No abstract

In this study, in order to obtain the maximum possible formability in tailor-welded blank AA6061 sheets connected by the friction stir welding (FSW) procedure, the incremental sheet forming process has been utilized. The results are presented both numerically and experimentally. To obtain the forming limit angle, the base and FSWed sheets were formed in different angles with conical geometry, and ultimately, the forming limit angle for the base metal and FSWed sheet is estimated to be 60° and 57.5°, respectively. To explore the effects of welding and forming procedures on AA6061 sheets, experimental studies such as mechanical properties, microstructure and fracture analysis are carried out on the samples. Also, the thickness distribution of the samples is studied to investigate the effect of the welding process on the thickness distribution. Then, the numerical process was simulated by the ABAQUS commercial software to study the causes of the FSWed samples failure through analyzing the thickness distribution parameter, and major and minor strains and the strain distribution. Causes of failure in FSWed samples include increased minor strain, strain distribution and thickness distribution in welded areas, especially in the proximity of the base metal area.

In this paper, forming limit diagram (FLD) of aluminum/brass two-layer sheets through an incremental forming process (ISF) was studied numerically and experimentally. At first, the two-layer aluminum 1050/brass (65% copper) sheets were fabricated using the roll bonding process. Also, the finite element simulations of the incremental forming process with ABAQUS software were utilized to predict the FLD. For this purpose, the criterion of the second derivative of the equivalent plastic strain was used to predict fracture. Finally, the numerical simulation results were compared with the experimental results. For instance, comparing experimental and numerical FLD0 values for the formed samples with forming angle 62.5-degree showed a 7% difference. However, the difference was negligible, and numerical simulation results could be used with an appropriate reliability coefficient. The effect of sheet arrangement towards tools was then investigated. It finds out from the experimental results that the formability of the Brass/Al (brass was up layer and aluminum was bottom layer) was more than the Al/Brass (aluminum is up layer and brass is bottom layer). In the following, the ISF parameters such as forming limit angle, step-down, and thickness distribution were investigated.