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Introduction
Aluminum alloys have been widely
used in automobile structures due to their
unique properties such as high specific
weight and strength, positive weldability,
greater requirements concerning exhaust
emissions, energy consumption, and recy-
cling of material (Refs. 1, 2). The use of
aluminum alloys also offers an opportu-
nity to reduce vehicle weight, which can
also lead to a reduction of fuel consump-
tion and emissions without compromising
performance, comfort, and safety (Ref. 3).
The nonheat-treatable aluminum-magne-
sium (Al-Mg) alloys (5000 series) in sheet
product form are essentially single-phase
binary alloys with moderate to high
strength and toughness. Alloys in this se-
ries possess good welding characteristics,
machinability, and corrosion resistance
(Refs. 1, 4, 5). Among them, Al 5754 is
commonly employed in the fabrication of
car body panels because this alloy has ex-
ceptional formability characteristics, good
static, impact, and fatigue strengths, and
high resistance to pitting and intercrys-
talline corrosion (Refs. 1, 6, 7).
Recently, some fusion and solid-state
welding techniques include laser welding,
electron beam welding, and friction stir
spot welding (FSW). Resistance spot
welding in joining Al 5754 is still under in-
vestigation to eliminate or minimize the
solidification and hot cracks, porosity de-
fects, and loss of alloying elements (Refs.
3, 814).
Since its invention in 1991 by The Weld-
ing Institute (TWI), UK, the FSW process,
which is a solid-state welding technique, has
gained considerable interest among re-
searchers due to its structural advantages
such as no melting, absence of gas porosity
and oxidation, low energy input, low distor-
tion, relatively low welding temperature,
low cost, and high mechanical properties
(Refs. 15, 16). Welding workpieces is per-
formed by a nonconsumable rotating tool
including shoulder and pin. The pin is ro-
tated and plunged into the abutting faces of
the workpieces. The plunging of the pin
continues up to contact between the shoul-
der and surfaces of the workpieces. The ma-
terial is basically heated by friction between
the shoulder and workpiece surfaces, and is
simultaneously stirred by the pin. Thus, a
softened and plasticized zone is developed
around the plunged pin and at the interface
between the shoulder and workpieces. The
tool is then steadily moved along the weld
interface giving a continuous weld (Ref. 17).
The mechanical, macroscopic, and mi-
crostructural features of the friction stir
welded joint are strongly related to FSW
parameters. The key parameters are
geometry, rotation speed, travel speed
(welding speed), tilt angle, rotation direc-
tion, and axial pressure of the tool. These
parameters have to be chosen properly be-
fore the welding process to achieve sound
joints. The tool geometry affects the rate
of heat input, plastic material flow, re-
quired power, and uniformity of the
welded joint. Increasing the rotation
speed or decreasing travel speeds tends to
increase heat input and peak temperature,
and results in more intense stirring and
mixing of material. Peak temperature also
increases with an increase in the axial
pressure. However, extremely high or low
travel and rotational speeds can adversely
affect properties. Insufficient and excess
heat input and material flow depending on
these FSW parameters can lead to defects
like pinholes, tunnels, cavities, root flaws,
and cracks (Refs. 1822).
Several experimental studies have
been conducted about joining aluminum
alloys with FSW, especially concerning
2XXX, 6XXX, and 7XXX series (Ref.
23). Although there have been some find-
ings reported on Al 5083 in 5XXX series
(Refs. 2426), current literature indicates
limited research on the FSW of Al 5754
(Ref. 27). In addition, no systematic work
has been reported to determine the effects
of FSW parameters on both mechanical
and structural properties for Al 5754.
Jin et al. (Ref. 27) studied the friction
stir welding of cold rolled and aged Alloys
Al 5754 and Al 5182. The authors welded
the rolled and aged Al 5754 sheets using a
constant FSW parameter, and examined
microstructural development and micro-
hardness distribution in the weld.
Kulekci et al. has investigated the ef-
fects of the tool pin diameter and tool ro-
Effects of FSW Parameters on Joint
Properties of AlMg3 Alloy
The tool rotation speed, tool tilt angle, and tool rotation direction were evaluated
for friction stir welded aluminum Alloy Al 5754
BY Z. BARLAS AND U. OZSARAC
KEYWORDS
Friction Stir Welding
AlMg3 Aluminum Alloy
FSW Parameters
Joint Properties
Z. BARLAS and U. OZSARAC (ozsarac@
sakarya.edu.tr) are with Sakarya University, Fac-
ulty of Technology, Department of Metallurgical
and Materials Engineering, Esentepe Campus,
Sakarya, Turkey.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of friction stir weld-
ing (FSW) parameters, which are the tool rotation speed, tool tilt angle, and tool rota-
tion direction, on the macrostructure and microstructure, plus mechanical properties
of butt joint AlMg3 aluminum Alloy (Al 5754) sheets. The macroscopic and mi-
crostructure examinations and tensile test results indicated that the joint properties
were significantly affected by FSW parameters. A sound and defect-free weld was
achieved with a tool rotation speed of 1100 rev/min and tool tilt angle of 2 deg, when
the tool was rotated counterclockwise. The maximum tensile strength of the joint fab-
ricated with FSW parameters was 217 MPa, which is 14% lower than that of the Al 5754
base metal. In this weld, closer to a symmetrical microhardness distribution was meas-
ured, and hardness values of the weld nugget zone slightly increased and reached about
82 HV. A softened heat-affected zone was not detected by the microhardness testing.
Barlas and Ozsarac Supplement January 2012[1]_Layout 1 12/15/11 11:16 AM Page 16
tation speed at a constant weld speed on
fatigue properties of friction stir overlap
welded Alloy Al 5754 (Ref. 28).
Attallah et al. studied the FSW of
2XXX and 5XXX series sheet materials in
various tempers at different FSW param-
eters (Ref. 29). The study explained the re-
lationship between the banding of con-
stituent particles and onion rings
formation in the Al 5754 joint. In an an-
other study, Attallah et al. focused on the
microstructure-microhardness property
relation in onion rings for an Al 5754 joint
applied to a constant FSW parameter
(Ref. 30).
Garware et al. investigated the tensile
and fatigue behavior of a friction stir
welded joint under a single FSW parame-
ter in a tailor-welded blank of Alloy Al
5754, but the weld parameter was not ex-
plained by the authors (Ref. 31).
As the studies discussed above indi-
cate, there is a growing need to explore the
effect of some FSW parameters on the
weld quality of Al 5754 sheets. The study
presented here concentrated on evaluat-
ing the effects of the tool rotation speed,
tool tilt angle, and tool rotation direction
on the macrostructure, microstructure,
and mechanical properties of Al 5754 butt
joints due to the lack of experimental
information.
Experimental Procedure
Commercial Alloy AlMg3 (Al 5754-O)
sheets (150 100 3 mm) with the chem-
ical nominal composition of Al 95.7, Mg
3.3, Mn 0.34, Fe 0.20, Si 0.19, Zn 0.08, and
Cu 0.03 (wt-%) were used for friction stir
butt joint welding trials. Butt joint surfaces
of the sheets were machined by a milling
machine and polished using 1200 grit
water-resistant abrasive paper, then the
sheets rigidly clamped on a steel backing
plate by a specially designed apparatus.
While the tool geometry, tool travel speed
of 13 mm/min, and tool plunge depth of
2.9 mm were used as constant FSW pa-
rameters, the tool rotation speed, tool tilt
angle with respect to the z-axis of the
milling machine, and tool rotation direc-
tion in clockwise (cw) or counterclockwise
(ccw) were used as variable parameters in
this study. These FSW parameters are
summarized in Table 1. In the following
sections, the joints presented in Table 1
were called by their weld trials and mode
names.
Figure 1 shows the plunger tool and its
detailed geometry used for all FSW
processes. This tool was made from a hot
work steel material, type 1.2344. The tool
consisted of a concave shoulder 15 mm in
diameter and a conical pin 5 mm in major
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Fig. 1 Image and geometry of the tool used for
FSW of Al 5754 sheets in this study (dimensions in
mm).
Fig. 2 Dimensions of sample prepared to tensile test (dimensions in mm).
Fig. 3 Weld surface appearances of all FSW trials. A 700/2/cw; B 900/2/cw; C 1100/2/cw
in Mode I; D 700/0/cw; E 900/0/cw; F 1100/0/cw in Mode II; G 700/2/ccw; H
900/2/ccw; and I 1100/2/ccw in Mode III.
Table 1 Variable Parameters Used for All Friction Stir Welding Trials
FSW Trial Tool Rotation Tool Tilt Tool Rotation
Speed (rev/min) Angle (deg) Direction
Mode I 700/2/cw 700 2 cw
900/2/cw 900 2 cw
1100/2/cw 1100 2 cw
Mode II 700/0/cw 700 0 cw
900/0/cw 900 0 cw
1100/0/cw 1100 0 cw
Mode III 700/2/ccw 700 2 ccw
900/2/ccw 900 2 ccw
1100/2/ccw 1100 2 ccw
Note: cw = clockwise and ccw = counterclockwise.
A B C
D
F
G
E
H I
Barlas and Ozsarac Supplement January 2012[1]_Layout 1 12/14/11 10:22 AM Page 17
diameter (root), 2 mm in minor diameter
(tip), and 3 mm in length. The pin has a
right-hand 0.9-mm pitch thread and a
thread depth of 0.6 mm. All FSW trials were
made in a square butt joint configuration,
and the pin axis was adjusted to the weld in-
terface of the butt joint. To produce the re-
quired preheating and softening of the ma-
terial, the tool was held for a dwell time of
15 s when the tool plunged 2.9 mm into the
upper surface of the butted sheets, and then
traversed along the weld interface. All weld-
ing trials were performed perpendicular to
the rolling direction of the sheets. No an-
other process such as filing or milling was
performed on the surface and root sides of
the FSW trials after the weld processes to
remove weld flashes, tool marks, and oxide
layers. As a result, the weld trials were used
in the as-welded condition for subsequent
examinations and tests.
Cross-sectional samples were prepared
using standard metal-
lographic methods for
macroscopic and mi-
crostructural exami-
nations of the weld
zones. A solution con-
sisted of 25 mL
methanol, 25 mL HCl,
25 mL HNO
3
, and 1
drop HF was used to
etch the weld zones.
The weld zones were
characterized using a
Nikon Eclipse L150A
optical microscope
(OM) equipped with
image analysis soft-
ware (Clemex Vision
Lite 5.0) and a JEOL
JSM 6060LV scanning
electron microscope (SEM) equipped
with an energ-dispersive X-ray spec-
troscopy (EDS) apparatus. Transverse
tensile tests were carried out to evaluate
the effect of variable parameters on the
joint efficiency of the FSW trials. All tests
were performed on an Instron 3367 test-
ing machine at a constant crosshead speed
displacement rate of 2.5 mm/min. Three
tensile test samples in the as-welded con-
dition were tested for each FSW parame-
ter, and Al 5754 base metal and average
test values are presented in the study. The
tensile test samples were machined ac-
cording to EN 895 specification by a CNC
milling machine.
Figure 2 shows the tensile test sample
geometry with dimensions. The fracture
surfaces of the failed tensile test samples
were examined by SEM to determine the
governing fracture mechanism. Vickers
microhardness (HV) testing was con-
ducted on polished specimens at near mid-
thickness across the weld zone applying a
load of 100 g and a dwell time of 10 s, and
was spaced at intervals of 0.5 mm in each
testing line using a Future-Tech FM 700
hardness tester.
Results and Discussion
Figures 36 show the weld surface ap-
pearances and macrostructures, including
the root side of the FSW trials, respec-
tively. A sound and continuous weld was
not made for the welding trial in
700/2/ccw, and the trial failed Fig. 3G.
The lowest tool rotation speed (700
rev/min) when the tool was rotated in ccw
caused incomplete joining, creating very
poor surface quality and a cavity or tunnel-
like weld defect. It might be the case that
the metal was pushed into the bottom of
the plates by the right-hand threaded pin,
but abnormal stirring of the metal and rel-
atively insufficient heat input did not allow
mixing of this metal in the weld zone.
Jayaraman et al. reported similar diffi-
culties for joining cast aluminum Alloy
A319 by FSW (Ref. 22). A large mass of
weld flash occurred on the retreating side
(RS) in Mode II welding trials, because
the leading edge of the shoulder removed
the material from the front of the rotating
tool when the tool axis was perpendicular
to the weld interface during the welding
process (Fig. 3DF). The weld surfaces of
other FSW trials were clean, and notice-
able weld defects were observed. Further-
more, the surface roughness of the trials
was relatively improved with increasing
the tool rotation speed. Macroscopic in-
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Fig. 4 Macrostructure and root side appearances of the FSW trials in
Mode I. A and B 700/2/cw; C and D 900/2/cw; E and F 1100/2/cw.
Fig. 5 Macrostructure and root side appearances of the FSW trials in
Mode II. A and B 700/0/cw; C and D 900/0/cw; E and F 1100/0/cw.
Fig. 6 Macrostructure and root side appearances of the FSW trials in
Mode III. A and B 900/2/ccw; C and D 1100/2/ccw.
A
A
A
B
B
B
C
C
C
D
D
D
F
F
E
E
Barlas and Ozsarac Supplement January 2012[1]_Layout 1 12/15/11 1:34 PM Page 18
spections show that the applied FSW pa-
rameters have considerable effects on the
properties of the stirred zone structure.
First, the
weld nugget shapes
were affected by the
tool tilt angle and tool
rotation direction.
The FSW trials in
Mode I exhibited
basin-shaped nugget
zone formation that
widens to both the ad-
vancing side (AS) and
RS near the upper
surface (Fig. 4). Al-
though Mode II welds
are generally similar
to Mode I welds, these
weld trials show a nar-
rower basin-shaped
weld nugget with changing of the tool tilt
angle Fig. 5. In addition to the weld tri-
als in Modes I and II, a symmetrical weld
nugget shape was seen. The nugget shapes
of trials in Mode III were noticeably
changed with changing the tool rotation
direction. These weld trials show an ellip-
tical nugget shape that slightly extended
toward the upper surface on the AS, as
presented in Fig. 6. As a result, changing
the tool tilt angle and tool rotation direc-
tion with the same tool geometry resulted
in different weld nugget zone shapes in Al
5754 butt joints.
Second, the tool tilt angle, tool rotation
direction, and tool rotation speed have an
effect on the defect formation and weld
penetration depth. The cavity defects
were formed underneath the pin for the
weld trials in Modes I and II. The cavity
defect was only formed on the RS for
Mode I, whereas it was formed on both the
RS and AS for Mode II. Nandan et al.
(Ref. 20) reported that the defects tend to
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Fig. 8 Microhardness distribution in the weld zone for 1100/2/ccw weld.
Fig. 7 Microstructural evolution in the friction stir butt welded joints at
900/2/ccw and 1100/2/ccw. A Al 5754 BM; B HAZ for 900/2/ccw; C
HAZ for 1100/2/ccw; D TMAZ for 900/2/ccw; E TMAZ for
1100/2/ccw; F center of WNZ for 900/2/ccw; G center of WNZ for
1100/2/ccw.
Table 2 Tensile Test Results of Al 5754 BM and the FSW Trials
Test Specimen Tensile Strength (MPa) Yield Strength (MPa) Elongation (%) Tensile Strength Performance (%) Failure Location
Al 5754 253 170 12.3
700/2/cw 160 26 3 63
900/2/cw 162 53 3.3 64
1100/2/cw 165 57 3.5 65
700/0/cw 118 37 1.8 47
900/0/cw 141 46 2.6 56
1100/0/cw 145 46 4.2 57
900/2/ccw 207 42 5.5 82
1100/2/ccw 217 74 10.1 86
Note: cw = clockwise and ccw = counterclockwise.
A
B C
D
F
E
G
Barlas and Ozsarac Supplement January 2012[1]_Layout 1 12/15/11 1:35 PM Page 19
occur on the AS due to sudden mi-
crostructural transition between the weld
nugget zone and thermomechanically af-
fected zone in contrast to the present
study. The authors consider that the FSW
parameters such as tool geometry play an
important role on the defect formation lo-
cation. The root flaw can be defined as an
unstirred region observed in all FSW trials
in Modes I, II, and 900/2/ccw in Mode III,
as can be seen in Figs. 4, 5, and 6B. How-
ever, the root flaws in the FSW trials in
Modes I and II are clearer than 900/2/ccw
in Mode III. Insufficient stirring and heat
input depending on low tool rotation
speed and unsuitable tool tilt angle are
probably the main reasons for the root
flaw occurrence.
The literature highlights that when the
other FSW parameters are constant, an in-
crease in tool rotation speed causes higher
temperature due to higher friction heat and
results in intense stirring and mixing of ma-
terial (Ref. 18). The formations of cavity
and root flaws indicate that the heat input,
stirring rate, and downward force generated
by the tool were not adequate to plastic de-
formation and material flow for the FSW
parameters used in Modes I and II.
Finally, the results of this study indi-
cate that the weld penetration depth was
slightly improved through increasing the
tool rotation speed because of more effi-
cient heat input and stirring, as presented
in the macrostructures in Mode III Fig.
6. Overall macroscopic inspections show
that a defect-free weld having high pene-
tration depth can be successfully con-
ducted with a tool rotation speed of 1100
rev/min and tool tilt angle of 2 deg, when
the tool was rotated counterclockwise
(1100/2/ccw).
Four different microstructural zones
were distinctively revealed in the weld
zone of all FSW trials by OM examina-
tions. These zones are as follows: 1) unaf-
fected base metal (BM); 2) heat-affected
zone (HAZ); 3) thermomechanically af-
fected zone (TMAZ); and 4) weld nugget
zone (WNZ) (also known as stirred zone).
Unlike the microstructural results of a
previous study (Ref. 27), HAZs were ob-
served on both sides, and there were dis-
tinct boundaries between the other zones.
Figure 7 shows the typical microstructural
zones of the welding trials for 900/2/ccw
and 1100/2/ccw. Al 5754 BM exhibited the
characteristic cold-rolled structure with
grains elongated in the rolling direction
Fig. 7A. While the HAZs consisted of the
coarsened grains (Fig. 7B, C) compared
with the BM due to increasing the weld
temperature, the TMAZs displayed the
deformed and elongated grain structure
around the WNZs (Fig. 7D, E) because of
both insufficient plastic deformation and
rising weld temperature in this region. The
WNZs were characterized by fine and
equiaxed recrystallized grains (Fig. 7F, G)
due to intense plastic deformation and
thermal exposure during the FSW
process. However, the HAZ and WNZ in
1100/2/ccw have more coarse grains than
that of 900/2/ccw. For example, based on
image analysis results, the average grain
size in the WNZ for 900/2/ccw was about
7.6 m while it was about 10.2 m for
1100/2/ccw. The increasing of the grain
size in the HAZ and WNZ might be at-
tributed to a longer thermal cycle due to
higher heat input for the tool rotation
speed of 1100 rev/min than that at 900
rev/min.
Figure 8 shows the hardness profile
along the centerline on a cross section of
defect-free 1100/2/ccw weld. Almost a
symmetric hardness distribution occurred
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Fig. 9 Tensile fracture surface of the HAZ for 1100/2/ccw. A SEM image; BD EDS analysis results taken from the points 1, 2, and 3, respectively.
A
B
C
D
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across the weld zone. A similar hardness
trend was observed between the BM and
HAZ, and it was found that the average
hardness values of the BM and HAZ were
approximately 75 and 74 HV, respectively.
As the results of this study indicate, there
is no high degree variation in hardness be-
tween the BM and HAZ at both sides of
the weld. Although the HAZs, which were
characterized by a coarse grain size, were
identified by the optical examinations, the
BM and softened HAZ were not clearly
separated via the microhardness testing,
similar to the test results in a previously re-
ported study by Jin et al. (Ref. 27). An in-
creasing hardness trend was observed
after a transition from the TMAZ to
WNZ, and the WNZ exhibited an M-
like hardness distribution across the weld.
The highest hardness value (~82 HV) for
the weld zone was measured in the WNZ,
and the average hardness of this zone was
about 78 HV because of the grain refine-
ment and possible modest work hardening
(Ref. 32).
A summary of the transverse tensile
test results for the FSW trials and Al 5754
BM are presented in Table 2. The results
highlight that the tensile properties of the
welds were influenced by the tool rotation
speed, tool tilt angle, and tool rotation di-
rection. The maximum tensile strength
values of all welds varied from 118 to 217
MPa and slightly increased with increasing
the tool rotation speed due to efficient
stirring and good bonding around the root
side of the joints.
This study also highlights that the ten-
sile strengths could be affected by the weld
surface quality depending on the tool ro-
tation speed because the surface rough-
ness was improved with increasing the tool
rotation speed. The low tensile strength
values have been determined in the weld
trials having a tool tilt angle of 0 deg due
to the cavities and root flaws. Also, the
tensile properties can be improved with
changing the tool rotation direction. The
best tensile properties were obtained at
the highest tool rotation speed when the
tool was rotated in ccw (1100/2/ccw). A
tensile strength of 217 MPa was observed
in the 1100/2/ccw weld. This value is about
86% that of the Al 5754 BM. Also, per-
centage elongation of this joint was ap-
proximately 10.1%, which is close to the
BM and much higher, about 25 times
than that of the other FSW trials. As
shown in Table 2, all welds fractured in the
WNZ, except the 1100/2/ccw weld. The
main reasons for fracture in the WNZ are
incomplete weld penetration depth and/or
presence of the unstirred root zone,
namely the root flaw. Therefore, it is esti-
mated that the initial crack occurred in the
unstirred zone and then propagated to the
upper region, resulting in failure. How-
ever, 1100/2/ccw weld fractured in the
HAZ on the RS. As mentioned previously,
this joint exhibited high weld penetration
depth and sufficient stirring around the
root zone. In addition, no weld defect was
detected in the microstructural inspec-
tions. Hence, the 1100/2/ccw weld showed
the highest tensile test properties. How-
ever, it should be noted that the other
welds had incomplete penetration on the
root side of the joints, so the tensile data
were affected. There is no clear relation
between hardness and fracture location
(RS), because the weld shows a similar
hardness distribution in the HAZ at each
side.
Figure 9 shows the SEM micropho-
tographs and EDS analysis results of the
tensile fracture surface of the 1100/2/ccw
weld. The presence of dimple patterns in-
dicates that ductile fracture took place in
the HAZ of the joint during the tensile test
(Fig. 9A). However, the presence of Fe-
rich intermetallic particles (Fig. 9C, D), in
addition to the base metal (Fig. 9B) in the
fracture zone of the weld was revealed by
EDS analysis. It is estimated that the duc-
tility of the weld was influenced by these
constituent particles (Ref. 33), thus result-
ing in the decreasing ductility for the
1100/2/ccw weld (Table 2).
Conclusions
In this study, the authors evaluated the
effects of the tool rotation speed, tool tilt
angle, and tool rotation direction on the
friction stir welded aluminum Alloy Al
5754. Even if the same tool geometry was
used, these FSW parameters have notice-
able effects on the features of Al 5754
joints. These features can be defined as
the defect formation such as cavity and
root flaw, weld penetration depth, and
tensile test performance. The best results
were obtained at a tool rotation speed of
1100 rev/min, tool tilt angle of 2 deg when
the tool was rotated in ccw. This joint
shows the tensile strength performance
about of 86% as considered the base
metal. Macroscopic and microstructural
examinations show that this joint does not
present any obvious weld defect. Four mi-
crostructural zones were identified in the
joints. These are unaffected base metal,
heat-affected zone having coarse grains,
thermomechanically affected zone con-
sisting of plastically deformed and elon-
gated grains, and recrystallized weld
nugget zone. The microhardness profile
did not display a softened heat-affected
zone when considered the base metal. The
highest hardness value of approximately
82 HV was measured in the WNZ in this
weld.
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