| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T23: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
Advanced Joining Technologies for Automotive Lightweight Structures
|
| Presentation Title |
Lightweight Welds of Armor Steels Using Friction Stir Welding |
| Author(s) |
Jhoan Sebastian Guzman, Paul Lida, Martin McDonnell, Antonio Ramirez |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Jhoan Sebastian Guzman |
| Abstract Scope |
Rolled Homogeneous Armor (RHA) and High Hardness Armor (HHA) Steels are hardenable materials used in the armor industry due to their high strength and ballistic performance. In this work, process development was done in plates of ¼ in thickness using Friction Stir Welding (FSW) to find a free defect process window. FSW was used due to the possibility of obtaining lightweight welds and the opportunity to mitigate the softening by reducing the heat-affected zone (HAZ) and the heat input. Welds were metallographically characterized and microhardness testing was used and related to the nugget zone. Also, ballistic testing was performed. It was possible to find a free defect process window using different controls during welding, however, micrographs and microhardness mapping indicated softening of the weld. So, thermal management was applied. Finally, ballistic testing results were promising when compared to arc-based welding processes. |