International Journal of JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING AND INTERNATIONAL Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print),

, ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME TECHNOLOGY (IJMET)

ISSN 0976 6340 (Print) ISSN 0976 6359 (Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), pp. 594-603 IAEME: www.iaeme.com/ijmet.html Journal Impact Factor (2012): 3.8071 (Calculated by GISI) www.jifactor.com

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ANALYSIS OF TENSILE STRENGTH AND FRACTURE TOUGHNESS USING ROOT PASS OF TIG WELDING AND SUBSEQUENT PASSES OF SMAW AND SAW OF P91 MATERIAL FOR BOILER APPLICATION
Maridurai T1,Shashank Rai2, Shivam Sharma3 Palanisamy P4
1

Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering department, SRM University, Chennai.

2,3 4

Mechanical Engineering department, SRM University, Chennai Email: mari.durai@gmail.com

Principal, Dr.navalar nedunchezhiyan college of engineering,Cuddalore.

ABSTRACT Maximizing the efficiency of power boilers generally requires operation at the highest possible temperatures and steam pressures for that we require higher strength materials than were typically used.This has lead to the interest in the processing and fabrication of alloys such as 9Cr-1Mo-V steels.They had increased the creep strength and low ductile to brittle transition temperatures. The present study concerned with hot tensile properties and fracture toughness characteristics of SA-welded P91material.To examine the effect of tensile test temp. ranging from 400 to 700 C the welding was carried out on a 406 mm diameter, 53 mm thick wall pipe by using root pass of TIG welding and subsequent passes of SMAW and SAW. The fracture toughness characteristics of base metal and weld metal have been evaluated by Crack Tip Opening Displacement (CTOD) method as per the standard BS 7448 at room temperature and 0 C. The fracture surfaces of the hot tensile, impact and CTOD tested specimens were examined under Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and fractographic studies were made. KEYWORDS: Tensile strength, fracture toughness,TIG, SMAW, SAW, CTOD, SEM INTRODUCTION The 9-Cr-1Mo-V steel is one of the best in the family of Cr- Mo steels for elevated temperature applications and are widely used in Power plants for structure and piping system
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as they have excellent creep resistance and moderate oxidation resistance upto 650C so as tomeet the increasing demand of high efficiency in power generation industry. With minor additions of Nb and V elements in t 9Cr_/1Mo steel, the long-term creep the 1Mo long strength of the steel can be improved.It is primarily used in normalized and tempered condition. During heat treatment, a fine dispersion of Nb(C, N) and M23C6 is precipitated. Through the mechanism of precipitation strengthening, this gives rise to the enhanced mechanical properties. Considerable effort went into the development of the 9Cr1MoV 9Cr steel consumables to optimize strength and toughness in weldments.Creep resistance and corrosion resistance are the main requirements of the welded joints used in the structure parts requirements of boilers,pressure vessels etc. at high temperature. Therefore welded joints of heat resistance steels must have appropriate impact properties and resistance against brittle failure[1]. failure For its improved thermal and mechanical properties at high temperature and pressure so it is mproved being used by UK nuclear industry for the parts of superheatres and reheater tube bundles,now under construction for the Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR). The weldability of P91 P9 steels is very good. Due to the high alloying content, a relatively high preheating temperature (200-350C) must be used. The development of suitable welding filler metal of a similar type e which can be employed in the SMAW, GTAW and SAW welding methods Toughness ployed g characterization is one of the important parameters which plays a vital role in determining the performance and life of the materials under the given service conditions. Toughness characterization can be done by Impact Energy Test, fracture Toughness Test (Plane Stress Toughness Fracture Toughness Test (KIC), Crack Opening Displacement (COD) so as to determine the performance and the life of material material[2]. MATERIALS AND METHODOLOGY Arav and van Wortel made a comparison of the pipe-wall thickness required for different wall creep-resistant materials in certain operating conditions and demonstrated that the wall thickness can be reduced by three quarters if P91 is chosen instead of 2 1/4Cr1Mo steel. steel The specified chemical composition of conventional 9Cr 9Cr-1Mo (denoted P9) compared with the composition of P91 (X10CrMoVNb9 (X10CrMoVNb9-1). (wt%). [3]

MICROSTRUCTURE OF P91 Temperatures Ac1 and Ac3 for this steel have been reported as 1103 K and 1178 K respectively. The microstructure and hardness of the steel were found to be very sensitive to be soaking temperatures above Ac1 For temperatures between Ac1 and Ac3, the as quenched Ac1.For hardness increased and the prior austenitic grain size decreased with increases in soaking temperature. The as quenched hardness of the steel increased further on soaking at temperatures above Ac3 even though it attained 100% martensite after soaking at Ac3. With c3 the increase in soaking temperature to above Ac3 alloy carbonitrides dissolve along with austenitisation, and the dissolution is greater the higher the soaking temperature. higher
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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

HOT TENSILE PROPERTIES OF P91 The detailed microstructure in the HAZ is extremely complex and is controlled by the interaction of thermal fields produced by the heat input from the welding process and the phase transformation and grain growth characteristics of the material being welded. Since the peak temperatures attained and the subsequent cooling rates decrease with increasing distance from the fusion boundary, welding results in a variety of non-equilibrium microstructures in the HAZ of 9Cr-lMo-V steel. The percentage elongation of the alloys varied in a complex manner with test temperature and microstructure. At temperatures below 773 K the base metal and the material with an intercritical structure displayed the maximum ductility values while at higher test temperatures the fine-grain martensite displayed the maximum ductility. Coarse-grain martensite with and without -ferrite showed lower values[4]. The steel at all microstructural conditions showed monotonic smooth stress strain curves for the tensile test temperatures of 298 and 773 K, while serrated flow was observed at a test temperature of 573 K. temperatures. The increase in creep strength of the steel in the tempered condition by higher temperature austenitisation has been reported by Barlow et.al. The increase in tensile strength, as with the increase in hardness, may be attributed to a finer martensitic structure with smaller lath size and finer distribution of carbides (after tempering) developed in the steel with the increase in soaking temperature above Ac3. The formation of soft ferrite at soaking temperatures of >1500 K led to a slight increase in strength even though it resulted in a slight decrease in hardness. The grain refining effect caused by the presence of ferrite might have increased the work hardening capability of the material and counterbalanced the strength reduction. CONCEPT AND SIGNIFICANCE OF TOUGHNESS Toughness characterization is one of the important parameters which plays a vital role in determining the performance and life of the materials under the given service conditions. Toughness characterization can be done by Impact Energy Test, fracture Toughness Test (Plane Stress Fracture Toughness Test (KIC), Crack Opening Displacement (COD). Toughness characterization of the material can be done by the following testing methods. Transition temperature Approach 1. Impact toughness test 2. Fracture Appearance Transition Temperature (FATT) test 3. Nil-ductility transition temperature test (drop weight test) Stress Analysis (Fracture Mechanics) Approach 1. Critical plain-strain fracture toughness, KIC test 2. Critical Crack Opening Displacement, CTOD test 3. R-curve method 4. J-Integral method. WELDING OF P91 The first research program on weldability of modified 9Cr-1 Mo steels (T/P91) was started in 1978 by ORNL and was followed later by many research groups in the USA, Europe and
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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

Japan. In the meantime T/P9I has been weed successfully by all common welding processes, i.e. TIG, SMAW and SAW, covering a wide range of wall thicknesses. REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MATCHING WELD DEPOSIT The development of suitable welding filler metal of a similar type which can be employed in the SMAW, GTAW and SAW welding methods; for the building of power stations. From this and from the needs of the processors regarding process safety result the minimal requirements for the pure weld metal. WELDING PROCEDURE The welding procedure of T/P91 is typical for martensitic 9-12% chromium steels. That is why welding technology from e.g. X 20 can be transfered directly to T/P91. In fact, weldabillty is somewhat easier because of the lower carbon content which reduces hardening and in consequence reduces the sensitivity to cold cracking and stress corrosion cracking. Preheating and welding occurs at temperatures around 250C (482F). After welding it is essential to cool down to a temperature below 100C (212F) in order to allow a complete transformation into martensite. Afterwards PWHT has to be performed, normally a temperature between 750 and 760C (1382-1400F). In the case of storage after welding and before PWHT, the maximum time should be one week and during this time the components must be kept dry.Weldments with low internal stresses can be welded upto 200C depending upon the wall thickness(upto 80mm thickness) and for thick walls it should not be welded below 200C. SHIELDED METAL ARC WELDING OF P91 The impact value of the P91 weld seam is also influenced by the type of weld build-up and thereby the type of heat-input. With the optimizing of weld filler materials and improved welding technology, a sufficiently high impact value can be guaranteed in the areas of tempering temperature and stress-relief annealing temperature (740 - 780 C) with a simultaneously shorter holding time of 2 hours. Financially a shorter holding time is called for. The tempering-temperature should be higher than 740 C to achieve the impact values. However a tempering-temperature greater than 780 C must not be exceeded. If the temperature does rise above 780 C, the Aclb-Point could also be exceeded (dependent of the chemical composition of the weld metal). Should this occur, non-tempered martensitic could be produced, which would have a disadvantageous influence on the long term characteristics and the impact value. The holding time must be extended correspondingly at tempering-temperatures lower than 740C. All impact energy readings taken from the joint (Notch-vertical weld metal-middle) show higher impact energy values than those from the pure weld metal. (Refer separately to the explanation on submerged-arc welding). This is regardless of the welding position. Weave beads were respectively welded in the 1G, 3G and 4G positions. Thereby result thinner beads, and owing to a large number of successive beads a multi-tempering effect takes place in an even higher degree [13, 14, & 39]. GAS TUNGSTUN ARC WELDING OF P91 Generally with TIG welding the C content of the wire should not fall below 0.09% because through the carbon burn-off the C content in the scans can fall below 0.08%.

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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

SUBMERGED ARC WELDING OF P91 The biggest problems in the development of a suitable wire/flux combination for the welding of P91 involved guaranteeing a sufficient impact value in the pure weld metal with a minimal tempering time (2 hours). And of the retention of the C content at a minimum of 0.08%. When using a wire with 0.08-0.13% carbon content, a flux must also be used, which is neutral to carbon burn-off and carbon pickup. For this purpose a highly basic flux with good welding characteristics was developed, which is to be classified according so DIN 32522 as follows: AFB 455 DC 8. The SAW process is used for P91 to weld circumferential seams of thick walled pipes. The increased seam volume results in the higher cooling rate of each bead, and leads to an especially high continual tempering effect through the subsequent beads and simultaneous deep penetration. From this it can be deduced that Av values in the pure weld metal according to DIN 32525 of 40 to50 J and with a PWHT 760C in the SAW joint with a wall thickness of >25mm an Av value of minimum 50J can be achieved. This is heavily influenced by the welding parameters. The impact value is dependent on the tempering effect of the successive beads. This means the welding of as wide and as flat beads as possible. The influence of the interpass temperature on the toughness could at least not be proven for the pure weld metal. An interpass temperature and preheating temperature of >200C is recommended for wall thicknesses >20mm. This recommendation should be held to for SAW (also for GTAW of root passes of large cross sections) because the deformation properties of the non-tempered P91 joints can be improved through higher interpass temperatures. Owing to increased heat input, SAW results in a wider HAZ than with SMAW or GTAW. Nonetheless the reduction of hardness in the HAZ / base metal transition is not more than with SMAW[5].

EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS
In the current investigation joining of SA 335 P91 by SMA Welding process was carried out and the resultant weldment subjected to the mechanical and metallurgical studies. This study examines the effect of tensile test temperatures ranging from 400 to 700 C on the tensile properties of SAW and SMAW welded P91 steel. Fracture toughness characteristics of SAW weldment were evaluated by CTOD test as per BS 7448. MATERIALS USED The Material chosen for investigation is SA 335 P91, low alloy ferritic steel. The original dimension of the pipe was 460 mm X 53 mm X 300 mm and was welded by SAW. The dimensions of the pipe used for SMAW was 12 mm Thick, 120 mm Chemical composition of SA 335 P91. C Mn P S Si Cr Mo V Nb Ni N Al 0.08- 0.30- 0.02 0.01 0.50 8.00- 0.85- 0.18- 0.06- 0.40 0.03 0.03 0.12 0.60 max max max 9.50 1.05 0.25 0.10 max max max 0.08 0.42 0.02 0.01 0.3 8.24 0.9 0.21 0.05 -

Standard

Analyzed ( 120, 12 mm thick pipe) Analyzed 0.09 ( 460, 53 mm thick pipe) .

0.42

0.01 0.01 0.26 8.39 Max Max

0.86

0.21

0.05

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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

Chemical composition of SAW welded P91. C Analyzed (SAW) 0.12 Mn 0.72 P 0.01 Max S 0.01 Max Si 0.21 Cr 8.19 Mo 0.82 V 0.19 Ni 0.75 Cu 0.10 max

WELDING PROCEDURE GTA welding parameters for root pass (Weld metal deposit 2.5 mm) Current Voltage Polarity Shielding gas Gas flow rate Filler wire Filler wire diameter Electrode Tip configuration Electrode Type & diameter Welding position Method Preheating Temperature Technique Number of passes 100 A 20 V DCEN Argon (99.9%) 8 lit/min ER90S-G 2.4 mm 60 EWTh-2, 2.4 mm 2G Manual 220C Stringer 1

SMA welding parameters for further two passes (Weld metal deposit 10 mm) 1st Pass 120 28 DCEP E 9018-B9 3.2 mm 350 mm 2G 250 mm/min. Stringer 230-350C 2nd pass 150 30 DCEP E 9018-B9 4.0 mm 350 mm 2G 300 mm/min. Stringer 230-350C

Current Voltage Polarity Electrode Electrode diameter Electrode Dimension (length) Welding position Welding Speed Technique (weaving / stinger ) Interpass Temperature

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International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

SA welding parameters Voltage Polarity Filler wire Filler wire diameter Electrode stick out Type of flux Welding position Welding Speed Preheating Temperature Interpass Temperature Technique (weaving / stinger ) Number of passes 30 V DCEP E B9 3.2 mm 30 mm Marathon 543 (Basic agglomerated flux) 1G 450 mm/min. 220C 230-350C Stringer 63

HARDNESS TESTING Hardness survey was done by using Vickers hardness tester using 10Kg load, using square pyramid diamond indenter for 10 seconds. The impression appears as a dark square in a light back ground. The indents were made in Base material, weld metal and Heat affected zone. VHN=1.854P/L2 Where, P - Load in kg, L - diagonal length in mm. The impression appears as a dark square on a light background. The measurements are taken across the diagonals of the square, and the hardness value corresponding to the readings is obtained from a chart or calculated by a simple formula. HOT TENSILE TESTING This study examines the effect of tensile test temperatures ranging from 400 to 700C on the tensile properties of a SAW welded modified 9Cr1Mo ferritic steel. Hot tensile testing was performed in an UTN-60 testing machine integrated with induction heating coil. Isothermal tensile tests on SAW welded transverse tensile specimens of the size of 12.5 X 6 mm were carried out covering a temperature at the temperatures of 400C, 500C, 600C and 700 C. The specimens were selected from both the face and root side of the weldment. This present investigation also aimed at studying the SMAW welded P91 in the temperature range of 400 to 700C. For the specimens tensile tested at 400-700 C, the length of time that specimens were above 90% of the test temperature prior to the onset of tensile testing was generally about 1 -2 hr.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

TENSILE TESTING Transverse tensile testing results of P91 SAW weldment Specimen Thickness Width mm CSA mm2 Tensile UTS location mm load kN N/mm2 Face side 20.9 1903 403.4 262 649 Face side 19.7 19.2 378.2 242 640 Root side 20.2 19.1 385.8 242 627 Root side 19.8 19.2 380.2 240 631
600

Position of fracture WELD WELD WELD WELD

International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (IJMET), ISSN 0976 6340(Print), ISSN 0976 6359(Online) Volume 3, Issue 2, May-August (2012), IAEME

Tensile testing results of P91 base metal and weld metal. UTS (MPa) Elongation (%) Material y (MPa) P91 base metal 591 650 27 HARDNESS TESTING Table 4.3: Hardness values of P91 weldment (HV10) Location Hardness HV10 206 Base metal 206 206 Average Base metal hardness 206 228 HAZ 228 228 Average HAZ hardness 228 236 Weld metal 236 228 Average Weld metal hardness 233

S.No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

IMPACT TESTING

Table: impact value of P91 base metal n weld metal

Sample number Impact Energy (in Joules) BASE METAL 1 273 2 293 3 282 WELD METAL - FACE SIDE 1 131 2 146 3 130 WELD METAL - ROOT SIDE 1 79 2 70 3 76

CONCLUSION
Major conclusions drawn from this study relating to the evolution of the microstructures, hot tensile deformation, CTOD and fracture characteristics of 9Cr-1Mo-V weldment are given below: The Base metal evaluation has shown that the P91 steel chosen for the work has the composition with in the specific limit. The mechanical properties, tensile strength, impact toughness and hardness are also meeting the requirements.
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Welding procedure for P91 pipe with root pass welding of GTAW and subsequent passes of SMAW and SAW were developed and which were qualified as per the standard ASME SEC-IX. The tensile properties of P91 weldment were measured at room temperature and temperatures ranging from 400 C - 700 C. Root side tensile results are slightly higher than face side tensile value at all the temperatures, due to the coarse martensitic and ferrite in the sub arc welded region. The SMA-weldment shows the higher tensile value at all the temperature compare to the SA-weldment, because of fine martensitic structure with carbides in the weld metal. From impact testing, it was observed that the base metal exhibits the highest toughness compared to the weld metal of both root side and face side due to the tempered martensite and globular carbides in the base metal microstructure. From the hardness testing of the weldment, the weld zone registered the highest hardness values ranging from 228-236 HV10. Intermediate hardness values were observed in the HAZ region. The parent metal registered the hardness value of 206 HV10. The weld metal shows the lower CTOD value of m = 0.46 mm than the base metal value of m = 0.67 mm at the temperatures of 0 C and room temperature (27 C). The critical features for the less value of CTOD due to the coarse martensite and carbide precipitates surrounded by ferrite subgrains where the matrixcarbide interfaces may act as the most likely sites for crack nucleation. Microstructural analysis using light optical microscope results has identified the coarse martensite and carbides with ferrite in the weld metal region. Base metal microstructure consists of tempered martensitic structure and finely distributed carbides, and HAZ consists of martensite with finely distributed carbides. Hot tensile specimens fractured at 400C - 700C exhibits dimple fracture with micro voids and some small amount of cleavage facets were observed in the specimen fractured at 700 C. The fracture appearance of a SA-welded face side impact-fractured specimen that had impact energy of 131 J exhibits dimple fracture with som ABBREVIATIONS PWHT:Pre welding heat treatment. HAZ:Heat affected zone. COD:Critical opening displacement. SAW:Submerged arc welding. GTAW:Glass tungsten arc welding. SMAW:Shield metal arc welding. CTOD:Crititcal tip opening displacement. SEM:Scanning electron microscope.

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REFERENCES R.W. Swindeman,, M.L. Santella, P.J. Maziasz, B.W. Roberts, K. Coleman, Issues in replacing CrMo stee4ls and stainless steels with 9Cr1MoV steel, International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 81 (2004), pp507512. 2. K Spiradek, R Bauer and G Zeiler, Microstructural changes during the creep deformation of 9% chromium steel, Materials for Advanced Power Engineering, 1994, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, 1994, pp 251-262. 3. K. S. Chandravathi, K. Laha, K. Bhanu Sankara Rao, and S. L. Mannan, Microstructure and tensile properties of modified 9Cr-IMo steel (grade 91), Materials Science and Technology Vol.17, May 2001, PP 559-565. 4. S. K. Chhabra, R. S. Kanaujia, A Successful Attempt in Developing Welding Procedure for Steam Strainer Housings Made of 9Cr-1Mo Steel for 500 MW Thermal Power Plants, Proceeding of the International Conference & Exhibition on Pressure Vessels and Piping, February 2006. 5. S. Sathyanarayanan et al, Evaluation of dynamic fracture toughness of cold worked 9Cr1Mo steel, International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 81 (2004) 419 425.
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