Study of the Effects of the Welding Parameters of GTAW Process on the Mechanical and Microstructural Properties of Austenitic Stainless Steel 304L

摘要

The low thickness stainless steel is widely used in the food and automotive industry and also to manufacture heat exchangers in the transport of fluids, due the stainless characteristics, in these applications the quality control of the pipe is very high, that is why it is important to achieve a strict control of the welding parameters during the manufacturing process. In order to quantify the effect of the travel speed and the hydrogen content in the shielded gas of the welding quality different test were performed with low thickness tubing's welded by GTAW process without filler material. The weld specimens were characterized by optic microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry, and mechanical test like micro hardness and reverse. It was found that when the travel speed increase, a lack of penetration on the welding is observed when the hydrogen content is low, due a lower heat input.