C.P titanium/Ti-6Al-4V joint by spark plasma welding: Microstructure and mechanical properties

The welding ability of Ti-6Al-4V alloy is weak due to their two-phase microstructure. On the other hand, friction welding methods lead to significant microstructural changes. In this research, for the first time, pure titanium was successfully joined to the Ti-6Al-4V alloy, without any change in the microstructure and mechanical properties of both alloys, by applying the SPW method. Further, the effects of temperature, pressure, and time of the SPW process on the microstructure and mechanical properties of commercial pure (C.P) titanium joined to the Ti-6Al-4V alloy were investigated. The results indicated that the effect of temperature and pressure on the SPW process was greater than that of time. Further, mechanical properties investigations showed that the yield strength of the joint interface was larger than that of the substrate metal, following which necking and fracture occurred in the pure titanium substrate metal. The alloy (Ti-Ti64) bonded at 800 °C, with a time of 10 min and pressure of 20 MPa, exhibited the superior bonding of 7-9 μm interface thickness, and excellent tensile strength (534 ± 13 MPa) and Vickers micro-hardness (190 ± 5 HV_0.1). Investigation of the effect of pressure (normal stress) also showed that with an increase in pressure, because of the reduction of the chemical potential of diffusing species, the joint temperature would drop, and the joint could be created at a temperature below 800 °C.