In both aeronautic and automobile related industries, development and application of light-weighted metallic alloys have been pursued with the intention of reducing product weight and consequent fuel consumption. Due to their dimension and structural requirements, components and sections from airplanes and automobiles are produced through fusion-based welding processes. Still, solid-state based joining processes are preferable because they avoid defects intrinsic to fusion, and have therefore been an object of study in the last couple of decades. The objective of this work was the characterization of a friction stir welded (FSW) butt-joint of aluminum alloy 2198-T851 in tailored blanks configuration (sheets with different thicknesses). The methodology in which characterization was based involved the study of mechanical properties, through tensile tests and cross-section microhardness profiles determination, and the comprehension of the relation between microstructural changes caused by the welding process and resulting properties was sought. It was concluded that, due to metallurgical phenomena induced by the welding process, microstructural changes such as grain refinement, work-hardening and dissolution/formation of second phases as precipitates granted the attainment of a weld whose mechanical properties in tension (except elongation) equaled or exceeded those of base material, showing the feasibility of using the FSW parameters considered in this work.
FSW; Friction Stir Welding; Aluminum Alloy 2198-T851; Tailored Blanks; Welding
