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The effect of weld parameters on friction stir welding of brass plates

Article  in  Materialwissenschaft und Werkstofftechnik · June 2008

DOI: 10.1002/mawe.200800314

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DOI: 10.1002/mawe.200800314
The effect of weld parameters on friction stir
welding of brass plates
More successful results have been obtained in butt- and overlap-
joining of Al-alloy plates by a recently developed solid state joining
technique, namely friction stir welding (FSW), than in more con-
ventional fusion welding processes. In this joining technique, no
fusion takes place in the joint area of the plates welded. This novel
joining method also offers the potential to weld some other materi-
als rather than Al-alloys, such as Mg-alloys, brasses and low
strength steels.
In this study, the applicability of friction stir welding to brasses,
namely 90 %Cu-10 %Zn and 70 %Cu-30 %Zn alloys, has been in-
1 Introduction
Friction stir welding (FSW) is a solid state welding tech-
nique developed and patented at The Welding Institute
(TWI), Abington, U.K., in 1991 [1 – 10]. While the parts to
be welded do not melt in this welding process as it is the
case in other solid state joining processes, it differs from those
processes in that no pressure is applied during joining. In this
process, two plates are clamped on a table and butt-welded by
plunging a rotating tool, which is made of higher melting tem-
perature material, into these plates and traversed along the
length of the plates as shown in Fig. 1 [1 – 10]. During the
process, frictional forces between the tool and plates create
intense local heating that do not melt the plates to be joined,
but plasticize the material around the tool. The tool rotation
causes material transfer around the tool, stirring the plates to-
gether.
It has been well demonstrated that this joining technology
produces low distortion, high quality, low cost welds in Al-
alloys, even for those that are not weldable with conventional
fusion welding processes, thus it is increasingly used in var-
ious industries [1 – 10]. The current industrial applications in-
clude ship panels, the frame of high speed trains, the suspen-
sion of cars and fuel tanks of space crafts. Although the pro-
cess has been well established in joining of low-melting point
Al-alloys, there is a limited data on joining of other materails,
such as Mg-alloys , mild steels [11], Ti-alloys and Cu-alloys
[12, 13].
Brasses are Cu-Zn alloys, containing up to 40 % Zn. The
alloying with Zn increases the strength of Cu by solid solution
strengthening. Zn has a high solid solubility in the a phase,
formed by Cu atoms. Thus, the microstructure of alloys up
to 36 % Zn content consist of a single phase a and known
as a-brasses, while the microstructure of alloys containing
1
Mustafa Kemal University, Faculty of Engineering and Architec-
ture, 31034 Antakya/Hatay, Turkey
2
Abant İzzet Baysal University, Faculty of Engineering and Ar-
chitecture, 14280 Bolu, Turkey
394
Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6
G. Çam1, H. T. Serindağ1, A. Çakan2,
S. Mistikoglu1, H. Yavuz1
vestigated. The joint performance was determined by conducting
optical microscopy, microhardness mesurements and mechanical
testing (e.g. tensile and bend tests). The effect of welding speed
on the joint quality at a given rotational speed of the stirring pin
(i.e. 1600 rpm) was also determined for both alloys. The highest
joint performances were obtained at a welding speed of 210 mm/
min for both alloys.
Keywords: Joining, friction stir welding, brass, Al-alloys, joint
performance
more than 36 % Zn consist of a+b phases. Brasses offer
very useful properties, such as high strength, conductivity,
formability, wear resistance and corrosion performance.
The best combination of ductility and strength is achieved
with 30 % Zn content and, therefore, Cu-30 %Zn alloy pos-
sesses excellent deep drawability.
Several difficulties are encountered in fusion welding of
brasses with conventional joining processes [14], which are:
l Formation of weld surface irregularities.
l Change of colour due to oxidation.
l Insufficient penetration.
l Loss of strength at weld surface due to the formation of
ZnO.
l Loss of strength in fusion zone due to the evaporation of Zn.
l High distortion.
l Necessity of fast heat delivery due to high heat conductiv-
ity.
Almost all of these problems are not expected to be encoun-
tered in friction stir welding, which is a solid state joining
technique. However, as already mentioned above there are
only a few reports thus far concerning the applicability of
this method to brasses [13, 14, 15]. Thus, the objective of
this work to investigate the applicability of this welding tech-
nique to brasses. Moreover, the effects of stir head geometry
and weld traverse speed on the joint performance in two dif-
Figure 1. Schematic illustration of friction stir welding technique
[1 – 10].
F 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
ferent brass plates with different Zn levels, namely 10 % and
30 % Zn, were also studied.
2 Experimental procedure
Two different brass plates with varying Zn-content, namely
90 % Cu-10 % Zn (will be named 90/10 brass hereafter) and
70 % Cu-30 % Zn (will be designated as 70/30 brass here-
after), were friction stir butt-welded. The mechanical proper-
ties of brass plates used in this study are given in Table 1. Both
plates welded in this study were 3 mm thick and fricton stir
welding was performed with a tool rotational speed of
1600 rpm at three different traverse speeds, namely 160,
210 and 260 mm/min, for each brass plate. A slightly conical
tool with threads made of a hot work steel, i.e. X32CrMo3 3,
was used in the joining of both plates. The reason for choosing
a slightly conical tool is to determine whether it is possible to
employ higher rotational and travel speeds in friction stir
welding of brass plates by increasing the surface area of
the tool, thus increasing the frictional heat. Generally, conical
tools are used in friction stir joining of thicker plates. The join-
ing trials were made using a vertical milling machine.
Metallography specimens were extracted from the welded
plates for microstructural observations. Metallography speci-
mens were polished with alumina solution (grain size being
0,3 lm) and then etched using a solution of 50 ml HNO3
and 50 ml distilled water. A detailed microstructural observa-
tion was conducted for each welded plate using optical micro-
scopy to determine the presence of any weld defect. Further-
more, microhardness measurements were conducted on each
welded plate to determine hardness variations across the stir-
red zones.
Moreover, standard flat tensile specimens were extracted
from both base plates and all welded plates (minimum 3 speci-
mens) and tested at room temperature (loading rate being
10 mm/min) to determine the joint performances, Figs. 2
and 3. Two non-standard bending specimens (20 mm wide
and 200 mm long) were also extracted from each welded plate
(Fig. 3), both specimens were bended up to 180 degrees, one
specimen with weld root being outside and the other with weld
Table 1. Mechanical properties of the brass plates used.
Plate Hardness, ‰.2 Proof Tensile Elongation,
HV0,2 Stress, Strength, %
MPa MPa
90 % Cu- 75 139 249 19
10 % Zn
70 % Cu- 80 217 341 17
30 % Zn
Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6 The effect of weld parameters on friction stir welding of brass plates
Figure 2. Tensile specimens (TS) extracted from both base plates.
root inside, to determine whether cracking occurs or not in
both bending conditions.
3 Results and discussion
3.1 Microstructure and microhardness
Optical microscopy revealed that porosity exists only in the
stirred zone (SZ) of the 70/30 brass joints produced with the
highest traverse speed used in this study, i.e. 260 mm/min, at a
tool rotational speed of 1600 rpm, Fig. 4. This indicates that
these welding parameters were not convenient to achieve a
sound stirred zone. On the other hand, no porosity was ob-
served in the SZ of the 70/30 brass joint produced with the
other traverse speeds, i.e. 160 and 210 mm/min, Fig. 5, indi-
cating that these traverse speeds are convenient to obtain a
sound joint at the used rotational speed.
No defects were observed in the stirred zones of all the
joints produced with three different traverse speeds on the
90/10 brass plates, which has a lower strength than the 70/
30 brass plate due to its lowest Zn content, Fig. 6. This result
indicates that the welding window (in terms of traverse speed)
is wider in the lower Zn-content brass plate (i.e. 10 % Zn) than
in the higher Zn-content brass plate (i.e. 30 % Zn) for the used
tool rotational speed, i.e. 1600 rpm.
Microhardness measurement results are summarized in Fig.
7, which illustrates the hardness variations across the weld
zones of the joints obtained in both brass plates with a traverse
speed of 210 mm/min. A slight hardness increase in the stirred
zone of the both joints was determined as seen from this fig-
ure. Similar results were also reported for Cu-40 % Zn brass
plate in the literature [13]. Park et al. [13] observed a more
pronounced hardness increase in the stirred zone of the fric-
tion stir welded 60/40 brass plates (dual phase a+b brass) than
Figure 3. Tensile specimens (TS) and bend specimens
(BS) extracted from the welded plates: a) 70/30 brass
and b) 90/10 brass.
395

Figure 4. Optical microscope showing the porosity in the stirred
zone (SZ) of the 70/30 brass joint obtained with a traverse speed
of 260 mm/min (x20).
that obtained in this work for single phase a brasses. The rea-
son for this is the much higher traverse speed they used in their
work (i.e. 500 to 2000 mm/min at tool rotational speeds of
1000 and 1500 rpm), resulting in a much finer grain size in
the stirred zone due to lower heat input in higher traverse
speeds. On the other hand, Lee and Jung [12] reported that
a hardness decrease in the stirred zone of pure copper may
also take place when lower traverse speeds (i.e. 61 mm/min
at a tool rotational speed of 1250 rpm) are used.
396 G. Çam, H. T. Seridağ, A. Çakan, S. Mistikoglu, H. Yavuz
3.2 Joint performance
Tensile test results of the specimens extracted from base
plates and friction stir welded plates and the joint efficiency
values obtained are summarized in Tables 2 and 3 for the 90/
10 and 70/30 brasses, respectively.
Figures 8 and 9 illustrate the comparison of the stress-strain
curves of the specimens extracted from the base plates and the
welded plates for both brass types used in this study. As seen
from Fig. 8b, Fig. 10 and Table 2, the best combination of
mechanical properties was obtained from the joint produced
with a traverse speed of 210 mm/min at the tool rotational
used (i.e. 1600 rpm) for the 90/10 brass plate. The specimens
extracted from this joint produced with a traverse speed of
210 mm/min failed within the base material side outside
the stirred zone. Microhardness measurements are in accor-
dance with these results, Fig. 7a.
Thus, the highest strength performance, i.e. 101 % (the
same as that of the base plate), was obtained for the 90/10
brass joint produced with a traverse speed of 210 mm/min, Ta-
ble 2. The highest joint performance in terms of ductility was
also obtained from the joint produced with this travel speed.
However, the highest ductility performance was 85 %, indicat-
ing that the ductility of the joint is lower than that of the base
plate. The reason for this is the inhomogeneous plastic defor-
mation of the joint due to a slight hardness increase in the stir-
red zone. These joint performance values are reasonably high,
indicating that the joint quality is sufficient. The joints pro-
duced with the other traverse speeds (i.e. 160 and 260 mm/
min) also exhibited acceptable levels of joint performance va-
Figure 5. Optical microscope showing the stirred zone
(SZ) of the 70/30 brass joint obtained with a traverse
speed of 210 mm/min. (Note the absence of the porosity
in the SZ)
Figure 6. Optical microscope showing the stirred zone
(SZ) of the 90/10 brass joint obtained with a traverse
speed of 210 mm/min. (Note the absence of the porosity
in the SZ)
Figure 7. Hardness profiles of the joints: a) 90/10 brass
joint (210 mm/min) and b) 70/30 brass joint (210 mm/
min)
Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6
Table 2. Tensile test results of the base-plate and welded-plate specimens for the 90/10 brass.

Specimen 0,2 % Proof Tensile Elongation, % Strength Performance Ductility Performance

Stress, MPa Strength, MPa (SP*), % (DP**), %

Base Plate 140; 139; 137 250; 249; 248 18; 20; 19 __ __
(139) (249) (19)
FSW (160 mm/min 139; 138 239; 236 11; 11 96; 95 57; 56
at 1600 rpm) 136; 133 235; 222 11; 9 94; 89 56; 48
(137) (233) (11) (94) (54)
FSW (210 mm/min 142; 144 251; 252 15; 16 101; 101 78; 86
at 1600 rpm) 144; 143 252; 253 17; 16 101; 102 91; 82
(143) (252) (16) (101) (84)
FSW (260 mm/min 142; 138 251; 248 15; 15 101; 100 81; 76
at 1600 rpm) 136; 134 245; 239 14; 12 98; 96 73; 64
(138) (246) (14) (99) (74)
* SP=rt (weld)/rt (base plate average)x100
** DP=%Elongation(weld)/%Elongation (base plate average)x100
Bold numbers in parathesis indicate the average values

Table 3. Tensile test results of the base-plate and welded-plate specimens for the 70/30 brass.

Specimen 0,2 % Proof Tensile Elongation, % Strength Performance Ductility Performance

Stress, MPa Strength, MPa (SP*), % (DP**), %

Base Plate 216; 208; 226 339; 334; 351 17; 16; 17 __ __
(217) (341) (17)
FSW (160 mm/min 150; 160 312; 314 9; 15 91; 92 53; 88
at 1600 rpm) 163; 190 339; 351 16; 17 99; 103 94; 100
(166) (329) (14) (96) (84)
FSW (210 mm/min 211; 209; 428 349; 317; 535 12; 8; 7 102; 93; 157 74; 47; 39
at 1600 rpm) (283) (400) (9) (117) (53)
FSW (260 mm/min 234; 252; 245 312; 363; 323 2; 6; 2 91; 106; 95 11; 35; 15
at 1600 rpm) (244) (333) (3) (97) (20)
* SP=rt (weld)/rt (base plate average)x100
** DP=%Elongation(weld)/%Elongation (base plate average)x100
Bold numbers in parathesis indicate the average values

lues. It was also observed in this study that the tool geometry
has a significant effect on the weld parameters. By using a
slightly conical tool instead of cylindrical one, a combination
of higher rotational and travel speeds can be employed for
achieving sound joints in friction stir welding of 90/10 brass
plate.
The best combination of tensile performances for the 70/30
brass plate was also achieved with the traverse speed of
210 mm/min at the rotational speed used, Fig. 9b, Fig. 10a
and Table 3. The strength performance of this joint was
120 % and the ductility performance was 55 %, which is quite
low compared to that obtained for the 90/10 brass joint, i.e.
85 %. The reason for this is the inhomogeneous plastic defor-
mation of the joint due to a slight hardness increase in the stir-
red zone (i.e. strength overmatching) and also possibly the
presence of some porosity in the weld zone. Similarly, lower
ductility performances (i.e. down to 35 %) were also reported
for friction stir welded Cu-40 % Zn brass plate in the literature
[13]. This low ductility performance is typical for strength-
overmatching joints (i.e. higher strength fusion zone). There
are several reports on the performance of the strength-over-
matching joints exhibiting lower elongation values compared
to the base material counterparts in the literature [16 – 18].
There is some scatter in the mechanical test results of the
70/30 brass joints. The reason for this is the poorer quality of
the 70/30 brass joints produced at the rotational speed used
due to the presence of some porosity in the weld regions.
The joint performance values achieved with traverse speeds
of 160 and 210 mm/min are reasonably high for the 70/30
brass plate, indicating that the joint quality is sufficient, Table
3 and Fig. 10b. The ductility performance of the joint pro-
duced with the traverse speed of 160 mm/min is higher
than that obtained with the traverse speed of 210 mm/min.
However, the ductility of one specimen extracted from the
70/30 brass joint produced with a traverse speed of
160 mm/min was unacceptably low, Fig. 9a and Table 3.
Furthermore, the 70/30 brass joint produced with a traverse
speed of 260 mm/min exhibited unacceptable levels of joint
performance values. The reason for the low joint performance
values in the case of the joints produced with traverse speeds
of 160 and 260 mm/min is apparently the presence of porosity
in the stirred zone, Fig. 4.
The results of bending tests conducted are also in accor-
dance with the tensile test results. The cracking was only ob-
served in the bend test of the 70/30 brass joint produced with
the traverse speed of 260 mm/min in the test condition with

Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6 The effect of weld parameters on friction stir welding of brass plates 397
Figure 8. Comparison of stres-strain curves obtained from the 90/10 brass base plate and joints produced with different traverse speeds:
a) 160 mm/min, b) 210 mm/min, and c) 260 mm/min. (BM = Base Material)

Figure 9. Comparison of stress-strain curves obtained from the 70/30 brass base plate and joints produced with different traverse speeds:
a) 160 mm/min, b) 210 mm/min, and c) 260 mm/min. (BM = Base Material)

Figure 10. Summary of tensile test results (tool rotational speed being 1600 rpm): a) 90/10 brass joint and b) 70/30 brass joint.

the weld root outside. This is apparently due to the presence of
porosity within the stirred zone in the vicinity of the weld root,
Fig. 4. On the other hand, no cracking was observed for the
same joint in the bend testing with the weld root inside owing
to the fact that the shielding of porosity takes place in this test
condition. The bend specimens extracted from other joints ex-
hibited no cracking during the bend tests in both testing con-
dition, indicating that the joints are sound.
4 Conclusions
The following conclusions have been drawn from the pre-
sent study:
l Both brass plates investigated in this work (i.e. 90 % Cu-
10 % Zn and 70 % Cu-30 % Zn) were reasonably friction
stir butt-joined using a slightly conical tool. The 90/10 brass

398 G. Çam, H. T. Seridağ, A. Çakan, S. Mistikoglu, H. Yavuz Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6
 joints exhibited mechanical properties as good as those of
the base plate. However, using a slightly conical tool to in-
crease the rotational speed (thus the travel speed) failed to
produce sound joints for the higher Zn-content brass, i.e.
30 % Zn. Lower tool rotational speeds are expected to pro-
duce sound joints in the 70/30 brass plate with a wider range
of traverse speed.
l Formation of porosity in the stirred zone was only observed
in the 70/30 brass plate joints produced with traverse speeds
of 160 and 260 mm/min, indicating that these travel speeds
are insufficient to produce sound joints at the rotational
speed used, i.e. 1600 rpm.
l With the slightly conical tool used, a wider range of traverse
speeds resulted in sound joints in the 90/10 brass plate than
in the 70/30 brass plate at the rotational speed of 1600 rpm.
l Thus, the results obtained from the present work indicate
that a combination of higher rotational and travel speeds
can be employed for friction stir weld the lower Zn-content
brass.
l The best combination of strength and ductility perfor-
mances was obtained from the joints produced with a tra-
verse speed of 210 mm/min at the tool rotational speed of
1600 rpm used for both brass plates studied in this work.
l The results suggest that lower tool rotational speeds (i.e.
higher heat input) may be used to improve the joint perfor-
mances, particularly the ductility performance, for the 70/
30 brass plate.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the
Scientific Research Projects Unit of Mustafa Kemal Univer-
sity, Hatay, Turkey, for partially financing this work (project
number: 06 D 0202). We are also indebted to ÖZER Metal
A.Ş. (İstanbul) for the supply of brass plates used in this
work. Thanks are also due to the companies, namely Ekmekçi
Makine A.Ş., (Antakya), HAZ Metal A.Ş. (İskenderun), and
YETİŞEN Plastik Eşya İmalat Sanayi ve Ticaret Ltd. Şti. (An-
takya) for their contributions to the experimental work. We
would also like to thank Dr. M. Kemal SANGÜN, Dr. Ekrem
AKTOKLU, Mr. Halit ATAOĞLU and Mr. Hidayet DUMAN
from Mustafa Kemal University for their help in the experi-
ments.
Mat.-wiss. u. Werkstofftech. 2008, 39, No. 6 The effect of weld parameters on friction stir welding of brass plates
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Received in final form: March 7, 2008 [T 314]
399