UNS S31803 Duplex Stainless Steel Research Articles

Correlation between microstructural gradient and microindentation properties of dissimilar weld between INCONEL 625 and Duplex Stainless Steel

Microstructure evolution and microindentation properties of dissimilar weld between Inconel 625 nickel based alloy and UNS S32205 Duplex Stainless Steel have been investigated in the current study. Samples in cross-section areas were prepared to investigate microstructure and micromechanical properties in different regions of weld using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and indentation measurements. Typical solidification microstructures were observed. Secondary phases were noticed in both the weld metal and heat affected zone of Inconel 625 alloy at cellular and interdendritic region in lamellar, rod shaped and cuboidal form. These secondary phases were identified as Laves phase and carbonitrides of Nb and Ti. Mechanical properties including elastic modulus and hardness were estimated across the weld joint. The results showed that the weld metal exhibit the lowest values of hardness and elastic modulus, however the Heat Affected Zone of the stainless steel exhibit the highest values owing to high δ-ferrite amount. In-situ nanoindentation coupled with Scanning Electron Microscope was carried out in Laves phase and the matrix weld in order to evaluate nanohardness. The result showed that the nanohardness of Laves phase is too great compared to the weld matrix.

Characterizations of dissimilar S32205/316L welds using austenitic, super-austenitic and super-duplex filler metals

UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel plates were welded to AISI 316L stainless steel using the pulsed gas tungsten arc welding process with three different filler metals: ER2594, ER312, and ER385. The microstructures of the welds were characterized using optical and scanning electron microscopy, and all of the specimens were evaluated by ferrite measurements. The mechanical properties were studied through hardness, tensile, and impact tests. In addition, the pitting resistance equivalent number was calculated and cyclic polarization tests were performed to evaluate the corrosion resistance of the weld metal. The results showed that chromium nitride was formed in the heat-affected zone of the duplex side, whereas no sigma phase was detected in any of the specimens. The ferrite number increased from the root pass to the final pass. The absorbed energies of the impact test decreased with increasing ferrite number, whereas the tensile strength was enhanced. The fully austenitic microstructure of the specimen welded with ER385 exhibited the highest resistance to pitting corrosion at 25°C, and the super-duplex weld metal presented superior corrosion resistance at 50°C.

Pitting Corrosion Behavior of UNS S31803 and UNS S32304 Duplex Stainless Steels in 3.5 wt% NaCl Solution

This work examined the pitting corrosion resistance of two types of duplex stainless steels: UNS S31803, with molybdenum, and UNS S32304, without molybdenum. Cyclic potentiodynamic polarization and critical pitting temperature (CPT) tests were performed in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used for analysis of the pits on the surface of samples. The two steels studied presented susceptible to pitting corrosion in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. UNS S31803 steel showed a higher corrosion potential (Ecorr), pitting potential (Epit), and polarization resistance (Rp) compared to UNS S32304 steel. It was also observed that the UNS S31803 steel showed higher capacity to repassivation and CPT than the UNS S32304 steel. Keywords: Duplex stainless steels; Pitting potential; Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy; Cyclic potentiodynamic polarization; CPT.

Evaluation of microstructural and mechanical properties of dissimilar Inconel 625 nickel alloy–UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel weldment using MIG welding

Inconel 625 nickel alloy and UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel (DSS) were welded with ER2209 filler metal using MIG (Metal Inert Gas) welding method. The weld metal obtained by DSS filler metal was subjected to mechanical and microstructural evaluation. Toughness and hardness properties had been examined by mechanical and microstructural characterization of weld metal, fusion line, and HAZ (Heat Affected Zone) region, and precipitations were investigated by light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS). Corrosion behavior of base metals and face and root of weld metal were examined by using potentiodynamic polarization test. Additionally, detailed elemental analysis and mapping of weld metal with both optical emission spectrometer (OES) and X-Ray spectrometer were attained. Results demonstrate a significant decrease in toughness of the welding due to the presence of Nb and Mo rich intermetallic precipitations in the Inconel HAZ and root region, although there is no significant increase in hardness. Potentiodynamic polarization test shows that the dilution-induced microstructural transformation in the root of weld has the worst corrosion resistance in the weld metal. Therefore, this dissimilar welding does not have optimum properties for neither toughness nor corrosion.

Effects of carbon substitution for nitrogen on the pitting corrosion resistance of type UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel

The effects of C-substitution for N on the pitting corrosion resistance of type UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel (DSS) were investigated. It was found that the C-substituted DSS possessed higher resistance to pitting corrosion than the normal DSS. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy analyses on the passive films of the DSSs revealed that the passive films formed on the both α and γ phases in the C-substituted DSS contained higher Cr content than those in the normal DSS, which was considered to be the reason for the enhanced resistance to pitting corrosion.

Investigation of burr formation and tool wear in micromilling operation of duplex stainless steel

Despite progress in the study of micro-machining processes, there is still no consensus on the effect of cutting conditions or standardization of procedures for comparison of the results, due to the typical difficulties of micro-scale processes. In this context, this work has as main objective the investigation of tool wear and burr formation in micro milling operation of UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel. Experimental tests were carried out micro machining slots using a CNC micro mill machine tool, with a maximum spindle speed of 60,000 rpm. The performance of cemented carbide microtools of two different diameters (200 μm and 400 μm) was analyzed. The results showed that the tools with a diameter of 200 μm presented an excellent performance concerning the machined length. However, increased cutting speed led to excessive wear and high burrs. The use of cutting fluid attenuated the wear and the height of the burrs. Finally, the best machinability was obtained using tools of bigger diameter (400 μm). Lower wear and smaller burrs were obtained compared to tools of smaller diameter (200 μm).

Effect of heat input on microstructure and mechanical properties of Nd: YAG laser welded super duplex stainless steel-numerical and experimental approach

This study reports the effect of different heat input (126 J/mm to 330 J/mm) on the microstructure and mechanical properties of pulsed Nd: YAG laser welded super duplex stainless steel UNS S32750 (SDSS) butt weld joints. Macrostructure exhibit incomplete, complete and complete penetration with a crater at the top of the weld bead, for low, middle and higher heat input respectively. Experimental macrostructure is in agreement with the numerical simulation performed by SYSWELD - a 3D software package. Maximum temperature is obtained at the mid section of the weld for all attempted heat inputs. Micro-analysis display an enhancement in the ferrite concentration in the weld zone for an increase in the heat input. Sigma phase, a reaction compound, is observed for the highest heat input. Higher micro-hardness is witnessed at the interface for the mid range heat input. The results of tensile test show that the tensile strength tends to reach a peak and then decrease with the increasing heat input.

Influence of Heat Input and Cold Wire Feeding Rate on Pitting Corrosion Resistance of Submerged Arc Welding Duplex Stainless Steel Welds

Welding thermal cycles may severely impair duplex stainless steel (DSS) performance, especially local pitting resistance and toughness. The restricted welding energy between 0.5 and 2.5 kJ mm−1 represents a limiting factor for productivity increase in DSS welding, and the addition of cold wire is an interesting alternative to increase the welding deposition rate without adding extra heat. The aim of this work is to evaluate the influence of the cold wire feeding rate (CW) and heat input (HI) on pitting corrosion behavior of DSS UNS S32304 bead-on-plate welds obtained by submerged arc welding (SAW). Cyclic potentiodynamic polarization was carried out in transverse weld sections using 1 mol L−1 NaCl solution at room temperature. Most pitting corrosion spots were located on the heat-affected zone (HAZ), and the pitting potentials were lower than the base metal due to higher ferrite fractions and the presence of chromium nitrides. Considering the same CW, the HI increasing reduced Epit for 1.6, 1.9, 2.2 kJ mm−1, but increased Epit for 2.7 kJ mm−1, due to a balance between the HAZ width and the austenite fraction.

Study on welding thermal cycle and residual stress of UNS S32304 duplex stainless steel selected as external shield for a transport packaging of Mo-99

Thin plates of duplex stainless steel UNS S32304 were welded using the pulsed gas tungsten arc GTAW process (butt joint) without filler addition. The used shielding gas was pure argon and 98% argon plus 2% of nitrogen. The thermal cycles were acquired during welding, in regions near the melting pool. This alloy is candidate for the external clad of a cask for the transport of high activity radiopharmaceuticals substances. For the residual stress measurements in austenite phase an X-ray diffractometer was used in a Bragg-Brentano geometry with CuKα radiation (λ= 0.154 nm) and for ferrite phase was used a pseudo-parallel geometry with CrKα radiation (λ= 0.2291nm). The results of residual stress using sin2y methodology shown that the influence of the high welding temperature leads to compressive stresses for both phase of the duplex steels mainly in heat-affected zone. It was observed a high temperature peak and an increase of the mean residual stress after addition of nitrogen to the argon shielding gas.

Impact Toughness, Fatigue Crack Growth and Corrosion Behavior of Thermally Aged UNS S32205 Duplex Stainless Steel

The aim of the present work was to study the impact, fatigue crack growth and corrosion behavior of 2205 duplex stainless steel (DSS) when subjected to one of the most influential thermal aging condition that promotes deleterious secondary precipitation. Formation of Cr- and Mo-rich σ-phase was confirmed by EDX analysis which deteriorated impact toughness causing the material to fail following quasi-cleavage mode of fracture. Susceptibility of DSS 2205 to pitting corrosion assessed though Potentiodynamic polarization technique was enhanced by thermal aging, but sensitization performance evaluated via double-loop electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation (DLEPR) technique did not show much degradation. However, fatigue crack growth behavior testing divulged drastic enhancement in impediment to crack propagation by the matrix after thermal aging.

The temperature-dependent pitting and repassivation behaviors of UNS S31803 duplex stainless steel in chloride solutions

An improved electrochemical method named thermal pulse technique was designed to measure the current flowing from a potentiostatically maintained UNS S31803 electrode in 1 M NaCl solution, while various thermal pulses were applied on the solutions. Both the critical pitting temperature (CPT) and the repassivation temperature (Tr) were measured in one thermal pulse. The Tr data presented an inverted V-shape trend as the cooling rate decreased. Both the CPT and Tr values declined after multiple thermal pulses. The cyclic potentiodynamic polarization curves present a sharp transition of pitting and repassivation potential at the temperature ranged between the CPT and Tr.

Effect of ageing time on the toughness and the corrosion properties of duplex stainless steel UNS S31803

Duplex stainless steels are materials with high mechanical strength, toughness, and corrosion resistance, properties that make them rather appealing for the application on chemical and petrochemical industries. However, the exposure of such materials to high temperatures promotes the precipitation of deleterious intermetallic phases that cause significant damage to the mechanical and corrosion properties of these materials. In this study, the UNS S31803 duplex stainless steel received a thermal treatment at a temperature of 830 °C for 30, 90, and 180 minutes. After the treatment, the precipitates were characterized by backscattered electrons (BSE) and chemical composition mapping, and the properties of impact toughness were assessed by Charpy V-notch test for the different treatment conditions. The corrosion resistance properties were assessed by cyclic potentiodynamic polarization study. The thermal treatments at 830 °C resulted in a considerable reduction of impact toughness, and the corrosion resistance was also reduced in longer treatment times along with the loss of the passivation ability of the materials treated.

A New methodology of Nondestructive Testing for Quantitative Evaluation of Sigma Phase in Duplex Stainless Steels

Duplex Stainless Steels (DSSs) are widely used in the oil and gas industry. When the steel is subjected to a thermal gradient, as in welding may occur precipitation of intermetallic phases. Among these phases, there is the sigma phase, which even in small quantities reduces drastically the mechanical and corrosion resistance properties. According to some studies in the literature, the limit amount of sigma phase present in steel in welded joints must be in a maximum volume fraction of 2,5%. In search to improve the detection sensitivity of the sigma phase, this paper presents results obtained by Linear Sweep Voltammetry (LSV) in Duplex Stainless Steel UNS S31803 as a Nondestructive Testing (NDT) model. The innovation in the application of this test is to use a microcell-based system that allows a reduced area of ​​analysis obtaining density of currents in the order of microamperes and in the use of selective electrolytes to the elements of the oxides present in the intermetallic phases. With the use of these systems and through the optimization of control parameters it was possible to detect very low amounts of deleterious phases such as the sigma and chi phases.

Effect of Warm Rolling on the Corrosion and Mechanical Properties of UNS S32205 Duplex Stainless Steel

Duplex stainless steel (DSS) has been considered as an excellent alternative for applications where high corrosion resistance and high mechanical strength are required. Therefore, microstructure and properties of DSS remain topics of much interest. For this purpose, the effect of warm-rolling was studied in a duplex stainless steel. The focus of this work was 2205 which is one of the most useful type of DSS. Although evolution of microstructure, texture and tensile properties during warm rolling of DDS have been reported, there is no study on the effect of warm rolling on corrosion resistance of 2205 DSS. In this context, the objective of this work is to evaluate microstructure, texture and mechanical and corrosion properties of UNS S32205 DSS after warm rolling. The duplex stainless steel was warm-rolled at 600°C up to 60 and 80% thickness reduction and submitted to electrochemical tests. The electrochemical behaviour of warm-rolled 2205 in the chlorine ion environment was evaluated using cyclic potentiodynamic polarization (CPP) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The samples exhibited an excellent corrosion resistance in 3.5% NaCl solution. The study showed that the thermomechanical treatment used favoured the formation of the passive film and led to a greater polarization resistance. This behaviour is consistent with the pits density observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and the crystallographic microtexture of the steel.

Investigation of Stress Corrosion Cracking of Austenitic, Duplex and Super Duplex Stainless Steels under Drop Evaporation Test using Synthetic Seawater

Abstract Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of UNS S31603 austenitic stainless steel (ASS), UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel (DSS) and UNS S32750 super duplex stainless steel (SDSS) was investigated. SCC tests were carried out at 110 oC for 500 h under drops of synthetic seawater (DET, drop evaporation test). Two loading conditions were investigated: 50 % and 100 % of the experimental yield strength of each steel. DSS and SDSS specimens showed no susceptibility to SCC under loading of 50 % of their yield strength, contrary to ASS, but all steels fractured at the highest load. SCC nucleated under the salt deposit formed on the surface of all specimens. SCC propagation was mainly transgranular, but SCC propagation of DSS also featured crack ramification in the austenite phase. In addition, SDSS also presented crack propagation along the ferrite/austenite interfaces. Transgranular cleavage fracture was also observed in all fractured specimens, but DSS also presented ferrite/austenite interfacial brittle fracture, while SDSS also featured intergranular brittle fracture.

Microstructure, Texture, Mechanical and Corrosion Performance of the Stainless Duplex Steel UNS S32205 Submitted to Warm Rolling

The UNS S32205 duplex stainless steel was warm rolled at 600°C with 60 and 80% of thickness reduction. The microstructure was characterized by optical, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry and EBSD. The corrosion resistance was evaluated by electrochemical behavior in the chlorine ion environment using potentiodynamic polarization measurements. The tensile strength reached 1185 MPa and 1328 MPa, after warm rolling with 60 and 80%, respectively. In steel as-supplied, hot rolled and annealed, the tensile strength was 774 MPa. Ferrite microtexture presented the α-fiber and the rotated cube component, while the austenite enhanced the brass, copper, and cube components to a lesser extent. The substructure was characterized by intense formation of tangles and forests of dislocations and discrete subgrains in the ferritic phase and by planar gliding of dislocations and formation of dense dislocations walls in the austenite. Despite the existence of a certain similarity among the values of pitting potentials obtained for all samples, the number of pits observed was higher in the as-received sample, followed by the samples with 60 and 80% reduction. These results draw attention to innovative routes in the industrial production of duplex stainless steel of this class, even considering ductility lost. Keywords: Warm rolling; Mechanical strength; Texture; Substructure; Corrosion resistance

Produção e caracterização de compósito metálico laminado produzido por laminação à frio

O crescente interesse pelas indústrias por compósitos metálicos laminados resultou da necessidade de se desenvolver tecnologias de fabricação cada vez mais eficientes. Visto que é um assunto de pouco debate no Brasil e resultou no atraso do conhecimento científico do assunto, o presente trabalho objetivou a produção de um composto metálico laminado por meio do processo de laminação a frio na tentativa de melhorar as condições de competitividade do material nacional com o mercado exterior. O primeiro composto proposto era constituído por alumínio comercial AA1050 e aço inoxidável duplex UNS S32304. Uma vez as tentativas de sua produção foram ineficazes, o segundo foi substituído pelo aço inoxidável ferrítico AISI 430 com o objetivo de entender os mecanismos de ligação. O uso desse metal permitiu a produção de compósitos metálicos laminados e posterior estudo com ensaios de aderência (peeling) e análises microestruturais do mecanismo de aderência dos materiais.

Microstructural and Corrosion Properties of Cold Rolled Laser Welded UNS S32750 Duplex Stainless Steel

The main goal of this work was to study the effect of plastic deformation on weldability of duplex stainless steel (DSS). It is well known that plastic deformation prior to thermal cycles can enhance secondary phase precipitation in DSS which can lead to significant change of the ferrite-austenite phase ratio. From this point of view one of the most important phase transformation in DSS is the eutectoid decomposition of ferrite. Duplex stainless steels (DSSs) are a category of stainless steels which are employed in all kinds of applications where high strength and excellent corrosion resistance are both required. This favorable combination of properties is provided by their biphasic microstructure, consisting of ferrite and austenite in approximately equal volume fractions. Nevertheless, these materials may suffer from several microstructural transformations if they undergo heat treatments, welding processes or thermal cycles. These transformations modify the balanced phase ratio, compromising the corrosion and mechanical properties of the material. In this paper, the microstructural stability as a consequence of heat history due to welding processes has been investigated for a super duplex stainless steel (SDSS) UNS S32750. During this work, the effects of laser beam welding on cold rolled UNS S32750 SDSS have been investigated. Samples have been cold rolled at different thickness reduction (ε = 9.6%, 21.1%, 29.6%, 39.4%, 49.5%, and 60.3%) and then welded using Nd:YAG laser. Optical and electronical microscopy, eddy’s current tests, microhardness tests, and critical pitting temperature tests have been performed on the welded samples to analyze the microstructure, ferrite content, hardness, and corrosion resistance. Results show that laser welded joints had a strongly unbalanced microstructure, mostly consisting of ferritic phase (~60%). Ferrite content decreases with increasing distance from the middle of the joint. The heat-affected zone (HAZ) was almost undetectable and no defects or secondary phases have been observed. Both hardness and corrosion susceptibility of the joints increase. Plastic deformation had no effects on microstructure, hardness or corrosion resistance of the joints, but resulted in higher hardness of the base material. Cold rolling process instead, influences the corrosion resistance of the base material.

The effect of surface modification on the corrosion protection ability of the passive films of sensitized UNS S31803 duplex stainless steel

ABSTRACTThe influence of sensitisation heat treatment, surface roughness and repetitive cyclic voltammetry (RCV) procedure (that was used to create passive films on the surface of sensitised samples) on the corrosion behaviour of UNS S31803 duplex stainless steel was evaluated using sodium hydroxide etching, double-loop electrochemical potentiodynamic reactivation (DLEPR), potentiodynamic polarisation, Mott–Schottky analysis, X-ray diffraction and optical microscopy techniques. The results showed that prolonged sensitisation time leads to the formation of defective passive films on the surface. In addition, as the substrate surface roughness decreases, the defect concentration in the resulting passive film decreases. Moreover, thick passive films that were created at a high number of RCV cycles contain fewer defects than the thin ones. Finally, the specimens with smooth surfaces, thick passive films and low degree of sensitisation exhibit high corrosion resistance due to their intact passive layers formed on their surfaces.

Use of composition profiles near sigma phase for assessment of localized corrosion resistance in a duplex stainless steel

Pitting corrosion potential of a UNS S31803 duplex stainless steel (DSS) heat treated between 750 °C and 850 °C at different aging times was related to the extent of the Cr- and Mo-depleted areas at sigma-ferrite and sigma-austenite interfaces, estimated using DICTRA® simulations. It is possible to describe the sigma formation kinetics using a model that assumes a spherical region of austenite, with radius equivalent to the mean intercept of austenite islands, surrounded by ferrite. Composition profiles at sigma-ferrite and sigma-austenite interfaces were calculated, allowing the evaluation of the degree of depletion in Cr and Mo at sigma interfaces. There is a reduction of pitting potential with increase of the degree of depletion, characterized as the weighted sum of depleted areas in Cr and Mo composition profiles, making possible the assessment of the localized corrosion resistance of aged DSS through simulation of sigma phase formation.