Abstract
This research investigates microstructures and fatigue properties of the weldments of 6005A aluminum alloy developed for railroad vehicles. The samples were extruded into a truss structure and welded together using the gas metal arc welding process. The extruded sample showed a wide variation in grain size, possibly due to the frictional heating as well as the inghomogeneous metal flow in the extrusion die. The mechanical properties of the samples were affected by the mirocstructures. The fatigue strength of the welded structure was found to decrease significantly from that of the base metal. It was found that the fatigue characteristics of the welded structure were determined by the microstructure of the parent metal as well as weld defects such as porosities and the liquation cracks.
