Microstructure and mechanical properties of dissimilar friction stir welding between ultrafine grained 1050 and 6061-T6 aluminum alloys

Abstract

The ultrafine grained (UFGed) 1050 Al plates with a thickness of 2 mm, which were produced by the accumulative roll bonding technique after five cycles, were friction stir butt welded to 2 mm thick 6061-T6 Al alloy plates at a different revolutionary pitch that varied from 0.5 to 1.25 mm/rev. In the stir zone, the initial nano-sized lamellar structure of the UFGed 1050 Al alloy plate transformed into an equiaxial grain structure with a larger average grain size due to the dynamic recrystallization and subsequent grain growth. However, an equiaxial grain structure with a much smaller grain size was simultaneously formed in the 6061 Al alloy plates, together with coarsening of the precipitates. Tensile tests of the welds obtained at different welding speeds revealed that two kinds of fracture modes occurred for the specimens depending on their revolutionary pitches. The maximum tensile strength was about 110 MPa and the fractures were all located in the stir zone close to the 1050 Al side.