Belgian Welding Institute
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Dissimilar material joining

Conventional thermal joining techniques quickly reach their technical limits when multi-material connections are required. Different combinations of materials and thicknesses makes robust joining increasingly complex. To meet the current needs of joining of dissimilar materials, the Belgian Welding Institute has started several research projects focusing on such connections.

Combining conventional materials (structural steels, aluminium, …) with other conventional (stainless steel) or even new materials (composites, high strength steels) offers designers solutions, where a design consisting of one material fails. A multi-material design uses a material with optimal properties for each sub-structure. 

Cost-efficient realisation of lightweight constructions in industry is based on the availability of suitable joining technologies with a high process reliability for multi-material combinations. The joining technology has an important role for realising these kinds of products. Systematic development of joining methods is necessary to solve the metallurgical and thermal incompatibility, as is the case for combinations such as steel-aluminium or fibre-reinforced composites.

Research projects

The projects below are part of the long research strategy of the research center of the Belgian Welding Institute in the domain of the dissimilar material joining and could count on a broad industrial interest.

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