The objective of this work is to establish an analytical data for heat generation by friction welding, based on different parameters of the contact condition between two dissimilar materials. The ceramic composite of Al2O3-YSZ and 6061 Al alloy, which is the example of joining materials by friction welding was used in the experiments. Alumina rods containing 0, 25 and 50 wt% yttria stabilized zirconia were produced by slip casting in Plaster of Paris molds and subsequently sintered at 1600 degrees C. The diameter of both the ceramic and metal rods was 16 mm. Rotational speeds for friction welding were between 630 and 2500 rpm. As a result, different data was evaluated for obtaining joint properties and operating conditions, and obtained results are useful in modeling the welding process and reliability joint under various conditions. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.