TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 1

Linear Friction Welding of High Strength Aluminium

Tristan Crawford, Chris Glazebrook

LFW Seminar, TWI, Granta Park, 19th March 2015

Progress UPDATE 2013 -15

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 2This information is the property of Constellium and must not be transmitted or distributed without Constellium’s prior permission

TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 3An introduction to Constellium 2013

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A long history in aluminium…

1855Pechiney

1888Alusuisse

1902Alcan

2000Alcan Aluminium Limitedmerges with Algroup/Alusuisse

2003Alcan Inc. acquires Pechiney

2007Rio Tinto acquires Alcan

May 2011Alcan Engineered Products is renamed to Constellium

May 2013Constellium commences trading on the New York Stock Exchange and NYSE Euronext Paris

More than a century of growth

January 2011Rio Tinto sells 51%of Alcan EngineeredProducts to Apollo, 10% to FSI and keeps the remaining 39% stake

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 4An introduction to Constellium 2013

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A leader in high performance Al materials

Aerospace and Transportation� € 1,182 millions in revenues� #1 worldwide for aerospace plates � #1 in the USA for large coils

Packaging and Automotive Rolled Products� € 1,554 millions in revenues� #1 worldwide in closure stock (b)

� #1 in Europe for can body stock (a)

Automotive Structures and Industry� € 861 millions in revenues� #1 in Europe for large profiles (b)

� #1 in Europe for hard alloy extrusions (b)

(a) CRU International Limited, based on data regarding the year ended 2011(b) Based on Company internal market analysis

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 5

Aerospace

Automotive

Packaging

An introduction to Constellium 2013

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Our Customers are Market Leaders

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 6

Al-Cu -Li Alloy System for the Whole Airframe

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 7

Full Spectrum of Semi-Products

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 8

Interest:

Aluminium-Lithium alloys are age hardening alloys:

• Loss of properties with fusion welding methods

• Friction methods used to maintain the microstructure

Technical Objective:

• Increasing the joint efficiency using LFW

• Reduce “buy to fly” ratio via near net shaped blanks

• Materials tailoring:-

“Right material properties at the right location”

• Evaluate new “Design freedoms”

Focus on ™ alloy: 2050

• Constellium actively investigating LFW since 2009

• Collaborating with LFW OEM’s, institutes and end users

• UK NAPP TSB Project

Linear Friction Welding

© Constellium 2011

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 9

LFW Machine informationFW 34: TFW E20

� Hydraulic servocontrolled

� Forge force: up to 200kN

� Acquired in 2011

� Capable of TRL 1 to 6; MRL 1 to 10

� Modular tooling and fully customisable forge side

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 10

LFW Is A Capable Joining ProcessWorkpieces

• Material: ™ AA2050

• Over 100 welds made

Issues:

• Thermal conductivity of material

• High strain rate deformation during the process

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 11

Test samples

• All following the same design

• Prepared and tested in the same conditions at

Constellium C-TEC Research Centre

LFW CharacterisationTensile tests

Fatigue tests

Corrosion micrographCorrosion macrograph

Metallographic observation

Joining data

Micro hardness

Fracture observation

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 12

LFW Technical Capabilities

• High joint efficiencies :-

AA2050-T8 with PWHT: up to 89% UTS (1% variation)AA2050-T34 with PWHT: up to 96% UTS (1% variation)

• No significant reduction in fatigue performance (Fatigue results are close to parent material performance)

• LFW is a very repeatable process

• Ductile joint behaviour, improved elongation to failure( up to 9% elongation with gauge length 30mm)

• Little effect of surface roughness on joint performance(No requirement for machined surfaces, can be water-jet, saw cut)

• HAZ and TMAZ is very localised (few mm’s)

• Dissimilar alloy joints feasible / show promising results

• Temperature profile across joint during LFW (joint line 1sec< 500°c, HAZ >100°c)

Ra=0.2 Ra=10Ra=0.3

SawnRough Machined

Fine Machined

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 13

LFW Engineered Rib Blanks

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 14

NAPP ProjectNovel App lication of LFW to enable near net shape formed components

4 PartnersIndustrial, Academic, LFW OEMMaterials supplier

5 DemonstratorsAerospace/Automotive,Titanium,Aluminium

2050-T8 Alloys

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 15

NAPP ProjectNovel Application of LFW to enable near net shape formed components

This information is the property of Constellium and must not be transmitted or distributed without Constellium’s prior permission

TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 16

LFW: A Capable Joining TechnologySummary and Conclusions

Constellium has identified the LFW parameter windows and pre/post processes for

high strength aluminium alloys, to achieve:-

• > 90% of base material UTS properties

• Achieve near base material fatigue performance

• Joint efficiency repeatability of >95%

• Equivalent corrosion performance with other friction processes

• Joining of dissimilar alloys

Next Steps

• Further characterisation of weld-line properties / develop statistical basis

• Evaluate and demonstrate Design Freedoms that LFW permits for low cost,

low weight fully optimised aerospace structures:-

• Reduced “Buy to Fly”

• Materials tailoring

• Novel structural wing and fuselage joining architectures

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TWI LFW Seminar - 19th March 2015 - 17

For More Information please contact:

tristan.crawford@constellium.com

christopher.glazebrook@constellium.com

This information is the property of Constellium and must not be transmitted or distributed without Constellium’s prior permission