Case history of tantalum-weld cracking

Abstract

Tantalum welding is normally a routine operation. Of course, the routine involves careful cleaning beforehand, and welding in an atmosphere which excludes reactive gases (O/sub 2/, N/sub 2/, H/sub 2/). Recently a weld cracking problem was encountered at SNLA despite the fact that normal precautions had been taken. This account reviews what happened, the analytical procedures followed to determine the unusual source of the problem, and the remedy which solved the problem