The process of Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a welding method developed by the "The Welding Institute" (TWI) of England in 1991. The welding equipment consists of a tool that rotates and progresses along the joint of two restrained sheets. The joint is produced by frictional heating which causes the softening of both components into a viscous-plastic condition and also by the resultant flow between the sheets to be joined. Numerical Modeling of the process can provide realistic prediction of the main variables of the process, reducing the number of experimental tests, thus accelerating the design processes while reducing costs and optimizing the involved technological variables. In this study the friction stir welding process is modeled using a general purpose finite element based program, reproducing the material thermal map and the corresponding mass flow. Numerical thermal results are compared against experimental thermographic maps and numerical material flow results are compared with material flow visualization techniques, with acceptable concordance.
Friction stir welding (FSW); Three-dimensional modeling; flow; temperature; finite element
