| Abstract Scope |
Advanced materials are increasingly chosen by the automotive industry specifically for the construction of vehicle structures in an effort to achieve energy savings while supporting safety criteria. Attractive candidates to address these interests by the automotive industry are advanced high strength steels (AHSS) and aluminum alloys. Improved ductility, high crashworthiness, and increased strength are all attributed to AHSS. Furthermore, aluminum alloys offer strength and lightweighting to body-in-white designs. Despite these advantages, both of these materials see energy absorption issues during resistance spot welding (RSW). For AHSS-to-AHSS spot welds, limited toughness is observed. Al-to-AHSS spot welds encounter decreases in the strength of the joints due to intermetallic (IMC) formation. Using a well-informed scientific approach, interlayers were selected to improve the weldability of these materials. This approach acts to alter the material’s chemistry for toughness, prevent or minimize IMC formation, induce changes in the RSW process itself, and promote mechanical interlocking. |