
• The variation in temperature and the thermal gradient is observed on AS and RS.
• An increase in traverse force was experienced with a rise in welding speed.
• A higher welding speed resulted in maximum traverse force caused by higher
flow stresses due to high strain rate and lower temperature.
• The maximum peak temperature (137 °C) was observed at the RS in HAZ at a
low welding speed of 50 mm/min and maximum traverse force of 103 kgf was
attained at a high welding speed of 80 mm/min.
 Temperature and Traverse Force Analysis During … 49

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