With the impending development of FSW tools for steel with useful lifetimes, attention has turned to the mechanical properties of the welds that can be made in a range of industrially significant steels. This work reports on a comparative study undertaken to examine the use of friction stir and submerged arc welding on DH36 and E36 shipbuilding steels. The study made an assessment of the distortion induced in fabricating plates by the two welding techniques, and provides initial comparative data on weld tensile strength, toughness and fatigue life. In each case, friction stir welding was shown to outperform submerged arc welding.
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