The Cracking Induced by Oxidation-Hydriding in Welding Joints of Zircaloy-4 Plates

The welding joints of Zircaloy 4 plates obtained by diffusion welding at 800°C under pressure in vacuum were cracked during autoclave tests at 400°C superheated steam after exposure longer than 150 days. The section of specimens was examined by optical microscopy and the composition at the tips of cracking was analyzed by electron microprobe. The result shows that the combination of oxidation and hydriding induced cracking is responsible for this failure of the welding joints.

Microstructures and properties of tungsten inert gas welding joint of super-eutectic ZA alloy

The microstructure of butt welding joint of supper eutectic ZA alloy in TIG welding was analyzed through optical microscope and transmission electronic microscope. The results show that the weld seam microstructure is fine and mainly composed of columnar crystals and minor equiaxed crystals, the microstructure in the zone near the weld seam is coarse columnar crystals, and the grain in heat affected zone does not grow markedly. The joint microstructure at room temperature is consisted of β phase (rich Al), η Zn, ε phase (CuZn compound), Al 4Cu 9 and other compounds. The hardness of the weld bond area and the tensile strength of the joint are a little higher than that of base materials. The specific elongation of the weld and bond area is a little lower than those of base materials. [

Fatigue Behavior of a Dissimilar Aluminum Alloy Welding Joint With and Without Natural Defect

In order to investigate the influence of natural defect on the fatigue behavior of 5A06/7A05 dissimilar aluminum alloys welding joint,fatigue tests of two types of specimens with and without defects were carried out systematically under stress amplitude control conditions (stress ratio R=0.1) at normal temperature in laboratory air condition.Furthermore,a new parameter,i e,fatigue defect effect factor (FDEF) was introduced to assess the effect of defect on fatigue strength.The fatigue failure analysis was conducted as well to compare the fatigue and fracture behavior of the two types of specimens.The results show that:(1) natural defects have a strong effect on the fatigue lives of welding joint,and the differences between the specimens with and without defects can reach 80 times under a same theoretical net sectional stress;(2) the FDEF parameter introduced is effective to deal with the defect effect,and the FDEF decreases along with the increase of fatigue life.The mean relative error between the experimental data and predicted fatigue strength based on the FDEF is 10.2%;(3) the macro fracture of both types of specimens have three typical zones,i e,fatigue source zone,crack propagation zone and final fracture zone,while there are more than one fatigue sources for specimens with natural defects.The overall pattern of crack propagation zone and fracture zone are quite similar,but the morphologies are different in details.

NEW VIEW OF CHARACTERISTIC ZONE CLASSIFICATION OF FUSION WELDING JOINT

A new view of characterstic zone classification of fusion welding joint has been put for-ward on the base of a number of metallograplic observations and researches. TLe characteristiczones of the joint include (1) homogenous mixture region (2)heterogerous mixture zone, (3)partically melting zone and (4) heat-affected zone. (1) and (2) consist of the weld metal. (2) and (3)compose the bond, the boundary betweer (2) and (3) is the fusion line Four kinds of characteristicappearences in the ' heterogenous mixture zone' are induced. The formation process of thecharcteristic zones is distussed in detail. The differences between authors' classification and W. F.Savage's one are compared, to hoping that the formation essence and composition feature of fusionwelding joint can be reasonably reflected.

Comparison study on measurement of rail weld joint between inertial reference method and multi-point chord reference method

Purpose – Straightness measurement of rail weld joint is of essential importance to railway maintenance. Dueto the lack of efficient measurement equipment, there has been limited in-depth research on rail weld joint with a5-m wavelength range, leaving a significant knowledge gap in this field.Design/methodology/approach – In this study, the authors used the well-established inertial referencemethod (IR-method), and the state-of-the-art multi-point chord reference method (MCR-method). Two methodshave been applied in different types of rail straightness measurement trollies, respectively. These instrumentswere tested in a high-speed rail section within a certain region of China. The test results were ultimatelyvalidated through using traditional straightedge and feeler gauge methods as reference data to evaluate the railweld joint straightness within the 5-m wavelength range.Findings – The research reveals that IR-method and MCR-method produce reasonably similar measurementresults for wavelengths below 1 m. However, MCR-method outperforms IR-method in terms of accuracy forwavelengths exceeding 3 m. Furthermore, it was observed that IR-method, while operating at a slower speed,carries the risk of derailing and is incapable of detecting rail weld joints and low joints within the track.Originality/value – The research compare two methods’ measurement effects in a longer wavelength rangeand demonstrate the superiority of MCR-method.

Improving Corrosion Resistance of Friction Stir Welding Joint of 7075 Aluminum Alloy by Micro-arc Oxidation

An attempt has been made to improve the corrosion resistance of friction stir welded joints of 7075 aluminum alloys by micro-arc oxidation（MAO）, and the effects of Na2Si O3 concentration in electrolyte on the corrosion resistance of the coatings were discussed. Morphology and phase constituents of the MAO coatings produced in electrolyte with different Na2SiO3 concentrations were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Electrochemical tests were conducted to evaluate the corrosion resistance of the coatings. The results show that the corrosion resistance of the coated joints is much better than that without the ceramic coating, and the ceramic coating produced in the electrolyte with Na2SiO3 concentration 20 g/L showed better corrosion resistance than the others.

Bending Properties and Fracture Behavior of Ti-23Al-17Nb Alloy Laser Beam Welding Joints

Ti-23Al-17Nb alloy is an important high temperature structural material used in the space and aerospace fields. Welding of this alloy is an indispensable processing method, so the microstructures and mechanical properties of these welded joints must be studied to improve the welds. Longitudinal three-point bending tests were conducted to measure the bending ductility of laser beam welded joints. The crack distribution and fracture surface were investigated to further analyze the fracture behavior. The results indicate that the bending ductility decreases as the heat input by the laser beam welding increases. The crack inducing strain reaches 4.24%, while the fracturing strain exceeds 5% when the heat input is below 316 J/cm. If the columnar crystal grain of the weld metal exhibits a uniform orientation, the bending ductility is worse. The fractography analysis shows that the cracking propagates transgranularly and the fracture surface has a cleavage mode.

Microstructure Characterization of High-heat-input Welding Joint of HSLA Steel Plate for Oil Storage Construction

In this paper, microstructure and mechanical properties of welding metals in 610 MPa high strength low alloy （HSLA） were studied after high-heat-input welding. Both the base material and the weld joint proved excellent strength and toughness by vibratory electrogas arc （VEGA） welding under 90 to 100 kJ/cm heatinput. The heat-affected zone （HAZ） was comprised of fine-grain zone （FGZ） and coarse-grain zone （CGZ）, which characterizes fine granular structure and lathing-bainite substructure, It has found that large quantity of dispersed TiN and M23E6 precipitates restrain structure growing in HAZ and strengthen the weldment together with dislocations in the welded joint.

New Developed Welding Electrode for Improving the Fatigue Strength of Welded Joints

A new welding electrode, low transformation temperature electrode (LTTE), was introduced in this paper. It was described in design principle, mechanics, chemical compositions of their deposited metal and manufacturing methods. It was proved that the best transformation starting temperature from austenite to martensite of the deposited metal of LTTE was at about 191℃ and it was obtained by adding alloying elements such as Cr, Ni, Mn and Mo. The microstructure of the weld metal of the LTTE was low carbon martensite and residual austenite. The compressive residual stress was induced around the weld of the LTTE and the -145 MPa in compression could be obtained in middle of weld metal. The fatigue tests showed that the fatigue strength of the longitudinal welded joints welded with the LTTE at 2×106 cycles was improved by 59% compared with that of the same type of welded joints welded with conventional E5015 and the fatigue life was increased by 47 times at 162 MPa. It is a very valuable method to improve the fatigue performance of welded joints.

Joint performance of CO2 laser-MIG hybrid welding 5083-H116 alloy

Laser-MIG hybrid welding process was dealt with 6 mm thick 5083Hl16 Al-Mg alloy plate in butt-joint configuration. Weld formation principle during hybrid welding was explained. The joint properties and microstructure characteristics of welded joints were analyzed by tensile tests, fractographs observed by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. Higher heat input could obtain better mechanical properties, and tensile strength and elongation reached 97.2%, 81% of the base metal, respectively. Fracture position traasited from fusion line to weld center in the higher heat input, and fracture location were only in the center of welded joints for the heat input relatively small.

Weld Joint Efficiency of the Kazakhstani Constructional Steel

In the Republic of Kazakhstan, the regulatory framework in construction based on Eurocodes has been in force since 2015. However, Kazakhstani produced steel has not been studied for compliance with the requirements of Eurocode 1993. This has resulted in limited use of Kazakhstani structural steel in construction. The feasibility of using structural steel in welded joints has been experimentally investigated. To verify the application of such joints in construction, including earthquake engineering, experimental studies of welded joints made of structural steel produced by Arcelor-Mittal in Temirtau have been carried out. In total, 7 types of structural steel of various thicknesses were selected. Five specimens have been used in each series of tests. The Brinell hardness values of the weld joint, yield strength of steel and tensile strength, relative rupture strain were determined. It was found that for all types of structural steel, the quality of weld joints complied with the requirements of Eurocode 1993—a sample rupture appeared along the plates (main body of the metal), not along the weld joints. It has been established that structural steel produced in the Republic of Kazakhstan fully complies with the requirements of Eurocode 1993. The studies on the dependence of Brinell hardness values of weld joint steel on the yield strength, tensile strength and relative rupture strain have been carried out. The correlation dependences between the values of yield strength of steel and tensile strength, relative rupture strain and BH Brinell hardness were studied. The results of work will allow for significantly increasing the use of Kazakhstani structural steel in seismic and conventional areas of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Corrosion behavior of the friction-stir-welded joints of 2A14-T6 aluminum alloy

The corrosion behavior of friction-stir-welded 2A14-T6 aluminum alloy was investigated by immersion testing in immersion exfoliation corrosion（EXCO） solution. Electrochemical measurements（open circuit potential, potentiodynamic polarization curves, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy）, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectroscopy were employed for analyzing the corrosion mechanism. The results show that, compared to the base material, the corrosion resistance of the friction-stir welds is greatly improved, and the weld nugget has the highest corrosion resistance. The pitting susceptibility originates from the edge of Al-Cu-Fe-Mn-Si phase particles as the cathode compared to the matrix due to their high self-corrosion potential. No corrosion activity is observed around the θ phase（Al2Cu） after 2 h of immersion in EXCO solution.

Influence of Creep Strength of Weld on Interfacial Creep Damage of Dissimilar Welded Joint between Martensitic and Bainitic Heat-Resistant Steel

The mechanical properties, creep rupture strength, creep damage and failure characteristics of dissimilar metal welded joint （DMWJ） between martensitic （SA213T91） and bainitic heat-resistant steel （12Cr2MoWVTiB（G102）） have been investigated by means of pulsed argon arc welding, high temperature accelerated simulation, mechanical and creep rupture test, and scanning electronic microscope （SEM）. The results show that there is a marked drop of mechanical properties of undermatching joint, and low ductility cracking along weld/G102 interface is induced due to creep damage. Creep rupture strength of overmatching joint is the least. The mechanical properties of medium matching joint are superior to those of overmatching and undermatching joint, and creep damage and failure tendency along the interface of weld/G102 are lower than those of overmatching and undermatching joint after accelerated simulation for 500 h, 1 000 h, 1 500 h, and the creep rupture strength of medium matching joint is the same as that of undermatching joint. Therefore, it is reasonable that the medium matching material is used for dissimilar welded joint between martensitic and bainitic steel.

CO_(2) corrosion of X80 steel welded joints under micro-turbulence induced by welding reinforcement height

Corrosion failure accidents owing to flow erosion and pipeline corrosion frequently occur during transportation.The welding reinforcement height(WRH)can induce locally micro-turbulent flow field,which aggravates local corrosion of welded joints.A high wall shear stress(WsS)experimental setup was established to conduct the online electrochemical corrosion test.The influence of WRH sizes on local corrosion of welded joints was studied at different flow rates.The electrochemical signals of the local corrosion of X80 welded joints at different flow rates were monitored in real time using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and wire beam microelectrode.In addition,the corrosion products composition and properties were analyzed.The results show that the micro-turbulent flow fields induced by the WRHs can enhance ion mass transfer near the welded joints.The corrosion products on the WRH surface also present different microscopic morphologies at different flow rates.In strong flow fields,the locally enhanced wsS can peel off the dense corrosion product partially,leading to the electrochemical distribution of large cathode and small anode,which accelerates the occurrence and development processes of the local corrosion of welded joints.The scientific guidelines for the corrosion protection of long-distance oil and gas pipelines can be potentially provided.

Research status of corrosion environment failure and safety assessment of pipeline welded joint

Pipeline transportation is an economical, safe, and efficient transportation method for transporting oil, natural gas, mineral slurry, and other fluids.Welding is the most critical construction process in pipeline engineering and is crucial in the safe operation and service of an entire pipeline system.Theoretically, the girth welded joint is the weakest link in a pipeline system.The unevenness of the structure and performance of the joint caused by welding frequently results in the failure of the welded joint before the failure of the base material of the pipe body, causing the pipeline to leak or even break.For steel pipes used in an acidic corrosive medium environment, the integration of the corrosive medium and mechanical load will accelerate the failure of the welded joint.This article reviews the failure modes of pipeline welded joints in acidic corrosive media, including stress corrosion cracking, hydrogen-induced cracking, and corrosion fracture, and corrosion fatigue considering the diffusion and accumulation of H;at the crack tip.It also reviews service pipelines in acidic corrosive media.The general processing technology of pipe joint engineering critical assessment(ECA) is investigated to provide a reference for the future development of technology in this field.

Application of Programmable Controller in a Rail Welding Machine

An innovation is conducted on a K190πK rail auto welding machine because of its poor stability in quality of welding joints. A new control system based on a programmable controller is designed to replace the old one. The new control system is of higher accuracy in controlling sequence and good ability in anti disturbance, and is convenient to operate. The comparison tests are carried out. The experimental results show that the quality of welded joints is greatly increased by the improved welding mechine.

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy study on the corrosion of the weld zone of 3Cr steel welded joints in CO_2 environments

The welded joints of 3Cr pipeline steel were fabricated with commercial welding wire using the gas tungsten arc welding （GTAW） technique. Potentiodynamic polarization curves, linear polarization resistance （LPR）, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS）, scan- ning electron microscopy （SEM）, and energy-dispersive spectrometry （EDS） were used to investigate the corrosion resistance and the growth of a corrosion film on the weld zone （WZ）. The changes in electrochemical characteristics of the film were obtained through fitting of the EIS data. The results showed that the average corrosion rate of the WZ in CO2 environments first increased, then fluctuated, and finally de- creased gradually. The formation of the film on the WZ was divided into three stages： dynamic adsorption, incomplete-coverage layer forma- tion, and integral layer formation.

Improving the fatigue property of welded joints for AZ31 magnesium alloy by ultrasonic peening treatment

The fatigue property of AZ31 magnesium alloy and its TIG welded joints were investigated. The ultrasonic peening treatment （UPT） was used to improve the fatigue property of the TIG welded joints, which was treated at the weld toe by the UPT process. The test results show that the fatigue strength of the base metal of AZ31 magnesium alloys is 57.8 MPa, and those of the fillet joint and the transverse cross joint are respectively 20. 0 MPa and 17.2 MPa at 2 × 10^6 cycles. The fatigue strengths of two kinds of welded joints treated by the UPT are respectively 30. 3 MPa and 24. 7 MPa, which have been improved by 51.5% and 43.6%, respectively. The fatigue life of the fillet joint specimens is prolonged by about 2. 74 times and the fatigue life of the transverse cross joint specimens is prolonged by about 1.05 times when the stress range is at 40. 0 MPa.

EFFECT OF MEAN STRESS ON FATIGUE PERFORMANCE OF WELDED JOINTS TREATED BY UPT

The fatigue contrast tests of unload longitudinal direction comer joints asoriginal welded and treated by ultrasonic peening of Q235B in various stress ratio are directed. Theimprovements of fatigue performance of unload longitudinal direction corner joints resulted byultrasonic peening are studied. The effect pattern of stress ratio on fatigue performance of weldedjoints that are treated by ultrasonic peening is studied. As tests results indicate that: ① In thecondition of stress ratio .R=-l, the fatigue strength 'of specimen treated by ultrasonic peening isincreased by 165 percent of that of the original welded specimen. And the fatigue life of specimentreated by ultrasonic peening is as much as 75 approx 210 times of that of the latter. When R=0.1,the fatigue strength is increased by 87 percent and the fatigue life is extended by 21 approx 29times. When R=-0.5, the fatigue strength is increased by 123 percent and the fatigue life isextended by 42 approx 59 times. When R=0.45, the fatigue strength is increased by 51 percent and thefatigue life is extended by 3 approx 14 times. ② If the welded joints are treated by ultrasonicpeening, the fatigue strength is no longer independent on the applied mean stress. The more thestress ratio R, the less the fatigue stress range which can be sustained by the joints is. ③Whether the high value residual stress is in the joints or not, the dead load portion of the appliedload must be considered in the design of the joints which should be treated by ultrasonic peening.

Effects of laser heat treatment on the fracture morphologies of X80 pipeline steel welded joints by stress corrosion

The surfaces of X80 pipeline steel welded joints were processed with a CO2 laser, and the effects of laser heat treatment （LHT） on H2S stress corrosion in the National Association of Corrosion Engineers （NACE） solution were analyzed by a slow strain rate test. The fracture morphologies and chemical components of corrosive products before and after LHT were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy, respectively, and the mechanism of LHT on stress corrosion cracking was discussed. Results showed that the fracture for welded joints was brittle in its original state, while it was transformed to a ductile fracture after LHT. The tendencies of hydrogen-induced corrosion were reduced, and the stress corrosion sensitivity index decreased from 35.2% to 25.3%, indicating that the stress corrosion resistance of X80 pipeline steel welded joints has been improved by LHT.