INVESTIGATION AND OPTIMIZATION OF TENSILE STRENGTH OF FRICTION STIR WELDING JOINT: AN OVERVIEW

Welding is a fabrication process used to join materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, together. During welding,the work pieces to be joined are melted at the joining interface and usually a filler material is added to forma weld pool of molten material that solidifies to become a strong joint. In contrast, Soldering and Brazing do not involve melting the work piece but rather a lower melting point material is melted between the work pieces to bond them together. Friction Stir Welding (FSW) was invented by Wayne Thomas at TWI (The Welding Institute ), and the first patent applications were filed in the UK in December1991. Initially, the process was regarded as a “laboratory” curiosity, but it soon became clear that FSW offers numerous benefits in the fabrication of aluminum products. Friction Stir We lding is a solid - state process, which means that the objects are joined without reaching melting point. This opens up whole new areas in welding technology.