Deep Drawing of Friction Stir Welded Thin Sheet Aluminium Steel Tailored Hybrids

Abstract

Friction stir welding undergoes a steep evolution in industrial applications since the invention in the early 1990s. Especially for aluminium alloys in sheet thicknesses over 2 mm a lot of applications are established, whereas a lack in knowledge about friction stir welding of thin sheets with sheet thickness less than 2 mm exists. This article deals with friction stir welding of thin sheet aluminium steel tailored hybrids and their formability. These investigations tend to close the gap of availability of friction stir welded blanks in the range of 1 mm sheet thickness and to offer new applications of this joining technology. For production of aluminium steel tailored hybrids AA5182 with a thickness of 1.2 mm and DC04 in 1.0 mm are used, the joining partners are friction stir welded in a lap joint. Different tool geometries and process parameters are performed to achieve the highest strength and elongation at fracture of the tailored hybrids. The influence of the stirring on the arrangement and distribution of both materials in the welding zone and its microstructure is analysed using light optical and scanning electron microscopy. In addition to tensile tests planar microhardness measurements help to detect the local changes of the mechanical properties in the characteristic zones of the weld seam. Tailored hybrids, which were friction stir welded with the best welding parameters in accordance to the mechanical properties of the weld seams, were used for deep drawing tests of friction stir welded thin sheet aluminium steel tailored hybrids. The maximum drawing ratio of these tailored hybrids coincides with the one of the parent material of AA5182.