Investigation of Temperature Evolution and Flash Formation at AA5083 Studs during Friction Surfacing

Abstract

Friction surfacing (FS), a solid-state joining process, is a coating technology for metallic materials. Frictional and plastic deformation enable the deposition of a consumable material on a substrate. Process temperatures stay below the melting point of the consumable material and are an important factor determining the quality of the resulting deposit. The focus of the current study is the experimental analysis of the flash formation and the temperature evolution in consumable studs during FS deposition of dissimilar aluminum alloys. The main process parameters, axial force, rotational speed and travel speed, were varied while the setting of the process surrounding was kept constant. The temperature evolution for the applied process parameter combinations are investigated for the stud material via infrared camera. The results show that the choice of applied force, rotational speed and travel speed did not lead to significant changes in maximum process temperature values of the consumable stud detectable via infrared camera. However, the flash formation at the tip of the plasticized stud shows significant differences for varied process parameters. Especially reduction of travelspeed or increase in axial force led to formation of larger flashes. Since the material that is pressed out of the process zone into the flash is not deposited on the substrate, the flash formation can be linked to the material efficiency of the FS process.