Role of friction stir welding - traveling speed in enhancing the corrosion resistance of aluminum alloy

The effect of friction stir welding (FSW) - traveling speed on the corrosion properties of 6061 aluminum alloy has been studied. The electrochemical tests indicate that an increase of FSW - traveling speed improves the corrosion resistance due to increased film and charge transfer resistances. In addition, the increase of FSW - traveling speed recrystallizes and refines the mean grain size from the initial 54.3 to 24.0 μm as well as increasing the homogeneity in microstructure.