This paper presents a fully coupled three-dimensional finite element model for the simulation of a tube manufacturing process consisting of roll forming and high-frequency induction welding. The multiphysics model is based on the dual mesh method. Thus, the electromagnetic field, the temperature field, the elasto-plastic deformation of the weld bead, and the phase transformations within the material can be simulated for a moving tube without remeshing. A comparison with measurements shows that the geometry of the welded tube and the weld bead, the force on the squeeze rolls, the temperature along the band edges, and the hardness distribution within the heat-affected zone can be simulated realistically.

https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/3/1270/pdf?version=1644397931

Numerical Simulation of Tube Manufacturing Consisting of Roll Forming and High-Frequency Induction Welding

The bondline of electric-resistance-welded (ERW) linepipe steel, often etched white (i.e., ferrite) in optical microscopy, is generally believed to be carbon depleted. The mechanism for the carbon depletion, however, is not fully understood by researchers. To this end, atom probe tomography (APT) was used to measure elemental segregation of the as-welded and post-weld heat-treated bondline regions of X70 linepipe welds. The thin vertical features at the bondline in the as-welded condition were identified as carbon-rich martensite-austenite (M-A) constituents, and the majority ferrite phase in the bondline was identified as carbon-depleted ferrite. Following the post-weld normalization, all alloying elements, except Nb and Mo, are homogenized across the bondline and heat-affected zone. The carbon depletion in the ERW bondline was accurately measured. A new mechanism for carbon depletion has been proposed using Scheil calculations of elemental partitioning during weld formation. Segregation of elements in the heat-affected zone was shown to follow the negligible partitioning local equilibrium (NPLE) kinetics for bainite transformation.

A Mechanism for Carbon Depletion at Bondline of High-Frequency Electric-Resistance-Welded X70 Pipeline Steel

Development of a Welding Process to Improve Welded Microalloyed Steel Characteristics

This paper presents an experimental electro-thermo-mechanical simulation of high-frequency induction (HFI) welding to investigate the effect of temperature and contact normal stress on the weld seam quality. Therefore welding experiments at different temperatures and contact pressures are performed using flat specimens of 34MnB5 steel sheet. In order to characterize the weld seam strength of the welded specimens, tensile and bending tests are performed. To obtain a relative weld seam strength, the bending specimens were additionally hardened prior to testing. With the hardened specimens, it can be shown that the weld seam strength increases with increasing temperature and contact normal stress until a kind of plateau is formed where the weld seam strength remains almost constant. In addition to mechanical testing, the influence of the investigated process parameters on the weld seam microstructure is studied metallographically using light optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, EBSD and hardness measurements. It is shown that the weld seam strength is related to the amount of oxides in the bonding line.

/pdf/experimental-investigation-of-temperature-and-contact-d87vtdqx.pdf

Experimental Investigation of Temperature and Contact Pressure Influence on HFI Welded Joint Properties

The pitting corrosion resistance of dissimilar pipeline steel API X70 and Super Duplex 2507 Stainless Steel gas tungsten arc (GTA) welds was studied. The GTA welds were fabricated using Super Duplex 2594 Filler Metal or austenitic 309L Filler Metal. The specimens extracted from the base metal, weld fusion zone, fusion boundary, and heat-affected zones (HAZs) were subjected to a potentiodynamic corrosion test in a 3.5% NaCl water solution. The weld made using the 309L Filler Metal was found to have a smaller pitting resistance equivalent number (PREN) difference between ferrite and austenite, making it more corrosion resistant than the weld fabricated using the 2594 Filler Metal. The HAZ on the X70 side was the most susceptible to pitting and galvanic corrosion for both filler metals.

/pdf/corrosion-resistance-of-dissimilar-gta-welds-for-offshore-23t4n11f.pdf

Corrosion Resistance of Dissimilar GTA Welds for Offshore Applications

A Gleeble® thermo-mechanical simulator combined with microstructure characterization using a field emission scanning electron microscope was used to provide insights into the seam weld formation during resistance welding (RW). Gleeble® was used to physically/microstructurally simulate the seam weld formation during RW for the first time. It was found that a peak temperature of 1500 ̊C and 10-mm stroke produced a microstructure in the solid-state bondline, the flash, and the heat-affected zone similar to the resistance welded pipe manufactured in an industrial scale. Using the force response obtained during seam weld formation in Gleeble®, microstructure characterization of the seam weld, and thermodynamic calculations, it is proposed the seam weld in a resistance weld consists of a mushy zone with delta ferrite and solute-enriched liquid, which solidifies into austenite, and on post welding cooling, transforms into ferrite and stringers of M/A, respectively. The presence of a mushy zone in the weld joints provides a physical explanation for the “decarburization” phenomenon observed in the seam of resistance welds.

/pdf/bond-formation-mechanism-for-resistance-welding-of-x70-4tzo2nfv7k.pdf

Lulu Guo

Papers

Bond Formation Mechanism for Resistance Welding of X70 Pipeline Steel