Tool wear in the friction-stir welding of aluminum alloy 6061+20% Al2O3:: a preliminary study

The tool wear for the friction-stir welding (FSW) of an aluminum alloy 6061 with 20 vol% alumina particle additions was examined. The tool wear in a righ-hand-threaded, carbon steel nib reached a maximum at 1000 rpm counter-clockwise rotation speed where the corresponding, effective wear rate was approximately 0.64%/cm. Above 1000 rpm, the wear rate declined. It was approximately 0.42%/cm at 1500 rpm and 0.56%/cm at 2000 rpm. There was no measurable wear and essentially zero wear rate for the same nib rotating at 1000 rpm for the FSW of a commercially 6061 aluminum alloy.