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The following thesis is a study on the ability to create acceptable welds in thin-plate, ultra-high-strength steels (UHSS) by way of friction stir welding (FSW). Steels are welded together to create tailor-welded blanks (TWB) for use in the automotive industry. Dual Phase (DP) 590, 780, and 980 steel as well as Transformation-Induced Plasticity (TRIP) 590 steel with thicknesses ranging from 1.2 mm to 1.8 mm were welded using friction stir welding under a variety of processing conditions, including experiments with dissimilar thicknesses. Samples were tested under tensile loads for initial determination if an acceptable weld had been created. Acceptable welds were created in both TRIP 590 and DP 590 at speeds up to 102 centimeters-per-minute. No acceptable welds were created in the DP 780 and DP 980 materials. A series of microhardness measurements were taken across weld samples to gain understanding as to the causes of failure. These data indicate that softening, caused by both excessive heat and insufficient heat can result in weld failure. Not enough heat causes the high concentration of martensite in these materials to temper while too much heat can cause excessive hardening in the weld, through the formation of even more martensite, which tends to promote failure mode during forming operations. Laser welding is one of the leading methods for creating tailor-welded blank. Therefore, laser welded samples of each material were tested and compared to Friction Stir Welded samples. Lower strength and elongation are measured in weld failure while the failure location itself determines the success of a weld. In short, an acceptable weld is one that breaks outside the weld nugget and Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) and where the tensile strength (both yield and ultimate) along with the elongation are comparable to the base material. In unacceptable welds, the sample broke in the weld nugget or HAZ while strength and elongations were well below those of the base material samples.

The present study focuses on developing a relationship between process variables, mechanical properties and post weld microstructure in Friction Stir Welded HSLA 65 steel. Fully consolidated welds can be produced in HSLA 65 steel by PCBN Convex-Scrolled-Shoulder-Step-Spiral (CS4) tool over a wide range of parameters. Microstructures in the nugget center (NC) are dominated by lath bainite and a few polygonal/allotriomorphic grain boundary ferrites. FSW dependent variables are related to FSW independent variables by non-linear relationship. Heat input is identified to be the best parameter index to correlate with microstructures. With increasing heat input, the volume of bainite is reduced, the shape of bainite is more curved and grain/lath size become coarser. A linear relationship was established between heat input and semi-quantitative post-weld microstructures based on the optical microstructures. Further analysis has been applied on the NC to obtain more fundamental understanding of FSW. The new approach via Orientation Imaging Microscopy (OIM) was developed to acquire quantitative microstructural data including bainite lath/packet and prior austenite grain size (PAG). A linear relationship between heat input and quantitative microstructural features in the NC have been established. Mechanical properties exhibits linear relationship with heat input. These correlations can be utilized to determine FSW weld parameter to get desired mechanical properties welds.

High strength low alloy (HSLA) steels have been developed to simultaneously have high yield strength and high fracture toughness. However, in practical applications steel must be welded. Traditional arc welding has proven detrimental to the fracture toughness of HSLA steels. Friction stir welding has recently shown mixed results in welding HSLA steels. The range of welding parameters used in these recent studies however has been very limited. With only a few welding parameters tested, the effect of spindle speed, travel speed, and heat input on the fracture toughness of friction stir welded HSLA steel remains unknown. To understand how the friction stir welding process parameters affect fracture toughness, double sided welds in API X80 were performed and analyzed. Results show that at room temperature friction stir welded API X80 exceeded industry minimum fracture toughness requirements in both the API Standard 1104 and DNV-OS-F101 by 143% and 62%, respectively. The process parameters of spindle speed and HI have been shown to effectively control the fracture toughness of the stir zone. Relationships have been established that show that fracture toughness increased by 85% when spindle speed decreased by 59% and heat input decreased by 46%.

Mechanical properties of structural materials are highly correlated to their microstructure. The relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties can be established experimentally. The growing need for structural materials in industry promotes the study of microstructural evolution of materials by design using computational approaches. This thesis presents the microstructural evolution of two different structural materials. The first uses a genetic algorithm approach to study the microstructural evolution of a high-temperature nickel-based oxide-dispersion-strengthened (ODS) alloy. The chosen Ni-20Cr ODS system has nano Y2O3 particles for dispersion strengthening and submicron Al2O3 for composite strengthening. Synergistic effects through the interaction of small dispersoids and large reinforcements improved high-temperature strength. Optimization considered different weight factors on low temperature strength, ductility, and high temperature strength. Simulation revealed optimal size and volume fraction of dispersoids and reinforced particles. Ni-20Cr-based alloys were developed via mechanical alloying for computational optimization and validation. The Ni-20Cr-1.2Y2O3-5Al2O3 alloy exhibited significant reduction in the minimum creep rate (on the order of 10-9 s-1) at 800oC and 100 MPa. The second considers the microstructural evolution of AA 7050 alloy during friction stir welding (FSW). Modeling the FSW process includes thermal, material flow, microstructural and strength modeling. Three-dimensional material flow and heat transfer model was developed for friction stir welding process of AA 7050 alloy to predict thermal histories and extent of deformation. Peak temperature decreases with the decrease in traverse speed at constant advance per revolution, while the increase in tool rotation rate enhances peak temperature. Shear strain is higher than the longitudinal and transverse strain for lower traverse speed and tool rotation rate; whereas for higher traverse speed and tool rotation rate, shear and normal strain acquire similar values. Precipitation distribution simulation using TC-PRISMA predicts the presence of η' and η in the as-received AA 7050-T7451 alloy and mostly η in the friction stir welded AA7050 alloy, which results in the lower predicted strength of friction stir welded alloy. Further, development of modeling assists in process optimization and innovation, and enhances the progression rate. Accelerating the development process requires coupling experimental methods with predictive modeling. The overall purpose of this work was to develop an integrated computational model with predictive capabilities. In the present work, an application tool to predict thermal histories during FSW of AA7050 was developed using COMSOL software.

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[pt] A união de materiais por soldagem é um dos processos mais utilizados na fabricação de estruturas. A soldagem traz maior confiabilidade, segurança ao projeto e resistência mecânica das uniões. Atualmente, diversas indústrias, tais como aeronáutica e automotiva, têm procurando utilizar materiais de baixa densidade e alta resistência mecânica, como as ligas de magnésio e de alumínio. Porém, estas ligas dificultam o processo de união através da soldagem convencional, que tem no seu principal fundamento a fusão do material, por possuírem baixa soldabilidade. Nas ligas de Mg e de Al há a formação uma camada de óxido que precisa ser removida durante o processo de soldagem, além de apresentarem grande susceptibilidade a geração de defeitos, tais como trincas e poros durante o processo de resfriamento da solda. A soldagem por fricção ou por mistura mecânica (FSW) foi desenvolvida como uma alternativa às técnicas de soldagem e uso mais comum existente na indústria, pois esta técnica elimina a fusão do material reduzindo, assim, os defeitos que surgiriam com a soldagem convencional. Por ser uma solda de estado sólido, tem a possibilidade de unir materiais dissimilares, polímeros, compósitos, ligas ferrosas e não ferrosas. O presente trabalho buscou avaliar parâmetros de soldagem variando a velocidade de soldagem (ν) e velocidade de rotação da ferramenta (ômega) utilizando uma ferramenta com rosca. Foram analisados o torque e as forças presentes no processo. Os resultados foram comparados com os resultados obtidos com uma ferramenta de soldagem sem rosca. A qualidade da solda foi correlacionada com os parâmetros de soldagem utilizados por meio de ensaios de dureza e tomografia. Foi concluído que a ferramenta com rosca gera defeito de túnel e demanda maior energia do processo em relação ao torque e à força axial. O comportamento das forças envolvidas no processo foi o mesmo para ambas as geometrias de ferramenta. A microdureza ao longo do eixo neutro mostrou a mudança entre a zona de mistura, zona termicamente afetada e o metal de base. / [en] The joining of materials by welding is the process most used in the fabrication of structures. Welding brings greater reliability, safety to the design and mechanical strength of the joints. Today, many industries, such as aeronautics and automotive, are looking to use low density and high mechanical strength materials such as magnesium and aluminum alloys. However, these alloys hinder the bonding process through conventional welding, which has in its main foundation the melting of the material, because they have low weldability. In Mg and Al alloys there is a layer of oxide that needs to be removed during the welding process, besides being very susceptible to the generation of defects, such as cracks and pores during the process of cooling the weld. Friction stir welding (FSW) was developed as an alternative to most commonly used in industry welding techniques, as this technique eliminates melting of the material thus reducing defects that would arise with conventional welding. To being a solid state weld, it has the possibility of joining dissimilar materials, polymers, composites, ferrous and non-ferrous alloys. The present work seeked to evaluate welding parameters by varying the welding speed (ν) and tool rotation (omega) using a threaded tool. The torque and forces were analyzed and the results will be compared with the results obtained with a threadless welding tool. The quality of the weld will be correlated with the welding parameters used by means of hardness test and tomography. It was concluded that the threaded tool generates tunnel defect and demands higher process energy. The behavior of the forces involved in the process was the same for both tool geometries. The microhardness along the neutral axis showed the clear the change between the mixing zone, thermally affected zone and the base metal.

Ceramic metal matrix composites (CMMCs) are materials generally created by mixing of hard ceramic particles in a metal matrix. They were expected to combine the ductility and toughness of the metal with the high strength and elastic modulus of the ceramic. MMCs have potential applications in automotive, aeronautical and aerospace industries. Hence, a simple and economical method for fabricating MMCs is an area of intense research. In MMCs, damage evolution starts preferentially at particle matrix interface or at particle clusters in the matrix. This is due to the different physical and mechanical properties of the particle and matrix. Higher local particle volume content leads to higher stress triaxiality making it a preferential site for damage nucleation. Problems with lowering of ductility, fatigue, fracture and impact resistance, agglomeration of ceramic phase and issues related to the predictability of properties of MMCs have been the major issues that have limited their use. In order to overcome some of these shortcomings, the use of nano particles has been attracting increasing attention. The reason is their capability in improving the mechanical and physical properties of traditional MMCs. The dispersion of a nanoscale ceramic phase is needed in order to overcome the problems related to fatigue, fracture toughness, and creep behaviour at high temperatures. However, manufacturing costs, preparation of nano composites and environmental concerns have to be addressed. Agglomeration of nano particles, when produced by the melt stir casting route, the primary route to produce MMCs, is a serious issue that limits the use of nano-particles to produce MMCs with good properties. To avoid agglomeration of the ceramic phase MMCs/nano MMCs have been produced through the powder metallurgy route. Agglomeration is avoided as this is a solid state process. Secondary processing, such as extrusion and rolling are often needed to fully consolidate materials produced in this manner. A high extrusion ratio is often required to get MMCs without porosity. A new method of making nano-ceramic MMC using a polymer derived ceramics (PDC) has been reported. A polymer derived ceramic is a material that converts itself into a ceramic when heated above a particular temperature. In the PDC method a polymer precursor is dispersed in the metal and then converted in-situ to a ceramic phase. A feature of this process is that all the constituents of the ceramic phase are built into the organic molecules of the precursor (e.g., polysilazanes contain silicon, carbon, and nitrogen); therefore, a reaction between the polymer and the host metal or air is not required to produce the ceramic phase. The polymer can be introduced through casting or powder metallurgy route. In the casting route, the polymer powder is directly added to molten metal and pyrolyzed in-situ to create castings of metal-matrix composites. These composites have shown better properties at elevated temperatures but the problem of agglomeration of particles due to Van der Waal's forces and porosity still remains. In the powder method, the organic precursor was milled with copper powder and then plasma sprayed to produce a metal matrix composite. It is reported that these composites retains its mechanical strength close to the melting point of the copper. However, getting a nano sized distribution is difficult through this route as the plasma spray route is a melting and solidification method. Solid state processing by powder metallurgy is possibly a better method to produce well dispersed nano-MMCs. However, powder metallurgy routes are much more expensive and only parts of limited sizes can be produced by this method. Another solid state process Friction Stir Processing (FSP) has successfully evolved as an alternative technique to fabricating metal matrix composites. FSP is based on the principles of Friction Stir Welding (FSW). In FSW, a rotating tool with a pin and a shoulder is inserted into the material to be joined, and traversed along the line of the joint. The friction between the tool and the work piece result in localized heating that softens and plasticizes the material. During production of MMCs using FSP method, the material undergoes intense plastic deformation resulting in mixing of ceramic particles and the metal. FSP also results in significant grain refinement of the metal and has also been used to homogenize the microstructure. FSP technology has also been used to fabricate surface/bulk composites of Al-SiC, friction stir surfacing of cast aluminum silicon alloy with boron carbide and molybdenum disulphide powders and to produce ultra-fine grained Cu-SiC composites. A major problem in the FSP of MMCs is severe tool wear that results from abrasion with hard ceramic particles. The progressive wear of the tool has been reported to increase the likelihood of void or defect development. This change in geometry has been reported in the friction stir welding of several MMCs. The problems concerning the tool life has become a serious issue in the application of FSP for producing MMCs. In the present work the advantages of the PDC method and FSP have been combined to produce polymer derived nano ceramic MMCs. This method mainly consists of three steps. In the first step, a polymer, which pyrolysis to form a PDC at temperatures lower than the melting point of the metal, is dispersed in the metal by FSP. This step is different from the melt route where the PDC forms at temperatures above the melting point of the metal. In the second step, external pyrolysis of the polymer dispersed material is carried out. Since this is a solid state process at stresses much higher than the shear or fracture of the polymer is expected to get evenly and finely distribution in the metal. This is done by heating the polymer dispersed material to a temperature above the pyrolysation temperature of the ceramic but lower than the melting point of the metal matrix. It should be mentioned that some pyrolysis of the polymer is possible during the FSP process itself. In the third step FSP is carried out on the pyrolised material for removing porosity that would form due to gas evolution during pyrolysis and to get a more uniform dispersion of polymer derived ceramic particles in the matrix. This method will produce nano-scale metal matrix composites with a relatively high volume fraction of the ceramic phase. This method can be extended to big sheets or a particular region in a sheet with no or low wear of tools. The material selected for the present study were pure Copper (99.9%) and Nickel Aluminum Bronze (NAB) copper alloy. The polymer precursor was poly (urea methyl vinyl) silazane, which is available commercially as CERASET. The polymer consists of silicon, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen atoms. The liquid precursor was thermally cross-linked into a rigid polymer, which was milled into a powder. This powder, having angular shaped particles of an average size of 10 µm, was used as the reinforcement. The polysilazanes convert into a highly refractory and amorphous ceramic upon pyrolysis and is known as polymer-derived silicon carbonitride which consists principally of silicon, carbon and nitrogen. The in-situ process is feasible because copper melts above the temperature at which the organic phase begins to pyrolise. The polysilazanes pyrolise in the temperature range of 973 to 1273 K, which lie below the melting temperature of copper, 1356K.The precursor has a density of approximately 1 gcm-3 in the organic phase and approximately 2 gcm-3 in the ceramic state. In the present work, we seek to introduce approximately 20 vol% of the ceramic phase into copper. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the developed copper-based in-situ polymer derived nano MMCs have been characterized in detail to understand the distribution of particles. The microstructure of the as received, processed as well as the FSP composite material was characterized using Optical Microscope (OM), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Electron Probe Micro Analyzer (EPMA) and Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). OM and SEM microstructural observations show that PDC particles are distributed uniformly with a bimodal (submicron+micron) distribution. In addition, TEM micrographs reveal the formation of very fine PDC particles of diameter 10-30 nm. X-ray diffraction and Thermo-gravimetric analysis confirms the presence of ceramic phase (Si3N4/SiC) in the matrix. Significant improvement in mechanical properties of the FSP PD-MMCs has been observed. This in-situ formed Cu/PDC composites show five times increase in micro-hardness (260Hv - 2.5GPa) compared to processed copper base metal and in-situ NAB/PDC composite shows two times increase in micro-hardness (325Hv- 3.2GPa) compared to NAB matrix. The Cu-PDC composites exhibited better tensile strength at room temperature. In-situ formed Cu-PDC composite’s yield strength increased from 110MPa to 235MPa as compared to processed base metal, where as ultimate tensile strength increases from 246MPa to 312MPa compared to processed base metal at room temperature. This strengthening could be attributed to the presence of in-situ formed hard phases and the concomitant changes in the microstructure of the matrix material such as reduction in grain size and contribution from Orowan strengthening. In the present work, we have observed tool wear by observing tool after each FSP pass and apart from producing a significantly harder material with higher elastic modulus, possibly for the first time, the issue of tool wear has been overcome. This is due to the fact that the composite is made by the polymer route and that the ceramic fractures easily till it reaches the nano-size. Wear studies of this composite was carried out in a pin-on-disc machine by sliding a pin made from the composite against an alumina disc. The wear rate of the FSP PD-MMC composites increased from 1.63×10-5 to 5.72×10-6 mm3/Nm. Improved wear resistance could be attributed to the presence of the in-situ formed hard nano-phase.