Through-thickness crystallographic texture of stationary shoulder friction stir welded aluminium

Stationary shoulder friction stir welding (SSFSW) has been used to join 6 mm thick AA6082. The current investigation shows that the deformation through the plate thickness is dominated by the probe of the tool with very little effect of the static shoulder at the top surface. This implies that the use of the SSFSW tool can result in a nugget completely dominated by the probe through the thickness. The SSFSW tool is proposed for processing of aluminium for enhanced formability.