Effect of Laser Surface Melting on the Microstructure and Pitting Corrosion Resistance of 304L SS Weldment

The manuscript presents the effect of laser surface melting (LSM) on the microstructural variations and pitting corrosion resistance of 304L SS weldment fabricated by gas tungsten arc welding of 304L SS plates using 308L SS filler wire. The weld region was examined by X-ray radiography for defect de...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Metallurgical and materials transactions. B, Process metallurgy and materials processing science Process metallurgy and materials processing science, 2017-10, Vol.48 (5), p.2516-2525
Main Authors: Suresh, Girija, Dasgupta, Arup, Kishor, P. S. V. R. A., Upadhyay, B. N., Saravanan, T., Mallika, C., Mudali, U. Kamachi
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alloys
Austenite
Characterization and Evaluation of Materials
Chemistry and Materials Science
Corrosion effects
Corrosion resistance
Delta ferrite
Electron backscatter diffraction
Gas tungsten arc welding
Heat affected zone
Laser beam welding
Lasers
Materials Science
Melting
Metallic Materials
Metallurgy
Microstructure
Nanotechnology
Pitting (corrosion)
Radiography
Scattering
Structural Materials
Surfaces and Interfaces
Thin Films
Welding
X-ray radiography
YAG lasers
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Summary:The manuscript presents the effect of laser surface melting (LSM) on the microstructural variations and pitting corrosion resistance of 304L SS weldment fabricated by gas tungsten arc welding of 304L SS plates using 308L SS filler wire. The weld region was examined by X-ray radiography for defect detection. LSM of 304L SS weldment was performed using Nd:YAG pulsed laser. Microstructural evaluation was carried out using optical and electron back scatter diffraction techniques. The microstructure of 304L SS base was found to be austenitic, while the weld region of 304L SS weldment contained delta ferrite distributed in austenite matrix. The microstructure of LSM 304L SS weldment was found to be homogeneous austenite matrix with sparsely distributed ferrite. Ferrite measurements showed a decrease in the percentage ferrite in the fusion zone of 304L SS weldment after LSM. A profound enhancement in the pitting corrosion resistance was observed after LSM, which could be attributed to the homogeneous microstructure and decrease in the ferrite content. Pit density was found to be higher in the heat-affected zone of the weldment. Very few pits were observed in the LSM 304L SS weldment compared to the as-weldment.
ISSN:1073-5615
1543-1916
DOI:10.1007/s11663-017-1049-y