Characteristics of friction plug welding to 10 mm thick AA2219-T87 sheet: Weld formation, microstructure and mechanical property

In this paper, friction plug welding (FPW) experiments of 2219-T87 aluminum alloy sheets with 10 mm thickness were performed. The material flow behavior, microstructures, second phases, mechanical properties and failure behaviors were also investigated. The results indicate that a sufficient volume of material from both plug and base metal flow upward and downward is critical obtaining defect free weld. The plug thermo-mechanically affected zone, plug recrystallized zone, thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ), and heat affected zone could be weakened significantly owing to the thermal–mechanical process. The main reason is believed as the dissolution of precipitates and the redistribution of constituent particles. The maximum tensile strength and elongation of the joint would reach 329 MPa and 7%, respectively. The TMAZ closest to the bonding interface is the weakest location of the joints. The tensile crack initiates at TMAZ close to the bonding interface near the lower surface and then propagates along the soften area in TMAZ with forming a large amount of dimples with second phases existing at the bottom.