Electrical current treatment of 6N01 Al alloy FSW joints

Studies successfully exploit electric current treatment including electropulsing solution and direct-current (DC) aging to thoroughly substitute post-weld heat treatment and realize artificial controlling of precipitation as well as the improvement of mechanical property in 6N01 Al alloy friction-stir-welding (FSW) joints. Utilizing electropulsing solution, & beta;' can be dissolved completely within 3 s to form super-saturated solid solution. The subsequent DC two-stage aging promotes the formation of high-density & beta;" within 5 h and increases the microhardness by 21.8% and strength by about 15%. This study extends perspectives on post-weld treatment of precipitation-hardening Al alloy joints and expand the potential function of artificial controlling of precipitation.