Mechanical and Corrosion Behaviour of the 2139 Aluminium-Copper Alloy Welded by the Friction Stir Welding Using the Bobbin Tool Technique

Abstract

The present study deals with the properties assessment of a new generation aluminium-copper alloy, developed by ALCAN and designed 2139, welded by the bobbin tool technique of the FSW process. Considering the best performances of this age formable alloy after T8 aging, both the T4 and T8 tempers prior to welding are assessed. Therefore, the behaviour under static and fatigue load conditions and also in damage tolerance including both fracture toughness and fatigue crack propagation of the FSW bobbin tool weld on 2139 after T8 post aging and on the T8 as welded condition are discussed. The corrosion resistance of the welds is investigated through an accelerated corrosion test with intent to evaluate the intergranular corrosion sensitivity of the weld and the impact of an artificial aging on the properties developed by the T8 as welded condition is also presented.