2005-01-1248

Friction Stir Spot Welding of Advanced High-Strength Steels –

A Feasibility Study
Z. Feng, M. L. Santella, and S. A. David
Metals and Ceramic Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

R.J. Steel and S. M. Packer

MegaStir Technologies

T Pan
Ford Research and Advanced Engineering, Ford Motor Company

M. Kuo and R. S. Bhatnagar

Ispat Inland Inc

Copyright © 2005 SAE International

ABSTRACT So far, the majority of the research and development

efforts on FSSW have been on aluminum alloys.
An exploratory study was conducted to investigate the Because Al alloys are easy to deform at relatively low
feasibility of friction stir spot welding advanced high- temperatures (below about 550°C) they are relatively
strength steel sheet metals. The fixed pin approach was easy to friction stir weld. Indeed, the development of
used to weld 600MPa dual phase steel and 1310MPa FSSW for Al alloys has been quite successful. Mazda
martensitic steel. A single tool, made of polycrystalline reported the first application of FSSW on its 2003 RX-8,
cubic boron nitride, survived over one hundred welding a mass production car. The entire Al rear door was
trials without noticeable degradation and wear. Solid- friction stir spot welded [4]. Other auto companies also
state metallurgical bonding was produced with welding announced introduction of FSSW to weld Al body parts.
time in the range of 2 to 3 seconds, although the
bonding ligament width was relatively small. The Two distinctive variants of the FSSW process have been
microstructures and hardness variations in the weld reported in the open literature [5-8]. The first approach,
regions are discussed. The results from tensile-shear used by Mazda, employs a fixed pin tool geometry [5,7].
and cross-tensile tests are also presented. The protruded pin leaves a characteristic exit hole in the
middle of the joint. The second approach [8] utilizes
delicate relative motions of the pin and the shoulder to
INTRODUCTION refill the pin hole. Based on the information available,
the second approach would require relatively long
Friction stir spot welding (FSSW) is a new process that processing time to accommodate the complex motions
recently has received considerable attention from the of the tool to fill the hole. In comparison, the fixed pin
automotive and other industries [1]. A novel variant of approach is very fast. For Al alloys, a weld can be made
the “linear” friction stir welding (FSW) process, FSSW in less than one second [7]. Also, the welding machine
creates a spot, lap-weld without bulk melting. The and control system for the fixed pin approach is simple
appearance of the resulting weld resembles that of a and easy to integrate on a high-volume mass production
resistance spot weld commonly used for auto-body assembly line. Mazda reported over 90 percent
assembly. The solid-state bonding and other features of operation energy savings and over 40 percent capital
the process makes it inherently attractive for body investment reductions when compared to the
assembly and other similar applications. Today’s conventional resistance spot welding of Al alloys.
primary welding process for auto body structure
assembly – the electric resistance spot welding (RSW) Today, steel is still the primary material for body
process – can be problematic for many new high- structures of high-volume mass-produced cars by all
performance light weight structural materials such as Al major car makers. The great emphasis on safety and
alloys and advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) [2,3]. vehicle weight reduction to improve fuel efficiency has
been driving the increased use of AHSS in automobile
body construction. However, welding AHSS presents
some unique technical challenges to both the steel
suppliers and the auto end-users. Data available so far
have indicated that resistance spot welding of AHSS
with the welding practices developed for conventional
mild steels may not be the preferred approach to
achieve the full benefits of AHSS. The biggest
technology barrier inhibiting the use of RSW for AHSS is
the profound weld property degradation [2, 9-11]. Due
to the extremely high cooling rate in RSW, the weld
nugget region of AHSS would develop highly brittle
microstructures and is prone to solidification related weld
cracks/defects. Such problems tend to be more
prominent in higher grade AHSS with relatively high
carbon and alloying element contents such as DP1000,
Martensitic, and TRIP steels. The shortened electrode
life is another major issue for RSW of AHSS because of
the chemical reaction between the Zn coating and the
copper electrode and high welding force. Alternative
welding processes that minimize the weld property
degradation without adversely affecting the productivity
of body assembling would be extremely important to fully
realize the advantages of AHSS in structure safety and
fuel efficiency.
Figure 1 Principles of FSSW with fixed pin.
The success of FSSW in Al alloy body structures has led
to tremendous interests in applying the technology to
weld advanced high strength steels. However, past
research and development on linear friction stir welding
have shown that steels are much more difficult to friction EXPERIMENTAL
stir weld than Al alloys [12]. The technical difficulties
stem from the very fundamental aspect of the FSW Two types of uncoated AHSS steels were selected for
process – compared to aluminum alloys, FSW of AHSS this feasibility study. The first one (DP600) was a dual-
must operate at much higher temperatures and it phase steel with nominal strength of 600MPa, and the
requires much higher mechanical loading for plunging second one (M190) was a martensitic steel with nominal
and stirring. These technical difficulties are also strength of 1310MPa. The thickness of the material was
expected for FSSW. The high-volume, high-speed, and 1.6mm. Table 1 provides the chemical composition of
cost-conscious requirements of auto-body assembly the steels.
lines make the development of FSSW even more
challenging. Welding trials were performed on a laboratory friction stir
welding research and development system. Figure 1
This paper presents the results of a feasibility study on illustrates the basic process of the fixed pin approach
FSSW of AHSS. While other forms of FSSW are being used in this study. The welding cycle begins with a
evaluated for welding steels and other high melting rotating tool with a protruded pin plunging into the upper
temperature materials [13], this study was based on the sheet of the lap joint. The plunge load is supported from
fixed pin approach, mainly because of its simplicity and the bottom side with a backing plate or anvil to sustain
relatively short welding time. The study was to explore the plunging load. The heat generated by the rotating
the following: (1) the feasibility of producing FSSW in pin softens the material and facilitates the penetration of
AHSS in a relatively short period of time acceptable to the pin. Much more heat is generated to further soften a
the industry, (2) the possibility of using existing tool large region of the material underneath the tool shoulder
materials for FSSW of AHSS, and (3) the microstructural after the tool shoulder contacts the top surface of the
responses of AHSS to the FSSW process. upper sheet. The softened material is pushed and
stirred to form the metallurgical bond around the rotating
pin. The forge pressure from the tool shoulder also
keeps the interface between the two workpieces in
intimate contact to facilitate the bonding. The tool is
retracted at the end, leaving the characteristic hole in the
Table 1 Steel Chemistry in Wt percent middle of the weld.

C Mn P S Si Cu Ni Mo Cr Cb V Ti
DP600 0.084 0.94 0.011 0.006 0.313 0.02 <0.01 <0.01 0.02 <0.003 0.004 0.004
M-190 0.168 0.4 0.009 0.005 0.169 0.036 0.013 0.003 0.023 <0.003 <0.003 0.034
All welds were made under displacement control mode – RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
the tool was plunged into the material to a pre-
determined depth. For all the tests conducted in this Figure 3 shows the overall cross-sectional views of both
feasibility study, the tool rotation speed was fixed at the M190 weld and DP600 weld made with 2.1 sec
1500 rpm. The total welding time varied from 1.6 sec to welding time. A close-up view in the bonding interface
3.2 sec through changes in the plunge rate. region of the M190 weld is given in Figure 4. Clearly,
metallurgical bonding was formed between the top and
The tool had a tapered pin. It was 2.0-mm long. The bottom workpieces around the penetrating pin. As in the
shoulder of the tool was 10 mm in diameter. case of Al alloy welds, the material from the bottom
piece was pushed up by the plunging action of the
As in the case of the linear friction stir welding, tool rotating pin, causing the workpiece interface to bend
material is expected to be a critical technical issue for upward and form a “hook”. The solid-state phase
FSSW. In this work, the tool was made of polycrystalline transformations that occur in carbon steels during
cubic boron nitride (PCBN), a material that has been cooling make it difficult to directly observe details of the
successfully used for linear friction stir welding of steel stirring/mixing of the material between the two sheets.
and other high melting temperature materials [14]. A The width of the bonding ligament, a critical factor
single tool was used in this study. This single tool made determining the strength of the weld, was relatively small
over one hundred welds without any noticeable in this study. Additional efforts would be needed to
degradation or wear. further improve the size of bond ligament.

Tensile-shear and cross-tension mechanical testing

were performed for selected welding conditions to
evaluate the mechanical strength of the joints produced
in this work. The tensile shear specimen was 38.1-mm
wide and 127-mm long. The cross-tension specimen
was 50.8-mm wide and 152.4-mm long, with the
distance between the loading holes at 101.6 mm. The
weld was made at the center of the overlapping (38 mm)
region, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 3 Cross-section of FSSW. Top: M-19; bottom: DP600. Welding

time: 2.1 sec.

Figure 2 Appearances of the tensile shear and the cross-tension

Figure 4 Close section view of the bonding interface region. M190
welded coupons. The welds were at the center of the overlapping
Steel, welding time: 2.1 sec
region.
 500 tool. However, the hardness in the stir zone was fully
1/4t 1/2t 3/4t
recovered back to the 430 Hv base metal level. It is
important to point out that the minimum hardness
location is quite far away from the bonding region at the
400 interface. The softened region was outside the
thermomechanically affected zone (TMAZ) where
substantial plastic deformation and material flow occur
300 during the welding process.
HV, 500g

Due to the differences in chemistry, DP600 steel showed

very different microhardness profiles under the same
200 welding condition. The softening, while still measurable,
was relatively insignificant compared to the base metal
exit
microhardness level. The softening was mostly outside
hole
100 the shoulder diameter, particularly for the ¼ t and ½ t
depth. On the other hand, the stir zone appeared to be
Tool shoulder hardened. The maximum hardness was about 250Hv,
compared to the base metal average of 210 Hv.
0
0 5 10 15 20 The above variations of the microhardness can be
Position (m m ) related to the microstructural changes in the different
regions of the weld. While more detailed microstructural
300 1/4t 1/2t 3/4t analyses are still on-going, the results obtained so far
from the optical microstructure evaluation are presented
below to help understand the hardness changes in the
250
AHSS welds produced by FSSW.

Figure 6 and Figure 7 show, respectively, the

200
microstructures at three selected representative
locations in the M190 and DP600 welds. The locations
HV, 500g

of these metallographic photos are schematically

150
illustrated in Figure 3 by the corresponding labels. Label
(a) indicates the base metal region, (b) the transition
100 region exhibiting the reduction of hardness, and (c) the
exit region near the bonding interface which is inside the
hole TMAZ.
50
The base metal of the martensitic M190 steel has a
Tool shoulder martensitic microstructure (Figure 6(a)). In the transition
0 region located near the periphery of the tool shoulder,
0 5 10 15 20 the material appeared to be heated to a peak
temperature between the A1 and A3 temperature – the
Position (m m )
so-called intercritical region where the ferrite and
Figure 5 Micro-hardness distribution across the weld in top sheet. Top: austenite co-exist at the peak temperature. While the
M190; bottom: DP600. Welding time: 2.1 sec.
austenite will transform back to martensite on cooling,
the ferrite remains. This results in a dual-phase (ferrite
To evaluate the effects of welding thermal cycle on the
+ martensite) microstructure in the intercritical region of
properties of the welds, variations in the microhardness
the weld (Figure 6(b)). The formation of the ferrite
were measured across them. Figure 5 shows the
phase hence reduces the hardness from that of the
microhardness distributions in the top workpiece at three
complete martensite microstructure of the base metal.
different depths, approximately ¼ (0.4mm), ½ (0.8mm),
Outside this intercritical region, the material would
and ¾ (1.2 mm) of the plate thickness, as measured
experience a peak temperature below the A1
from the top surface. They are labeled as ¼t, ½t, and
temperature. There the metastable martensite
¾t in the figure. The location of the exit hole and the
microstructure would decompose to a more stable
periphery of the tool shoulder are also illustrated in the
ferrite+Fe3C microstructure, which also would reduce the
figure to provide the spatial reference for the discussion
hardness. In the TMAZ (labeled as (c) in Figure 3), the
of the hardness variations.
material would be heated to above the A3 temperature.
The material in the TMAZ would therefore be fully
The martensitic M190 weld shows considerable austenitized on heating and transformed back to
softening outside the stir zone. The minimum hardness, martensite due to the high hardenability of the
about 200 Hv, was located about 5-mm away from the martensitic steel. Consequently, the hardness of the
weld center, corresponding to the shoulder radius of the
TMAZ is expected to reach that of the base metal.
Because the bonding region is located in the TMAZ, it
would exhibit the similar microstructure and hardness of
the base metal.

As shown in Figure 7(a), the base metal of the DP600

steel has a dual-phase microstructure consisting of a
ferritic grain matrix and considerable amounts of the
hard phase (bainite and/or martensite) islands mostly
decorating the boundaries of the ferrite grains. In the
transition region (Figure 7(b)), the hardened phase
region undergoes phase transformation to form fine
grained structures. The resultant microstructure in this
region is a network of fine grained microstructure
surrounding the large ferritic grains. As in the case of
M190 weld, it is expected that the peak temperature in
this region falls within the intercritical temperature range
to form a mixture of austenite and ferrite on heating. (a)
The austenite then transforms back to hard phases on
cooling. The details of these fine grained structures
would not be resolved under the optical microscope. In
the TMAZ, the material is expected to be fully
austenitized on heating. Due to the relatively high
hardenability of DP600 steel, an increased amount of
bainite/acicular ferrite was formed on cooling, resulting
in the increase in the hardness in TMAZ.

The above results suggest that, for the two advanced

high-strength steels studied, the FSSW process was
able to maintain, to a great extent, the hardness and the
microstructure of the base metal in the bonding interface
region. This could be attributed to the combination of
moderate cooling rate [13] associated with the FSSW
process (compared to RSW) and the relatively high
hardendability of AHSS. This provides the technical
basis for further refinement and optimization of the
FSSW process to control or maintain the microstructure (b)
and properties in the bonding region of the AHSS weld.

The resulting microstructure in the bonded region also

suggests the material flow and bonding takes place
when the material is fully austenitized. Such information
would be important for the future process and tool
material development for FSSW of AHSS.

Figure 8 shows the peak loads measured by the tensile

shear test. Each data point represents the average of
three samples made under the same welding and
material conditions. For both DP600 and M190 steel, an
increase in welding time from 2.1 to 3.2 seconds
resulted in increases in the peak load strength. This
correlated well with the increased bonding ligament
width developed in the longer welding time conditions.
The cross-tension testing results are presented in Figure
9, for the 3.2 welding time condition.
(c)
Figure 6 M190, 2.1 sec (a) Base metal, (b) transition BM to intercritical
region (on the right side of the photo), (3) TMAZ. The locations are
given in Figure 3.
 12
M-190
10 DP600

Peak Load (kN)

8

0
2.1 3.2
Weld Time (Second)
Figure 8 Peak loads from tensile shear test.
(a)
6 M-190
DP600
5

Peak Load (kN)

4

0
3.2
Weld Time (Second)
Figure 9 Peak loads from cross-tension test

(b)
It should be pointed out that only small bonding ligament
widths were obtained in this feasibility study. As the
bonding ligament width is a controlling factor for the
strength of the joint, it is expected that substantial
improvement in joint strength can be achieved if the
bonding ligament width can be increased through further
process development and modifications to the tool
geometry.

CONCLUSION

This study investigated the feasibility of friction stir spot

welding advanced high-strength steel sheet metal for
automotive applications. It was found that:

1. It is possible to use the fixed pin approach to

produce metallurgical bonding for both DP600 dual
phase steel and M190 martensitic steel under 3
seconds of welding time.
(c) 2. The PCBN tool material was capable of producing
Figure 7 DP600. (a) base metal, (b) Transition from BM to the inter- over a hundred welds without noticeable wear and
critical region (on the left side of the photo), (3) TMAZ. The locations degradation.
are given in Figure 3. 3. The bonding region, located in the TMAZ, exhibited
similar microstructure and hardness as in the base
metal for both steels studied.
4. The M190 steel showed considerable softening.
However, this softened region is far away from the 7 Pan, T., Joaquin, A., Wilkosz, D. E., Reatherford, L.,
bonding region where the failure occurred during the Nicholson, J. M., Feng, Z., and Santella, M. L., 2004,
mechanical testing. "Spot Friction Welding for Sheet Aluminum Joining,"
5. The welding process conditions used in this study Proc. 5th International Symposium on Friction Stir
produced relatively small bonding ligament widths, Welding, Metz, France.
thereby limiting the tensile strength levels of the 8 Allen, C. D., and Arbegast, W. J., 2005, "Evaluation
joint. It is expected that substantial improvement in of Friction Stir Spot Welds in 2024 Aluminum," SAE
joint strength can be achieved if the bonding Technical Paper No 2005-01-1252, Society of
ligament width can be increased through further Automotive Engineers.
process development and modifications to the tool 9 Ferrasse, S. Verrier, P and Meesemeacker, F, 1998,
geometry. “Resistance spot weldability of high-strength steels
for use in car industry,” Welding in the World, 41(2),
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS p177-195.
10 Yamazki, K, Sato, K, and Tukunaga, 2000, “Static
This research was sponsored in part by the U.S. and fatigue strength of spot welded joint in ultra-
Department of Energy, Assistant Secretary for Energy high-strength, cold-rolled steel sheets,” Welding
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of International, 14(7), p533-541.
FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies, as part of High 11 Peterson, W, 1997, “Dilution of weld metal to
Strength Weight Reduction Materials Program under eliminate interfacial fractures of spot welds in high
Contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with UT-Battelle, LLC. and ultra-high strength steels,” Proc. Int. Conf
The authors also acknowledge the supports from Advances in Welding Technology, Columbus, 17-19,
MegaStir Technologies, Ispat Inland Inc, and Ford Motor Sept, 1997, p331-346.
Company, and are grateful to A. Joaquin of Ford Motor 12 Gould, J.E., Lienert, T.J. and Feng, Z., 1998,
Company for assistance with mechanical testing. “Recent developments in friction stir welding,” SAE
Technical Paper Series 981875
This manuscript has been authored by a contractor of 13 “Development of Friction Stir Spot Welding
the U.S. Government under contract DEAC05- Process,” ORNL Internal Research, 2004.
00OR22725. Accordingly, the U.S. Government retains 14 Packer, S. M., Nelson, T. W., Sorensen, C. D.,
a nonexclusive, royalty-free license to publish or Steel, R., and Matsunaga, M., 2003, "Tool and
reproduce the published form of the contribution, or Equipment Requirements for Friction Stir Welding
allow others to do so for U.S. Government purposes. Ferrous and Other High Melting Temperature
Alloys." 4th International Symposium on Friction Stir
REFERENCES Welding, Park City, Utah.

1 Hancock, R., 2004, "Friction welding of Aluminum

Cuts Energy Cost by 99%," Welding Journal, vol. 83, CONTACT
pp. 40. Dr. Zhili Feng, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Metals
2 Shi, S.G. and Westgate, S.A., 2003, “Resistance and Ceramics Division, PO Box 2008, MS6095, Oak
spot welding of high-strength steel sheet,” Corporate Ridge, TN, 37831-6095. [email protected]
Research Program Report No 767/2003, The
Welding Institute, Cambridge, UK.
3 Spinella, D. J., Brockenbrough, J. R., and Fridy, J.
M., 2005, "Trends in Aluminum Resistance Spot
Welding for the Automotive Industry," Welding
Journal, 84(1), 34-40.
4 "Mazda Develops World's First Aluminum Joining
Technology Using Friction Heat", Mazda News
Release, February 27, 2003,
http://www.mazda.com/publicity/release/200302/022
7e.html.
5 Iwashita, T. "Method and Apparatus for Joining." US
Patent 6601751 B2, Aug. 5, 2003.
6 Sakano, R., Murakami, K., Yamashita, K., Hyoe, T.,
Fujimoto, M., Inuzuka, M., Nagao, Y. and Kashiki,
H., 2001, "Development of Spot FSW Robot System
for Automobile Body Members," Proc. 3rd
International Symposium of Friction Stir Welding,
Kobe, Japan.