Applying the ultrasonic vibration during TIG welding as a promising approach for the development of nanoparticle dispersion strengthened aluminum weldments

In the present work, an innovative approach by adding the filler materials containing ZrO2/TiO2 hybrid nanoparticles to the weld pool during tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding under ultrasonic vibration (UV) was developed to fabricate nanostructured welds. Nanocomposite filler materials were manufactured from Al-Si alloy strips and ZrO2/TiO2 hybrid nanoparticles using accumulative roll bonding. After TIG welding, the influence of UV on the nanoparticle dispersion as well as the microstructure of welds was assessed using electron microscopes (SEM and TEM). When UV treatment was applied, the morphology of alpha-Al grains was changed from a coarse dendritic structure to a fine and globular shape and Al-Si eutectic phase was significantly refined. The results depict that the addition of nanoparticles together with application of UV can improve the grain refinement and as a result increases the mechanical properties than that of conventional TIG welding.