THE WELDING

OF ALLOYS
WITH HIGHER
HARDENABILITY:
Case Studies
aster Flo Valve Inc (MFV) utilizes many alloys in the construction
requirements of Section IX of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel
Code (herein ASME IX) and ANSI/NACE MR0175/ISO 15156 (herein
NACE) are adhered to. End-user requirements typically require that
low-temperature impact toughness testing be included. The NACE2
standard is invoked when the end-user service environment is
H2S-containing (sour). The butt welding of forged anges or pipe
(ange herein) sections to valve bodies are examples of typical
construction methods. The valve bodies may be forged or cast
material depending on their size and complexity. There are many
alloys available that are suitable for valve body and ange construction;
material used for valve bodies and anges include AISI 4130, AISI
8620 and ASTM A182 F51. In many instances, the valve body material
and the ange metal are dissimilar. This metallurgical mismatchmay
result in poor properties within the weld metal (WM) and heat
aected zones (HAZ) . In this case, the engineer must consider the
heat treated condition, the weldability, the metallurgical properties
and the mechanical properties of both of the base metals to be
welded to ensure that a sound weldment is produced.

18

JOURNA

In recent years, end-users have required increased strength and

impact
toughness values for weldments, forcing manufacturers to utilize
alternate
grades of materials to meet these demands. Materials such as AISI
4130,
AISI 8620 enjoy widespread use, however, improvements in
mechanical and
corrosion properties through heat treatment and cladding have
become
commonplace today. In cases where these base metals cannot
achieve
the requisite properties, it is typical to employ material further
enhanced
through alloying. For these enhanced alloys, the correct
combination
of welding process(es), ller metals, preheat and interpass
temperature,
heat input, cooling rate and PWHT is critical. Small variations in any
of the
welding parameters can result in the formation of deleterious
phases for
example, causing degradation of mechanical properties and poor
corrosion
performance. These richer alloys include ASTM A182 F22 and the
ASME IX
P10HG1 materials such as duplex stainless steel. Several case
studies
concerning successes and diculties related to welding the abovementioned
alloys will be discussed herein.

Study 1: Welding of AISI 4130 to AISI 8620 using

Mof surface and subsea choke valves. Case
In typical construction, the
SMAW/GTAW.
AISI 4130 (4130 herein) and AISI 8620 (8620 herein) are considered
heat-treatable low-alloy steels. In terms of chemical composition,
this
means that these alloys contain up to 5% by weight (wt% herein)
alloying
elements, such as Mo and Cr. Characteristic of these steels is also
their
relatively high levels of carbon; 0.28-0.33wt% for 4130 and 0.180.23wt%
for 8620. The strength of these materials is largely dependant on
the
manner in which they are heat treated (HT); the HT condition and
quality
of HT of the base material prior to welding is of utmost importance
when
determining the welding parameters; it is advised that
manufacturer test
results (MTR) not be relied upon. Good practice dictates that the
material
be mechanically tested prior to welding to determine the HT quality
of the
raw material.

The most common heat treatment cycle for both of these metals is
an
austenitizing process (water quench) followed by a tempering
treatment.
The water quench results in the formation of martensite while the
tempering treatment restores ductility and reduces hardness. A preaustenitizing
normalization cycle can be used to obtain increased Charpy impact
toughness properties through recrystallization and grain renement.

Welding:
The nominal compositions of 4130 and 8620 (Table 1) show that
4130 is
more richly alloyed than 8620. Due to the metallurgical mismatch
between
the metals, ller metal(s) with a decreased C content and increased
Mn
content, when compared to the base metals, is required. The
reduction in
C content decreases the hardenability of the weld metal (WM) and
heat
aected zone (HAZ), thereby lessening the likelihood of cracking
post-weld.
By reducing the hardenability, the probability of forming martensite
during
the thermal cycles of welding is reduced. The increase in Mn
content
within the weld metal compensates for the lost hardenability by
providing
solid-solution hardening, lowering of the temperature at which
austenite
transforms to ferrite and promoting grain renement , further
improving
strength. A preheat of at least 300F (150C) and a maximum
interpass
temperature of 500F - 600F (260C 315C) is required to
produce sound
weldments; The choice of these temperatures is always dependant
upon
the alloy(s) being welded. Improper monitoring of these
temperatures may
Special December Issue dition spciale
Dcembre 2014

9
lead to hydrogen cracking, usually within the HAZ
Table 1: Alloy Compositions of 4130 and 8620 and
degradation of the mechanical properties.
For welding these materials, the gas tungsten arc
welding
(GTAW) process is used for the root pass, allowing
the
welder a degree of exibility in t-up of the joint.
The
hot and ll passes are deposited using shielded
metal
arc welding (SMAW). The weld joint qualied was a
full penetration, butt joint with a 37.5 bevel angle
and 0.062 (1.5mm) land (Figure 1) and wall
thickness
ranging between 0.219 (5.5mm) and 1.00
(25.4mm).
Welds were completed using the welding
parameters
shown in Table 2. The maximum heat input utilized
was 52.9kJ/ (2.08kJ/mm); as expected, the HI
required
for thinner sections is considerably less.
Additionally,
thinner section welds are blanket- wrapped
following
welding to create a slower cooling rate.
Figure 1: Standard Weld Joint Conguration.

Table 2: Welding Parameters

Postweld heat treatment of welded 4130-8620 is

required. 1200F (650C) for approximately 1 hour
per
inch of thickness results in greater than 60ksi
(414MPa)
yield strength, hardness (HRc) less than the NACE
MR01752-imposed upper limit of 22, greater than
85ksi (586MPa) tensile strength and impact
toughness
(Charpy V-Notch) exceeding 30ft-lbs (40J).

Case Study 2A: Butt Welding ASTM A182

F22 using
Semi-Automated HW-TIG.
ASTM A182 F22 Class 3 (F22 herein) is a heat
resistant,
chromium-molybdenum (Cr-Mo) steel. This alloy
contains approximately 2wt% Cr- 1wt% Mo (Table
3).
The presence of these elements, in these
proportions,
provides improved oxidation and corrosion
resistance,
respectively . In addition, F22 exhibits higher
strength
and toughness when compared to other carbon and
most low alloy steels6. F22 responds well to heat

treatment, and, as such, is available in several heat

treated conditions. In this case study, normalized,
austenitized, and tempered (NQT) F22 was used.

Welding: Element

4130 Weight 8620

The choice
of
welding
process
is of%
Carbon
0.28
0.33ller metal
0.18-.23
(%) - and
Weight
particular
importance when
a butt
Manganese
0.40qualifying
- 0.60
0.7 - welding
0.9
procedure
with
F22.
The
nal
weldment
was
Nickel
1.00 MAX
0.4 -required
0.7
to meet 75ksi (520MPa) for the yield strength and
Chromium
0.80 - 1.10
0.4 - 0.6
90ksi (620MPa) for the tensile strength. In addition, the

20

Molybdenum
JOURNAL

0.15 - 0.25

0.15 - 0.25

Phosphorus

0.025 MAX

0.025

Sulfur

0.025 MAX

0.025

Silicon

0.15 - 0.35

0.15 - 0.35

Total Alloy
Content

3.68wt%
approx.

3.08wt%
approx.

brittle weldment. In addition, restricting elements

such
as phosphorus and sulphur aided in the
prevention
of harmful inclusion formation. A preheat of 400F
(204C) and a maximum interpass of 600F
(315C)
was used. Again, the choice of these
temperatures is
alloy-dependant.
To weld F22 to F22, a novel welding process, TIPTIG,
was selected. This process is a semi-automated
version
of the GTAW process . The TIP-TIG process uses a
highspeed, linear wire feed system. This system
preheats
and rapidly oscillates the welding wire in and out
of the Root Pass
Welding
weld pool resulting in the generation of thermal
Welding
GTAW
Welding
1G Rolled
Parameters
and
Process
Position
mechanical energy and the reduction of puddle
Electrical
DCSP
Electrode
2% Thoriated
surface
Shielding Also
99.9%
Bevel
V-Groove
tension7.
due Ar
to the
additional,
imposed
Gas
Filler Metal ER70S2 Preheat
300F
energies,
Temperature
the arc energy requirements
are reduced resulting
in a Fill Passes
Max
500F
narrower HAZ and lower
interpass temperatures7.
Interpass
This
Welding
SMAW
isProcess
signicant since the HAZ is a region of the weld
that
is
Electrical
DCRP
typically problematic. Finally, productivity is
Filler Metal E10018increased
D2
when using this process by way of increased
(Ni-1%
deposition
rates, travel speeds and, since less arc energy is
required7, lower interpass temperatures.
A standard V-Groove, full penetration butt weld
congu-

end-user required that a maximum hardness of

22HRc
maximum in the WM and HAZ be met. To increase
the
probability of meeting these requirements, the
weld
ller metal was restricted to a maximum carbon (C)
content of 0.1wt%, restricting the extent of the
martensite transformation on cooling; too much
martensite will cause an increased hardness and a

ration was utilized (Figure 1). The maximum HI

that was
utilized during all stages of welding was
around 37kJ/in
(1.45kJ/mm). The welding parameters that
were utilized
are summarized in Table 4. The weld joint
required
PWHT in order to meet the NACE2 HRc 22MAX
requirement. A post weld heat treatment at
1200F
(650C) for 3 hours was completed following
cool-down
of the weldment. The resultant weld achieved
an
average yield strength of 78.5ksi (541MPa)
and 101ksi
(695MPa) tensile strength and average HAZ,
impact
toughness values averaging 141 ft-lbs (191J).
However,
it was found that a single impact test, taken
from the
mid-thickness (weld centerline) position of the
deposite
weld did not attain the requisite impact
toughness for
the project. Additional work is currently
underway
to determine welding parameters or a change
in ller
metal that will improve this impact toughness
without
loss of the joint strength.

Case Study 2B: ASTM A182 F22 Butt

Welded to API
5L Grade X60.
As discussed in Case Study 2A above, there
are special
considerations when welding F22 that must be
adhered
to in order to produce a quality weld. These
include

preheat and interpass temperatures and the need

for
PWHT. In this case study, F22 was welded to API Table 3: Nominal Composition of F22
5L X60
pipe (herein X60). X60 contains considerably less
alloy
content than F22; approximately 2wt% versus 5wt
%
respectively. This chemical dissimilarity results in
the

Table 4: TIP-TIG Welding Parameters for F22 to

F22 Butt
Weld

Figure 2: F22 to x60 Original Weld Joint

Conguration.

Special December Issue dition spciale

Dcembre 2014

Root Pass
Welding
GTAW (Tip
Process
Tig)
Electrical DCSP

Welding
Welding
1G Rolled
Parameters
Position
Electrode

2%
Thoriated
V-Groove

Shielding 99.9% Ar
Gas
Filler
ER90-B3
Metal Fill Passes

Bevel

Welding
GTAW (Tip
Process
Tig)
Electrical DCSP

Preheat
400F
Temperature
Max
600F
Interpass
Temperature

Shielding 99.9% Ar
Gas
Filler
ER90S-B3
Metal

21

hardenability and solidication characteristics of

the
two base metals to be considerably dierent.
Typically
X60 is utilized in the non-PWHT condition since HAZ
softening can occur with this alloy, degrading the
weldment properties.

Welding:
The metallurgical mismatch, both in terms of

Figure 3: Weld Joint Conguration for Butter

Layer Weld
Qualication.

Figure 4: Schematic of ASTM A182 F22 to API 5L

X60 Butt Weld.

chemistry
and required PWHT between F22 and X60 caused
significant diculty during the design-stage of this weld
joint.
To accommodate this, the butt weld joint (Figure 2)
conceived required the qualication of two
individual
weld procedures (ASME IX procedure qualication
records (PQR herein)). These procedures were: a
butter
layer of C-Mn welded to the F22 base metal using
GTAW
and a butt weld joint joining buttered F22 to X60
using
an Inconel 625 ller metal, also using GTAW.
The butter layer weld using C-Mn ller metal (ER
100S-G)
was qualied by butt welding two, F22 coupons
according
to Figure 3 using the GTAW process. This weld was
PWHT
at 1200F (650C) for 3 hours. This weld was
mechanically
tested following PWHT. The yield strength of the
joint
was 89ksi (614MPa), the tensile strength was
105.5ksi
(730MPa). The hardness met the 22HRc maximum
for
F22, imposed by the end-user while the impact
toughness averaged 107ft-lbs (145J) along the fusion
line.

An additional complication for this weld joint was

that
the service environment for the nal product was
classied as sour, necessitating that the F22
Figure 5: Photographic Prole of Completed Weld material be
fully inlayed with Inconel 625 (Figure 4). To qualify
Joint.
this
weld joint, the 625 inlay was applied following
PWHT of
the butter layer (Figure 4). A PWHT of 3 hours at

metal impacts maintained an average of 50 ft-lbs

1200F
(650C) was completed on the 625 inlay. It is important
(68J).
to note that, as a result of this inlay PWHT, the butter
To complete the weld, a buttered and inlayed F22
layer weld was PWHT for 6 hours, and therefore, the
butter weld was separately qualied for extended PWHT. pipe
In addition to standard inlay qualication testing (over
coupon was butt welded to an X60 pipe coupon
the F22 base metal), mechanical testing was completed using
on the C-Mn/F22 fusion line to ensure the mechanical
Inconel 625 ller metal (Figure 4, Figure 5). This
properties were maintained following 6hours of PWHT.
weld
The yield strength of the F22 base metal and the C-Mn
was not subjected to PWHT but was slow-cooled.
WM was not signicantly aected by the extended
The
PWHT. There was a 1% loss in toughness along the F22
root of this weld used Manual GTAW while the ll
fusion line and a 14% loss in toughness in the weld metal.
This 14% loss was deemed acceptable since the weld

22

JOURNA

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3

Table 5: AWS D10.18 Suggested Heat Input

Ranges9.

Figure 6: Completed Weld Joint, Duplex to

Superduplex Stainless
Steel, TIPTIG, 10% Oxalic Etch.

Table 6: Welding Process versus Impact

and Corrosion
Performance.

passes were completed using semi-automated, pulsed,

HW GTAW. The ller metal used was ERNiCrMo-3. This
weld joint achieved a yield strength of 70ksi (485MPa),
Heatand
Input
a tensile Base
strength of 89ksi (610MPa)
X60Range
fusion line
kJ/mm(169J). These
kJ/"properties
Material 125ft-lbs
impacts exceeding
exceeded
end-user 0.5
requirements
for12.5
the-weld.
UNSthe
S31803
- 2.5
62.5
(DSS)S32760
UNS

0.5 - 1.75

6.35 - 44.4

Case Study
3: Butt Welding of UNS S31803 to
(SDSS)
UNS
S32760 using TIP-TIG.
The family of duplex stainless steels (DSS) and superduplex stainless steels (SDSS) are readily weldable using
the GTAW process. Considerable attention must be paid
to the HI and shielding gas used when welding these
alloys. The AWS D10.18 standard provides suggestions
for the HI range for welding these alloys successfully
(Table 5). The suggested range for DSSs is from 12.763.5kJ/ (0.5-2.5kJ/mm9) and for SDSSs, the range is
from 6.3-45kJ/ (0.25k-1.75kJ/mm9). These ranges are
quite broad and provide insucient guidance during
weld procedure development. If a HI in the upper range
is used to weld using GTAW, there is a tendency to
increase the amount of precipitation and hardness and
decrease the corrosion resistance and impact energy.
If a HI towards the low-end of the recommended range
is used, in addition to reduced corrosion resistance,
reduced impact energy and increased hardness, the
austenite to ferrite balance will shift to favor ferrite
formation 10, 11 degrading the weldment performance.

Welding:
The TIP-TIG process was utilized to weld 0.5 (12.7mm)
Welding
Weld
Average
ASTM
thick pipe
coupons ofThickne
DSS and SDSS, creatingG48A
a dissimilar
Process
Impact
JOURNAL
ss
Energy, HAZ 25C, 24
24
hrs
(Fusion
Manual GTAW 0.375"

2
80.1 ft-lbs,
1.59g/m
-58F
88
ft-lbs, -50F 0 g/m2

Hot-Wire,
0.500"
Semiautomat
ed
microstructure
did not show evidence of deleterious
GTAW
phase

formation. Further conrming the weldment

quality was
the improvement of the ASTM G48A (G48A)
corrosion pitting test results. A previously qualied, manual
GTAW test
resulted in G48A weight loss of 1.59g/m2 while
the HW
TIP-TIG weldment had no reported weight loss
(Table 6).

Conclusions/ Lessons Learned:

The case studies presented illustrate some of the
key

weld. A full description of the TIP-TIG process can

be
reviewed in Cast Study 2A of this paper). Of
particular
concern with the welding of DSS and SDSS alloys is
the
formation of deleterious phases within the HAZ; for
example, excessive precipitation of nitrides,
carbides or
the formation of sigma phase will cause the
corrosion
behaviour and mechanical properties of the joint to
be
insucient.
A full penetration, V-groove butt weld conguration
was used (Figure 6). This weld had a 37.5 bevel
angle
with a 0.062 (1.5mm) weld land. The heat input
during
qualication welding was, on average, 26kJ/
(~1kJ/
mm), which falls in the middle of the AWS D10.18
recommended range (Table 5).
The properties that resulted when DSS to SDSS
welds
were tested were superior to those achieved using
the
more traditional manual GTAW process. The fusion
line
impact tests were slightly improved when
compared
to the manual GTAW results. The resultant HAZ

lessons that have been learned while welding

alloys with
higher hardenability. The welded construction
of valves
for Master Flo Valve Inc requires extensive
consideration
of the base material(s) chemistry, mechanical
properties,
hardenability and weldability.
Experience has shown that it is important to
ensure that
the base material that is being welded meets the
required
mechanical and corrosion properties for the
project. For
example, a duplex stainless steel may have an
imbalance
in the austenite to ferrite ratio due to heat
treatment,

causing poor weldment quality. Often, the

manufacturer
test reports (MTR) that are provided are not
representative
of the material as a whole. To avoid qualication
failure,
resulting in lost time and money, it is not only
recommended
but necessary that all base materials be tested
prior to
weld procedure qualication. This ensures that it
is the
weld joint that is being tested, rather than the base
metal.
The importance of selecting the correct ller
metal and
thermal cycle was illustrated in case study 1. In
this study,
the welding of AISI 4130 to AISI 8620 was
discussed. For
successful welding of this dissimilar joint, a ller
metal
with reduced C content is required; this is to
reduce the
weldment hardenability, aiding in the prevention
of
martensite formation during the thermal cycling
of
welding. Carefully chosen preheat and interpass
temperatures further assist this martensite prevention as
well as
helping to avoid the formation of hydrogen
cracks,
ensuring the weld maintains its mechanical
properties.
The selection of welding process is another tool
that can
be used to produce quality weldments. In both
medium
alloy steels, such as ASTM A182 F22, and highly
alloyed
stainless steels, such as duplex stainless steel, the
choice
to utilize the TIP-TIG welding process was made.
In case
study 2A, F22 was butt welded using TIP-TIG,
producing
a weld with a reduced HAZ with superior yield
and
tensile strength. The impact toughness testing
resulted in
a single insucient test, therefore, welding parameter
and
ller metal modication is being considered to
correct this
deciency.

The welding of stainless steels provided an

opportunity to
again utilize the TIP-TIG process. Duplex and
superduplex

Mn
butter weld and the Inconel 625 inlay weld required
stainless steel welding presents an even greater
PWHT
challenge
and were qualied separately from the nal butt weld
when compared to welding the lower alloyed steels.
joint. The nal weld, joining the butter and inlayed
Using
F22 to
the TIP-TIG process for these alloys resulted in a HAZ of X60 was completed without PWHT using Inconel 625
decreased width, which did not contain deleterious
ller
phases
material. The integrity of this weld joint illustrates
such as sigma phase and excessive precipitates. The
that
weld
success can be achieved through a non-traditional
joint also exceeded the mechanical strength and impact approach.
toughness required by the end-user. This weldment,
when
Kimberley Meszaros, P.Eng., M.Sc.
tested according to the ASTM G48A test method,
Senior Materials Engineer, Master Flo Valve Inc
recorded
Jeremy Wright,
no weight loss. These results were a signicant
General Manager, Arc Innovations/ G. Wrights Welding
improveMatthew Yarmuch, MSc, PEng, IWE
ment over performance of welds completed using the Program Leader, Welding & Slurry Systems Engineering
semi-automated GTAW welding process. Additionally, a Alberta Innovates, Technology Futures
signicant improvement in productivity was noted.
1

In some cases, a non-standard weld joint must be

considered
when the alloys to be joined possess signicantly
dierent
weldability. In case study 2B, the joining of F22 and X60
was required; in this case it was also necessary to inlay
the
F22 material with Inconel 625 for corrosion resistance.
The
two alloys, F22 and X60, have conicting weldability
since
F22 requires PWHT while X60 does not. To overcome
this
mismatch, a multi-pqr weld joint was devised. This joint
utilized a C-Mn butter layer on the F22 followed by an
Inconel 625 inlay on the buttered coupon. Both the C-

American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 01 July 2010

2

H2S-Containing Environments in Oil and Gas Production Parts 1, 2, and 3, NACE

International, 02 December 2009.
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August 20, 2011 from http://www.twi.co.uk/content/kspw002.html

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and Soldering, Materials Park, Ohio, 1993.

5

and Soldering, Materials Park, Ohio, 2002.

6

Volume 1, Properties and Selection: Irons, Steels, and High-Performance Alloys,

ASM
International, Materials Park Ohio, 1990.
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Alberta, Masters Thesis.

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Stainless Steel Piping and Tubing, AWS D10.18, AWS, 2008.

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Stainless Steel performance, Stainless Steel World Conference, Houston, USA.

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and Control of Duplex Stainless Steel Pressure and Process Plants, Duplex America
2000
Conference, Houston, USA.

Special December Issue dition spciale

Dcembre 2014

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2010 ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section IX Welding and Brazing Qualications,
ANSI/ NACE MR0175/ISO 15156, Petroleum and Natural Gas Industries Materials for use in
TWI Knowledge Summary, Arc Weldability of Dissimilar Metals, 2004, TWI Ltd., retrieved
F.J. Windsor, " Welding of Low-Alloy Steels, ASM Handbook Volume 6, Welding, Brazing
R. Smith, ESAB, Arc Welding of Carbon Steels, ASM Handbook Volume 6, Welding, Brazing
ASM, Classication and Designation of Carbon and Low-Alloy Steels, ASM Handbook
J. Wright, personal communication, August 31, 2011.
Hoskins, S., 2002, The Weldability of TMCP Microalloyed Structural Steels, University of
American Welding Society (AWS), Guide to Welding Ferritic/Austenitic Duplex
Yarmuch, M., Sandy, K., (2010, October 5-7) Eect of Welding Parameters on Duplex
C. Baxter et al., (2000, Feb 29- 2000, Mar 2000) Practical Aspects for Production Welding