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Effect of the weld thermal cycles of the modified

indirect electric arc on the mechanical properties of
the AA6061-T6 alloy
a

Ricardo R. Ambriz , Gerardo Barrera , Rafael Garca & Victor H. Lpez

Institute of Metallurgical Investigations , Universidad Michoacana de San Nicols de

Hidalgo , Morelia, Mich., Mexico
Published online: 12 Feb 2010.

To cite this article: Ricardo R. Ambriz , Gerardo Barrera , Rafael Garca & Victor H. Lpez (2010) Effect of the weld thermal
cycles of the modified indirect electric arc on the mechanical properties of the AA6061-T6 alloy, Welding International, 24:4,
321-328, DOI: 10.1080/09507110903568778
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09507110903568778

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Welding International
Vol. 24, No. 4, April 2010, 321328
Selected from Revista de Metalurgia 2009 45(1) 42 51

Effect of the weld thermal cycles of the modified indirect electric arc on the mechanical
properties of the AA6061-T6 alloy
Ricardo R. Ambriz1, Gerardo Barrera2, Rafael Garca3 and Victor H. Lopez
Institute of Metallurgical Investigations, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolas de Hidalgo, Morelia, Mich., Mexico

Downloaded by [Edith Cowan University] at 09:34 20 March 2015

(Received 30 January 2008; final version received 6 August 2008)

Results of temperature measurements during welding of 12.7 mm thick AA6061-T6 alloy plates by modified indirect electric
arc (MIEA) are presented. This study describes the thermal cycles in the heat-affected zone (HAZ) and also in the fusion
zone. Depending upon the position of the transducers, the maximum temperatures measured in the HAZ ranged from 308 to
6938C, these measurements were related with the tensile test results and the failure zone reported previously by the authors
(Ambriz et al., S&I 2006;11:10 17). It was observed that there is a decrease in the mechanical strength of the welded joints,
due to the microstructural changes undergone by the AA6061-T6 alloy in which formation of the b 0 occurs according to the
time temperature transformation diagram. The inherent cooling conditions of the weld pool observed for the MIEA
technique (single welding pass) have made it possible to establish the characteristics of solidification and microstructure for
a specific cooling rate.
Keywords: aluminium alloy; melted pool; heat-affected zone; transformations; overageing; weld thermal cycle

1.

Introduction

The measurement of temperature is a very important aspect

of processes in which the thermal effects cause changes
that affect the behaviour of the materials, as is the case with
welding, where the heat supplied due to the electric arc
produces significant microstructural changes on the
welded materials and, consequently, on their mechanical
properties2,3. There are a wide variety of sensors for
measuring temperature, which are classified according to
the range of measurement and type of application.
Thermocouples are the temperature measurement instruments par excellence; they are thermoelectric elements that
convert a change in temperature into a change of voltage
(the Seebeck effect); they are manufactured from various
materials, such as Chromel Alumel (type K), which
operate in a range (where behaviour is linear) from 2 270
to 12608C4. The measurement of temperature during the
welding process of heat-treatable aluminium alloys is of
great interest, due to the sensitivity of these alloys to
temperature changes that give rise to a loss of their
hardening states, with the consequent reduction in their
mechanical properties5. Another important point is
liquefaction cracking, found within a high-temperature
region in the heat-affected zone (HAZ)6. Various authors
have studied the effect of temperature on the mechanical
properties and the microstructural changes in heattreatable aluminium alloys3,7,8.
The recording of temperature variations during
the welding process, in the molten zone, the HAZ and
the base material, has the objective of establishing the
microstructural changes that the alloy may undergo and
ISSN 0950-7116 print/ISSN 1754-2138 online
q 2010 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/09507110903568778
http://www.informaworld.com

that, inevitably, will be reflected in the mechanical

properties of the welded joint. It should be recalled that
the principal hardening mechanism in heat-treatable
aluminium alloys is the metastable precipitation of
hardening phases, which comprise three stages: solubilization, tempering and ageing (artificial or natural)9.
The type of solidification of fusion welding is
completely related to the heat supply, the chemical
composition of the welding metal, the rapidity of crystalline growth, the welding speed and the profile of the molten
weld pool in such a way that the grain size of the molten
base metal at the fusion limit acts like a substrate for the
growth of columnar grains10. Additionally, the direction of
growth of the columnar grains changes continually from the
fusion line towards the centre of the weld, due to the
corresponding change in the direction of the maximum
temperature gradient in the molten pool. This is a very
particular problem for high-energy welding processes such
as submerged arc welding and gas metal arc welding
(GMAW), where the growth of the grain of the base metal is
considerable. Even more so during multipass welds, where
the columnar grains may re-nucleate within their limits
from one welding pass to the next.
Recently, the authors have experimented with joint
design in indirect electric arc (IEA) welding11 15 in order
to weld materials composed of metal matrices and other
monolithic materials. The technique consists of positioning small feed sheets along the joint of squared edges. The
electric arc is established indirectly over the plates,
forming a liquid pool of welding that, due to gravity and
the impulsion of the electric arc, feeds down towards the

322
Table 1.
Alloy

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6061-T6
ER4043

R.R. Ambriz et al.

Chemical composition of the 6061 alloy and ER4043 filler wire, wt.%.
Si

Fe

Cu

Mn

Mg

Cr

Zn

Ti

Al

0.561
5.25

0.289
0.8

0.310
0.30

0.052
0.05

0.986
0.05

0.067

0.024
0.10

0.018
0.20

Bal.
Bal.

bottom of the joint, making it possible to weld thicknesses

of 12.7 mm in a single welding pass. This technique,
however, has the disadvantage that the remaining feed
sheets have to be removed. Under the same schema, the
authors modified this joint. Instead of using the feed
sheets, they machined a small flap in the upper part of the
sheets to be welded, so that this design came to be called
modified indirect electric arc (MIEA) welding.
The present investigation was carried out in order to
determine the relationship between the temperature
measurements and the effect on the mechanical resistance
of the joints, due to the microstructural changes due to the
transformation of intermetallics of the Mg2Si-type using
MIEA welding. In the same context, the conditions and
characteristics of the cooling of the pool of liquid metal
were studied, which are also influential in the mechanical
behaviour of a welded joint. It is important to emphasize
that for thickness of 12.7 mm, it is necessary to apply
several welding passes, which leads to a greater heat supply
to the base material and, consequently, a greater degree of
heat effect and softening in the HAZ of a precipitationhardened aluminium alloy. Thus, it proves beneficial to use
a joint design that allows the joining of these alloys in a
single pass, while reducing the loss of hardening. Also, it is
important to note that the mechanization of the new joint is
no more complicated or costly than the preparation of a
simple V joint.

2. Experimental development
2.1 Operational variables, welding conditions and
mechanical properties
The base metal used was an aluminium alloy 6061-T6
(Al Si Mg) in sheets, with a thickness of 12.7 mm. In

order to evaluate the mechanical properties of the welded

joints, sheets of 70 mm width and 150 mm length were used
and traction specimens were mechanized in accordance
with ASTM standard B557M-94. The results of these tests
were presented in a work cited above1. With reference to
the zones where the failure of the traction specimens took
place and the microhardness measurements made in the
HAZ, the authors decided to carry out the measurement of
the thermal cycle welding sheets with a thickness of 25 mm
each. Moreover, this width made it possible to place the
thermocouples with precision. The filler material was a
commercial electrode with a high silicon content
(ER4043) and a diameter of 1.2 mm. Table 1 shows the
chemical composition of the materials used, which was
obtained using atomic absorption spectroscopy.
A semiautomatic GMAW process was used, with
100% argon as the shielding gas, with a flow of 23.6 l/min.
The operative variables were adjusted in order to obtain a
metal transference via pulverization, with an approximate
current of 230 A, a separation of the contact tip and the
base material of 20 mm, inverse polarity (CDEP), constant
voltage of 23 V and a displacement speed of 3.6 mm/s of
the heat source; in this case, a joint preparation of the flap
style, which was named MIEA, using a preheat of 50, 100
and 1508C1. The joint design and the dimensions thereof
are shown in Figure 1.
The base material, filler material and welded joints
were traction tested (using at least three specimens)
according to the recommendations of ASTM standard B
557M-9416. Table 2 shows the results obtained for the base
material and filler material, while those corresponding to
the welds are presented in the analysis and discussion of the
results. Additionally, microhardness measurements were
carried out on the base material and welded joints, applying
a load of 0.1 N for 15 s. The average microhardness value
for the base material was 152.5HV0.01, while the welded
joints were evaluated using microhardness scans and
correlated with their welding profile.

Table 2. Mechanical properties of the base material and filler

wire.
Alloy
Figure 1. Joint design and thermocouple location for measuring
the temperature in the liquid metal pool.

6061-T6
ER4043

Flow strength
(MPa)

Stress resistance
(MPa)

Lengthening
(%)

300
164

328
190

14

Welding International

323

Table 3. Location of the thermocouples.

Figure 2. Sketch representation of a K thermocouple for

temperature measurement in the HAZ.

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2.2

Temperature measurement in the HAZ

In order to avoid interference in the heat transference

patterns at the time of completing the weld, small
thermocouples, type-K, with a wire diameter of 0.3 mm,
were set up. Silver covers were manufactured, with an
external and internal diameter of 1.5 and 1 mm,
respectively, with the thermocouples being situated within
the said covers or isolators. The isolation of the
thermocouples was completed by filling the internal
diameter with a silicon oxide (SiO2) ceramic, as shown in
Figure 2.
The placement of the thermocouples for the
measurement of temperature in the HAZ was established
by fixing a system of rectangular coordinates (X, Y, Z), the
origin of which was located in the upper face of the base
metal sheets and in the centre of the joint preparation
(Figure 3). A total of 10 thermocouples were placed in
the alloy sheets to be welded. Table 3 shows the positions
of each of these.

2.3 Temperature measurement in the liquid weld pool

A type-K thermocouple, with a wire diameter of 0.8 mm,
was located at the bottom of the prepared joint, using a

Figure 3. Coordinate system for the location of the

thermocouples.

Thermocouple

X (mm)

Y (mm)

Z (mm)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Bottom

4.0
6.0
3.0
8.0
10.0
212.0
25.0
27.0
211.0
29.0
0

10.0
42.5
75.0
107.5
140.0
10.0
42.5
75.0
107.5
140.0
72.0

2 9.7
2 6.7
2 1.2
2 10.7
2 3.7
2 8.7
2 4.7
2 2.7
2 10.7
2 6.7
2 9.2

hole in the supporting plate, in order to obtain temperature

measurements in the molten pool, the location of which is
shown in Figure 1. It is well known that the cooling speed
in the fusion zone is much quicker than that of an ingot17.
Consequently, it is necessary to take into consideration a
sampling speed that makes it possible to provide
information regarding the solidification phenomenon, as
a result of which the signals were acquired at 60 readings
per second; i.e. the signals were converted from analog to
digital at 60 Hz.

2.4 Digitalization of the signals

In order to record the signals from the thermocouples, a
card connected with one of the PCI ports of the computer
was used, with 16 different analog inputs. This includes a
thermocouple conditioning unit. For the data acquisition
phase, programs written in the graphic programming
language G, better known as Virtual Instrumentation
(LabVIEW 8.2), were used, within the Windows XPw
operating system.

3.

Results and discussion

3.1 Temperature in the HAZ and effect on mechanical

resistance
Table 4 shows the maximum temperatures measured for
the different preheat conditions. It can be seen that the
temperature intervals increase according to the depth at
which the sensors are found relative to the heat source, as
well as the preheat conditions used. For example, the
maximum temperatures measured for position 1 are 308.8,
450.8 and 534.18C. However, this behaviour is not
complied with in all cases, e.g. for the maximum
temperature measured in position 2 with preheat at
1008C, which saw an increase of 458C over the maximum
temperature measured for a preheat of 1508C. This
phenomenon can be explained according to the disalignment of the joint relative to the heat source and the nature
of the arc itself, which tends to maintain its stability

324
Table 4.

R.R. Ambriz et al.

Maximum temperatures measured in the HAZ.

Table 5. Heating and cooling rates.

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Preheat

508C

Position

508C

1008C

1508C

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

308.8
368.7
409.5
469.8
530.7
383.1
461.7
445.9
Open
610.5

450.8
542.9
430.3
462.9
479.5
421.3
384.1
460.0
456.4
552.2

534.1
497.9
611.8
577.6
553.1
450.2
577.0
574.9
614.4
693.7

towards one side, causing it to have greater molten mass

on one of the walls of the joint, giving rise to higher
temperature measurements. Moreover, the effect of heat
conduction due to the fusion and solidification of the base
material and the heat supplied have a very significant
effect on the temperature measurements of the sensors
found at the end of the sheets or at different heights
respective to the heat source18.
In Figure 4, the curves corresponding to temperature
measurements within the HAZ are shown for position 6,
corresponding to 12-mm distance from the central axis of
the joint preparation, in accordance with Table 3, for 500,
100 and 1508C of preheat. It can be seen that the maximum
temperature peaks reach a higher value, as the preheat is
increased. The values of the heating and cooling rates
calculated are shown in Table 5.
It should be noted that the behaviour of the cooling rate
for each of the curves after a certain time has passed
(approximately 200 s), and once it has passed the time
temperature transformation (TTT) curve is practically

1008C

1508C

16.5
8.0
Heating (8C/s) 16.8 (1.0088C/min) (9908C/min) (4808C/min)
0.8
1.0
Cooling (8C/s) 0.6 (368C/min)
(488C/min) (608C/min)

identical. This behaviour offers sufficient information to

explain why the traction resistance or maximum strain of
the welded joints appears to be practically the same, as can
be seen in Table 6.
Here, too, the correlation of the thermal cooling cycles
with the TTT curve of the alloy can be seen, corresponding
to the thermocouple furthest from the fusion zone, it being
found that for any preheat condition, the corresponding
cooling cycles fall back to the TTT curve for the formation
of the b 0 phase (Mg2Si). In addition, it is to be expected
that the growth of overaged precipitates (b 0 phase) will be
greater for the condition of 1508C preheat, promoting the
occurrence of the failure zone further from the fusion line
(Figure 5)1.
It is clear that the maximum temperatures reached (in
relation to thermocouple 6) do not exceed the solubilization temperature of alloy 6061, which is found at
around 5308C. However, these temperatures are above the
temperature for the formation of Guinier Preston zones,
in accordance with the precipitation sequence for alloys of
Al Si Mg20. The maximum temperatures reached are
383, 421 and 4508C for their respective preheats, which are
very close to the corresponding values reported by Myhr
et al.7, who established that the transformation of b 00
precipitates to b 0 occurs when the peak temperature
exceeds 3258C, with a time interval of at least 10 s
(a condition fulfilled in the case of the curves of
Figure 4) and at 3908C, the b 0 phase begins to be the
dominant microstructural constituent. The above also
corresponds to the investigations carried out by Malin2
into the relationship that exists between the maximum
temperature measured in the HAZ and the location of
failure in aluminium alloys 6061-T6 extruded and welded
in the conventional manner by means of a simple V joint
preparation, finding that the minimum microhardness
value and fracture location are associated with temperature
peaks at around 3808C.

Table 6. Mechanical properties of the welded joints1.

Preheat Lengthening
Elastic
Traction
Failure
(8C)
(%)
limit (MPa) resistance (MPa) zone

Figure 4. Cooling thermal cycles at 12 mm from the heat source

and its relation with the TTT curve5,19 for 6061 alloy.

50
100
150

13.8
15.4
17.2

102.7
101.0
106.5

183.0
181.7
179.3

HAZ
HAZ
HAZ

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Welding International

Figure 5.

325

Relationship between the microhardness profiles and the failure zone (a) MIEA 508C, (b) MIEA 1008C and (c) MIEA 1508C.

On the other hand, the b 00 phase with acicular

morphology is that which produces the greatest effect on
the hardening of the alloy 6061-T6, according to that
established by Dutta and Allen20, while the b 0 phase, which
has a bar shape, will grow depending on the temperature
increase in the HAZ giving rise to overageing and,
consequently, its incoherence with the aluminium matrix.
The above is shown in the image of Figure 6, corresponding
to the fracture of one of the MIEA joints, in which a Mg2Si
particle of large size can be seen, among others.
It is clear that the fracture was caused by the softening
of the HAZ by the formation of particles of b 0 and/or b
(equilibrium) precipitates, a product of the thermodynamic
instability of the b 00 precipitates during a fusion welding
process. However, the mechanical properties obtained
after the MIEA joining process (with a single welding
pass) are considerably greater relative to welds carried

Figure 6.
particles.

Fracture of the 6061-T6 weld showing Mg2Si

326

R.R. Ambriz et al.

maximum, i.e. 19.96 s. The above may be corroborated
according to the weld speed used for the welding process
(3.6 mm/s), and by making use of the definition to
determine the speed at that moment, it is possible to
calculate the distance in the following manner:
d vt 3:6 mm=s19:96 s 71:85 mm:

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Figure 7.

Profile of the temperature measured in the weld pool.

out in the conventional manner, with a simple V joint

preparation and three or four welding passes1,21,22.
3.2

Temperature in the molten weld pool

Figure 7 shows the graph of the data obtained using the

data acquisition system for the measurement of temperature in the molten weld pool, in accordance with the
position of the thermocouple in Figure 1, in which it can be
seen that the process of data acquisition began when the
minimum temperature was 978C (time 0 s) and reached a
maximum temperature of 11578C, corresponding to 1198
readings (19.96 s), as a result of which a temperature
increase of 10608C was obtained.
Carrying out an analysis of the data obtained, it was
observed that, for a total of 615 readings (10.25 s), i.e.
when T 1118C, the increase in the heating rate was
insignificant, at around 1.388C/s. This increment corresponds to the initial straight line portion of the curve of
Figure 7, as a result of which it is possible to take the time
of beginning temperature measurement at the value of 615
readings, an aspect that becomes obvious due to the fact
that the slope of the curve from this value onwards begins
to be very long. Based on the above, it can be determined
that the time required to reach the maximum temperature
is 9.7 s, with the heating rate being able to be calculated
through the slope of the curve of Figure 7, by means of the
following ratio:
Gt

T p 2 T i 1157 2 1118C
107:88C=s;

9:7 s
t

The value calculated results in a distance that

corresponds, approximately, to the distance at which the
thermocouple was located. Consequently, there is
sufficient evidence to determine that the filler material is
forced, by the effect of gravity, towards the joint of the
plates to be joined and not by means of a possible flow of
molten metal ahead of the heat source (i.e. the heat source
is perpendicular to the temperature sensor). An important
point to take into consideration is that the maximum
temperature measured in the welding metal is the
temperature corresponding to a distance of 3.5 mm
above the support plate and not the temperature at which
the drops of filler material are detached by the welding
process8.
Figure 8 is the graph corresponding to the time interval
in which the temperature is maximum in the liquid weld
metal. Carrying out an analysis according to the fusion
temperature of the filler material (6308C) and its eutectic
temperature (5818C), it is possible to determine the
cooling time for a temperature drop of 498C, corresponding to 0.76 s, as a result of which the cooling rate will be
Gt

498C
64:478C=s:
0:76 s

This cooling speed is lower than the high values for a

GMAW process23. However, the degree of previous subcooling experienced in the solidification process promotes

where Gt is the heating or cooling rate, Tp is the maximum

temperature and Ti is the initial temperature recorded by
the thermocouple.
The actual distance of the thermocouple relative to the
beginning of the thermal cycle of the weld (beginning of
the arc) was 72 mm (Table 3), which should in theory
correspond to the time at which the temperature is

Figure 8. Temperature profile of the weld pool in which the

temperature is maximum and the liquid solid transformation
takes place.

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Welding International
the development of a fine grain size, as shown in the
micrograph of Figure 9, corresponding to the central
portion of the weld for an MIEA joint preheated to 1508C.
Once the maximum temperature has been reached, this
begins to decrease due to the movement of the heat source
according to the weld speed of the welding process,
according to what has been established in investigations into
moving heat sources by Rosenthal18. During cooling, energy
begins to be supplied to the lateral walls of the joint
preparation, experiencing a drop in temperature until a
minimum, corresponding to 7378C, is reached, which is
above the fusion point of the base material (6528C) and of the
filler material (6308C). At this point, the lateral walls are
completely fused and consequently a liberation of the latent
heat of fusion occurs, which represents the energy generated
during the liquidsolid transformation, which is absorbed by
the liquid metal, increasing its temperature by around 758C in
a short time, 1.41 s, reaching a maximum of 8128C.
The classical theory for heterogeneous nucleation
explains that the form in which the latent heat of fusion is
dissipated determines the growth mechanism and final
structure of the solidified material. This theory was the basis
for the development of the ideas of Garcia et al.13, who
explained, schematically, the behaviour of the cooling rate in
traditional welding processes and by IEA (Figure 10).
It can be seen that in the case of solidification for
traditional welding, subsequent to the sub-cooling, there
exists a thermal stabilization (columnar growth) and,
afterwards, if the conditions are present, there may be
equiaxial grain growth due to the constitutional subcooling. However, in the case of welding via IEA, there is
a sub-cooling of the liquid, then a recalescence and,
finally, a continuous cooling at a high-cooling rate.
Consequently, it is important to evaluate the
temperature variation of the molten weld pool GL with
respect to the distance from the heat source, corresponding
to the fusion limit (solid liquid) defined by

Figure 9. Microstructure of the weld metal in a joint preheated

to 1508C, showing heterogeneous nucleation.

327

Figure 10. Comparison of cooling patterns between traditional

and IEA welding13.

dT L
:
3
dx
Based on the graph measuring the temperature in the
fusion pool, it is possible to obtain the curve segment
corresponding to the cooling of the liquid welding metal
(Figure 11).
It can be seen that the transformation from liquid to
solid, during the solidification process, occurs in a
continuous manner from the fusion temperature of the
alloy of the filler material (6308C) to the solidification of
the latter (5818C).
Based on the polynomial approximation obtained in
the graph of Figure 11, it is possible to carry out the
calculation corresponding to the temperature variation in
GL

Figure 11.

Fraction of the cooling curve of the weld pool.

328

R.R. Ambriz et al.

the centre of the molten pool, in relation to the

advancement of the heat source, in the following manner:
d
GL 41805:2 2 909:55x 5:016x 2
dx
2909:55 10:03x:

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1.
2.
3.

Email: ricraf74@gmail.com
Email: gbarrera@zeus.umich.mx
Email: rgarcia@zeus.umich.mx

From Figure 11, the distance, 6 mm, travelled by the

heat source from a temperature of 811.9 to 5818C can be
obtained. Consequently, a temperature gradient of
849.378C/mm can be generated. In accordance with the
microstructural variation diagram developed by Kurz and
Fisher24, the type of microstructure in the centre of the
weld corresponds to a cellular dendritic type (Figure 9).

4.

Notes

Conclusions
. The cooling rate at any condition of MIEA welding
exceeds the TTT curve of precipitate formation, b 0 ,
and, at a given time, these speeds tend to become
similar, since the mechanical resistance is practically the same due to the transition of precipitates of
the b 00 phase to b 0 .
. The incoherence of phase b 0 with the matrix reduces
the degree of hardening within the HAZ, and the
failure zone, after the traction tests, depends on the
preheating in MIEA welds.
. The measurement of temperature in the molten pool
made it possible to determine the cooling characteristics in the liquid metal and to calculate,
approximately, the type of microstructure expected
in the welding metal following solidification.

Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the National Council for Science
and Technology for its support, the Universidad Michoacana de
San Nicolas de Hidalgo and, in particular, the Technological
Institute of Morelia for all the facilities loaned for the use of its
laboratories.

References
1. Ambriz RR, Barrera G, Garca R. S&I. 2006;11:10 17.
2. Malin V. Weld J. 1995;74:305s 318s.
3. Li Y, Murr LE, McClure JC. Mat Sci Eng A.
1999;271:213 223.
4. Anderson NA. Instrumentation for process measurement and
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