A feasible operational parameter window for enhancement of welding speed in friction stir welding of 2195-T8 Al–Li alloy

Abstract

The improvement of the welding speed becomes extraordinarily difficult for the friction stir welding (FSW) of Al–Li alloys with medium thickness (5–10 mm). In this study, 2195-T8 Al alloy plates with a thickness of 6 mm were subjected to FSW under different welding speeds of 200–800 mm/min with the objective of seeking an optimised welding parameter. The tensile strength of ∼422 MPa at a relatively high welding speed of 400 mm/min with a tool rotational speed of 800 rpm was obtained, which reached a comparable level to those of the joints with low welding speeds. The combination of moderate tool rotational speed and moderate welding speed was a feasible optimising direction for FSW of Al–Li alloy with medium thickness.

KEYWORDS:

• Al–Li alloy
• friction stir welding
• weld forming
• welding speed
• microstructure
• precipitate
• mechanical property

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 52275392), Youth Innovation Promotion Association of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (grant number Y2021061), the Natural Science Foundation of Liaoning Province (Nos. 2021-YQ-01, 2021-MS-011) and the LiaoNing Revitalization Talents Program under (grant number XLYC2002099).