Induction Heating Assisted Friction Stir Welding of Nylon 6A Polymer

Abstract

In the present work an attempt was made to investigate the weldability of Nylon-6A with different tool pin profile by using Induction assisted friction stir welding process called i-fsw (Induction Assisted Friction stir welding) where the friction stir tool during welding is heated by Induction and the temperature is precisely maintained through a temperature feedback control system. The mechanical behaviour and weld microstructure of the joints were studied over a wide range of tool rotational speeds and tool pin temperatures. A narrow transition zone between the weld and base material without any defect ensures joints with a strength like the base material, better than previously reported results with the same material. A drop in hardness and tensile strength at the weld zone for all the process parameters with different tool pin profile were observed. The mechanical, fatigue, and microstructure properties of friction stir welded Nylon-6A thermoplastic were investigated in this study. The major goal of this study was to see how the effectively mechanical and microstructure properties will changes by using with and without heat assisted induction coil with the optimized process parameter. The welding procedure was carried out with the help of a four different non-consumable tool pin with a triangular, threaded, cylindrical and tapered pin profile as well different process parameters like Tool Rotation (rpm), Welding speed (mm/min), and depth of penetration (mm). ASTM standards were used to analyse the mechanical, fatigue, wear, and microstructure properties. The weld with 1000 rpm, 20 mm/min and 5.8 mm depth of penetration has the highest tensile strength of 55MPa, 69 Mpa without and with heat assisted induction coil, microhardness of 53 Shore-D, 64 Shore -D without and with heat assisted induction coil and 0.45 J, 0.47 J without and with heat assisted induction coil respectively...