Wear performance of Cu–Cd, Cu–Be and Cu–Cr–Zr spot welding electrode materials

Abstract

Heating of the electrode at the work–piece interface zone in spot welding, leading to degradation of the tip, becomes a significant concern in the high-volume production automotive industry. By recognizing the interrelationship between hardness, wear resistance, and thermal conductivity, the authors emphasize the importance of selecting electrode materials with suitable alloying elements desirable for achieving optimal performance in spot welding applications. This paper studies the wear behaviour of three types of spot-welding electrode materials under dry sliding contact conditions. A pin-on-disc tester was used to investigate Cu–Cd, Cu–Be and Cu–Cr–Zr alloys’ wear behaviour under variable parametric load, temperature and time conditions. Taguchi L9 orthogonal array was used to investigate the significance of parameters and their effect on linear wear. The ranking of the parameters was performed using SN ratio analysis. The wear mechanism was also studied using SEM analysis. Abrasive wear was observed at lower loads, while adhesion, oxidation and plastic deformation were observed under high-load and -temperature conditions. This study suggests an alternative to the presently used electrolytic tough pitch (ETP) Cu electrode involving equally good wear-resistance material. However, a detailed investigation on the effect of plasma on the metallurgical characteristics of selected material is suggested.