Investigation on effect of welding parameters on solidification cracking of austenitic stainless steel 314

This study investigates the solidification cracking susceptibility of the austenitic stainless steel 314. Longitudinal Varestraint testing was used with three different set of welding test parameters. Weld speed, current and voltage values were selected so that the same heat input resulted in all the test conditions. From the crack measurements it was seen that the test condition with the lowest current and welding speed value also produced the least amount of cracking with very good repeatability

Effect of Substrate Orientation on Melt Pool during Multi-Layer Deposition in V-Groove with Gas Metal Arc

Thermo-fluid dynamic and experimental approaches are used to investigate the influence of 20\ub0 uphill, downhill and sideway substrate orientation during metal deposition over a previously deposited bead in a V-groove. The computational fluid dynamic model with free surface deformation and metal transfer gives insight into the melt pool flow and causes of defect formation observed on the solidified beads. The experimental metallographs, high-speed images and computational results show good agreement. It is found that the deposition of a second layer on a smooth first layer cooled down to room temperature leads to large changes in melt pool flow pattern at 20\ub0 substrate inclination compared to flat condition. It results in undercut and humps with the uphill orientation and undercut with the side inclination. Therefore, lower angle range is necessary for multilayer gas metal arc deposition for these two last configurations

Measurement of the thermal cycle in the base metal heat affected zone of cast ATI\uae718PlusTM during manual multi-pass TIG welding

This paper presents a method to acquire thermal data in the base metal heat affected zone (HAZ) during manual multi-pass TIG welding of ATI\uae718PlusTM, representing conditions close to an actual repair welding operation. Thermocouples were mounted in different locations along side walls of linear grooves to record temperature data. The thermal cycling was found to be largely independent of location within the HAZ. The recorded temperatures were below the incipient laves melting temperature, indicating that the current test setup requires optimisation to study HAZ liquation. Based on the results of this study, a modified thermocouple mounting technique is proposed

Paraneoplastic Antigen Ma2 Autoantibodies as Specific Blood Biomarkers for Detection of Early Recurrence of Small Intestine Neuroendocrine Tumors

Small intestine neuroendocrine tumors (SI-NETs) belong to a rare group of cancers. Most patients have developed metastatic disease at the time of diagnosis, for which there is currently no cure. The delay in diagnosis is a major issue in the clinical management of the patients and new markers are urgently needed. We have previously identified paraneoplastic antigen Ma2 (PNMA2) as a novel SI-NET tissue biomarker. Therefore, we evaluated whether Ma2 autoantibodies detection in the blood stream is useful for the clinical diagnosis and recurrence of SI-NETs

Review of Arc Efficiency Values for Gas Tungsten Arc Welding

The aim of this study was to review the literature that specifies arc efficiency values for gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) and, if possible, propose a plausible value range. The literature review covered the years between 1955 and 2011, and showed that the arc efficiency values published lie in a wide range. Values between 0.36 and 0.90 were found for GTAW DCEN. Only a few studies covered DCEP and AC current welding. Specific information about the reproducibility of calorimetric studies was scarce (considering both random and systematic errors). A plausible arc efficiency range (95% confidence) for GTAW DCEN was estimated to be 0.73 – 0.82 with an average value of 0.78. The arc efficiency is lowered by longer arcs (increased arc gap). Reports describing the influence of arc current and travel speed, however, conflict. The GTAW process with DCEN is an efficient welding method

Promoting austenite formation in laser welding of duplex stainless steel-impact of shielding gas and laser reheating

Avoiding low austenite fractions and nitride formation are major challenges in laser welding of duplex stainless steels (DSS). The present research aims at investigating efficient means of promoting austenite formation during autogenous laser welding of DSS without sacrificing productivity. In this study, effects of shielding gas and laser reheating were investigated in welding of 1.5-mm-thick FDX 27 (UNS S82031) DSS. Four conditions were investigated: Ar-shielded welding, N2-shielded welding, Ar-shielded welding followed by Ar-shielded laser reheating, and N2-shielded welding followed by N2-shielded laser reheating. Optical microscopy, thermodynamic calculations, and Gleeble heat treatment were performed to study the evolution of microstructure and chemical composition. The austenite fraction was 22% for Ar-shielded and 39% for N2-shielded as-welded conditions. Interestingly, laser reheating did not significantly affect the austenite fraction for Ar shielding, while the austenite fraction increased to 57% for N2-shielding. The amount of nitrides was lower in N2-shielded samples compared to in Ar-shielded samples. The same trends were also observed in the heat-affected zone. The nitrogen content of weld metals, evaluated from calculated equilibrium phase diagrams and austenite fractions after Gleeble equilibrating heat treatments at 1100 °C, was 0.16% for N2-shielded and 0.11% for Ar-shielded welds, confirming the importance of nitrogen for promoting the austenite formation during welding and especially reheating. Finally, it is recommended that combining welding with pure nitrogen as shielding gas and a laser reheating pass can significantly improve austenite formation and reduce nitride formation in DSS laser welds. © 2020, The Author(s)

A Methodology to Parameterize Wire + Arc Additive Manufacturing : A Case Study for Wall Quality Analysis

The objective of this work was the development of a methodology to parametrize wire + arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), aiming dimension repeatability, and tolerances. Parametrization of WAAM is a difficult task, because multiple parameters are involved and parameters are inter-dependent on each other, making overall process complex. An approach to study WAAM would be through operational maps. The choice of current (Im) and travel speed (TS) for the desirable layer width (LW) determines a parametrization that leads to either more material or less material to be removed in post-operations, which is case study chosen for this work. The work development had four stages. First stage, named ‘mock design’, had the objective of visualizing the expected map and reduce further number of experiments. At the second stage, ‘pre-requisite for realistic operational map’, the objective was to determine the operating limits of TS and Im with the chosen consumables and equipment. Within the ‘realistic operational map’ stage, a design for the experiments was applied to cover a parametric area (working envelope) already defined in the previous stage and long and tall walls were additively manufactured. Actual values of LW (external and effective layer width) were measured and an actual operating envelope was reached. According to the geometry-oriented case study, a surface waviness index (SWindex) was defined, determined, and overlapped in the envelope. It was observed that the walls with parameters near the travel speed limits presented higher SWindex. This operational map was further validated (fourth stage) by selecting a target LW and finding corresponding three parametric set (covering the whole range of operational map) to produce walls on which geometry characterization was carried out. After geometry characterization, obtained LW was compared with the target LW (the maximum values were very tied, with deviations from +0.3 to 0.5 mm), with a SWindex deviation at the order of 0.05. Both results evidence high reproductivity of the process, validating the proposed methodology to parametrize WAAM

Influence of laser-directed energy deposition process parameters and thermal post-treatments on Nb-rich secondary phases in single-track Alloy 718 specimens

In this article, process parameters such as laser power, deposition speed, and powder feed rate are varied at three levels, and their effect on geometrical characteristics and microstructural features of laser-direct energy deposited single-track Alloy 718 specimens is analyzed. Furthermore, the influence of standard heat treatments recommended for wrought form of Alloy 718 is investigated on as-built deposits. The main aim of the research is to curtail the amount of secondary Nb-rich precipitates such as Laves and NbCs either during the process or by subsequent heat treatments. The volume fraction analysis of Nb-rich phases shows that processing at high laser power conditions is ideal for minimizing segregation. Upon subjecting as-built deposits to (i) solution treatment, (ii) solution treatment and aging, and (iii) direct aging, a difference in volume fraction of Nb-rich phases is noticed compared to the as-built condition. Characterization of size, morphology, phase constitution through volume fraction estimation, and elemental concentrations employing electron dispersive spectroscopy analysis indicates dissolution of Nb-rich phases when subjected to heat treatments. The delta phase precipitation preferentially occurs in the top and bottom regions and sparsely in the middle region of the specimens subjected to solution heat treatment. In case of specimens subjected to direct aging (718 °C/8 h and 621 °C/8 h), delta phase is not discernable, indicating that a higher temperature (>900 °C) treatment may be necessary for delta precipitation and growt

Effect of HFMI treatment procedure on weld toe geometry and fatigue properties of high strength steel welds

AbstractThe effects of high frequency mechanical impact (HFMI) treatment procedure on the weld toe geometry and fatigue strength in 1300 MPa yield strength steel welds were investigated. In this regard first the effect of three or six run treatments on the weld toe geometry was evaluated. The fatigue strength and weld toe geometry of as-welded and HFMI treated samples was then compared. Fatigue testing was done under fully reversed, constant amplitude bending load. When increasing the number of treatment runs from three to six, the weld toe radius and width of treatment remained almost constant. However, a slightly smaller depth of treatment in the base metal and a somewhat larger depth of treatment in the weld metal was observed. HFMI treatment increased the fatigue strength by 26%. The treatment did not increase the weld toe radius significantly, but resulted in a more uniform weld toe geometry along the weld. A depth of treatment in the base metal in the range of 0.15-0.19 mm and a width of treatment in the range of 2.5-3 mm, were achieved. It is concluded that the three run treatment would be a more economical option than the six run treatment providing a similar or even more favourable geometry modification