The aluminum alloy 4043 is recommended as a filler metal when resistance to salt water corrosion is required, especially when welding such aluminum alloys as 5052, 6061, and 6063. This datasheet provides information on key alloy metallurgy, and processing effects on tensile properties of this 4xxx series alloy.

Wrought 4xxx alloys (extrusions and forgings) exhibit high surface hardness, wear resistance, and a low coefficient of thermal expansion. This article provides a summary of brazing filler metals used to join brazeable aluminum-base metals. It contains tables that list the nominal composition and filler-metal alloys of 4xxx series used in structural forms.

Brazing technology is continually advancing for a variety of metals including aluminum and its alloys and nonmetals. This article discusses the key physical phenomena in aluminum brazing and the materials for aluminum brazing, including base metals, filler metals, brazing sheet, and brazing flux. It describes various aluminum brazing methods, such as furnace, vacuum, dip, and torch brazing. Friction, flow, induction, resistance, and diffusion brazing are some alternate brazing methods discussed. The article reviews the brazing of aluminum to ferrous alloys, aluminum to copper, and aluminum to other nonferrous metals. It also discusses post-braze processes in terms of post-braze heat treatment and finishing. The article concludes with information on the safety precautions considered in brazing aluminum alloys.

Brazing and soldering are done at temperatures below the solidus temperature of the base material but high enough to melt the filler metal and allow the liquid filler metal to wet the surface and spread into the joint gap by capillary action. This article discusses the common advantages of both brazing and soldering. It describes the brazing and soldering of cast irons, as well as the selection of brazing filler material. The article discusses various brazing methods: torch brazing, induction brazing, salt-bath brazing, and furnace brazing. It concludes with information on the application examples of brazing of cast iron.

This article focuses on the process design set-up procedure for brazing and soldering. It provides a detailed account of the types of base metals that can be joined by these processes, and reviews the factors to be considered to enhance the joint design. Criteria for selection of the right induction heating equipment to carry out the brazing or soldering operation are also provided. The article describes the types of brazing filler metals and joint designs. It also presents the types of inspection methods, namely, mechanical and visual, used to determine the quality of the brazed joint. Important considerations for the automation of induction-heated brazing applications are also discussed. The article concludes by emphasizing the need for documenting an in-control process which is a vitally important reference for questions or problems arising in the machine settings or part quality.

This article provides information about the selection of brazing processes and filler metals and describes the brazing (heating) methods, including manual torch brazing, furnace brazing, induction brazing, dip brazing, resistance brazing and specialized brazing processes such as diffusion and exothermic brazing. The article explains joint design, filler materials, fuel gases, equipment, and fluxes in the brazing methods. The article also describes the brazing of steels, stainless steels, cast irons, heat-resistant alloys, aluminum alloys, copper and copper alloys, and titanium and titanium alloys.

Oxyfuel gas welding (OFW) is a manual process in which the metal surfaces to be joined are melted progressively by heat from a gas flame, with or without a filler metal. This article discusses the capabilities, advantages, and limitations of OFW. It describes the role of gases, such as oxygen, acetylene, hydrogen, natural gas, propane, and proprietary gases, in OFW. The article discusses the important elements of an OFW system, such as gas storage facilities, pressure regulators, hoses, torches, related safety devices, and accessories. It describes the sequence for setting up a positive-pressure welding outfit. The article provides information on forehand welding and backhand welding, as well as various joints used. It concludes with a discussion on repairs and alterations, as well as the safety aspects.

The quality of brazed stainless steel joints depends on the selection of the brazing process, process temperature, filler metal, and the type of protective atmosphere or flux. This article provides a detailed discussion on the applicability and brazeability of stainless steel and lays an emphasis on the selection of suitable filler metal, brazing processes, and its corresponding furnace atmosphere for brazing different grades of stainless steel. The types of brazing processes include torch brazing, furnace brazing in different atmospheres (dissociated ammonia, dry hydrogen, and vacuum atmosphere), dip brazing in salt bath, and high-energy-beam brazing. A complete list of the typical compositions and properties of standard brazing filler metals for brazing stainless steel is also provided.

This article focuses primarily on the various steps involved in the brazing of heat-resistant alloys (nickel- and cobalt-base alloys). The major steps include the selection of brazing filler metals, surface cleaning and preparation, brazing processes and their corresponding atmospheres, and fixturing. The article also provides an overview of the brazing of blow-alloy steels and tool steels and oxide dispersion-strengthened alloys.

Solid-state welding (SSW) processes are those that produce coalescence of the faying surfaces at temperatures below the melting point of the base metal being joined without the addition of brazing or solder filler metal. This article discusses the fundamentals of welding and joining materials via the application of a nonmelting process. The specific processes usually associated with the nonmelting process are discussed.

Fabrication of high-density heat exchangers, which have a large heat transfer area and a compact size, is best accomplished by brazing where the brazing filler metal is clad to the materials to be brazed. This article focuses on the brazing procedures involved in the fabrication of high-density heat exchangers. The brazing procedures include base metal and brazing filler metal selection; fabrication of clad brazing materials; and stamping, cleaning, and assembling of cladded parts. The article concludes with an examination of brazing parameters.

Soldering is defined as a joining process by which two substrates are bonded together using a filler metal with a liquidus temperature. This article provides an overview of fundamentals of soldering and presents guidelines for flux selection. Types of fluxes, including rosin-base fluxes, organic fluxes, inorganic fluxes, and synthetically activated fluxes, are reviewed. The article describes the joint design and precleaning and surface preparation for soldering. It addresses some general considerations in the soldering of electronic devices. Soldering process parameters, affecting wetting and spreading phenomena, such as temperature, time, vapor pressure, metallurgical and chemical nature of the surfaces, and surface geometry, are discussed. The article also describes the applications of furnace soldering, resistance soldering, infrared soldering, and ultrasonic soldering. It contains a table that lists tests commonly used to evaluate the solderability properties of selected soldered components.

This article presents an overview of resistance brazing (RB) used for many applications involving small workpieces, for small joints that are part of very large equipment, or for low-volume production runs. It lists the advantages and limitations of RB and outlines the factors that contribute to high quality in an RB joint. The article discusses the classification of RB such as manual RB or automatic RB. It describes the selection of metal electrodes and filler metals for RB. The filler metals include silver alloys, aluminum-silicon alloys, and copper-phosphorus alloys.

Diffusion brazing (DFB) is a process that coalesces, or joins, metals by heating them to a suitable brazing temperature at which either a preplaced filler metal will melt and flow by capillary attraction or a liquid phase will form in situ between one faying surface and another. This article discusses the two critical aspects of DFB, namely, a liquid filler metal must be formed and become active in the joint area and extensive diffusion of filler metal elements into the base metal must occur. It schematically illustrates a diffusion process that results in the loss of identity of original brazed joint. The article also discusses the advantages of DFB.

Exothermic brazing is a process that utilizes the heat produced in a solid-state chemical reaction to melt a conventional filler metal or to produce molten filler metal as a product of the reaction. This article provides the pros and cons of exothermic brazing, describes procedure of the process, and illustrates a typical arrangement for the exothermic brazing of tube. It provides information on the exothermic compounds used for brazing refractory metals and aluminum alloys.

This article focuses on clad brazing material, which is defined as any base material or alloy that is clad with an appropriate lower-melting-point brazing filler metal. It provides information on typical clad brazing strip products in a tabular form and lists the advantages of using clad brazing materials. The article compares the steps in using brazing preforms to fabricate a brazed assembly with the steps involved in using clad brazing materials. It concludes with a discussion on design and manufacturing considerations, during brazing with clad brazing materials.

This article focuses on the various criteria considered in the selection of product forms, joint types, solders, and filler metals for brazing and soldering of base material components.