Application of extra high purity austenitic stainless steel to weld overlay

Ioka, Ikuo  ; Suzuki, Jun; Kiuchi, Kiyoshi; Nakayama, Jumpei*

An Extra High Purity austenitic stainless steel (EHP alloy) was developed with conducting the new multiple refined melting in order to suppress the harmful impurities less than 100 ppm. EHP alloy has great intergranular corrosion resistance. It is considered that intergranular corrosion becomes initiation of SCC. So, we try to apply EHP alloy to weld overlay materials to prevent from SCC. EHP alloy was melted by the new multiple refined method. The conventional weld metals were also prepared as comparisons. Specimens were machined from the welded metal of each material. Intergranular corrosion tests were performed in boiling 8 kmol/m HNO solutions containing 1 kg/m Cr(VI) ions. The intergranular corrosion of conventional weld metals was severer than those of EHP alloys. Crevice Beam bending tests to evaluate susceptibility of SCC were carried out in high temperature water of 561 K with saturated oxygen for 1000 h. Cracks and intergranular corrosion of conventional weld metals were much more than those of EHP alloys. It was confirmed that EHP alloy had excellent SCC resistance in comparison with conventional materials when EHP alloy was used as a weld metal.