Abstract

Friction stir welding is a solid-state joining process that has gained acceptable progress in recent years. This method which was first used for welding of aluminum and its alloys is now employed for welding of other materials such as polymers and composites. In this article, friction stir welding has been used for butt joining polypropylene composite plates having 30% glass fiber by weight. The effects of important process parameters such as tool pin geometry, tool rotational speed, work linear speed and tool tilt angle on weld appearance and tensile strength were investigated experimentally. Different tool pin geometries were used to find their effects on weld quality. Using the tool pin which produced the best weld quality, the effects of other process parameters on weld quality were also investigated. The results indicated that tool pin geometry had a significant influence on weld quality and the effects of rotational speed and tilt angle on weld appearance and strength were more than that of work linear speed.

Key words: Friction stir welding, polypropylene composite, glass fiber, weld appearance, tensile strength.

Abbreviation

 UTS, ultimate tensile strength; FSW, friction stir welding; GF, glass fibre;pp, polypropylene.