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Friction Stir Welding
Dissimilar Aluminum Alloys
Friction Stir Welding
Dissimilar Aluminum Alloys

Noor Zaman Khan,

Arshad Noor Siddiquee,
and Zahid A. Khan
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300
Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742

© 2017 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

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Contents

Preface, ix
Authors, xi

Chapter 1   ◾   Introduction 1
1.1 INTRODUCTION 1
1.2 DEMAND OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS IN INDUSTRIES 3
1.3 JOINING OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS 6
1.4 JOINING OF DISSIMILAR ALUMINUM ALLOYS 7
1.5 FSW OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS 8
1.6 FSW OF DISSIMILAR ALUMINUM ALLOYS 9
1.7 RATIONALE AND IMPORTANCE OF DISSIMILAR
ALUMINUM WELDING USING FSW 13
1.8 BENEFITS OF THIS TEXT 14

Chapter 2   ◾   Friction Stir Welding Process 17

2.1 INTRODUCTION TO SOLID STATE WELDING 17
2.2 PRINCIPLE OF SOLID STATE WELDING 17
2.3 INTRODUCTION TO FSW TECHNIQUE 18
2.4 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF FSW 22
2.5 FSW PROCESS 22
2.6 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF THE
FSW PROCESS 25
2.6.1 Advantages 25
2.6.2 Disadvantages of the FSW Process 27

v
vi   ◾    Contents

2.7 APPLICATIONS OF FSW 27

2.7.1 Shipbuilding and Marine Industries 29
2.7.2 Aerospace Industry 29
2.7.3 Railway Industry 30
2.7.4 Automobile 30
2.7.5 Construction Industry 31
2.7.6 Electrical Industry 31
2.8 COMMERCIALIZATION OF FSW 31
2.8.1 Shipbuilding 31
2.8.2 Aerospace 32
2.8.3 Railways 34
2.8.4 Automobile 36
2.9 FSW TOOL MATERIAL 37
2.10 FSW TOOL DESIGN 40
2.10.1 Shoulder Diameter 42
2.10.2 Pin Geometry 43
2.11 FSW PROCESS PARAMETERS 44
2.11.1 Rotational and Traverse Speeds 44
2.11.2 Tool Tilt Angle 46
2.11.3 Plunge Depth 46
2.11.4 Tool Pin Offset 47
2.12 FSW EXPERIMENTAL SETUP 47
2.12.1 FSW Machine 49
2.12.2 FSW Work Fixture 49
2.13 MACROSCOPIC AND MICROSCOPIC WELD ZONE
IN FSW 52
2.13.1 Static Recovery 53
2.13.2 Static Recrystallization 53
2.13.3 Dynamic Recovery 54
2.13.4 Dynamic Recrystallization 54
2.13.4.1 Threadgill’s Classification of
Microscopic Weld Zone 55
 Contents   ◾   vii

2.13.4.2 Arbegast’s Classification for the

Processing Zone 58
2.14 DEFECTS IN FSW 59
2.14.1 Hooking Defect 60
2.14.2 Tunneling Defect 60
2.14.3 Kissing Bond 61
2.14.4 Incomplete Root Penetration 61
2.15 MEASUREMENT OF RESPONSES FOR DEFINING
WELD QUALITY 63
2.15.1 Tensile Testing 63
2.15.2 Impact Testing 65
2.15.3 Fatigue Testing 65
2.15.4 Preparation for Microstructural Investigation 67
2.15.5 Microhardness Measurement 69

Chapter 3   ◾   Friction Stir Welding of Aluminum Alloys 71

3.1 OVERVIEW 71
3.2 PROBLEMS RELATED TO THE WELDING OF
ALUMINUM ALLOYS 72
3.3 FSW OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS 74
3.4 FSW OF 2XXX SERIES ALUMINUM ALLOYS 76
3.5 FSW OF 5XXX SERIES ALUMINUM ALLOYS 83
3.6 FSW OF 6XXX SERIES ALUMINUM ALLOYS 86
3.7 FSW OF 7XXX SERIES ALUMINUM ALLOYS 89

Chapter 4   ◾   Friction Stir Welding of Dissimilar Aluminum

Alloys 99
4.1 INTRODUCTION 99
4.2 ISSUES WITH DISSIMILAR MATERIALS WELDING 100
4.3 MAJOR CHALLENGES IN THE FSW OF DISSIMILAR
MATERIALS 101
4.4 JOINING OF DISSIMILAR ALUMINUM ALLOYS 101
4.5 FSW OF DIFFERENT ALLOYS 102
viii   ◾    Contents

4.6 FSW OF 5XXX–6XXX SERIES ALUMINUM ALLOYS 103

4.7 FSW OF 2XXX–7XXX SERIES ALUMINUM 108
4.8 FSW OF 6XXX–7XXX SERIES ALUMINUM 118

Chapter 5   ◾   Case Study on AA5083–AA6063 Dissimilar

Welding 131
5.1 INTRODUCTION 131
5.2 ISSUES IN DISSIMILAR MATERIALS JOINING BY FSW 131
5.3 TYPICAL PAIR OF DISSIMILAR MATERIALS 132
5.4 CASE STUDY OF AA5083 AND AA6063
DISSIMILAR WELDING 133
5.4.1 Experimentation Performed in the Investigation 134
5.4.2 Analysis of Defect Formation 135
5.4.2.1 Tunneling Defect 135
5.4.2.2 KB Defect 140
5.4.3 Important Parameters and Their Effects on
Material Being Consolidated 141
5.4.4 Effect of Pin Offset on Defect Formation 142
5.4.4.1 Effect of Pin Offset on Tunneling Defect 142
5.4.4.2 Effect of Pin Offset on KB Defect 143
5.4.5 Effect of Plunge Depth on the Defect Formation 144
5.4.6 Effect of Plunge Depth and Pin Offset on
Tensile Strength 145
5.5 SUMMARY OF THE CASE STUDY 146

REFERENCES, 149

INDEX, 161
Preface

F riction stir welding (FSW) is indeed a solid state welding process

that has enabled joining materials that are otherwise difficult to be
welded by other fabrication processes. It is relatively a young material-­
joining technique, which was invented in 1991 and it has proudly celebrated
its silver jubilee. The authors are associated and involved in this process
since last several years and have been conducting extensive experimental
and analytical investigations in this area. Many industries including auto-
motive, shipbuilding, rail, aerospace, etc. are adopting FSW commercially,
which has led to an ever-increasing involvement of FSW researchers and
engineers in successful implementation of this novel fabrication process.
For research or experimental work in any field, background knowledge of
that field is essential for achieving success and therefore, there is a need
for a basic understanding of the FSW process with some experimental
examples that serve as the starting platform for senior students, schol-
ars, and investigators and it has primarily motivated us to shape our FSW
experimental works and their findings in the form of this treatise. FSW
area is very wide and it is difficult to cover its various aspects in a single
text. Therefore, only some important aspects of FSW have been covered
in this treatise. This text intends to provide valuable information and data
related to FSW of dissimilar aluminum alloys. Academicians, research-
ers, practicing welding engineers, metallurgists, and fabrication industries
should benefit from the material presented in this work.
Chapter 1 presents an introduction to the subject, which includes
demand of aluminum alloys in industries, joining of aluminum alloys,
joining of dissimilar aluminum alloys, FSW of aluminum alloys, and
FSW of dissimilar aluminum alloys. It also describes the importance and
benefits of the current research work.
Chapter 2 describes the working principle of FSW process and his-
torical background of the process with its advantages, disadvantages, and

ix
x   ◾    Preface

applications. It also discusses the tool design, FSW process parameters,

machine for FSW, work fixture for holding workpiece during welding, and
response measurement for defining weld quality.
Chapter 3 presents a study on friction stir welding of aluminum alloys,
which explores problems related to the welding of aluminum alloys, and
FSW of 2xxx, 5xxx, 6xxx, and 7xxx series aluminum alloys.
Chapter 4 provides the description on FSW of dissimilar aluminum
alloys and it covers various issues related to dissimilar materials welding
and major challenges in the friction stir welding of these dissimilar mate-
rials. It also focuses on dissimilar FSW of 5xxx–6xxx, 2xxx–7xxx, and
6xxx–7xxx series aluminum alloys.
Chapter 5 describes the methodology used for performing experimen-
tal study on FSW of dissimilar aluminum alloys (5083 and 6063), which
includes experimental setup, machine used, and welding tool design. It
explains the phenomenon of defect formation during FSW of dissimilar
aluminum alloys and summarizes joining of dissimilar aluminum alloy
using FSW.

Noor Zaman Khan

Arshad Noor Siddiquee
Zahid A. Khan
Authors

Noor Zaman Khanis a full time UGC sponsored BSR doctoral fellow
in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Jamia Millia Islamia
(A Central University), New Delhi, India. His PhD in the area of friction
stir welding/processing is in advanced stage of completion. He earned his
master’s degree in production and industrial engineering in 2013 from
Jamia Millia Islamia and bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in
2011 from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad. His
major research interest includes materials structure–property correlation,
welding engineering, nonconventional machining, machining, and opti-
mization of design and process parameters using design of experiments.
He has published more than 10 articles in reputed journals and conference
proceedings so far.

Arshad Noor Siddiqueeis professor in the Department of Mechanical

Engineering at Jamia Millia Islamia (A Central University), New Delhi,
India. He earned PhD and MTech from IIT Delhi. He has supervised
several MTech dissertations and currently he is supervising 10 doctoral
research scholars. His major research interest includes materials struc-
ture property correlation, materials processing, welding engineering,
machining and optimization of design and process parameters. He has
published more than 90 articles in reputed journals and conference pro-
ceedings. He has also coauthored four books related to engineering and
one monograph as well.

Zahid A. Khanis professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering

at Jamia Millia Islamia (A Central University), New Delhi, India. He
earned his PhD in 2001 from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India. His
major research interest includes optimization of design and manufac-
turing processes parameters, ANN and fuzzy modeling, environmental

xi
xii   ◾    Authors

ergonomics, etc. He has supervised five doctoral research scholars and

many MTech dissertations so far and currently he is supervising five doc-
toral theses. He has published more than 100 articles in reputed journals
and conference proceedings so far. He has also coauthored four books
related to engineering and two monographs as well.
 Chapter 1

Introduction

1.1 INTRODUCTION
Welding is a joining process that fabricates various parts or components
so as to produce products of complex shapes and geometry, which are oth-
erwise too difficult to produce through other manufacturing processes.
In order to produce efficient, compact complex products that can fulfill
their functional and esthetic requirements, it is necessary to use a suit-
able fabrication process to assemble together several smaller components
possessing exotic properties. Welding is a common option to join such
components. Joining of dissimilar material often poses serious challenges
to such an extent that joining is sometimes not possible at all. This prob-
lem is mainly because of difference in mechanical, physical, chemical, and
metallurgical properties of the materials being joined. Difference in melt-
ing point, thermal expansion coefficient, thermal conductivity, etc. may
cause failure at the weldments even during welding. Welding constitutes
an essential manufacturing process that enables the production of a wide
range of products being used in automotive, shipbuilding, aerospace, and
several other industrial sectors. However, welding processes are extremely
complex and multidimensional in terms of materials, process, and work-
men skill, which make the fabrication of desired quality joint extremely
difficult.
Joining of dissimilar materials with desirable overall quality is a chal-
lenging research field and welding of dissimilar materials has always been
a matter of concern for engineers and scientists worldwide. There has
been an ever-increasing demand for products possessing properties such
as light weight, high strength, good corrosion resistance, etc. In order to

1
2   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

fabricate a single structure, comprising several components often of dif-

ferent materials that exhibit various desirable properties, it is essential to
join dissimilar materials together. Thus, welding of different grades of alu-
minum alloys having desirable mechanical and thermal properties owing
to their high specific strength, thermal conductivity, and corrosion resis-
tance are in great demand. Property–microstructure relationship in alu-
minum alloys is presented in Table 1.1. Several examples are found where
aluminum alloys of different grades are joined together so as to provide
desirable properties to the structure. For example, joining of 5xxx alumi-
num alloy (used for hull) with 6xxx aluminum alloy (used for secondary
structural component) in a ship; similarly joining of 2xxx (a material for
lower wing) and 7xxx series aluminum alloy (used to make upper wing)
in aircraft (Figure 1.1), etc.
Economical and technical advantages of joining dissimilar materials
have enabled its use in various industrial applications. Joining dissimilar
materials by FSW has emerged as a new research topic. FSW has not only

TABLE 1.1 Property–Microstructure Relationship in Aluminum Alloys

Property Microstructural Feature Function of Feature(s)

Strength Uniform dispersion of Inhibit dislocation motion

small, hard particles, fine
grain size
Ductility and No large particles, clean
toughness grain boundaries, fine
structure, no shearable
particles
Fatigue crack initiation No shearable particles, fine
resistance grain size, no surface
defects
Fatigue crack Shearable particles, no
propagation anodic phases or hydrogen
resistance traps, large grain size
Pitting No anodic phases
Stress corrosion No anodic phases, or
cracking, hydrogen interconnected hydrogen
embrittlement (HE) traps, hard particles
Creep Thermally stable particles
on grain boundaries, large
grain size
Source: Reprinted from Progress in Aerospace Sciences, 32, E.A. Starke, J.T. Staley, Application
of modern aluminum alloys to aircraft, 131–172, 1996, with permission from Elsevier.
Encourage plasticity, inhibit
void formation and growth,
work harden
Prevent strain localization and
slip steps on surface, prevent
stress concentration
Encourage crack closure,
branching, deflection, and slip
reversibility
Prevent preferential dissolution
of second-phase particles
Prevent crack propagation due
to anodic dissolution of HE,
homogenize slip
Inhibit grain boundary sliding
 Introduction   ◾   3

Body skin
Upper wing surface Alclad 2XXX-T3
7055-T7751 skin
7075-T77511 stringers
7150-T77511 spar chords

Lower wing surface

2324-T39 skin
2224-T3511 stringers Floors
7150-T77511 or
7055-T77511 seat tracks
7150-T7751
stanchions (study)

Forgings
7150-T77 miscellaneous
Body stiffeners
7150-T77511 or 7055-T77511 keel beam
7150-T77511 body stringers, upper and lower lobe

FIGURE 1.1 Application of different grades of aluminum alloys in Boeing

777. (Reprinted from Progress in Aerospace Sciences, 32, E.A. Starke, J.T. Staley.
Application of modern aluminum alloys to aircraft, Copyright 1996, with per-
mission from Elsevier.)

been found to produce near-defect-free joints with sound postwelding

mechanical properties while joining various similar and dissimilar alu-
minum alloys but has also been able to effectively join a few previously
difficult-to-weld aluminum alloys such as 2xxx and 7xxx series. However,
to obtain acceptable quality welds important FSW process parameters
need to be established for efficient joining of dissimilar aluminum alloys
by preventing brittle intermetallic formation and imperfections in the
joints to promote adequate flow of material and to mitigate deterioration
in mechanical properties and surface morphology. Efficient and effective
joining of dissimilar materials require adequate flow of material around
the tool pin and proper mixing of material at stir zone (SZ) during welding
for which the strategies pertaining to the joint design, tool design, and tool
offset from the faying surface of base materials (BMs) need to be addressed
as they play a critical role in the success of FSW of dissimilar alloys.

1.2 DEMAND OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS IN INDUSTRIES

Aluminum alloys possess various desirable properties such as good corro-
sion resistance, high strength-to-weight ratio, better fatigue strength that
enable them to be used in different structural parts and other components
4   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

for aerospace, marine, shipbuilding, and rail transport industries. The use
of aluminum is expected to continue to increase worldwide, particularly
in the transportation and manufacturing sectors. Aluminum alloys, being
light in weight, have been the primary structural material for military
and commercial aircraft for almost 80 years owing to their well-known
mechanical behavior, strength-to-weight ratio, and mature manufactur-
ing processes; and will remain so with the development of new-generation
high-strength aluminum alloys. Use of light-weight material (aluminum
alloys) in transportation sector reduces vehicle mass, which in turn mini-
mizes fuel consumption and harmful emissions. Reduction in weight of
the various modes of transportation reduces fuel consumption, which
lessens frequent filling of fuel tanks. Use of light-weight material with high
strength-to-weight ratio in making structures has a great impact on reduc-
tion in the cost that occur due to fuel consumption, frequent repair and
maintenance, etc. Airframe manufacturers and material producers focus
on the development of new aluminum alloys having good mechanical,
metallurgical properties to meet customer requirements. Good mechani-
cal properties and corrosion resistance of the materials may increase the
life of the component and reduce repair costs.
Aluminum alloys are widely used by various industries in the fabrica-
tion of parts and components. More specifically 5xxx and 6xxx alumi-
num alloys have applications in shipbuilding, automobile, and aerospace,
whereas 2xxx and 7xxx aluminum alloys have wide applications in air-
craft components such as wings, tanks, fuselage, stringers, etc. as shown in
Figure 1.1. Application of different aluminum alloys is listed in Table 1.2.
Reducing the weight of vehicles without compromising on the safety
passengers are the two major challenges faced by automobile industries.
Vehicle weight affects its performance, which is generally measured in
terms of acceleration, top speed, and fuel consumption. Aluminum alloy
is a light material with a high specific strength owing to which its use in
the manufacturing of cars has tremendously increased. The use of alu-
minum alloy in space frame reduces the body weight of Audi A8 by 40%
(Figure 1.2) (Miller et al., 2000).
Currently, all aluminum vehicles are also being produced on a commer-
cial scale. Aluminum alloy sheets are widely used in inner and outer body
panels of cars, which significantly reduce weight of vehicle. The sustained
growth of industrial use of aluminum alloys depends to a great extent on
the availability of a suitable joining process. Increasing use of aluminum
in automobiles often requires dissimilar joining of steel with aluminum
 Introduction   ◾   5

TABLE 1.2 Specific Uses of Various Aluminum Alloys

Aluminum Major Alloying Typical Typical Properties and
Alloys Element Composition (wt.%) Application

1000 series Unalloyed aluminum >99 Al Good electrical conductor,

low strength: cooking foil,
power transmission,
utensils
2000 series Copper Al + 4–6 Strong heat-treatable alloy:
Cu + Mg aircraft external tanks,
lower wings, fuselage
3000 series Manganese Al + Mn Medium strength, excellent
corrosion resistance,
ductile: beverage cans,
roofing, cooking pans,
automotive radiators
5000 series Magnesium Al + 3 Mg Strong work hardening
alloy: pressure vessel, ship
hulls, inner automotive
body panel, boilers,
storage tanks
6000 series Magnesium + silicon Al + Mg + Si Moderate strength
heat-treatable alloy:
pipelines, bridges,
external automotive body
panel, structural members
7000 series Zinc Al + 6 Zn + Strong heat-treatable alloy:
2 Mg + 1.5 Cu aircraft upper wings,
fuselage
Al–Li alloys Lithium Al + 3 Li Good strength to weight
and low density: aircraft
spar and skins

alloys, and employment of efficient joining techniques becomes highly

crucial as these BMs have large differences in their physical, thermal,
and chemical properties (Barnes and Pashby, 2000). A typical combina-
tion of strain hardenable Al–Mg (5xxx) alloys and the medium strength
age hardenable Al–Mg–Si (6xxx) alloys is extensively used in automo-
tive industry by car manufacturers. The 6xxx series alloys (e.g., AA6061)
are exclusively used in external body panels and the 5xxx series alloys
(AA5052) are used in inner body panels. But the biggest challenge with
aluminum alloys is the problems associated with solidification during
welding by conventional methods. Efficient welding process is required
to weld the aluminum alloys so as to meet their heavy demand raised by
user industries.
6   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

FIGURE 1.2 Aluminum space frame of Audi A8. (Reprinted from Materials Science
and Engineering A, 280, W.S. Miller et al. Recent development in aluminum alloys
for the automotive industry, 37–49, Copyright 2003, with permission from Elsevier.)

1.3 JOINING OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS

Despite several desirable mechanical properties possessed by alumi-
num alloys, they have not been able to completely replace other materi-
als required by various industries. The major constraint that restricts the
use of aluminum alloys is attributed to their joining process. Thus, novel
joining techniques are required to efficiently weld them in order to fulfill
the demand of user industries. Traditionally, mechanical fastening such
as riveting, screwing, and occasionally arc welding had been used in fab-
rication of various parts for aircrafts and ships. However, mechanical fas-
tening suffers from limitations such as it needs additional operations to
maintain fit-up (i.e., creating holes and clamping, etc.), joints are prone to
corrosion, and it is relatively difficult to make internal joints. Also, it acts
as a crack initiation region in corrosive environment, which significantly
reduces the joint strength (Barnes and Pashby, 2000).
Welding of aluminum alloys by fusion welding processes is difficult as
compared to steel. Aluminum welding requires high heat input because of
its high thermal conductivity and proper shielding gas due to high affinity
to oxygen. Generally, aluminum alloys have melting point in the range of
570°C–650°C. Temperature requirement is high for achieving high heat
input, which causes increase in the area of heat-affected zone (HAZ) that
significantly deteriorates the quality of the welded joint. Also during weld-
ing of age hardenable aluminum alloys (2xxx, 6xxx, 7xxx) high heat input
results in precipitate dissolution, which in turn degrades the mechanical
properties. During welding of strain hardenable aluminum alloys (5xxx),
high heat input results in loss of cold work, which in turn leads to reduc-
tion in mechanical properties. Moreover, relatively higher temperature
 Introduction   ◾   7

during welding causes various defects such as porosity, solidification

cracking, and weld distortion. Some fusion welding techniques such as
high energy laser beam welding (LBW), high energy electron beam weld-
ing (EBW), and resistance spot welding (RSW) can be used for welding of
aluminum alloys. However, several technical and economical limitations
such as electrode wear in RSW, join line mismatch in LBW, high capital
investment, etc. are associated with these techniques leading to the use
of some other welding processes in place of these techniques (Barnes and
Pashby, 2000).

1.4 JOINING OF DISSIMILAR ALUMINUM ALLOYS

Complex products are manufactured by assembling together different
components often made of materials that differ in properties. Likewise,
dissimilar welding is essential for making a product that comprises dif-
ferent aluminum alloys. Welding of dissimilar aluminum alloys has great
potential in replacing riveted joints in aircraft and automotive structural
parts. Over the past few years, aerospace, marine, rail, and automotive
industry has developed an interest in joining dissimilar aluminum alloys.
Successful welding of dissimilar materials is a challenging task due to the
differences in chemical, physical, and metallurgical properties of the BMs.
In fusion welding, filler metal is required and its composition depends on
the nature of the BMs being welded and thus, it is difficult to choose filler
material for fusion welding of dissimilar aluminum alloy. In addition, if
one attempts to join dissimilar aluminum alloys by conventional fusion
welding process, then there is a possibility of formation of several welding
defects such as porosity, voids, hot cracking, distortion, etc.
Fusion welding requires melting of BM for obtaining permanent joint.
Melting temperature and thermal conductivity of different aluminum
alloys are different due to the presence of major alloying elements in them.
Melting and solidification of welded material resulted in various problems
associated with solidification microstructure that led to degradation of
joint properties. Fusion welding of dissimilar materials is extremely dif-
ficult. However, difficulties can be overcome to some extent by using an
interface layer of some compatible material so as to bridge the vast gap
between physical, thermal, and mechanical properties of dissimilar mate-
rials. The interface material severely undermines the joint integrity and
quality and hence use of fusion welding in a befitting application is not
a feasible solution. Solid state welding overcomes the problem associated
with conventional fusion welding processes. However, during solid state
8   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

welding of dissimilar materials, considerable difference in the melting

temperature of BMs affects their softening, which may lead to improper
material mixing causing undesirable weld quality. Therefore, suitable solid
state welding techniques (e.g., FSW) with proper strategy become very
useful to effectively join dissimilar aluminum alloys.

1.5 FSW OF ALUMINUM ALLOYS

Aluminum alloys are widely used in several industrial sectors owing
to their desirable properties such as strength, weight, corrosion resis-
tance, etc. Individual parts of aluminum are produced separately and
subsequently, they are joined together by means of effective joining tech-
niques. Weldability of these alloys plays a vital role in the manufactur-
ing of several products and assembly of structures. Joining of aluminum
alloys is growing at a rapid rate as the demand for components made
from them is increasing rapidly in automotive, marine, aerospace, and
rail transport industries. To meet the ever-increasing demand of such
products and structures, suitable joining techniques with maximum pos-
sible reliability and minimum costs are required for welding them. As
stated earlier, conventional fusion welding processes involve melting of
BMs, which gives rise to several problems associated with them leading
to adverse solidification microstructure and joint quality. In addition,
fusion welding processes deteriorate the properties possessed by BM due
to several prewelding processes performed on them, particularly in the
fusion welded zone and material in its neighborhood. The weldability of
many aluminum alloys (2xxx and 7xxx series) is poor owing to unfavor-
able solidification microstructure, porosity, and hot cracking in the fusion
zone and hence such aluminum alloys are not suitably joined by fusion
welding processes. Melting and solidification of the fusion zone welds
characterizes brittle interdendritic structure and it adversely affects the
mechanical properties of the joint (Su et al., 2003). Unlike several fusion
welding processes, FSW is a novel solid state joining process that does not
involve melting and recasting of the materials being welded and thus over-
comes the problems associated with fusion welding processes. In addition,
it also encompasses several advantages; for example, it avoids/minimizes
negative environmental impacts, conserves energy, it is safe for workers
and consumers, and it is economically sound. FSW is the most significant
development in materials joining in last 25 years.
FSW was initially invented and investigated for low melting point mate-
rials such as aluminum, magnesium, and copper alloys. Success of the
 Introduction   ◾   9

1XXX 2XXX 3XXX 4XXX 5XXX 6XXX 7XXX 8XXX

Commercial welding
Friction stir welding

Mostly weldable

Mostly nonweldable

FIGURE 1.3 Weldability of aluminum alloys by conventional and FSW process.

FSW in effectively joining difficult-to-weld aluminum alloys (2xxx and

7xxx) by fusion welding gave a major Phillip for the phenomenal growth
of this process. FSW can join any aluminum alloy effectively as depicted
in Figure 1.3. Improved tensile and fatigue strength of the joints produced
by FSW has increased the use of high-strength aluminum alloys in aero-
space. FSW has replaced mechanical fastening (e.g., riveting) in aircraft
structural parts (e.g., fuselage, wings) as sound joints of heat-treatable and
nonheat-treatable aluminum alloys can be successfully obtained by FSW.
For similar reasons, FSW finds increasing use in fabricating components
of aluminum alloys in sectors such as automotive (Smith et al., 2001),
aerospace (Nicholas and Thomas, 1998; Kallee et al., 2001), and railways
(Kawasaki and Masai, 2004; Kallee et al., 2002) as well.

1.6 FSW OF DISSIMILAR ALUMINUM ALLOYS

Demand for simplicity in function, reduced weight, compact size, and
esthetics has necessitated fabrication of discrete products from many
components of different materials. Consequently, instances of industrial
systems with an interface between different grades of aluminum alloys
are common. Thus, dissimilar joining of aluminum alloys is required in
several industrial applications in fabrication of structures, components,
and transportation. Being a solid state welding, FSW is preferably suit-
able for the welding of aluminum and its alloys as it not only eliminates
the problem of weld solidification cracking but also overcomes the prob-
lems associated with fusion welding processes. Hence, FSW has become
a preferred fabrication process for dissimilar welding of aluminum alloys
(DebRoy and Bhadeshia, 2010). The uniqueness of FSW of dissimilar
materials has attracted tremendous research interest because of potential
engineering and technical importance and problems associated with con-
ventional fusion welding processes. In view of this, different dissimilar
aluminum alloy combinations have been successfully friction stir welded
10   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

with excellent joint efficiencies (Luijendijk, 2000; Khodir and Shibayanagi,

2008; Cavaliere et al., 2009; Priya et al., 2009; Sivashanmugam et al., 2010;
Koilraj et al., 2012; Palanivel et al., 2012; Guo et al., 2014; Song et al., 2014;
Aval, 2015; Ilangovan et al., 2015; Rodriguez et al., 2015; Venkateswarlu
et al., 2015).
FSW is a solid state joining process that was invented by Wayne Thomas
at The Welding Institute (TWI), Cambridge, in 1991. FSW utilizes heat gen-
erated by (i) friction between a nonconsumable rotating tool and workpiece
and (ii) plastic deformation of the material being welded for joining materials
together. FSW has successfully welded different combinations of aluminum
alloy with good mechanical properties. Due to inherent potentials of FSW,
it has become a process of choice for producing high-quality joints in both
similar and dissimilar materials in just a short time span. In FSW, a spe-
cial cylindrical tool comprising a pin at one of the shoulders is rotated and
plunged into the faying surfaces of BMs with sufficient downward force as
shown in Figure 1.4. After touching the tool shoulder on surface of BM, the
tool traverses in welding direction along joint line. The rotating tool heats
and softens materials under the shoulder and plastically deforms the soft-
ened material. Material moves from advancing side (AS) to the retreating
side (RS) of tool and finally gets consolidated behind the tool pin by forging
action of tool shoulder to complete the joint. Various zones are generated
during traversing of tool in the welding direction as shown in Figure 1.5.
The demand raised by aerospace and other industries for components
with reduced weight and associated production cost is increasing consid-
erably. Efficient welding processes have proven to fulfill such demands by
user industries (Rendigs, 1997). Use of components with reduced weight
in the end products becomes important to lessen their operating expenses.

(a) (b) Force (c)

Tool

Shoulder

Pin Workpiece
Joint line

Heat Heat
generation generation

FIGURE 1.4 Plunging of FSW tool. (a) Rotating tool ready to plunge, (b) tool
plunging into to the faying surfaces, and (c) plunging complete.
 Introduction   ◾   11

Downward force

Tool
rotation
Tool

Preheat zone Cooldown

zone
Initial Forging
deformation zone
zone Extrusion
zone

FIGURE 1.5 Various zones generated during movement of the FSW tool in weld-
ing direction.

The main aim of the manufacturers, especially aircraft manufacturers, is

to minimize manufacturing cost without compromising on quality of
products. This endeavor leads to significant saving in weight and cost,
and increases the capacity per unit weight. The introduction and imple-
mentation of novel welding techniques is required to achieve such goals
and FSW has proved to be an effective process, which has significantly
reduced riveted/fastened joints and part count that were used in aircrafts
earlier. Riveting requires drilling holes prior to joining that makes it a
time-­consuming process. Weight of rivet increases overall weight of the
produced components. Use of FSW can replace riveting of aerospace com-
ponents for saving weight and production time, which in turn may lead
to cost savings. Reduction in weight helps in enhancing speed and also
reducing fuel consumption. FSW is a novel cost-effective solid state weld-
ing technique that can join the materials effectively without adding any
foreign material. It is employed in different industrial applications due to
encouraging results observed in the performance of the joints. FSW, how-
ever, like other welding processes is not absolutely free from flaws, but
fortunately, most of the flaws can be easily minimized by careful selection
of process parameters. FSW is potentially used in joining large extruded
12   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

profiles and panels that are widely used in shipbuilding and off-shore
industry.
During FSW, heated and softened metals being joined undergo move-
ment around the pin and under the shoulder by a stirring action. During
stirring, the material experiences severe plastic deformation (SPD) to com-
plete the joint. SPD causes the plasticized material to flow and the flow-
ing material simultaneously undergoes dynamic recrystallization, which
in turn results in the formation of ultrafine-equiaxed grains in the weld
(Kazi and Murr, 2001; McNelley et al., 2008). Under correct combination
of parameters the material being stirred consolidates behind the pin and
produces defect-free joints with ultrafine-equiaxed grain structure and
therefore, mechanical properties of the joint better than fusion welding
are obtained. FSW has evolved as one of the best processes to successfully
join dissimilar aluminum alloys and composites (Li et al., 1999a).
The importance of joining dissimilar materials is ever increasing in
the pursuit of producing end products with reduced weight and improved
performance. Several advantages offered by FSW, in comparison with
other joining processes including fusion welding processes, has encour-
aged many industries such as automotive, aircraft, rail, and shipbuilding
to adopt this novel process for joining dissimilar aluminum alloys. In
order to exploit properties possessed by dissimilar aluminum alloys such
as AA5xxx, AA6xxx, AA2xxx, and AA7xxx, there is a need to join their
different combinations for which FSW is a better option than other join-
ing processes.
Some of the major barriers of joining dissimilar aluminum alloys are as
follows: different alloying elements, difference in metallurgical, thermal,
and mechanical properties that hinder the material mixing and solidifica-
tion imbalance leading to reduction in strength and integrity of a struc-
ture. Recent efforts on reducing such problems associated with welding of
dissimilar aluminum alloys by FSW have led to the application and mass
production of dissimilar aluminum alloys for industrial applications.
The progress made in dissimilar welding of light-weight materials such
as aluminum and its alloys is the main enabler to the mass production
of light transportation systems and consequently, significant reduction in
fuel consumption. FSW has been adopted for joining aluminum alloys by
the automotive industry for more than a decade. Recently, Honda Motor
Corporation has employed dissimilar FSW of aluminum alloy with steel to
produce a component to be used in the front structure of a Honda Accord
(Figure 1.6). Honda is the pioneer in employing FSW for mass production
 Introduction   ◾   13

Aluminum

Steel

FIGURE 1.6 Honda front subframe joined by FSW. (From Honda develops new
technology to weld together steel and aluminum and achieves world’s first appli-
cation to the frame of a mass-production vehicle, September 6, 2012. Available
from: http://world.honda.com/.)

of vehicle subframe, which is a critical component of vehicle body frame.

The front subframe of Honda vehicle is made of press formed steel halves
and die cast aluminum and it supports the engine and some suspension
components. To produce subframe, FSW was applied to weld the steel to
the aluminum in a lap configuration at various locations. Honda claimed
a reduction of 25% and 50% in the total body weight and electricity con-
sumption, respectively, as compared to conventional all-steel subframe
(Honda, 2012).

1.7 RATIONALE AND IMPORTANCE OF DISSIMILAR

ALUMINUM WELDING USING FSW
FSW as a joining process, in general, and for joining dissimilar alumi-
num, in particular, has great potential in promising areas. Although in the
current century there has been immense interest in FSW and significant
progress has also been reported, yet it is far from being mature enough in
terms of standardization, classification, and coding. In fact, the dissimilar
FSW brings about great complexities due to variations in material proper-
ties, inequality of process forces on each material, intermetallic reactions,
and material consolidation. All these issues bear a close relationship to
main FSW process parameters, tool design, process strategies, etc., and
14   ◾    Friction Stir Welding

consequently, make the task of fabricating good quality joints complex.

This text has been created to thoroughly introduce the readers to the prin-
ciple of FSW process and the phenomenon of joint formation during FSW
of dissimilar aluminum alloys. Also, it focuses on various problems related
to the welding of dissimilar aluminum alloys. It investigates the effect of
various FSW process parameters on the joint quality as well as defect for-
mation. The correlation between various important FSW process param-
eters and joint quality of dissimilar aluminum alloys is complex in nature.
An experiment-based study of joining dissimilar aluminum alloys (5xxx
and 6xxx) is presented in this monograph to explore effects of FSW pro-
cess parameters on the joint quality. Influence of critical FSW parameters,
that is, tool pin offset and plunge depth on microstructure and mechanical
properties of the joint obtained by FSW of AA5083-H116 with AA6063-T6
(a combination typically used in ship building) has been demonstrated in
the present monograph. This work focuses on the weldability and reliabil-
ity of friction stir butt joints from the metallurgical point of view. Results
of welding of dissimilar aluminum alloys obtained from mechanical tests
and microstructure examination are presented for better understanding
of the involved phenomenon. Various defects are also observed in welded
joints and the effect of FSW parameters on defect formation is investigated
and technical discussion regarding the same is also presented.

1.8 BENEFITS OF THIS TEXT

Good quality welds of dissimilar aluminum alloys are difficult to obtain
using fusion welding processes due to problems associated with the
solidification of microstructure of the joint. This problem degrades the
postwelding mechanical properties of joint. Solid state welding pro-
­
cesses can easily overcome such problems due to the absence of melting.
Moreover, significant differences in properties of materials being welded
such as thermal conductivity and melting point make the dissimilar mate-
rial welding even more difficult.
FSW is very useful in joining dissimilar materials with sound
­post­welding properties due to lower processing temperature compared
to fusion welding (Sato et al., 2004). Dissimilar aluminum welding finds
tremendous industrial applications in fabrication of components that are
subjected to complex loading conditions and corrosive environment. Thus,
there is a need for an efficient welding process like FSW to join dissimilar
materials to produce end products of light weight and high performance.
 Introduction   ◾   15

This monograph helps the reader in understanding principles of the

process and also describes the methodology for performing research in
the area of FSW. As a case study, dissimilar welding of aluminum alloys
that have practical application in the area of shipbuilding is included.
This monograph is likely to provide the following benefits to its readers
and researchers, both from academia and industries:

• It will provide a basic understanding of the FSW process, its param-

eters, and tool geometry.
• It will help in identification of the problems related to the welding of
dissimilar aluminum alloys.
• It will make the readers understand the behavior of FSW of dissimi-
lar aluminum alloys.
• It will facilitate understanding of the significance of process param-
eters and their effect on weld quality and defect formation.
• It will enlighten the readers with understanding of the microstruc-
ture evolution and characterization so as to develop their correlation
with selected process parameters during FSW of dissimilar alumi-
num alloys.

It will equip the readers with various testing and measurement meth-
ods to evaluate mechanical behavior of the joints obtained by using differ-
ent combinations of FSW parameters.
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
superabundance of song which had only worldly associations and
was linked with the lower pleasures made them put superfine value
on the Hebrew Psalms as being most fit for the soul’s utterance
before the Infinite.
 CHAPTER XII
SCOTLAND’S ISLAND WORLD: IONA AND
STAFFA

While Scotland is, by its definition, a “pene-insula,” or

“peninsula,” that is, “almost an island,” it has, out in the Atlantic
Ocean, an archipelago of five hundred islands. Of these about one
fifth are inhabited, and of these one third have each a population of
only ten or even fewer souls. This great group lies wholly to the
westward, for the east coast of Scotland is singularly free from
islands, the number on this side being very much like that of angels’
visits, which are spoken of as few and far between.
These islands are all situated within three degrees of latitude.
Another name for them is the “Hebrides,” which term was formerly
held to embrace all the Scottish western islands, including also the
peninsula of Kintyre and islets in the Firth of Clyde, as well as the
Isle of Man and the Isle of Rathlin.
In discriminating between the Outer and the Inner Hebrides as
many do, this differentiation has a geological basis, for the Outer
Hebrides have a foundation of gneiss, while the more northerly at
least of the Inner Hebrides are of trap rock. Broadly speaking, in
popular usage the term is “Western Islands,” while in literature
“Hebrides” is used. This seems all the more appropriate, because it
was the accident of a misplaced or added letter that gave the islands
their literary cognomen.
As in the case of our own country, which has profited so richly
through Scottish emigration from those islands, some of the most
delightfully sounding names, in their present form, have come to us
through the mistake of a transcriber; as, for example, the romantic
name, Horicon, with which tourists on Lake George as well as
readers of Cooper’s novels are familiar. The real word intended for
the map is “Iroquois,” but as a Frenchman wrote it “Horicou,” which
was further altered by a misprint, which made it “Horicon,” it has so
remained. So also the “Hebudes” of Pliny, spelled by a misprint
“Hebrides,” has held its own. Sir Walter Scott adheres to the form
“Hebudes.” “Grampian,” which sounds so pleasant to the ear, is
another instance of a false reading or misprint, which improves the
original form and sound.
The total area of these Western Islands is 2812 square miles, or
a fourth larger than Delaware. Only one ninth of the soil is cultivated,
for most of the surface consists of moors and mountains. This region
being at the terminal of the Gulf Stream, the climate is mild, though
so humid that mists are almost perpetual. The drizzling rains are so
common that the mountains are hidden from view or shrouded in fog
or cloud most of the time. The rainfall is heavy. In one place forty-two
inches is the average. Potatoes and turnips, barley and oats form the
staple crops, though with sheep-farming, cattle-raising, fishing,
distilling, slate-quarrying, and the making of tweeds, tartans, and
woollen cloth, with assistance from the patronage of summer
tourists, the people are able to get a living. In religious “persuasion”
most of the inhabitants belong to the United Free Church, though on
some of the islands the people adhere to the forms of religion
cherished in the Roman Catholic Church.
From the earliest centuries the Scandinavian pagans poured into
the islands and among the Celts, to rob and burn, but also to settle
down and be decent. When satiated with robbery and slaughter, they
became peaceful, married the daughters of the land, and adopted
the language and faith of the islanders. The vikings and the
immigrants multiplied in the Hebrides, especially when tyrants in
Norway became unusually active and severe. Battles and fighting
between the islanders and the Norwegians kept the region in turmoil
for centuries. Not a few attempts were made by the Scottish kings to
displace the Norsemen. One of these, John Macdonald, adopted the
title of “Lord of the Isles.” He married the daughter of the earl, who
afterwards became Robert II. Battles, treaties, and alliances
followed, but insular sovereignty was abolished in the reign of James
V. Bloody feuds continued, through the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries, among the rival clans and their dependent tribes.
Even the subsidies granted by William III to the chiefs could not
preserve order. Peace dawned only when the tribal system was
broken up. Then, through the abolition of hereditary jurisdiction,
through inheritance, and the appointments in the different districts of
sheriffs who held the writ of the king, peace was secured.
Nevertheless, in the new system of management the rents being
made too high, there began an emigration to America that continued
for many years, threatening at one time to depopulate the islands.
Dr. Johnson, who, with Boswell, made what was virtually an
exploration and published the classic, entitled “A Journey to the
Western Islands of Scotland,” in 1773, tells of the ships waiting in the
harbors ready to take on their human cargo for the continent of
promise. Thousands crossed the ocean to Canada or into those
Atlantic colonies which became the United States.
Following the loss of so many able-bodied men and women, the
standard of civilization in these islands began to sink, even though
the population, which subsisted almost wholly on potatoes and
herring, kept multiplying. When in 1846 the potato blight reduced the
masses, both in Ireland and in western Scotland, to the verge of
starvation, another large emigration of thousands to Australia and
America took place. Had Carlyle’s advice been followed, Canada
would have forty million and South Africa ten million loyal British
subjects. This sage wanted the Government to turn men-of-war into
emigrant ships, in order to give free transport of people to waste
lands beyond sea. A royal commission, appointed by Parliament,
later secured legislation which has made life for the crofters in the
island more tolerable.
Steering south from Oban, we passed some rocky isles, one of
which is called, from its shape, the Dutchman’s Cap. When in front of
Fingal’s Cave, we are awed by its imposing entrance which is
formed by a series of basaltic columns from twenty to forty feet high,
which sustain an arch sixty feet above the sea. We land in a boat
amid the fuming waves and climb into the cave, which for a distance
of about two hundred feet has a sort of rather rough natural sidewalk
made of fallen columns. The waves beneath us are continually
surging and the thunderous echoes resound continually. The island,
of volcanic origin, is nothing more or less than the fragment of an
ancient stream of lava. In Fingal’s Cave there is first a basement of
tufa, from which rise colonnades of basalt in pillars which form the
walls and faces of the grotto, the roof of which consists of
amorphous basalt.
Fingal’s Cave was first noted and described by Sir Joseph Banks
in 1773. The grotto is two hundred and twenty-seven feet long, forty-
two feet wide, and sixty-six feet high. But the height of the pillars is
irregular, being thirty-six feet on one side and but eighteen on the
other. Its waters are the haunts of seals and of sea-birds.
Happily for us, instead of seeing nothing but the sombre gray, in
an atmosphere of fog or cloud, or storm-tossed waves, which on
occasions do not allow passengers to disembark, the bursts of
sunlight made unique beauty, both in atmospheric conditions and in
an exquisite play of colors. The basalt appeared to combine every
tint of warm red, brown, and rich maroon, while the seaweed and
lichen of green and gold seemed like the upholstery of a palace.
Through the percolation of the limestone water, the walls were in
places of a snow-white tint. Looking upward we could see yellow,
crimson, and white stalactites. When we examined the columns they
appeared to possess a regularity so perfect as to suggest the work
of a Greek sculptor rather than the play of Nature’s forces in her
moods of agony. The Gaelic form of the name is taken from the
murmuring of the sea, meaning the “Cave of Music.” In times of
storm the compressed air rushes out producing a sound as of
thunder.
“Fingal” is the name of the hero in the poems of Ossian, which
are based on the ancient traditions of the Gaelic people of Scotland
and Ireland, still known and told among the people, so many of
whom in the outer islands use this ancient tongue. The Finn in these
old stories was the Rig or King of the Fenians of Leinster, Ireland,
who lived at a “du” or fort in the County of Kildare, and who was
killed on the Boyne by a fisherman, a.d. 283. As for the name
“Fingal,” it is thought to mean a “fair foreigner,” or Norwegian; the
word “Dubgal,” meaning a “dark foreigner” or invader; the blond
pirates or intruders being the Norwegians and the swarthy ones
coming from Denmark. Both varieties of these unscientific
marauders ravaged Ireland in the ninth century.
Only the chief caves have names. On the south-east coast is the
Clam Shell, or Scallop Cave. It is thirty feet high, eighteen feet wide,
and about one hundred and thirty feet long, one side of it consisting
of ridges of basalt which stand out like the ribs of a ship. Near by is
the Rock of the Herdsmen, from a supposed likeness to a
shepherd’s cap. The Isle of Columns can be fully seen only at low
water.
No human habitations were noted on the Island of Staffa by us,
during our short stay. We got on board the steamer again and
proceeded to Iona, that is, “the island”; for Columkill, or the Island of
Columba, from time unrecorded has had a fertile soil. This fertility,
supposed to be in the dark ages miraculous, led probably to its early
occupation.
Iona’s history begins in the year 563 when St. Columba, from
Ireland, landed on its shores with twelve apostles. By his life and
work he rendered the place so rich in holy associations that to-day
the hosts of divided Christendom, Roman Catholic, Protestant
Episcopal, and Presbyterian, claim Iona as the cradle of their faith,
and on different days—never together in holy union—visit the sacred
isle. Sweethearts and wives must not meet. Which is which?
Iona’s scenery was ever attractive, with its precipitous cliffs, its
dazzling stretches of white shells and sand, its fertile fields, and its
grassy hollows. Its natural charms drew visitors from afar and made
those dwelling upon its acres content. Even before the name of
Christ was uttered, it had been, as the Highlanders called it in their
Gaelic tongue, the “Island of the Druids.” It was therefore famous,
before it became the centre of Celtic Christianity, and the mother
community, whose children were the depositories of the human
spirit. From its numerous monastic houses, hundreds of alumni went
out as missionaries to convert all northern Britain. In a word, the
story of humanity in all the earth is told here. The strata of religions,
the deposits of the human soul, are almost as discernible on Iona as
are the layers of geology, or the floors of successive cities revealed
by the spade, in Egypt or Palestine, in the terpen of Holland or the
mounds of Babylon.
Even the humorous side of religion is here discernible to sharp
eyes. Some of the carvings in the choir stalls and chisellings of the
marble aloft show the joker in stone. The demons are represented as
having their fun—and this is equally true in the art of Buddhism in
Japan and of mediævalism in Iona. The tower of the church of St.
Mary, on this island, has one bit of sculpture representing an angel
weighing souls in a pair of scales, one of which is kept down by a
demon’s paw. It reminded us of Dr. Franklin’s Yankee
characterization of the Dutchman’s trade with the Indians.
Iona was at times so sacred a place, with its scores of
monasteries and nunneries, with its small forest of crosses, and with
architecture that enthralled by its beauty, that it was for centuries a
spot to which pilgrims came from all lands, and in its holy soil kings
and nobles longed to be buried; yet it was not free from the robber
pagan and the bloody spoiler. The North Sea rovers, from Sweden,
Norway, and Denmark, descended in the eighth century to plunder,
to burn, and to kill. For two hundred years Iona lay desolate, until
Queen Margaret restored the desecrated monastery, building the
chapel over the site of St. Columba’s grave. Later came the
Benedictine monks, who expelled or absorbed the Celtic community.
Intermittently the island was the seat of the bishopric of the Western
Isles, but at the Reformation the monastic buildings were dismantled
by order of the legal authorities. When Dr. Johnson visited Iona in
1773, only two persons on the island could speak English. None
could read or write.
Of Iona’s political fortunes the story is brief, the most interesting
point to an American being that, when oppression and the severe
conditions made life here undesirable or scarcely possible, the
people emigrated. From the hardy race, inhabiting this and other of
the Western Isles, the United States received a noble contingent, to
enrich its grand composite of humanity.
 We spent some time in the cemetery called “the Burial Place of
Kings,” which is reputed to contain the dust of forty-eight Scottish,
four Irish, and eight Danish and Norwegian monarchs, besides many
monumental stones. The number of crosses set up on Iona was
nearly equal to that of the days of the year. These were standing, up
to Reformation times, when most of them were thrown into the sea
by order of the Synod of Argyl. Yet a few still remain. The finest are
the Maclean’s cross and St. Martin’s cross, both being almost perfect
in form, despite centuries of weathering. Both are richly carved with
runic inscriptions, emblematic devices, and fanciful scroll-work.

THE KINGS’ GRAVES, IONA

It was certainly a brain stimulant and a heart-warmer to ramble
among these ruins. Imagination re-created the scenes in those
ancient days when the light of the gospel was brought by a saintly
man filled with the spirit of Jesus. We realized, in measure at least,
how great was his work and how far-reaching was his influence in
winning men to Christ, before Latin and Germanic disputes for
mastery had divided the Christian Church. Columba’s coming quickly
changed the landscape of pagan Scotland. First in the cities and
then in almost every village, the cross, symbol of the sacrificial death
of Him who came to give life more abundantly, arose, first in wood
and then in enduring stone. The savage people, whose passions and
appetites had so closely allied them to the brutes, were transformed
and uplifted.
In time the children of the first hearers of the gospel message
were converted, not only outwardly to the acceptance of creeds,—
which in their scholastic form they could not at first understand,—not
only to symbols, which are ever but the shadows of eternal truths,
but were inwardly transformed in the renewing of their minds.
Gradually they became so changed in heart and life that we, after
having seen Christianity in very many of its varied ethnic forms, and
met its exemplars in lands not a few, cannot but feel that in the
home, the school, and the church, there is no land on earth in which
Christianity is more genuine than in Scotland. Between Columba’s
homilies and “The Cotter’s Saturday Night” long centuries were to
pass slowly away. Nothing in literature, or art, or history, or statistics,
furnishes so true a picture of the leavening of a whole nation, or
illustrates more finely the truth that among believers, even the
common people may be “kings and priests unto God,” than this
poem of Burns. It is a revelation of “Old Scotia’s grandeur.”
 CHAPTER XIII
THE CALEDONIAN CANAL—SCOTTISH
SPORTS

The long inland waterway, of which the “Caledonian Canal” is the

main portion, unites the waters of the German Ocean, at Moray Firth,
with those of the Atlantic, which wash the shores of the Island of
Mull. Considered as one highway, this trough, which forms also the
eastern boundary of “the Highlands,” was made in part by nature and
in part by art. In easy and safe passage, it saves the shipmasters
about four hundred miles of coasting voyage around the north of
Great Britain, through the stormy Pentland Firth which divides
Caithness from the Orkney Islands. The total length of the canal
proper is about sixty miles; the part made by man’s work covering
twenty-two miles. A chain of fresh-water lakes, four in number, on
various levels, stretching along the line of the great glen of Scotland,
has been united by water ladders, up which ships are lifted and by
which time is saved.
The route of the canal was surveyed in 1773 by James Watt, the
famous engineer, better known in the annals of steam. Following an
Act of Parliament in 1803, the canal, constructed under the
supervision of Thomas Telford, was opened to navigation in 1822.
There are twenty-eight locks, each having the standard dimension of
one hundred and sixty feet length, so that steamers of comfortable
length can go through. It was on one of these, the Fusileer, that we
travelled from Oban to Inverness, on another we moved in reverse
order, and great were these days. One was sunny and warm. The
other was so cloudy and cold that a grate fire at the hotel at Fort
William felt thoroughly delightful.
 On the second of these inland voyages we were on the steamer
Gondolier. From Oban we cross Loch Linnhe, which forms the
southern end of the great canal, and call at Ardgour. At the head of
the loch we stop at Fort William, formerly called “the Key of the
Highlands.” It is now a town consisting chiefly of a long, narrow
street, full of hotels. The fort was originally erected in 1655 by
Cromwell’s General Monk and called “Kilmallie.” Under the reign of
King William, in 1690, General Hugh McKay enlarged the work and
named it after the Dutch king, the town being called “Maryburgh,” in
honor of the queen. It was to this place that the perpetrators of the
massacre at Glencoe came to divide their spoil.
In 1715 and again in 1746, the followers of “Bonnie Prince
Charlie,” the Jacobites, besieged the place, but unsuccessfully. No
remnants of the fort, which was dismantled in 1860, now remain, for
in 1890 the ruins were wholly removed to provide room for the iron
rails and railway station; for, since the hills come down close
together, there is not much level real-estate room. It illustrates the
sadness of things to find here great distilleries which are large
enough to mar the landscape.
The town produced a poet, and near the railway station is an
obelisk to the memory of Ewen MacLachlin, who wrote verses in
Gaelic. Four miles away is Ben Nevis, 4406 feet high, the loftiest
mountain in the British Islands. Later, at Inverness, I met a Scottish
artist who had painted the mountain from many points of view, but he
seemed more impressed with its ugliness and shaggy character than
with its beauty. In fact, in comparing the artistic work of this painter
with that of Mr. Robert Allan, who transfers to canvas the ideal
loveliness of the ocean,—both Scottish and both masterly,—we
recalled that inimitable passage of Ruskin, contrasting the form and
functions of the mountains and the sea, which furnishes so
illuminating a commentary on the passage written by an ancient
admirer of nature and its Creator,—“Thy righteousness is like the
great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep.”
We noted, in our summer travels, not a few men of the easel. A
mile and a half from the town is the grand old ruin of Inverlochie, to
which many landscape painters resort. Other places of interest are
the site of the battlefield of 1645 and the castle of Lord Abinger, built
in the Scottish baronial style.
Yet at all these attractions we did not much more than glance,
despite the importunities of local guides, who sounded their praises
unremittingly. The reason for which we stopped for a day or two in
this mountain stronghold was not to study military fortification, or to
see the town, which, apart from its summer life, has little allurement
for the tourist who values time. We were there to see the Highland
games, for this day in August was the date set for “the gathering of
the clans” of the shire. They came not for battle as in the old times,
but for the Lochaber Highland games, such as the hammer-throwing,
putting the stone, pole-vaulting, leaping, and jumping; besides the
various Scottish dances, such as prancing and stepping over swords
and the Highland fling.
Heavy rain came down in the early part of the morning, and
during the whole day there was a drizzle, making the air heavy with
dampness and the ground meadows miry. We supposed of course
that there would be no exhibition.
Vain thought! What does a Highlander care about moisture? To
him rain is but an old friend, whom he would no more think of
speaking against than of reviling his mother. Indeed, it is his native
element. So in the afternoon, our lady, donning her mackintosh,
which she had just purchased at Oban, and I with umbrella and
overcoat splashed over the fields to the hillside and meadows, where
thousands of people were gathered together. There may have been
other umbrellas in use, but they were not conspicuous, and certainly
not numerous. Some of the athletic performances were admirable
and the achievements of manly strength were worthy of the applause
which they so generously received.
Yet an alien, one not of the heather, cannot be rapturous in
honest praise of the dances, at least those which were prolonged to
the full and apparently appropriate time, and which the spectators
seemed greatly to enjoy. It was something, no doubt, to behold an
able-bodied man in a dress that quite equalled that of the peacock,
jumping about among the crossed lines of naked steel without
getting his toes cut off. There was undoubtedly some grace also in
the way he curved his arms above his head. Doubtless the very
swish of his kilts and the sight of his bare and hairy legs filled some
bosoms with emotions of envy, accompanied, as they were, with
what seemed blood-curdling cries, the relics of old savagery.
Probably my education had been neglected, for I should not wish to
attend these exhibitions too frequently, unless paid handsomely for
the labor incurred.
Indeed, my feelings of appreciation were very much on the same
par with those experiences when, in Japan, we were expected to sit
on the mats with our lower limbs doubled up, or tied in a knot, during
hours of personal agony. These classic performances were
manifestly full of delight to the cultured admirers of pose and motion,
in the “No” dances, though insufferably tedious to those whose legs
had fallen asleep. Even in later times, when chairs were provided
and the accessories were suggestive of comfort, there was not
enough in the dancing of the “No” operatic performers or in the
antics of the geisha, to serve as magnets.
It was easy to explain, however, why and wherefore Scottish
cheeks are so suggestive of rose gardens, and also why
consumption is so common. The rain did indeed redden the
complexions, but as to the number of cases of pneumonia, or
tuberculosis, which ensued after exposure on this chilly day, we
cannot inform our readers, not having the statistics at hand. To this,
however, we can testify, that when we got back to Room No. 6, of
the Waverley Hotel, we were the subjects of a sort of telepathy that
enabled us to feel profound sympathy with Peary when in search of
the North Pole. Never did a grate full of live coals seem more
welcome. We almost literally hung up ourselves, or at least what had
been our outward semblance, to dry. When properly desiccated, we
retired early, in order the more to enjoy the glorious island voyage
among the Highlands which we knew awaited us next morning.
It was genuine Scotch weather when we woke up and looked out
upon a landscape dominated by Ben Nevis, of whose towering form
we could catch glimpses now and then through the cloud rifts, while
on the hills around us lay patches and lines of snow. At times we
were in that “Scotch mist,” in which, as hostile critics declare, the
metaphysicians who live north of the Tweed do at times get lost. Just
when it began or left off raining might have puzzled a weather
bureau man to tell. As for ourselves, we could have taken oath as to
our own inability if we had been called upon in court. If a jury had
been empanelled, then and there, to determine whether it was or
was not raining, the verdict in either case would undoubtedly have
been, as became the country, “Not proven.”
Nevertheless, after we had crossed the gangway of the boat, a
sister ship to the Gondolier of yesterday, and looked over the
landscape, from both starboard and port side, we began to think it
was true, as Professor Blaikie once said, that “Scotland is like a
pebble, it requires rain to bring out its colors.” It is certain that many
spots in this charming glen did look like the water lines, waves, and
layers of varied tints which we have seen on the surfaces of
chalcedony.
When at the lapidary’s I used to watch the process of cutting in
half a stone, rolled for many ages mayhap and ground daily on the
outside by glacial or stream action, it seemed for a few seconds as if
the diamond saw, revolving with its irresistible edge, was to cut in
vain and reveal nothing. From an outward view all beauty was
hidden and the pebble seemed thoroughly ugly and uninteresting.
Nor could I guess that treasures were hidden in the interior; but
when the hemispheres were in our hands, emerging from their
baptism in clean water, there was revealed, if the stone were hollow,
a grotto of crystals, rich in Nature’s heraldry of color, telling the story
of its fiery past. It seemed a more wonderful story, in fact, than that
of Ali Baba and Open Sesame in fiction. Or, if solid, and, like Venus,
born from water, and formed in slow deposit of liquid instead of from
the cosmic flames, the curvilinear strata white, ruby red, black,
yellow, and brown, seemed to excel in splendor.
Even so, to-day Scotland revealed herself as a new wonderland.
The Caledonian pebble seemed a sapphire. For when, toward noon,
something like dry weather arrived and sunbursts were occasional,
Scotland looked as fresh as her maidens and almost as beautiful.
We passed cataracts in full activity. One, which we did not see,
ninety feet high and probably the finest on the great island, was near
Fort Augustus. Beyond this, called “Foyers,” was another fall thirty
feet high. To one, however, who has seen Niagara a hundred times,
and who dwells near Taughannock Falls, which are thirty feet higher,
and near Lake Cayuga, with two hundred waterfalls within a radius of
twenty miles, a cataract must be out of the ordinary to be visited at
the expenditure of time and money, when both these assets are
limited and things more novel are to be seen. In our home town of
Ithaca, as we two Americans mused, in that conceit and love of
business peculiar to our nationals, we have a “local Niagara” over
eighty feet high. Why visit Foyers?
At one of the lochs, we saw an Irishman, with the popular and
traditional face, shape, and garb; that is, of the kind we read about in
novels and see on the stage. He had on brogans, short breeches
split in the end at the knees, woollen stockings, a small and short-
tailed coat, a stumpy shillaly, a narrow-brimmed high hat, with pipe
stuck in the front band and a shamrock set in another place. Besides
bog-trotters’ capers and the dancing of an Irish jig, he sang songs
which recalled boyhood’s memories in Philadelphia. After the potato
famine in Ireland, the Emerald Isle was semi-depopulated, and the
emigrant ships, despite the Know-Nothings, set their prows in fleets
to the Land of Hope. I often saw seven ships a day bringing over the
raw material of citizenship. Some of the girls, as we learned from our
household experience in employing domestics, had never gone up—
though on ship and with us, at first, they came backwards down—a
pair of stairs. Such green but promising maids had never dwelt in a
house built with more than one story, or touched a faucet, or lighted
a gas jet. The Irishman’s song, in which his mention of Philadelphia
was mnemonic, was delightful to hear. Another song, which as a
child I heard my father’s coal-drivers and coal-heavers sing, told of
travels nearer home, and of this I caught the words. They ran thus:—

“I cut my stick and greased my brogues—

’T was in the month of May, sir:
And off to England I did go
To mow the corn and hay, sir.”
 With this son of Erin was a dirty and very skinny Highland lad, in
kilts and other checkered woollen garments much the worse for
wear. He also danced what was probably a Highland fling, though an
almost vicious desire possessed some of us to fling him into the
bathtub.
It is a good sign for the future of a noble race that the
manufacture of soap occupies many people in Scotland. Though the
glens are full of distilleries, which are sure to create poverty and dirt,
perhaps we must consider soap-boiling as a very honorable
occupation and the manufacture of this cleansing material as an
antidote to some of the mischief done by John Barleycorn. How
terrible is the scourge of alcohol in Great Britain was revealed, as
never before, during the war crisis of 1915, when even an appeal to
patriotism could not make the sodden workmen give up their cups.
My kinsman, the United States Consul at Dundee, showed me the
statistics of the liquor traffic in Scotland alone, which were appalling.
Even Christians, supposed to be devout in worship and genuine in
faith, invest their money, and some of them exclusively, in the
distilleries, thus upsetting at one end what the gospel agencies are
doing at the other. The British Empire is thus handicapped in the
race for progress. Yet who from the glorious Yankee nation can
throw a stone, especially when he sees the “American bar,”
“American long drinks,” and “American mixed drinks” flauntingly
advertised in Europe? We have heard, however, that the “long
drinks” are soft and harmless.
While propelled along Loch Ness, an earth-cleft, narrow, deep,
and twenty-four miles in length, we are again reminded of our home
near Lake Cayuga, fairest in the Iroquois chain of “finger lakes” in
the Empire State, and one of the deepest; for on either side of the
Caledonian Canal are metamorphic rocks rising out of crystal clear
water, and beneath, in the Byronic profundity of “a thousand feet in
depth below,” the rocky bottom. Grander and more rugged, however,
is the scenery, for the mountains are here higher, even as the water
is deeper, than in Iroquois land. The Scottish Highlands are the
fragments of the earliest land that emerged above the prehistoric
oceans. For centuries they formed a boundary in ethnology, politics,
and religion, even as in the æons of geology they form a frontier of
chronology.
When our voyage ends, we find that it is some distance between
the stopping-place of the steamer at Muirtown and Inverness. Since
names and sounds are continually playing tricks, summoning from
the privacy of memory forms long ago forgotten and ever retreating
in the perspective of the past, I recall my old Scotch professor at the
Central High School in Philadelphia. That good man MacMurtrie—
with a name meaning, I suppose, of, or from, or son of the Muirtrie,
or Moor-tree clan—first introduced thousands of youth, through his
lexicon, his fascinating lectures, and his choice cabinets, to the great
world of nature and science, and to the rapturous joy of discovery of
order and beauty in the mathematics of the universe.
From Muirtown, we take the hotel omnibus and soon enter
“Rose-red Inverness,” the bright and lively town, which in August
bursts into the full bloom of its summer activities.
 CHAPTER XIV
INVERNESS: THE CAPITAL OF THE
HIGHLANDS

One of the first things we noticed in this summer capital of the

Highlands was a male being, whom Thackeray would have liked to
cage for his “Book of Snobs.” From the monocle, or window in his
eye, and from certain physical peculiarities, and even pronunciation
in his speech, which he was helpless to conceal, I should imagine
that he was really a London cockney masquerading in a
Highlander’s costume. According to the fad or fashion of vacation
time, and appropriate for hot weather, he was encased in the
complete pavonine dress of the old days of clans and claymores, but
the motor within hardly suited the machine. With his buckled shoes,
checkered leggings,—in the side of one of which was stuck a long
dirk, having a silver handle holding a Cairngorm stone set in the top,
—with considerable public exposure of the cuticle around and above
his skinny knees, with gay kilts, decorated pouch, shoulder-brooch of
silver, coat, plaid, bonnet, and feather, the pageant of costume
seemed vastly more imposing than the man within.
This creature seemed a walking museum of Scottish antiquities.
All his unwonted paraphernalia, however, did not cure his gawkiness
or prevent impending disaster to his pride. In trying to pass by some
baskets belonging to a huckster, and full, if I remember aright, of
turnips, his dirk-handle caught in the end of a loose hoop. “Oh, what
a fall was there, my countrymen!” In a moment one would have
taken him for a measuring-rod. At least six feet of the gawk, more or
less, lay on the soil of what may have been his beloved native land.
Nevertheless, in all Christian charity, we tried our best to appear
blind, and resisted the temptation to laugh.
 I am bound to say, however, that I saw some solid-looking
citizens of Inverness wear the kilt and Highland coat most gracefully.
Moreover, in the evening, when some of the Gordon Highlanders,—I
believe they were,—whose barracks were not far away, rambled
through the streets, they certainly showed that the man and the
clothes had grown together.
One could easily see how well adapted was such a dress to a
rough campaign in a mountainous country. One scarcely wondered
why, when fighting in hilly regions, the Highlander was usually the
superior of the average infantryman. Nevertheless, some comical
chapters in eighteenth-century American history come into mind.
When we remembered that modern footgear was strange to men
who had been used to the ancient brogues and to whom the proverb
“as easy as an old shoe” was a novelty, the story is quite credible
that, in the repulse by the French of the attack made by the British
army under Abercrombie at Ticonderoga, in 1758, when the
Highlanders were forced to retreat from Fort Carillon, there were
thousands of shoes left stuck in the mud when the British ran to their
boats.
We could see at a glance that Inverness was the centre of traffic
and travel during the summer months, when tourists made the
northeast and west of cool Scotland very lively for a few weeks. We
looked in at the Town Hall, near which stands the old town cross. At
the foot of this is the lozenge-shaped stone, called the “Stone of the
Tubs,” reverenced as the palladium of Inverness. It was anciently
useful from its having served as a resting-place for women carrying
water from the river.
It is a sight for a stranger in the Highlands to see the
washerwomen in their fullest muscular activity on summer days,
when they renovate the linen of the tourists. Why men should want
to pay money to see the Salome and other dances popular in
Christian countries is a mystery to some of us, when among the
laundry-women the limits of cuticular exposure are reached. They
leap in frenzy upon the masses of linen in the suds which fill the
deep tubs, but the results justify the use of these primitive washing-
machines.
 Curiously enough, this part of Scotland is not wholly free from
earthquakes, for which the geologists give reasons. In the seismic
disturbances of 1816, the spire of the old jail, one hundred and fifty
feet high, was curiously twisted. Now this spire serves as a belfry for
the town clock. Westward from the Ness is the higher ground, called
the “Hill of the Fairies,” where lies the beautiful city of the dead—one
of the most attractively situated cemeteries in the whole of Britain.
On the athletic grounds near the town, at the end of September, are
held the Scottish games and athletic contests, the most important in
the country. Four bridges span the river. Altogether, our impressions
of the town were very pleasing.
But Inverness has a history also. It is believed to have been one
of those primitive strongholds—in this case, of the Picts—which were
so often to be found at the junction of waters. To this place came St.
Columba, in the year 565. Here, too, was the castle of Macbeth, in
which he murdered Duncan, which stood until it was demolished by
Malcolm Canmore, who built on its site a larger one. William the
Lion, in 1214, granted the town a charter, by which it became a royal
burgh. Of the Dominican abbey, founded in 1233, nothing remains.
The town was burned in 1411, by Donald of the Isles, and when
fifteen years later, James I held a parliament in the castle, Scottish
statecraft was still in a primitive stage of evolution, for three of the
northern chieftains summoned to the council were executed for
daring to assert their independence. In 1652, Queen Mary was
denied admittance into the castle, but she remembered the slight
and caused the governor to be hanged afterwards. Cromwell came
hither also and built a great fort. In Inverness gathered the Jacobites
who followed both the Old and the Young Pretender. Inverness has
had its ups and downs, and, as a Western orator once declared of
his district, has, besides raising much ham, raised also much more
of what General Sherman named as the synonym for war.
To come to Inverness without visiting Culloden would be like
going to Rome without seeing St. Peters; for at Culloden, where was
fought one of the decisive battles of the world, the death-blow was
given to Scottish feudalism. There the clan system was knocked to
pieces. Then, also, for the benefit and blessing of the whole world,