The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of the high welding speed on the mechanical properties and their relations to microstructural characteristics of butt friction stir welded joints with the use of 6082-T6 aluminum alloy. The aluminum sheets of 2.0 mm thick were friction stir welded at low (conventional FSW) and high welding speeds (HSFSW) of 200 and 2500 mm/min, respectively. The grain size in the nugget zone (NZ) was decreased; the width of the softened region was narrowed down as well as the lowest microhardness value located in the heat-affected zone (HAZ) was enhanced by HSFSW. The increasing welding speed resulted in the higher ultimate tensile strength and lower elongation, but it had a slight influence on the yield strength. The differences in mechanical properties were explained by analysis of microstructural changes and tensile fracture surfaces of the welded joints, supported by the results of the numerical simulation of the temperature distribution and material flow. The fracture of the conventional FSW joint occurred in the HAZ, the weakest weld region, while all HSFSW joints raptured in the NZ. This demonstrated that both structural characteristics and microhardness distribution influenced the actual fracture locations.

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Impulse Friction Stir Welding (IFSW) was utilized to join 6082–T6 alloy plates at various impulse frequencies. A distinctive feature of IFSW is the generation of mechanical impulses that enhances the forging action of the tool, and thereby, alters the weld microstructure. The microstructural evolution in the Stir Zone (SZ) with special focus on the strengthening precipitation behavior, and overall mechanical properties of the IFSW joints have been investigated. It was demonstrated that the strengthening β″ precipitates reprecipitated in the SZ of the IFSW joints during natural aging. In contrast, no precipitates were found in the SZ of the Friction Stir Welding (FSW) weld. Partial reversion of β″ after IFSW is supposed to occur due to more developed subgrain network and higher dislocation density introduced by impulses that accelerated precipitation kinetics. Dynamic recrystallisation was facilitated by impulses resulting in a fine, homogeneous structure. There was no significant difference between the microhardness in the SZ, tensile and yield strength of the FSW and IFSW joints. However, the application of impulses demonstrated the smoothing of the hardness reduction in the transition region at the advancing side. The shift of the fracture location from the Heat-Affected Zone (HAZ) by FSW to the SZ as well as higher elongation of the joints by IFSW of lower frequencies could be related to the grain refinement and the change of the grain orientation.

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) was utilized to butt−join 2024–T4 aluminum alloy plates of 1.9 mm thickness, using tools with conical and tapered hexagonal probe profiles. The characteristic effects of FSW using tools with tapered hexagonal probe profiles include an increase in the heat input and a significant modification of material flow, which have a positive effect on the metallurgical characteristics and mechanical performance of the weld. The differences in mechanical properties were interpreted through macrostructural changes and mechanical properties of the welded joints, which were supported by numerical simulation results on temperature distribution and material flow. The material flow resulting from the tapered hexagonal probe was more complicated than that of the conical probe. If in the first case, the dynamic viscosity and strain rate are homogeneously distributed around the probe, but in the case of the tapered hexagonal probe tool, the zones with maximum values of strain rates and minimum values of dynamic viscosity are located along the six tapered edges of the probe.