Recent progress in solid-state additive manufacturing technique: Friction stir additive manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing (AM), a key component of Industry 4.0 is recently gaining more and more popularity in the major industrial sectors. Friction Stir Additive Manufacturing (FSAM) is a subcategory of AM technology. It employs the principle of solid-state based friction stir welding method to fabricate multi-layered builds by joining layer upon layer sheets of metal. The metal additive manufacturing (MAM) techniques has the potential to fabricate complex parts making it a viable choice for automobile, aviation and marine industries. However, achieving higher structural performance using the fusion based MAM approaches has a number of drawbacks owing to solid-liquid phase transitions. FSAM has proved to overcome these flaws and fabricate defect-free components with excellent mechanical and structural properties. Based on the available data, an overview of the FSAM processes, materials and process parameters is reviewed in depth in this article. Mechanical attributes such as tensile strength, microhardness and refinement of grain are summarized in comparison to their base materials. The purpose of this article is to provide a critical investigation of the timeline and the advancements in the field of FSAM. Moreover, the challenges and the future scope of this ingenious process are conferred in terms of its applicability in the numerous domains of engineering.