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Microstructure and microhardness of flux-cored arc-welded joints for boiler quality steel

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Abstract

Flux-cored arc welding (FCAW) is one of the popularly used welding processes in the fabrication of carbon steels and low alloy steel. It is a semi-automatic or automatic arc welding process. Boiler quality (BQ) steels or pressure vessel plates are superior quality carbon steels which have consistent controlled properties and are designed to withstand the internal pressure of pressure vessels, boilers, and valves. To explore the potential advantages in joining BQ steels by FCAW, the present study focuses on microstructure and microhardness characterization of weldment. Microscopic examinations have been performed using optical microscopy of the welded specimens, to evaluate the microstructures of the weld metal, heat-affected zone (HAZ), and base metal. The microhardness test has also been performed using the Vickers scale. A qualitative comparison of the microstructural features and microhardness values at three different heat input levels—high, low, and medium—are made in the present work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mechanical Engineering Department, B.P.Poddar Institute of Management and Technology, 137 VIP Road, Kolkata, 700052, India

    Binoy Krishna Biswas

  2. Mechanical Engineering Department, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, India

    Asish Bandyopadhyay & Pradip Kumar Pal

Authors
  1. Binoy Krishna Biswas
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  2. Asish Bandyopadhyay
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  3. Pradip Kumar Pal
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Correspondence to Binoy Krishna Biswas.

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Biswas, B.K., Bandyopadhyay, A. & Pal, P.K. Microstructure and microhardness of flux-cored arc-welded joints for boiler quality steel. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 80, 2061–2072 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-015-7159-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-015-7159-2

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