Abstract :
Friction stir welding is one of the metal welding methods that works by
maximizing friction between the probe that rotates and stirs the material so that it
is connected together. FSW can replace the rivet used to connect aircraft skin
material. The probe used in friction stir welding must have a melting point and
hardness that is more than the working material, so that the joint results are good.
Probes with carbon steel material can increase the value of hardness with heat
treatment such as hardening. Increasing the hardness of the probe aims to make
the stirring in the welding process fast so that the material is perfectly soft and
evenly mixed.
The research method was carried out by hardening the probe with medium
carbon steel material, then carried out a friction stir welding process using a
hardening probe and a non-hardening probe. Friction stir welding is carried out
using a feedrate variation of 13 mm / minute and 20 mm / minute.
The analysis showed that the hardening probe increased the hardness
value by 12.5% with the average hardness before quenching 48.80 HRC and after
quenching 54.9 HRC.