Qualitative study of bimetallic joints produced by solid state welding process

Forge welding (FOW) and hot pressure welding (HPW) are solid state welding processes. They are capable to be used for joining dissimilar metals. This paper presents a qualitative study of bimetallic joints produced by these two processes under various welding temperatures T and depths of deformation d. The test materials are stainless steel 316L and 6063 aluminium alloy. This combination can take advantage of both excellent wear resistance and light weight. The joint quality was examined by tensile tests and metallographic observation. The quality characteristics such as tensile strength σ and the continuity of diffusion zone are discussed. The results show that the bimetallic joints produced by the FOW are superior in quality to those produced by the HPW.