Weld Growth Mechanisms and Failure Behavior of Three-Sheet Resistance Spot Welds Made of 5052 Aluminum Alloy

This paper investigates the weld nugget formation in three-sheet aluminum alloy resistance spot welding. The nugget formation process in three equal thickness sheets and three unequal thickness sheets of 5052 aluminum alloy were studied. The results showed that the nugget was initially formed at the workpiece/workpiece interfaces (i.e., both upper interface and lower interface). The two small nuggets then grew along the radial direction and axial direction (welding direction) as the welding time increased. Eventually, the two nuggets fused into one large nugget. During the welding process, the Peltier effect between the Cu-Al caused the shift of the nugget in the welding direction. In addition, the mechanical strength and fracture mode of the weld nuggets at the upper and lower interfaces were also studied using tensile shear specimen configuration. Three failure modes were identified, namely interfacial, mixed, and pullout. The critical welding time and critical nugget diameter corresponding to the transitions of these modes were investigated. Finally, an empirical failure load formula for three-sheet weld similar to two-sheet spot weld was developed.