friction stir welding
Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a solid-state welding process, which uses a rotating, non-consumable tool to join metal pieces together without melting them. FSW is very versatile and is a commonly used process for welding aluminum and other similar metals to produce advantageous joint properties through plastic deformations of the metals.
Key Features:
- Solid-State Process - As a solid-state process, FSW allows for the joining of materials without melting them. This directly reduces the chances of defects associated with melted materials, such as cracks, porosity, and distortion.
- High Strength Joints - FSW will produce joints with fine-grained microstructures that result in good mechanical strength and fatigue resistance.
- Industry and Applications - FSW is often used in aerospace, automotive, and shipbuilding industries due to overall production dynamics and quality of lightweight metal welding operations.
The importance of Friction Stir Welding is its unique capability to create strong integrity joints in metals which are often difficult to weld, such as aluminum. It creates the ability to manufacture strong and reliable lightweight structures, e.g. fuselage structures, in Aerospace applications and fuel tanks. For example, due to the reduction of vehicle weight and improved fuel efficiency, automotive companies utilize FSW for the assembly of aluminum chassis and panels. Other industries, such as marine and railway, use FSW due to its consistency and factory suitability for automation.