In this study a new type of plug-in friction-stir lap welding (PFSLW) is proposed to prepare welded joints based on 4-mm-thick 6061-T6 aluminum alloy sheet. The differences in the cross-sectional ...morphology, microstructure, cross-sectional hardness and shear properties between the PFSLW joint and the normal friction-stir lap-welding (FSLW) joint are discussed. The results show that the cross-sectional morphology of the PFSLW joint has undergone changes. The PFSLW joint has a mechanical interlocking structure on the advancing side that is beneficial to the connection strength of the joint. The grain structure differs at the boundary between the thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) and the heat-affected zone (HAZ), and the PFSLW joints show a more pronounced bending deformation of the grain organization near the boundary. The microhardness of PFSLW joints was increased in the TMAZ and HAZ areas, and the lowest hardness is further away from the center of the weld. The failure load of the PFSLW joint has been improved, the microcracks part of the PFSLW joint has a ridge-like structure. In addition, the actual welding width of PFSLW joints was improved.
In this paper we will describe the process of the deposition of thick layers of VPS-Ti coating, which is used as a bonding layer for the upper porous Ti coatings on implant substrates. In order to ...deposit the powder, we used HÖGANÄS Ti powder labelled as AMPERIT 154.086 -63 µm. In order to test the mechanical properties and microstructure of the VPS-Ti coating, the powder was deposited on Č.4171 (X15Cr13 EN10027) steel substrates. Mechanical tests of the microhardness of the coating were performed by the Vickers hardness test method (HV0.3) and tensile strength by measuring the force per unit area (MPa). The microhardness of the coating is 159 HV0.3, which is consistent with the microstructure. The coating was found to have a good bond strength of 68 MPa. The morphology of the powder particles was examined on a scanning electron microscope. The microstructure of the coating, both when deposited and etched, was examined with an optical microscope and a scanning electron microscope. By etching the coating layers, it was found that the structure is homogeneous and that it consists of a mixture of low-temperature and high-temperature titanium phases (α-Ti + β-Ti). Our tests have shown that the deposited layers of Ti coating can be used as a bonding layer for porous Ti coatings in the production of implants.