Investigating the effect of the passes number and changing the tool rotation direction on the distribution of reinforcing particles in the FSP

The friction stirring process is one of the new processes in the production of metal matrix composites. Choosing the right parameters for the uniform distribution of particles in this process is vital. One of the important parameters in this process is the number of processes passes and the change in the direction of the tool rotation between the process passes. In this study, the effect of the number of passes and the change in the tool rotation direction on the distribution of SIC particles in aluminum 6061 has been investigated. Aluminum 6061 is one of the hard deposit able aluminum alloys, in which magnesium and silicon are the main elements. First, samples are produced using one, two, and four process passes, with and without changing the tool rotation direction between the process passes. Then, the distribution of particles in the base metal is studied using macro- and microscopic photographs. The results showed that the number of processes passes and the change in the tool rotation direction have a significant effect on the uniform distribution of particles.