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Pre-hole friction stir spot welding of dual-phase steels and comparison with resistance spot welding, conventional and pinless friction stir spot welding

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Abstract

This study investigates pre-hole FSSW to join DP590 and DP780 steels, commonly employed in the automotive sector. The primary objective is the elimination of the hook defect, which affects FSSW joints made with conventional truncated conical tools. Additionally, it investigates the influence of the alloy position in the sheet stack on joint strength and makes a comparative analysis with conventional and pinless FSSW and RSW. Microstructure and mechanical strength of joints were examined. Tensile tests were conducted and compared with AWS D8.1M standard. Cost analysis was performed considering the indirect cost of the welding machine, operator labor cost, direct cost of the welding tool/electrode, electricity cost, and cost of the pre-hole. All FSSW joints met the strength requirements of AWS D8.1M (over 11 kN). Steel position affected dissimilar joint strength. Considering the best results, the conventional FSSW joints had a strength of 18 kN when DP780 was the lower sheet, while pinless FSSW joints 25 kN and pre-hole FSSW joints 26.5 kN when DP780 was the upper sheet. Pinless and pre-hole FSSW improved strength by eliminating the keyhole defect. RSW remains the most economical joining technology to realize spot welds (0.02 € per spot weld), but pinless FSSW offers joints with higher strength and cost benefits (0.18 € per spot weld).

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included within the article.

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Abbreviations

C W :

Cost to produce one spot with the selected welding technology (€)

C Ind W,  C Ind M :

Indirect cost rate of the selected machine (W = FSSW or RSW, M = machining) (€/h)

γ W,  γ M :

Rate of employment of the machine operator (γ ≤ 1)

C Op W,  C Op M :

Operator labour cost rate (€/h)

t Cycle W,  t Cycle M :

Overall cycle time (W = to weld one spot, M = to machine one welding profile) (h)

C Mat_Tool W,  C Mat_Tool M :

Cost of the entire raw to material (W = to weld, M = to machine) (€)

m Tool_Tip W :

Chips machined to create the welding profile (kg)

m Tool W :

Mass of the entire raw welding tool material (kg)

C M W :

Cost of the machining step to create the welding profile (€)

n :

Number of spots realized with one welding profile (-)

C EE :

Cost of electric energy (€/kWh)

P Ave W,  P Ave M :

Average power demands during the overall cycle time (tCyclei) of the selected machine (kW)

C PH W :

Cost of the pre-hole (only for the PH-FSSW process) (€)

t C M :

Cutting time (h)

T Life :

Life of the cutting tool (h)

C Lub :

Cost of the cutting fluid (€/kg)

q L :

Consumption rate of the cutting fluid (kg/h)

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Funding

This study was supported by J-Tech@PoliTO, an advanced joining technologies research center at Politecnico di Torino (http://www.j-tech.polito.it/).

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  1. Department of Management and Production Engineering, Politecnico Di Torino, Corso Duca Degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Turin, Italy

    Vincenzo Lunetto, Manuela De Maddis & Pasquale Russo Spena

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  1. Vincenzo Lunetto
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Correspondence to Vincenzo Lunetto.

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Lunetto, V., De Maddis, M. & Russo Spena, P. Pre-hole friction stir spot welding of dual-phase steels and comparison with resistance spot welding, conventional and pinless friction stir spot welding. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 129, 2333–2349 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-023-12400-2

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