Friction spot lap joining of aluminum alloy AA6061 to pre-holed and threaded carbon steel AISI 1006

This work addresses to joining aluminum alloy AA6061 to carbon steel AISI 1006 sheets using the friction spot joining technique. The steel sheets were pre-holed and threaded with an internal M6 thread. The joining process was carried out by extruding the aluminum through the steel hole and thread using a rotating tool with friction between the tool and aluminum. Three process parameters were used: pre-heating time, rotating speed and plunging depth of the tool, with four levels for each parameter. The results indicated that the two materials joined by a micro-scale mechanical interlock at an interface line of a width ranged between 0.7 to ~ 2.5 mm. The joint’s shear force reached a minimum and maximum value of 2000 and 2500 N, respectively. The plunging depth was the most effective factor affecting the amount of the extruded aluminum and the joint’s shear force.