Electrochemical corrosion behaviour of stir zone of friction stir welded dissimilar joints of AA6061 aluminium-AZ31B magnesium alloys

Joining of dissimilar metals will offer many advantages in transportation sectors such as fuel consumption, weight reduction and emission reduction. However, joining of aluminium (Al) alloys with magnesium (Mg) alloys by fusion welding process is very complicated. Friction stir welding (FSW) is a feasible method to join these two dissimilar alloys. Mixing these two metals together in stir zone (SZ) leads to poor corrosion resistance. In this investigation, an attempt has been made to understand the corrosion resistance of SZ of FSWed dissimilar joints of AA6061 Al alloy and AZ31B Mg alloy. Potentiodynamic polarization test was conducted by varying chloride ion concentration, pH value of the NaCl solution and exposure time. The corroded surfaces were analyzed using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and XRD techniques. Of these three factors investigated, exposure time is found to be the most significant factor to influence the corrosion behaviour of SZ of friction stir welded dissimilar joints of Al/Mg alloys.