Manufacturing Process Optimization: Three-Dimensional Heat Transfer Analysis of Friction Stir Welded Joints

Abstract

In modern manufacturing engineering, producing lightweight high-performance components with optimal joint integrity is vital for the aerospace and automotive sectors. Friction Stir Welding (FSW) has emerged as a disruptive solid-state joining technology that enhances production efficiency by eliminating conventional fusion defects such as porosity and hot cracking, while significantly reducing operational costs through the avoidance of filler materials and post-weld finishing. Controlling the localized thermal cycle during FSW is critical to optimizing process variables, governing material flow, and preventing tool wear. This paper introduces a three-dimensional finite element analysis (FEA) model developed in ANSYS to simulate transient heat transfer and predict temperature distribution within the workpiece. To ensure process modeling accuracy, the numerical framework integrates simultaneous thermal contributions from both the tool shoulder and the tool pin interfaces. The simulated thermal histories show close agreement with multi-model experimental data, demonstrating that this numerical approach serves as a robust engineering tool to evaluate thermal cycles and accelerate production setup optimization in industrial applications.

Keywords