Optimisation and Microstructural Analysis of Wear Characteristics on Friction Stir Processed 2024 Aluminium Alloy
摘要
Aluminum alloy 2024 is a copper-based alloy that is one of the strongest aluminum alloys. Because of their extraordinary specific strength and machinability, the AA2024 is employed in the aviation sector, particularly in wing skins and fuselage structures, due to its excellent strength-to-weight ratio. The microstructure and characteristics of the processed zone can be managed by optimizing the tool design and FSP parameters. The current effort seeks to determine the optimal range of processing parameters based on wear attributes by altering the tool’s rotational speed, traverse speed, and axial load. The experiment’s process variables include rotational speed ranges of 1000, 1300, and 1600 rpm, traverse speed ranges of 15, 30, and 45 mm/min, and axial loads of 8, 10.25, and 12.5 kN. A cylindrical tool pin made of H13 tool steel with a hardness of 60 HRC was devised and constructed to improve the material flow. The experiment is developed utilizing the Box-Behnken optimization technique, which considers three parameters at three stages. A disk-type wear test apparatus was used to conduct wear tests on the FSPed AA2024 samples to assess their wear rate. The lowest amount of wear rate occurs at the traverse speed of 45 mm/min whereas the highest wear rate occurs at 15 mm/min. The worn surface morphology was examined using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) on the base metal and optimally processed samples in the wear-tested region.