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In Situ Measurement of the Thermal Contact Resistance of an Al Lap Joint During Braze Processing

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Abstract

A technique was developed, using a laser flash thermal diffusivity apparatus, to measure the thermal contact resistance, R c, of an Al lap joint during braze processing. The method required a determination of the temperature dependence of the thermal diffusivity of the individual Al braze sheets, as well as a two-layer lap joint made from these sheets, under identical conditions. A two-layer modeling method was then used to analyze the above data to determine R c for the lap joint as a function of processing temperature. This in situ analysis of R c for a developing joint during brazing was able to distinguish both solid-state and liquid-phase reactions occurring at the faying surfaces of the joint. Consequently, it represents a powerful, new experimental tool that can be used to investigate the mechanisms of braze joint formation and the thermal properties of a joint as a function of processing condition. In the particular case of this study, the technique demonstrates that the use of a Ni-based fluxless brazing process to join aluminum (Al) sheets, reduced the R c of the lap joint by 100-folds from 1.3 × 10−4 m2 K/W before brazing to 1.35 × 10−6 m2 K/W after brazing.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to gratefully acknowledge the important financial support and in-kind contributions of the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Initiative for Automotive Manufacturing Innovation (IAMI), and Dana Canada Corporation, Oakville, ON. They would also like to thank Peirre Marois at the Novelis Global Technology Centre (NGTC) for his assistance in braze sheet chemical analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada

    Stephen Francis Corbin (Professor), Dennis M. Turriff (Senior Engineer) & Sooky Winkler (Manager)

  2. Department of Civil and Resource Engineering, Dalhousie University, 1360 Barrington Street, P.O. Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada

    Stephen Francis Corbin (Professor)

  3. MEA Forensic Engineers and Scientists, 226 Britannia Road East, Mississauga, ON, L4Z 1S6, Canada

    Dennis M. Turriff (Senior Engineer)

  4. Materials & Joining Technology, Dana Canada Corporation, 656 Kerr St., Oakville, ON, L6K 3E4, Canada

    Mark Kozdras (Manager of the Advanced Materials) & Sooky Winkler (Manager)

  5. Canmet MATERIALS, Natural Resources Canada, 183 Longwood Road South, Hamilton, ON, L8P 0A5, Canada

    Mark Kozdras (Manager of the Advanced Materials)

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  1. Stephen Francis Corbin
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  2. Dennis M. Turriff
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Correspondence to Stephen Francis Corbin.

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Manuscript submitted March 18, 2013.

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Corbin, S.F., Turriff, D.M., Kozdras, M. et al. In Situ Measurement of the Thermal Contact Resistance of an Al Lap Joint During Braze Processing. Metall Mater Trans A 45, 835–842 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-013-1997-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-013-1997-z

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