Effects of Electron Beam Local Postweld Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Properties of 30CrMnSiNi2A Steel Welded Joints

To improve the microstructure and properties of the electron beam welded joints, the vacuum or furnace whole post weld heat treatment (FWPWHT) usually should be done on it. The electron beam local post weld heat treatment (EBLPWHT) is a rather new heat treatment procedure that provides the advantages of high precision, flexibility and efficiency, energy saving and higher productivity. In this paper, the microstructure, mechanical properties, fracture toughness and fatigue properties of electron beam welded joints of 30CrMnSiNi2A steel in as-welded (AW) and EBLPWHT conditions have been investigated respectively. The results show that the microstructures of different zones of joints in as-welded condition are changed by EBLPWHT procedure, in which the welds from coarse needle martensite into lath-shaped martensite; the main structures of heat affected zones (HAZ) from lath-shaped martensite into lower bainite. The properties of welded joints can be improved by the EBLPWHT in some extent, especially the fracture toughness of the welds and the fatigue crack resistance of welded joints can be sufficiently improved. However, more appropriate heat treatment parameters of the EBLPWHT have to be studied in order to increase the mechanical properties of base metal near by the HAZ.

Microstructure and property of the Ti-24Al-15Nb-1.5Mo/TC11 joint welded by electron beam welding

The Ti-24Al-15Nb-1.5Mo alloy, in the as-forged and heat-treated states, was joined to the as-forged TC 11 titanium alloy by electron beam welding with the heat inputs of 135 and 150 kJ/m. Then the microstructure and property of the Ti-24Al-15Nb- 1.5Mo/TC 11 welding interface were investigated. The results show that the phase constitution of the weld is not related to the heat input, and is mainly composed of α＇ phase. Moreover, the intermetallic phases of TiEAlNb, MoNb, NbaAl, and TiAl3 are formed in the weld zone. Therefore, the microhardness value of the weld zone is higher than that of the other portions in the same sample. The profile of the weld is asymmetrically fimnel-like. The grain sizes of the weld and its heat-affected zones are increased with increasing heat input. There is an obvious difference in the element content of the welding interface; only the alloying elements in the fusion zone reach a new balance during solidification.

3D Finite Element Numerical Simulation of Residual Stresses on Electron Beam Welded BT20 Plates

A three-dimensional finite-element model (FEM) used for calculating electron beam (EB) welding temperature and stresses fields of thin plates of BT20 titanium has been developed in which the nonlinear thermophysical and thermo-mechanical properties of the material has been considered. The welding temperature field, the distributions of residual stresses in as-welded (AW) and electron beam local post-weld heat treatment (EBLPWHT) conditions have been successfully simulated. The results show that: (1) In the weld center, the maximum magnitude of residual tensile stresses of BT20 thin plates of Ti alloy is equal to 60%- 70% of its yield strength σs. (2) The residual tensile stresses in weld center can be even decreased after EBLPWHT and the longitudinal tensile stresses are decreased about 50% compared to joints in AW conditions. (3) The numerical calculating results of residual stresses by using FEM are basically in agreement with the experimental results. Combined with numerical calculating results, the effects of electron beam welding and EBLPWHT on the distribution of welding residual stresses in thin plates of BT20 have been analyzed in detail.

Microstructural characterization of electron beam welded joints of TiAl-based intermetallic compound

The feasibility to use electron beam welding to join the nominal compositionTi-48Al-2Cr-2Nb (at. percent) alloy was assessed. The microstructure characterization and crackingsusceptibility of the joints were evaluated by means of OM, SEM, XRD, and microhardness. It wasfound that the welded microstructure exhibited columnar and dendritic structures. Microstructuralconstituents in the fusion zone were a massive gamma structure and some amount of lamellar structureconsisting of alternating platelets of alpha_2 and gamma. The major contributing factor to thesusceptibility to solidification cracking was microsturctural change in this study for thesuppression of a phase decomposition leading to produce more retained alpha_2 brittle phase.Compared with transgranular cleavage fracture in the base metal, the weld metal exhibited mainlytranslamellar fracture.

The superplastic deformation of electron beam welded aluminum lithium alloy

The superplastic deformation behavior and microstructure evolution of electron beam welded 5A90 aluminum lithium alloy were investigated. The results indicated that the electron beam weld joint had good superplasticity under a suitable deformation condition. The elongation increased first and then decreased with increasing deformation temperature and initial strain rate,and the maximal elongation of 171.1% was obtained at the temperature of 450 ℃ and the strain rate of 5 × 10^(-3) s^(-1).The microstructure observation indicated that the fine equiaxed dendrite of weld bead transformed into coarse equiaxed in the initial stage( strain ε≤0.7),then refined in the later stage of superplastic deformation.The eutectic structure gradually decreased with the increase of strain. While the microstructure of HAZ was refined and equiaxed with the increase of strain.

Microstructure and performance of dissimilar joint QCr0.8/TC4 welded by uncentered electron beam

The mechanical property of dissimilar metal joint between QCr0.8 and TC4 alloy made with centered electron beam is bad and the highest tensile strength of the joint is only about 82.1 MPa.The bad mechanical property is mainly caused by the asymmetric fusion of the two base metals and the generation of the brittle Ti-Cu intermetallic compounds.The finite element analysis shows that the amount of the melted QCr0.8 copper alloy can be added to reduce the amount of the brittle intermetallic compounds.The bias distance to the copper alloy hc has obvious effect on the tensile strength.When hc=0.8 mm,the tensile strength of the joint can reach 270.5 MPa.The reaction layer near the fusion line on the TC4 side consists of the intermetallic compound and the melted base metal which does not react.The joint fractures at the reaction layer and presents quasi-cleavage or transcrystalline rupture in tensile tests.

Microstructure characterization of electron beam welded joints of Ti_3Al after post-weld heat treatment

The effect of post-weld heat treatment on the microstructure characterization of electron beam welded(EBW) joints of Ti3Al-Nb was investigated.The results show that the microstructure of the weld is predominantly metastable,the columnar crystal metastructure of B2 phase.The microstructure morphology of the weld is significantly influenced by the method of the heat treatment.The microstructure of the weld is laminar structure(Widmanstaten structure) consisted of interphase α2 and B2 after post-weld heat treatment of 1000 ℃/2 h.The mechanism of the post-weld heat treatment makes the hardness distribution of joints homogeneous,but makes the whole joint somehow softened.

Equalization of Ti 6Al 4V alloy welded joint by scanning electron beam welding

The equalization of Ti 6Al 4V alloy welded joint with base metal on corrosion resistance, strength and ductility was studied. The solidification microstructure is transformed from 650 μm columnar grains to 100 μm equiaxed grains by scanning electron beam welding. The anodic polarization curve of 150 μm equiaxed grains coincides with that of base metal. Equal corrosion resistance between weld metal and base metal was obtained. Uniform microstructure and solute distribution are the basis of equalization. Corrosion rate of weld with 150 μm equiaxed grains is the lowest, 2.45 times lower than that of 650 μm columnar grains. Weld strength is 98% as much as that of base metal, yield strength ratio is 99.5%, which is 3.6% higher than that of base metal.

Fracture Assessment for Electron Beam Welded Damage Tolerant Ti-6Al-4V Alloy by the FITNET Procedure

Fracture assessment of the cracked structures is essential to avoiding fracture failure.A number of fracture assessment procedures have been proposed for various steel structures.However,the studies about the application of available procedures for titanium alloy structures are scarcely reported.Fracture assessment for the electron beam(EB) welded thick-walled damage tolerant Ti-6Al-4V(TC4-DT) alloy is performed by the fitness-for-service(FFS) FITNET procedure.Uniaxial tensile tests and fracture assessment tests of the base metal and weld metal are carried out to obtain the input information of assessment.The standard options and advanced options of FITNET FFS procedure are used to the fracture assessment of the present material.Moreover,the predicted maximum loads of compact tensile specimen using FITNET FFS procedure are verified with the experimental data of fracture assessment tests.As a result,it is shown that the mechanical properties of weld metal are inhomogeneous along the weld depth.The mismatch ratio M is less than 10% at the weld top and middle,whereas more than 10% at the weld bottom.Failure assessment lines of standard options are close to that of advanced option,which means that the standard options are suitable for fracture assessment of the present welds.The accurate estimation of the maximum loads has been obtained by fracture assessment of standard options with error less than 6%.Furthermore,there are no potential advantages of applying higher options or mismatch options.Thus,the present welded joints can be treated as homogeneous material during the fracture assessment,and standard option 1 can be used to achieve accurate enough results.This research provides the engineering treatment methods for the fracture assessment of titanium alloy and its EB welds.

Microstructure and fracture toughness of electron beam welded joints of 30CrMnSiNi2A steel

Two post weld heat treatments (PWHT), 900 ℃ oil quenched and low temperature tempered (PWHTA) and high temperature tempered and then 900 ℃ oil quenched and low temperature tempered (PWHTB), are employed to treat the weldment. Then the effect of two post weld heat treatment processes on the microstructure,mechanical properties and fracture toughness of electron beam welded joints of 30CrMnSiNi2A steel have been discussed. The results show that, after two kinds of PWHT the microstructure and hardness at every zones of EBW joints are nearly same. Although the welds have good mechanical properties, fracture toughness of both weld and heat affected zone (HAZ) is low, the CTOD values of welds are comparatively higher than that of HAZ. Microstructure and fracture toughness of two EBW joints have no evident differences.

Limit Load Solution for Electron Beam Welded Joints with Single Edge Weld Center Crack in Tension

Limit loads are widely studied and several limit load solutions are proposed to some typical geometry of weldments.However,there are no limit load solutions exist for the single edge crack weldments in tension（SEC（T））,which is also a typical geometry in fracture analysis.The mis-matching limit load for thick plate with SEC（T） are investigated and the special limit load solutions are proposed based on the available mis-matching limit load solutions and systematic finite element analyses.The real weld configurations are simplified as a strip,and different weld strength mis-matching ratio M,crack depth/width ratio a/W and weld width 2H are in consideration.As a result,it is found that there exists excellent agreement between the limit load solutions and the FE results for almost all the mis-matching ration M,a/W and ligament-to-weld width ratio（W-a）/H.Moreover,useful recommendations are given for evaluating the limit loads of the EBW structure with SEC（T）.For the EBW joints with SEC（T）,the mis-matching limit loads can be obtained assuming that the components are wholly made of base metal,when M changing from 1.6 to 0.6.When M decreasing to 0.4,the mis-matching limit loads can be obtained assuming that the components are wholly made of base metal only for large value of（W-a）/H.The recommendations may be useful for evaluating the limit loads of the EBW structures with SEC（T）.The engineering simplifications are given for assessing the limit loads of electron beam welded structure with SEC（T）.

Effect of cooling rate on the microstructure of electron beam welded joints of two-phase TiAl-based alloy

The analysis of the microstructural characterization and phase composition of electron beam welded joint zones of Ti- 43Al-9V-O. 3Y alloy has been done in this study. The welded seam is mainly composed of B2 phase, the partial γ ＋ α2 twophase lamellar structure and granular γm phase. And the lanthanon Y existed as YAl2 phase and served as grain refined. The impact of different cooling rates on joint microstructure, fracture characteristic and tensile strength were investigated. The high cooling rate restrained the structural transformation and resulted in the ordering structure. The fracture of the joint was brittle cleavage fracture because the ordering structure went against restraining the crack propagation. With the decrease of cooling rate, the transformation amounts of lamellar structure increased, and the fracture presented the layered and crosslayered characteristic.

Effect of forced cooling on weld appearance and microhardness of electron beam welded QCr0. 8 alloy

Electron beam welding of QCr0. 8 chromium bronze was ineestigated to improve weld appearance and reduce the size of softened zone of the joints. Effect of forced cooling on weld appearanee and microhardness of the joints was studied by both experiment and numerical simulation. Both welding with and without forced cooling were conducted and analyzed comparatively. The results showed that a quasi steady state temperature.field and a large temperature gradient perpendicular to welding direction could achieved by forced cooling. A consistent weld width throughout the entire weld and smooth surface for both the top and bottom was achieved by forced cooling process. The width of softened zone of the joint was reduced from 2. 6 mm to I mm by forced cooling.

Superplastic formability of Ti-6Al-4V butt-welded plate by laser beam welding

The superplasticity of Ti-6Al-4V butt-welded plates by laser beam welding(LBW)was studied in virtue of hot tensile tests and superplastic bulging tests.Furthermore,microstructural evolution of weld metal upon superplastic forming was systematically analyzed via metallographical tests and scanning electron microscope(SEM).The relation between the microstructure of weld metal and its superplastic ability was discussed.The experimental results show that Ti-6Al-4V butt-welded plates by LBW possess superplasticity.The maximum elongation is up to 154%and the maximum bulge height can be up to 1.81 times the internal radius of the female die.There is an optimum value of the bulge height for bulging gas pressure.

Investigations of microstructures and properties in electron beam welded joints of TiAl to TC4

The normally centered electron beam and non-centered electron beam welding of TiAl to TC4 was investigated in order to analyze the electron beam weldability between TiAl/TC4 dissimilar materials. Macroscopic cold crack easily occurred near TiAl substrate in the joints. The optimal tensile strength was related to the welding heat input. The weld structures were composed of bulky columnar grains and equiaxed grains. The isolated phases consisted of large quantities of α2 -Ti3Al phase, small quantity of B2 phase, γ-TiAl phase and YAl2 phase. Insufficient melting of the base metal occurred in the weld when the beam position leaned to the TC4 side. The tensile strength could be improved when the deflection was limited in the optimum range. Otherwise, non-fusion zone was easily generated in the weld, which led to the low tensile strength.

Experimental study of electron beam welded titanium alloy to chromium bronze joint with a vanadium sheet

Electron beam welding experiment of titanium alloy to chromium bronze with a vanadium filler metal was carried out. Microstructure of the joint was observed by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Tensile strength of the joint was evaluated. The fracture surface of the joint was also analyzed. The results showed that the addition of vanadium filler metal reduced the brittleness of joint by increasing the amount of vanadium-based solid solution in the weld. But the melting point of vanadium.filler metal was so high that large heat input was needed to completely melt the filler metal. Thus, a large amount of interfacial compounds were produced. The tensile strength of joint was 280 MPa with a brittle fracture mode.

Investigation on Electron Beam Welded Copper to AISI 316 Stainless Steel Joints

Joints of copper and stainless steels are used in a er ospace applications. Production of these joints by fusion welding faces many dif ficulties. This may be due to the differences in their physical, metallurgical a nd mechanical properties. Electron Beam Welding (EBW) process has been found to be especially well suited in this area. Selection of the appropriate welding par ameters needs thorough investigations. These parameters include: preheat tempera ture (℃), welding current (I w), focusing current (I F), welding spee d (V), height between the gun and workpiece surface (H), scan width (S w) and shift distance (S). The present work aims firstly, setting the pr oper welding conditions to get sound joint between commercially pure copper (C10 200) and AISI 316 stainless steel plates 8 mm thickness. Secondly, investigate t he effect of Electron Beam (EB) shift, single-sided and double-sided welds on the mechanical, metallurgical and chemical properties of the weld bead. Due to t he high difference in thermal conductivity between copper and stainless steel, E lectron Beam (EB) was shifted towards copper with different values. These values were ranged from 0.3 to 0.9 mm in welding without preheating of copper plate an d from 0.1 to 0.4 mm with preheating. Number of joints were welded using variabl e EBW parameters in view to obtain the sound weld bead. These parameters are as follows: gradual reduction I w=51 to 49 mA, I F=845 mA, V=8 mm/sec , H=130 mm, S w=500 μm and S=0.4 mm. The investigation has shown t hat, the copper (C10200) plate must be preheated to get sound welded joint with AISI 316 stainless steel using the EBW process. The tensile fracture in all wel ded samples occurred in copper plate away from the weld bead. This reflects that the weld bead tensile strength is greater than the copper strength. The EB shif t has slight effect on hardness distribution through weld bead. The hardness val ue (H v) reduces in gradual manner from stainless steel hardness to copper one. The EB shift distance has no significant effect on the impact toughness.

Effects of zonal heat treatment on residual stresses and mechanical properties of electron beam welded TC4 alloy plates

Zonal heat treatment(ZHT) was conducted in situ to 14.5 mm-thick TC4 alloy plates by means of defocused electron beam after welding. The effects of ZHT on residual stresses,microstructures and mechanical properties of electron beam welded joints were investigated. Experimental results show residual stresses after welding are mostly relieved through ZHT,and the maximum values of longitudinal tensile stress and transverse compressive stress reduce by 76% and 65%,respectively. The tensile strength and ductility of welded joint after ZHT at slow scanning velocity are improved because of the reduction of residual stress and the microstructural changes of the base and weld metal. ZHT at fast scanning velocity is detrimental to the ductility of welded joint,which is resulted from insufficiently coarsened alpha phase in the fusion zone and the appearance of martensite in the base metal.

Effect of process parameters on the morphology of aluminum/copper alloy lap joints by red and blue hybrid laser welding

In order to overcome the problems of many pores,large deformation and unstable weld quality of traditional laser welded aluminumcopper alloy joints,a red-blue dual-beam laser source and a swinging laser were introduced for welding.T2 copper and 6063 aluminum thin plates were lap welded by coaxial dual-beam laser welding.The morphology of weld cross section was compared to explore the influence of process parameters on the formation of lap joints.The microstructure characteristics of the weld zone were observed and compared by optical microscope.The results show that the addition of laser beam swing can eliminate the internal pores of the weld.With the increase of the swing width,the weld depth decreases,and the weld width increases first and then decreases.The influence of welding speed on the weld cross section morphology is similar to that of swing width.With the increase of welding speed,the weld width increases first and then decreases,while the weld depth decreases all the time.This is because that the red laser is used as the main heat source to melt the base metals,with the increase of red laser power,the weld depth increases.As an auxiliary laser source,blue laser reduces the total energy consumption,consequently,the effective heat input increases and the spatter is restrained effectively.As a result,the increase of red laser power has an enhancement effect on the weld width and weld depth.When the swing width is 1.2 mm,the red laser power is 550 W,the blue laser power is 500 W,and the welding speed is 35 mm/s,the weld forming is the best.The lap joint of T2 copper and 6063 aluminum alloy thin plate can be connected stably with the hybrid of blue laser.The effect rules of laser beam swing on the weld formation were obtained,which improved the quality of the joints.

Microstructure and crack sensitivity of electron beam welded titanium aluminide joints

Microstructural characterization and crack formed mechanism during electron beam welding of titanium aluminide Ti-45Al-1.7Cr-1.7Nb were investigated. The results show that the welded microstructure exhibits columnar and dendritic structure. Microstructural constituents in the fusion zone are a massive gamma structure and some lamellar structure consists of alternating platelets of α2 and γ. The major contributing factor of the susceptibility to solidstate cracking is thermally induced stress. The import role of the suppression of the α phase decomposition, the difference of α2/γ phases thermal expansion coefficient and the lamellar spacing changes of lamellar structure with cooling rate all play effect on the crack forming mechanism.