Effect of welding processes on mechanical and microstructural characteristics of high strength low alloy naval grade steel joints

Naval grade high strength low alloy(HSLA) steels can be easily welded by all types of fusion welding processes. However, fusion welding of these steels leads to the problems such as cold cracking, residual stress, distortion and fatigue damage. These problems can be eliminated by solid state welding process such as friction stir welding(FSW). In this investigation, a comparative evaluation of mechanical(tensile, impact,hardness) properties and microstructural features of shielded metal arc(SMA), gas metal arc(GMA) and friction stir welded(FSW) naval grade HSLA steel joints was carried out. It was found that the use of FSW process eliminated the problems related to fusion welding processes and also resulted in the superior mechanical properties compared to GMA and SMA welded joints.

Thermal Activation Analyses of Dynamic FractureToughness of High Strength Low Alloy Steels

A formula is derived for determining the influence of temperature and loading rate on dynamic fracture toughness of a high strength low alloy steel (HQ785C) from thermal activation analysis of the experimental results of three-point bend specimens as well as introducing an Arrhenius formula. It is shown that the results obtained by the given formula are in good agreement with the experimental ones in the thermal activation region. The present method is also valuable to describe the relationship between dynamic fracture toughness and temperature and loading rate of other high strength low alloy steels.

Design of a low-alloy high-strength and high-toughness martensitic steel

To develop a high strength low alloy （HSLA） steel with high strength and high toughness, a series of martensitic steels were studied through alloying with various elements and thermodynamic simulation. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the designed steel were investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, tensile testing and Charpy impact test. The results show that cementite exists between 500℃ and 700℃, M7C3 exits below 720℃, and they are much lower than the austenitizing temperature of the designed steel. Furthermore, the Ti（C,N） precipitate exists until 1280℃, which refines the microstructure and increases the strength and toughness. The optimal alloying components are 0.19% C, 1.19% Si, 2.83% Mn, 1.24% Ni, and 0.049% Ti; the tensile strength and the V notch impact toughness of the designed steel are more than 1500 MPa and 100 J, respectively.

Effect of microstructure on the low temperature toughness of high strength pipeline steels

Microstructure observations and drop-weight tear test were performed to study the microstructures and mechanical properties of two kinds of industrial X70 and two kinds of industrial X80 grade pipeline steels. The effective grain size and the fraction of high angle grain boundaries in the pipeline steels were investigated by electron backscatter diffraction analysis. It is found that the low temperature toughness of the pipeline steels depends not only on the effective grain size, but also on other microstructural factors such as martensite-austenite （MA） constituents and precipitates. The morphology and size of MA constituents significantly affect the mechanical properties of the pipeline steels. Nubby MA constituents with large size have significant negative effects on the toughness, while smaller granular MA constituents have less harmful effects. Similarly, larger Ti-rich nitrides with sharp corners have a strongly negative effect on the toughness, while fine, spherical Nb-rich carbides have a less deleterious effect. The low temperature toughness of the steels is independent of the fraction of high angle grain boundaries.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of high-strength low alloy steel by wire and arc additive manufacturing

A high-building multi-directional pipe joint(HBMDPJ)was fabricated by wire and arc additive manufacturing using high-strength low-alloy(HSLA)steel.The microstructure characteristics and transformation were observed and analyzed.The results show that the forming part includes four regions.The solidification zone solidifies as typical columnar crystals from a molten pool.The complete austenitizing zone forms from the solidification zone heated to a temperature greater than 1100℃,and the typical columnar crystals in this zone are difficult to observe.The partial austenitizing zone forms from the completely austenite zone heated between Ac1(austenite transition temperature)and1100℃,which is mainly equiaxed grains.After several thermal cycles,the partial austenitizing zone transforms to the tempering zone,which consistes of fully equiaxed grains.From the solidification zone to the tempering zone,the average grain size decreases from 75 to20μm.The mechanical properties of HBMDPJ satisfies the requirement for the intended application.

Numerical simulation of residual stress and deformation for submerged arc welding of Q690D high strength low alloy steel thick plate

The finite element simulation software SYSWELD is used to numerically simulate the temperature field,residual stress field,and welding deformation of Q690D thick plate multi-layer and multi-pass welding under different welding heat input and groove angles.The simulation results show that as the welding heat input increases,the peak temperature during the welding process is higher,and the residual stress increases,they are all between 330–340 MPa,and the residual stress is concentrated in the area near the weld.The hole-drilling method is used to measure the actual welding residual stress,and the measured data is in good agreement with the simulated value.The type of post-welding deformation is angular deformation,and as the welding heat input increases,the maximum deformation also increases.It shows smaller residual stress and deformation when the groove angle is 40°under the same heat input.In engineering applications,under the premise of guaranteeing welding quality,smaller heat input and 40°groove angle should be used.

Effect of microstructure variation on the corrosion behavior of high-strength low-alloy steel in 3.5wt% NaCl solution

The effect of microstructure variation on the corrosion behavior of high-strength low-alloy（HSLA） steel was investigated. The protective property of the corrosion product layer was also explored. Experimental results reveal that the type of microstructure has significant effect on the corrosion resistance of HSLA steel. The measurement results of weight loss, potentiodynamic polarization curves, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy indicate that the steel with acicular ferrite microstructure exhibits the lowest corrosion rate. Martensite exhibits a reduced corrosion resistance compared with polygonal ferrite. It is found that the surface of the acicular ferrite specimen uniformly covered by corrosion products is seemingly denser and more compact than those of the other two microstructures, and can provide some amount of protection to the steel; thus, the charge transfer resistance and modulus values of the acicular ferrite specimen are the largest. However, corrosion products on martensite and polygonal ferrite are generally loose, porous, and defective, and can provide minor protectiveness; thus, the charge transfer resistance values for polygonal ferrite and martensite are lower.

Low temperature impact toughness of laser hybrid welded joint of high strength low alloy steel

High strength low alloy steel with 16 mm thickness was welded by using high power laser hybrid welding. Microstrueture was characterized by using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy （ SEM ） , transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and selected area electron diffraction （SAED）. Low temperature impact toughness was estimated by using Charpy V-notch impact samples selected from the upper part and the lower part at the same heterogeneous joint. Results show that the low temperature impact absorbed energies of weld metal are （202,180,165 J） of upper samples and （178,145,160 J） of lower samples, respectively. All of them increase compared to base metal. The embrittlement of HAZ does not occur. Weld metal primarily consists of refined carbide free bainite and a little granular bainite since laser hybrid welding owns the character of low heat input. Retained austenite constituent film ＂locates among the lath structure of bainitie ferrite. Refined bainitic ferrite lath and retained austenite constituent film provide better low temperature impact toughness compared to base metal.

Effects of [S] and T[O] on strength and toughness of high purification low alloy steel plates

The effect of [S] on strength and toughness of low alloy steel plates inwhich sum of [P], [N], T[O] is less than 8x10^(-5) and the effect of T[O] on strength and toughnessof the steel plates in which sum of [S], [P], [N] is less than 7x10^(-5) were investigated. It isfound that the strength of the steel plates decreases with increasing [S] content when [S] is lessthan 4x10^(-5). When [S] varies within the range of 4x10^(-5)-1.2x10^(-4), [S] has no significanteffect on strength of the steel. The strength of the steel plates increases with increasing T[O]content when T[O] is less than 30x10^(-6), but decreases with increasing T[O] when T[O] is more than3x10^(-5). The difference between the LETT in plate length direction and LETT in width directiondecreases with decreasing [S] content. However, even when [S] is decreased to 9x10^(-6), thedifference of the LETT is still 16℃. When T[O] varies between 1.8x10^(-5) and 5.2x10^(-5), the lowtemperature impact toughness of the steel plates slowly decreases with T[O] increasing. When T[O]increases to more than 5.2x10^(-5), the low temperature toughness of the steel rapidly decreaseswith increasing T[O] content.

Low cycle fatigue behavior of high strength gun steels

The low cycle fatigue (LCF) behavior of two high strength steels, withnominal chemical compositions (mass fraction, %) of 0.40C-1.5Cr-3Ni-0.4Mo-0.2V (PCrNi3MoV) and0.25C-3Cr-3Mo-0.8Ni-0.1Nb (25Cr3Mo3NiNb), was investigated by using the smooth bar specimenssubjected to strained-controlled push-pull loading. It is found that both steels show cyclicsoftening, but 25Cr3Mo3NiNb steel has a lower tendency to cyclic softening. 25Cr3Mo3NiNb steel hashigher fatigue ductility, and its transition fatigue life is almost three times that of PCrNi3MoV.25Cr3Mo3NiNb steel also shows higher LCF life either at a given total strain amplitude above 0.5% orat any given plastic strain amplitude, despite its lower monotonic tensile strength than that ofPCrNi3MoV. It also means that 25Cr3Mo3NiNb steel can endure higher total strain amplitude andplastic strain amplitude at a given number of reversals to failure within 10~4. 25Cr3Mo3NiNb steelis expected to be a good gun steel with high LCF properties because only several thousand firingsare required for gun barrel in most cases.

Effect of Heat Treatment on Microstructure and Mechanical properties of high strength low alloy(HSLA)steel

In this paper,a Fe-based Mn-Ni–Cr–Mo high strength low alloy(HSLA)steel was prepared by using Vacuum melting,following by hot rolling with 78%deformation and various heat treatment processes.Microstructure were characterized by optical microscope(OM),scanning electron microscope(SEM)equipped with energy dispersive spectrometer.Tensile tests were performed.After direct quenching(Q)from 860℃,the samples were subjected to secondary quenching(L)at different intercritical temperatures within the two-phase region and various tempering temperatures(T).Results show that QLT treatment increases elongation and decreases yield ratio compared with conventional quenching and tempering process(QT).The optimum QLT heat treatment parameter in terms of temperature are determined as Q:860℃,L:700℃,and T:600℃,resulting in the better combined properties with yield strength of 756MPa,tensile strength of 820MPa,tensile elongation of 16.76%and yield ratio of 0.923.

Effects of low temperature on properties of structural steels

The experiments were carried out to measure the mechanical properties ofthree grades of structural steels (Q235A, 16Mn and Q390E steel) at low temperature. It was shownthat the strength of the steels increases while the plasticity and toughness decrease as temperaturedrops. In the transitional area the toughness drops rapidly with temperature. Among the threestructural steels, Q390E steel has the best toughness and the lowest sensitivity.

Microstructures and mechanical properties of C-Mn-Cr-Nb and C-Mn-Si-Nb ultra-high strength dual-phase steels

The microstructures and mechanical properties of C-Mn-Cr-Nb and C-Mn-Si-Nb ultra-high strength dual-phase steels were studied by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and tensile test. The results show that Si can promote the transformation of austenite （γ） to ferrite （α）, enlarge the （α＋γ） region, and increase the aging stability of martensite by inhibiting carbide precipitation. Adding Cr leads to the formation of retained austenite and martensite/austenite （M/A） constituents, as well as the decomposi- tion of martensite during the overaging stage. Both of the steels show higher initial strain-hardening rates and two-stage strain-hardening characteristics. The C-Mn-Si-Nb steel shows the higher strain-hardening rate than the C-Mn-Cr-Nb steel in the first stage; however, there is no significant difference in the second stage. Although the tensile strength and elongation of the two steels both exceed 1000 MPa and 15%, respectively, the comprehensive mechanical properties of the C-Mn-Si-Nb steel are superior.

Study on non-metallic inclusions in Al killed high strength alloy steel refined by high basicity and high Al_2O_3 content slag

Laboratory and industrial studies were carried out to investigate non-metallic inclusions in high strength alloy steel refined by high basicity and high Al_2O_3 slag.It was found that the steel/slag reaction time largely affected non-metallic inclusions.With the reaction time increased from 30 min to 90 min in laboratory study,MgO-Al_2O_3 spinels were gradually changed into CaO-MgO-Al_2O_3 system inclusions surrounded by softer CaO-Al_2O_3 surface layers.By using high basicity slag which contained as much as 41%Al_2O_3 in the laboratory study,ratio of low melting temperature CaO-MgO-Al_2O_3 system inclusions was remarkably increased to above 80%.In the industrial experiment,during the secondary refining,the inclusions changed in order of 'Al_2O_3→MgO-Al_2O_3→CaO-MgO-Al_2O_3'.Through the LF and RH refining,most inclusions could be transferred to lower melting temperature CaO-Al_2O_3 and CaO-MgO-Al_2O_3 system inclusions.

ISOCHRONOUS STRESS-STRAIN CURVES OF LOW ALLOY STEEL CROSS-WELD-SPECIMEN AT HIGH TEMPERATURE

In this work, a parametric approach is presented and utilized to determine the creep properties of weldments; then the model of creep strain for cross weld specimen is given. On the basis of the experimental results, attempt has been made to establish equations of the isochronous stress-strain for weld joint that can predict the function of loading and service time in use of the creep data of base metal and weld metal.

The welding application of high strength steels used in engineering machinery

With the rapid development of low alloy steel strength level,more problems caused by welding are exposed day by day.Recently,the efforts have been paid to improve or enchance the low toughness of heated affected zone and welded metal which can enchance the comprehensive mechanical properties that is the core scientific problems of its safe operation by researching crack initiation and crack propragation attracted a rapidly growing interest.This article focuses on the research status and progress of welding technology and joint microstructure and properties of advanced steel materials.The influence of shielding gas on the microstructure evolution of deposited metals,the effect heat input of welded joint performance,interpass temperature and alloy elements on welded joints microstructure and M-A constituent evolution and properties are reviewed in detail.And for the heat affected zone,the grain size and microstructure as well as the shape,size,and distribution of M-A constituent,have a significant impact on the impact toughness.This paper is an attempt to review the effect of different welding process parameters on welded metal and HAZ of HSLA steels.

DUCTILE CRACK INITIATION AND STEADY-STATE PROPAGATION OF HIGH STRENGTH STRUCTURAL STEEL

The resistance to crack propagation at earlier stage for a high strength structural steel with certain ductility and its correlation to microstructures,stress states,deformation history and strain characteristics have been investigated.The resistance to crack propagation is mainly de- termined by the plastic constrain ahead of the crack tip,the elastic energy and plastic work absorbed in the stress-strain field.These are connected with the state function of triaxial stress.The deformation history and strain characteristic during deformation of material are described by the flow line in which the deformation history and strain characteristic restrain the crack initiation at stage Ⅱ and the crack propagation at stage Ⅲ.The strain hardening rate may sensitively reflect the stress distribution and micro-fracture mechanism in the interi- or of material.

Microstructure and mechanical property of resistance spot welded joint of aluminum alloy to high strength steel with especial electrodes

Dissimilar material joining of 6008 aluminum alloy to H220 YD galvanized high strength steel was performed by resistance spot welding with especial electrodes that were a flat tip electrode against the steel surface and a domed tip electrode upon the aluminum alloy surface. An intermetallic compound layer composed of Fe2Al5 and FeAl3 was formed at the steel/ aluminum interface in the welded joint. The thickness of the intermetallic compound layer increased with increasing welding current and welding time, and the maximum thickness being 7. 0 μm was obtained at 25 kA and 300 ms. The weld nugget diameter and tensile shear load of the welded joint had increased tendencies first with increasing welding current （ 18 -22 kA） and welding time （ 50 - 300 ms）, then changed little with further increasing welding current （ 22 - 25 kA） and welding time （300 -400 ms）. The maximum tensile shear load reached 5.4 kN at 22 kA and 300 ms. The welded joint fractured through brittle intermetallic compound layer and aluminum alloy nugget.

High Carbon Alloy Steels with Multiple Types of Ultra-fine Carbides and Their Characteristics

Under normal forging and annealing conditions, there are different ultra fine carbides (M3C, M23C6, M7Cj, M6C and MC) in high carbon alloy steels when alloy composition design is carried out properly. On the basis of carbides transformation orderliness, the alloy composition design of the high carbon alloy steels is conducted by phase-equilibrium thermodynamic calculation for Fe-Cr-W-Mo-V-C system. The nucleation and growth of new carbides, dissolution of previous partial carbides in these steels during annealing process, all these lead to ultra-fine distribution of carbides. Due to different crystal structures of carbides and different thermodynamics as well dynamics parameters of the carbides dissolution and precipitation, the range of quenching temperature of these steels is widened, and the good temper-resistance is obtained. The characteristics of heat treatment process and microstructure variance, and the carbides transformation for different temperature are explained by the phase-equilibrium component satisfactorily. Their bend and yield strength, flexibility and toughness all are advanced markedly comparing with that of kindred steels. Results of the applications have proved that the microstructure of ultra-fine carbides in these steels played importance roles in the enhancement of edginess and fatigue crack resistance of the die and knives.

Effect of Fast Cooling Rate on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Low-Carbon High-Strength Steel Annealed in the Intercritical Region

The effect of fast cooling rate on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low-carbon high-strength steel annealed in the intercritical region was investigated using a Gleeble 1500 thermomechanical simulator and a continuous annealing thermomeehanical simulator. The results showed that the microstructure consisted of ferrite and bainite as the main phases with a small amount of retained austenite and martensite islands at cooling rate of 5 and 50 ℃/s, respectively. Fast cooling after continuous annealing affected all constituents of the microstructure. The mechanical properties were improved considerably. Ultimate tensile strength （U-TS） increased and total elongation （TEL） decreased with increasing cooling rate in all specimens. The specimen 1 at a cooling rate of 5 ℃/s exhibited the maximum TEL and UTSxTEL （20% and 27 200 MPa%, respectively） because of the competition between weakening by presence of the retained austenite plus the carbon indigence by carbide precipitation, and strengthening by martensitic islands and precipitation. The maximum UTS and YS （1 450 and 951 MPa, respectively） were obtained for specimen 2 at a cooling rate of 50 ℃/s. This is attributed to the effect of dispersion strengthening of finer martensite islands and the effect of precipitation strengthening of carbide precipitates.