Effect of stirring time on the mechanical behavior of friction stir spot weld of Al 6061

The effect of five different stirring times of friction stir spot welding on lap-shear specimens of Al 6061-T6 alloy has been experimentally analyzed. The welding condition with 2？s of stirring shows the optimum mechanical behavior in comparison to the others. The static strength and fatigue behavior of the joint are justified using the microhardness profiles. The static results prove that the increase of stirring time beyond the 2？s case has little effect on improving the static strength. The fatigue results reveal two different failure modes, which are shear fracture at high load levels and transverse crack growth at low load levels. At medium load levels, although the final failure is similar to high load levels, the transverse growth of the crack outside the welding zone, just like low load levels, is also observed