Date of Publication :17th August 2017

Abstract: Friction Stir welding (FSW) is a solid state joining process widely accepted to weld difficult to weld materials such as Aluminium. Although the technique is indented to weld Aluminium alloys the process is extended to achieve better joint properties in Steel, Copper, Magnesium and other materials. Friction between the tool surface and work piece surface generate the heat necessary to bring the material to plastic state and then material is stirred to make the joint. The heat generation and material flow in the weld zone depends mainly on the tool Rotation speed, Welding/Traverse speed and Tool Geometry. In this work the fundamental understanding of the FSW process and the effects of these parameters in the joint strength of Aluminium 6061alloy plates is presented. The process parameters are selected according to Taguchi Method, which is an effective and efficient method to optimize the response variable. According to Taguchi orthogonal array the parameters and their levels are selected and the experiments are conducted. The joint is tested for its Ultimate Tensile Strength in UTM. The Rockwell Hardness at various positions in the weld is checked. Microstructure Analysis of the weld zone justify the variations in strength for different welds. Finally the process parameters for Friction Stir welding of Aluminium Alloy 6061 are optimized for maximum strength

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