Mechanical properties and metallurgical characterization of FSPed TIG and TIG welded AA5052-H32/AA5083-H111 dissimilar aluminium alloys

This work describes the mechanical properties and metallurgical characterization of Friction Stir Processing (FSP) on TIG welded dissimilar AA5052-H32 and AA5083-H111 alloys using ER5356 filler wire. A comparison is drawn between unprocessed TIG weld and FS Processed (FSPed) TIG welded specimen with the identical combination. The fabricated welded joints were investigated By Optical Microscope (OM), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) Analysis, Tensile Strength Analysis, and Micro-Hardness testing. The results illustrate the improvement in mechanical properties after FSPed of the TIG welded joint resulting in enhanced tensile strength (224.5 MPa) and hardness (104 HV) in contrast to the unprocessed TIG weld joints with (192.5 MPa) and (70 Hv). In addition, during the mechanical characterization, the FSPed TIG welds show fine grain at the Friction Stir (FS) processed zone with fine grain structures which improves the hardness at the FS zone. The mechanical property of FS joint is superior when compared to the unprocessed TIG weld joint.