Metallurgical and Mechanical Properties of Friction Stir-Welded Pure Titanium

Commercially pure titanium (CP-Ti) plates were friction stir welded (FSWed) using a welding tool with a tungsten carbide (WC) pin. The bead-on-plate technique was applied to reduce the effects of welding defects, such as incomplete penetration. Whereas many papers have reported on creep studies of CP-Ti as well as on FSW of CP-Ti, no paper has investigated the creep behavior of a CP-Ti FSW'ed joint. Consequently, the current study focuses on this topic. The current paper, which is part of a broader research project, focuses on the metallurgical processes occurring during the creep of a FSW'ed CP-Ti joint at the temperature range of 550-650 degrees C. Based on the current study and previous results obtained by the authors, it can be concluded that the weld is not the weakest link. In every case, necking and creep fracture occurred in the parent material (PM), rather than either the thermomechanically affected zone (TMAZ) or the stir zone (SZ), indicating that both zones are more creep-resistant than the parent material. Fractography showed that the fracture surface was typical of creep fracture and that the fracture mechanism was microvoid coalescence and also ruled out any preexisting defect. TEM study of broken crept specimens revealed randomly distributed dislocations but no evidence of grain refinement, hence leading to the conclusion that dislocation glide was the dominant creep mechanism. The technological implication of the current study is that the welding process is safe for use as far as its creep properties are concerned.