Effect of offset value on microstructure and properties of aluminum/steel cutting-assisted welding brazing

The cutting-assisted welding brazing (CAWB) without flux, the effect of offset value of the 5052 aluminum alloy and SUS304 stainless steel was studied. Scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive spectroscopy and tensile testing machine were used to analyze the microstructure and mechanical properties of the welded joint. The results showed that metallurgical bonding occurs to the interface of aluminum/steel joints assisted by the cutting tool. Thickness of intermetallic compound layered at the interface and the number and size of phase particles of the weld increased with the growth in offset value. The joint strength first grew and then decreased with the increase of the offset value. With the increase of offset value, the interface morphology gradually evolved from flat interface to periodic wave interface, and finally to a laminated interface. When the offset value was 0.2 mm, the 'macro + micro' scale double self-locking interface structure was obtained, and the mechanical properties of the joint were improved. The average tensile strength of the joint was up to 152 MPa.