The Role of Stirring Time on the Metallurgical and Mechanical Properties during Modified friction stir clinching of AA6061-T6 and AA7075-T6 sheets

Abstract In this study, the modified friction stir clinching process was successfully utilized to weld the AA7075-T6 to AA6061-T6 aluminum alloys. The approach of this study was to appraise the influence of the stirring time (6, 12, and 18 s) on the metallurgical and mechanical behavior of the welded samples. The microstructural study demonstrated that stirring time significantly affected joint properties and material flow, which can be ascribed to the discrepancy in the properties of the Al alloys used in this study. Void, local melting and defect-free joints were produced under the stirring times of 6 s, 18 s, and 12 s respectively. It was found that tensile/shear strength increased significantly from 63.5 MPa to 109 MPa as the stirring time increased from 6 s to 12 s, while a further increase in the stirring time to 18 s significantly decreased the joint’s strength to 76.1 MPa. The observed failed samples showed that stirring time did not influence fracture mode.