Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277

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Optics and Lasers in Engineering

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/optlaseng

Studies on autogenous laser welding of type 304B4 borated

stainless steel
Shanmugarajan B. a,n, Chary J.N. a, Padmanabham G. a, Arivazhagan B. b, Shaju K. Albert b,
Bhaduri A.K. b
a
International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), Balapur P.O., Hyderabad 500005, India
b
Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam, India

art ic l e i nf o a b s t r a c t

Article history: 304B4 Borated austenitic stainless steel is widely used in the nuclear industry due to high neutron
Received 4 September 2012 absorption efficiency. In the present investigation, autogenous bead-on-plate (BoP) laser welding studies
Received in revised form were carried out on 3 mm thick 304B4 grade stainless steel using a 3.5 kW slab CO2 laser. Influence of
30 April 2013
variables such as laser power, welding speed, shielding gas and laser beam mode on microstructure and
Accepted 4 May 2013
Available online 28 May 2013
mechanical properties were studied. Dye penetrant testing, macrostructural analysis, bead geometry
measurements, microhardness survey, and microstructural analysis in both as-weld and post-weld heat
Keywords: treated conditions were carried out. The macrostructural and bead geometry analyses of the welds have
Laser welding shown that the welds were free from cracks in the fusion zone (FZ) and also in the heat affected zone
Borated stainless steel
(HAZ) for all the welding parameters studied. The Gaussian mode has given a very narrow weld width
Shielding gas
compared to donut mode. During welding use of helium and nitrogen has reduced the width of the FZ
and HAZ. The as-weld micro hardness was more than double the base metal, and the peak hardness was
shifted from the centre to the fusion boundaries with the increase in heat input. The PWHT has reduced
the hardness of both the FZ and HAZ. In summary, usable laser welding parameters for welding 3 mm
thick 304B4 grade stainless steel have been identified.
& 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction The chemical composition and mechanical properties require-

ments of borated stainless steels are covered by ASTM specification
Boron containing austenitic stainless steels known as borated A887, which includes eight boron levels (types) and two grades per
austenitic stainless steels (BASS) has been widely used in the type. For each of the eight types, specification A887 describes two
nuclear industry as reactor control materials in the nuclear reactor grades A and B, based on mechanical property requirements. The
due to their ability to absorb thermal neutrons [1]. The basic classification of borated stainless steel ranges from 304B1 to 304B7.
purpose of using shielding is to reduce the intensity of neutron The typical boron content varies from 0.2 to 2.25% by weight. 304B4 is
bombardment and hence to control the chain reaction in the widely used in the construction of radiation shielding for Intermediate
nuclear reactor [2]. Other applications of this steel include con- heat exchanger (IHX) applications in Indian prototype fast breeder
struction of fuel storage racks, casks for storage of densified and reactor (PFBR) construction.
spent fuel [3,4]. In borated austenitic stainless steels due to the formation of
Increased thermal neutron absorption cross section of element intermetallic compounds there will be a reduction in ductility as
boron (B) leads to a wide spread use of B-containing materials as compared to type 304 austenitic stainless steel. Primarily this alloy
thermal-reactor control rods and burnable poisons in nuclear is used as simple strap-on neutron shielding materials where
power plants [5]. These steels contain either boron alloyed or structural requirements are very minimal. In earlier days, these
dispersed in stainless steel metal matrix. Due to their limited alloys were typically bolted/riveted to a structural element to cater
solubility of boron in austenite matrix (solubility limit is around to the reactor control requirement. Due to slow and also non-
100 ppm), they form intermetallic compounds rich in Fe, Cr automatic nature of riveting process, welding is introduced in the
and Ni. later stages of fabrication [6]. Also, BASS have been recently
accepted by ASME boiler and pressure vessel code and many of
the present day conceptual designs require welded fabrication.
The presence of boron content leads to the formation of iron–boron
n
Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 4312577241. eutectic phase in austenitic stainless steel. The heat of welding can
E-mail address: [email protected] (S. B.). result in the formation of low melting eutectic phase leading to

0143-8166/$ - see front matter & 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.optlaseng.2013.05.004
 S. B. et al. / Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277 1273

liquation cracking in the heat affected zone (HAZ). Also, the boron Table 2
in the fusion zone will go into solution elevating the hardness Welding parameters.
values in the fusion zone which will reduce the toughness of this
Laser power (kW) Welding speeds (m/min) Beam mode
alloy in the as welded condition. The above mentioned welding
issues should be given a careful consideration for use of this alloy as 2 4, 3, 2, 1 Gauss
a welded structure. 2.5 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
The hot cracking tendency was found to be more pronounced 3 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
3.5 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2
with boron content less than 0.5%. It has been earlier studied that 3.5 3, 2 Donut
amount of boron more than 0.5% will result in increased content of
low melting eutectic phase thereby increase the solidification
range of borated stainless steel [5]. With the increase in boron along with the laser beam mode used for experimentation are given
content beyond 0.5%, weldability resembles that of conventional in Table 2. The parameters were chosen to achieve keyhole mode
type 304L stainless steel [7,8]. Hence cracks were not observed in of welding. The experimental matrix as indicated in Table 2 was
the HAZ of weldment. However, use of minimum heat of welding followed for all the shielding gases experimented. i.e Argon, Helium
will be beneficial in reducing the liquation cracking in the HAZ due and Nitrogen.
to the reduction in width of the HAZ. Post weld heat treatment The welds were subjected to dye penetrant testing according to
(PWHT) at a temperature of 1200 1C have shown to modify the ASTM E1417-05 practice to check for any open surface defects.
shape of the borides and improve the ductility and toughness of Subsequently, the welds were cut transversely, mounted and
the welds [4]. polished using Buehler make automatic polishing machine follow-
In earlier studies on electron beam welding of BASS; it was ing the standard metallographic procedure. Two specimens were
observed that there was improvement in toughness in the as-weld taken for each parameter to investigate the consistency. The
condition because of the refined microstructure [6]. Hence it has polished specimens were etched using aqua regia solution (1 part
been construed that use of laser power beam process for welding of conc. HNO3 and 3 part of conc. HCL). The macrostructural
of 304B4 stainless steel can be beneficial in reducing the size of the analyses were performed using an Olympus make stereo micro-
HAZ thereby reducing the liquation cracking tendency of 304B4 scope at a magnification of 25X. The bead geometry measure-
weldment. There is no literary information on the laser welding of ments were taken using the image analysis software integrated
304B4. Hence, in the present work, laser welding studies were with the optical microscope. Selected weld specimens were sub-
carried out on 3 mm thick 304B4 grade using a high beam quality jected to post weld heat treatment (PWHT) at a temperature of
DC035 slab CO2 laser. The parameters chosen for the studies were 1200 1C for 4 h. Microhardness survey and microstructural analyses
laser power, welding speed, laser beam mode and shielding gas. were performed for selected specimens in both as-weld and PWHT
Various shielding gases used are Argon, Helium and Nitrogen. condition. Microhardness measurements were carried out across
Shielding gas was chosen as one of the parameters to study the the weld using UHL automatic microhardness tester at a load of
effect of shielding gas on improving the penetration and reduce 200 g with dwell time of 15 s and inter indent spacing of 150 μm.
the partially melted heat affected zone (PMHAZ) apart from the Microstructural analyses were performed using optical microscope
heat input and laser beam mode. The resultant welds were at a magnification of 200X–1000X.
characterised using metallography, microhardness survey and
microstructural analysis in both as welded condition and PWHT
condition and the results are reported. 3. Results and discussions

3.1. Macrostructure observation of welds

2. Experimental procedure
Dye penetration examination revealed that surface of welds is
2.1. Welding free from any defects such as porosity, hot cracks which are open
to the surface. Macrostructures of the welds are given in Fig. 1. The
Bead-on-plate (BOP) welding trails were carried out using laser macrostructures show that the welds are free from any internal
power source on 3 mm thick 04B4 stainless steel sheets. The defects such as cracks, porosities, etc. for the wide range of heat
chemistry of the base material is presented in Table 1. input and shielding gas combinations that has been experimented.
In the present study the following process variables are The 304B4 alloy used in the present investigation has boron
studied; Laser power, welding speed, laser beam mode and content of above 0.5% which, is considered to be the threshold
shielding gas (argon, helium and nitrogen). Welding trials were value to avoid hot cracking. The high amount of boron ( 40.5%)
conducted by focussing the laser beam using a 300 mm focal will result in increased content of low melting eutectic phases
mirror to achieve the laser spot size of 180 μm and 360 μm in which in turn will increase the solidification range.
Gaussian and donut modes respectively. The focal plane of the This increase in solidification range will produce crack healing
laser was positioned at the surface of the sheets during all the effect where in the cracks are refilled by the low melting phases.
trials. The shielding gas is also used as a plasma suppression gas Hence, no hot cracking tendency was exhibited by any of the
that was supplied through a 5 mm diameter nozzle in the trailing welds. The welds were also free from any PMHAZ as observed
mode configuration at a gauge pressure of 1 bar. The nozzle from the macrostructural examination. Due to the concentrated
standoff distance was maintained constant at 4.5 mm throughout nature of the heat source coupled with the use of shielding gas,
the experiments. The laser power and welding speed combinations the cooling rates associated with laser beam are generally
41000 1C/s. Also, since the conductivity of SS 304B4 is less, the
Table 1 cooling rates experienced in the fusion zone will be much higher
Composition of base metal (wt%). than the rate of heat conduction. Hence, the peak temperatures in
the HAZ would not have reached the threshold value required for
C Si Mn P S Cr Ni B Fe melting of eutectics or the time for which a particular zone
0.06 0.92 1.84 0.029 0.005 18.20 9.18 0.97 Bal
experienced the melting temperature of eutectics would have
been extremely less. These two factors could have suppressed
1274 S. B. et al. / Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277

Fig. 1. Macrostructure of the welds.

the formation of PMHAZ as evident from the macrostructural

observation. The same has been confirmed by the microhardness
survey across the welds.
Macrostructural analyses have also shown that the welds made
at a speed of 1 m/min with argon shielding gas had severe
undercut. The observed effect of undercut is explained as follows:
during laser welding, the keyhole or cavity formed is filled with
plasma and surrounded by molten metal, thus, the high energy
density of the focused beam could be lost easily [9]. The plasma
effect was more as a result of lower ionisation potential of argon
shielding gas (15.7 eV). Due to rate of laser plasma generation is
more than the rate of molten pool feeding in the keyhole/cavity,
the undercut was observed in laser weldments [9,10]. Also, the
density of Argon (1.784 kg/m3) is much higher than the other two
gases (Helium: 0.177 kg/m3; Nitrogen: 1.252 kg/m3) and hence, at
very low speed the molten pool is pushed deeply inside resulting
in both undercut and underbead as compared with other shielding Fig. 2. Effect of laser power and welding speed on depth of penetration.
gases as shown in Fig. 1. However, those welds also have not
exhibited any cracking tendency.

3.2. Bead geometry analyses

The influence of process parameters used in the present study

on bead geometry dimensions is shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5.
The depth of penetration has increased with the increase in
power and decrease in welding speed (Fig. 2) due to the increase
in heat input. The trend observed is in line with the known fact
with any welding process that the depth of penetration increases
with the heat input. Bead width (Fig. 3) also exhibited similar
trend. A dip in the width of the weld bead was observed when the
depth of penetration changed from partial to full penetration. At
the threshold value of heat input for achieving full penetration, the
excess laser energy will be lost through the bottom of the keyhole
resulting in reduction of weld bead width. However, with further
increase in laser energy beyond the threshold value, the bead Fig. 3. Effect of laser power and welding speed on weld width.
 S. B. et al. / Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277 1275

3.3. Microhardness survey

The results of microhardness measurements in both the as-

weld and post weld heat treated conditions are given in Figs. 6,
7 and 8. The microhardness survey has indicated that the hardness
of fusion zone was nearly or twice the base material value
irrespective of the parameters. The higher hardness in the fusion
zone is because of both highly refined microstructure and
increased boride content in the fusion zone. The interparticle
spacing between borides is found to be less as compared with base
metal particle distribution. Base material hardness was generally
in the range of 230–250 HV and the fusion zone hardness was in
the range of 380–446 HV. From Fig. 6 it can be noted that the peak
hardness values are marginally higher at a speed of 8 m/min (low
heat input) compared to 2 m/min (high heat input) in both AW
and HT conditions. At low heat inputs the microstructures were
Fig. 4. Effect of laser beam mode of weld width. more refined with reduced interdendritic spacing due to high
cooling rate. Hence, the microhardness values were higher in the
case of welds made with low heat inputs. At high heat inputs, the
particle coarsening takes place; hence, there is a decrease in
interparticle spacing. The average hardness of the fusion zone is
chiefly influenced by the matrix as well as interspacing between
borides.
The peak hardness values were comparatively more with
Gaussian mode as compared to donut mode. However, on the
average the hardness values with donut modes were higher than
the Gaussian mode beam. The donut mode beam with bigger spot
size could have resulted in more diffusion of heat causing more
boron getting into the solution hence strengthening the matrix to
form borides. Hence the average hardness values with donut mode
beam were higher compared to Gaussian mode beam.
The effect however, got minimised after heat treatment. In case
of welds with different shielding gas, the hardness values were
again only marginally higher with nitrogen than helium shielded
Fig. 5. Effect of shielding gas on depth of penetration. weld. The argon shielded weld has the lowest hardness in the as-
welded condition (Fig. 8). Nitrogen will get dissociated during
welding and being an interstitial element could have gone into the
width continues to increase as the excess heat will be utilised in interstices and would have also formed little amount of nitrides
increasing the bead width. causing the elevation in hardness in the as-weld condition. Since,
The effect of beam mode on weld bead width at 3.5 kW laser Helium has higher thermal conductivity compared to Argon, the
power is shown in Fig. 4. The bead width was shown to be higher cooling rates with helium shielding will be higher than argon
with donut mode beam as compared to Gaussian beam mode. The shielding for comparable parameters. Hence, the hardness values
Gaussian beam has a focal spot size (180 μm) which is exactly half in the as-welded (AW) condition was found to be little more with
the size of the donut mode beam (360 μm) and hence Gaussian helium than argon. However, after PWHT the hardness values of
beam produces twice the power density achievable with donut the fusion zone in nitrogen shielded welds were less than the
beam. Hence, the laser beam is more concentrated with Gaussian Argon shielded weld as can be seen from Fig. 8.
mode beam resulting in the loss of excess energy through the With the PWHT, the dissolved nitrogen strengthening effect
bottom of the keyhole rather than melting excess material result- would have been minimised due to loss in matrix strength
ing in turn smaller weld bead width compared to donut beam. The
depth of penetration was not compared as all the parameters
chosen with donut beam gave full penetration.
The effect of shielding gas with different parameters is shown
in Fig. 5. Among the three shielding gases experimented argon has
produced the lowest depth of penetration and helium has pro-
duced the highest depth of penetration for comparable laser
parameters. As discussed earlier, helium has higher ionisation
potential hence suppresses the plasma more effectively than
argon. This reduces/avoids the loss of laser energy due to the
asborption by plasma above the surface of the weldment thereby
increasing the depth of penetration. Nitrogen due to its reactive
nature would have increased the vapour pressure and aided in
better laser absorption by the plasma inside the keyhole resulting
in better penetration than Argon. However, since the ionisation
potential is lower than He, the loss of energy due to absorption by
plasma above the surface would have reduced the depth of penetra-
tion when compared with helium for comparable parameters. Fig. 6. Effect of heat input on microhardness of welds.
1276 S. B. et al. / Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277

resulting in the reduced hardness. After PWHT, fusion zone 3.4. Microstructural analysis of weldments
hardness was found to be comparable with all the shielding gases
experimented. Based on the analyses it can be understood that the Typical microstructures of the fusion zone, fusion line and base
effects of various parameters on hardness were less after PWHT. metal (BM) in as-weld and post weld heat treated conditions are
given in Fig. 9a–c and Fig. 10a–c respectively. The base material has
a microstructure comprising of boride particles randomly distrib-
uted in the austenite matrix. The fusion zone has a very fine
equiaxed dendritic microstructure with interdendritic spaces filled
with eutectics. The microstructures have extremely refined den-
drites due to high alloying addition coupled with very high cooling
rates associated with laser welding.
A very thin layer of HAZ could be seen in the fusion line. The
HAZ widths were in the range of 10–45 μm. However, the HAZ
could not be observed due to very narrow size at welding speeds
45 m/min. Also, the HAZ widths were varying from top to bottom
of the weld. The widths of the HAZ was more at the top compared
to the bottom as the width of the FZ was more at the top compared
to the bottom. This could be due to heat transfer mechanics
associated with the process. As seen in the macrostructures, all
the welds were found to be free from both hot cracking and also
liquation cracking. The variations in the microstructures with heat
Fig. 7. Effect of beam mode on microhardness of welds. input, beam mode and shielding gas was found to be minimal. It
may be because the parameters chosen were above the threshold
value to cause any variation. The heat treatment of the weldments
has resulted in the spherodisation of the boride eutectic in the
austenitic matrix in both FZ and HAZ as can be seen from Fig. 10a
and b. It was observed from Fig. 10b, the HAZ microstructures were
found to be similar to BM and HAZ/BM boundary could be
distinguished only by the grain size difference between FZ and
BM. The borides distribution in the FZ was found to be much finer
compared to the BM. The dendritic structure was found to be
visible even after heat treatment as the borides do not completely
dissolve at the temperature near the solidus [5,7].

4. Conclusions

(1). The laser weldability studies of 304B4 borated austenitic

Fig. 8. Effect of shielding gas on microhardness of welds. stainless steel have been accomplished. The welds were found

Fig. 9. Microstructures in as welded condition. (a) Fusion zone, (b) fusion boundary, (c) base metal.

Fig. 10. Microstructures in post weld heat treated condition. (a) Fusion zone, (b) fusion boundary, (c) base metal.
 S. B. et al. / Optics and Lasers in Engineering 51 (2013) 1272–1277 1277

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