Friction Stir Welding and Processing of High Melting Temperature Alloys
Presented by Prof. Antonio Ramirez, Welding Engineering Program at the Ohio State University
Solid state joining of materials presents relevant advantages when compared with fusion welding, as the avoidance of melting and solidification related issues and the intrinsic lower temperature processing, among other. With the increasing structural and functional materials complexity, the use of different joining processes, which in some cases completely break paradigms, has become a necessity. It is here where Friction Stir Welding (FSW) and Processing (FSP) and other related processes, have become a source of innovation and at the same time a challenge and an opportunity for the materials joining industry. From the invention and early development of FSW the process has evolved to a mature and widely used technology to join Al, Mg and Cu alloys. However, expanding this technology to higher melting temperature materials as steels, stainless steels, Ti-alloys and Ni-based alloys has not been a trivial task. Steels, Stainless Steels and Ni-based alloys joining and processing using FSW and FSP is today possible and there are plenty of opportunities for this emerging technology application. Our most relevant R&D work on this field will be presented with examples on the joining and processing of steels, stainless steels, Ni-based alloys and some dissimilar combinations involving these materials.