Description 
Friction stir welding was patented in 1991 by The Welding Institute in United Kingdom. Since its invention, this joining process, in which welds are achieved in solid state, has rapidly expanded. Initially developed to weld aluminium pieces, its utilization has been progressively extended to the joining of other materials.
This text is aimed at anyone who wants to find relevant and accessible information to understand and efficiently use this new process. It brings together most of the knowledge acquired by the authors during their researches in this domain. Using selected examples, this book supplies the reader with all the necessary information to develop, in a thoughtful and optimum manner, new applications of friction stir welding.
The book first presents the advantages and drawbacks of the process, before introducing the implementation means (facilities, geometries of the joints and processing parameters). A description of the underlying physical mechanisms is then proposed, followed by a presentation of the specific aspects of the welding of di erent materials. Finally, some industrial applications and variants of the process are described.
