Failure of Welded and Formed

components
- Dr. P. Anbarasi
- Assistant Professor
- Department of Metallurgical Engineering
- PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore
 Weld discontinuities
• Porosity:
• The cause of porosity is the decrease in gas solubility that
occurs upon cooling.
• Excessive oxygen in the oxy-acetylene flame may result in
increased gas concentrations in the weld metal.
• Moisture on the workpiece, or in the electrode coating, may
serve as a source of hydrogen.
• Porosity may also occur as a result of the reaction of the
hydrogen with sulphide inclusions present in the base metal.
• Carbonates and other materials commonly employed in
electrode coverings can dissociate when heated to high
temperatures which results in the formation of gas.
• If the covering material falls into the weld it will burn, thereby
causing the sudden discharge of gas which may result in a
blow-hole.
• Starting porosity:
• With certain types of electrodes in
shielded metal-arc welding, porosity
occurs only in the initial portion of the
weld.
• This is related to the fact that the amounts
of ferrosilicon deoxidizer in the electrode
covering must be restricted in certain high
strength steel electrodes to keep the
residual silicon within tolerable limits.
• This restricted amount of ferrosilicon is
not adequate to cause immediate
deoxidation, and porosity occurs at the
starting point of the weld.
• Solution – to start the new weld slightly
ahead of the terminal point of the old
weld and back-fill before continuing
ahead.
• The starting point, with its contained
porosity, is remelted and a sound weld
results.
• Nonmetallic inclusions:
• Nonmetallic inclusions in a weld originate from two main
sources:
• a) slag derived from the electrode coating or weld flux,
• b) reaction processes occuring in the molten pool, such as
deoxidation.
• The latter types of inclusion are of little consequence since
they are usually small and well dispersed.
• Slag inclusion may present a problem if they are large enough,
even though they are usually globular in shape.
• If these entrapped inclusions are large or laminar, relative to
the weld section, they can act as significant stress raisers,
thereby causing the degradation in fatigue strength and
mechanical properties.
• Laminar defects can arise because of the failure to adequately
remove scale or slag from the surface of a previous weld.
• Welding conditions have a significant effect on slag entrapment.
• Because of their lower density, the slag droplets usually rise to
the surface and protect the molten pool from oxidation.
• The higher the temperature of the melt is, the lower its
viscosity.
• This lowered viscosity allows the slag to rise more easily to the
surface.
• However, to some extent, the advantage of higher temperatures
are offset by the increased solubility of the slag.
• Rate of freezing – rapid freezing increases the viscosity of the
melt rapidly, preventing slag from rising and coalescing.
• The slag entrapment on overhead or vertical welds is compared
to that of flat welds. Reduced thermal inputs are required for
the former, otherwise dripping can occur; consequently, these
tend to have a greater number of inclusions.
• Tungsten inclusions:
• This is a defect that arises in gas tungsten arc
welding when a fragment or portion of the
nonconsumable electrode melts and drops into the
weld puddle and becomes entrapped.
• The effect of these inclusions on the mechanical
properties or fatigue strength is related to their
size and geometrical configuration.
• If the inclusion is small and isolated, there is
essentially no degradation.
• If, however, the inclusion is massive and linear in
shape, there can be serious degradation of the
weld.
• Incomplete fusion:
• It refers to a condition in
which the interface
between adjacent welds
or between the weld and
base metal has not
achieved coalescence
and has resulted in a
metallurgical bond.
• This may be caused by an
insufficient application of
heat to raise the
temperature of the base
metal to the melting
point, by the presence of
heavy oxides or other
foreign material on the
base metal.
• Incomplete penetration:
• It describes a condition
where fusion has occurred
but where the fused zone
does not extend into the
joint for a sufficient depth.
• A number of factors are
involved in achieving
penetration.
• Unit heat input and travel
speed are probably the
most important.
• Low heat inputs and high
speeds produce only
superficial heating and
melting, and result in
shallow penetration.
• Undercutting:
• It is a condition where a groove
in the margin of the weld (the
toe) is created by the melting of
the base metal.
• The rift created by undercutting
has all the characteristics of a
notch.
• The creation of this notch in the
very area where the transition
from weld metal to base metal
occurs has very serious
consequences from the fatigue
standpoint.
• The resultant concentration of
stresses at this point favors early
crack initiation and considerably
shortens fatigue life.
• Lamellar tearing:
• It is a form of cracking that occurs in
welded corner or “tee” joints
• When these joints are severely
loaded, high tensile stresses are
created normal to the rolling plane
of the plate.
• Because of the anisotropy often
found in steel plate, cracking occurs
in a plane parallel to the rolling
plane.
• Metallurgical investigations have
shown that the cracking or tearing
originates with nonmetallic
inclusions of the silicate or sulphide
types.
• The stepped nature of lamellar
cracks indicates that multiple cracks
originate on parallel planes at
approximately the same time and
propagate for a short distance
before linking up.
• Hot cracking:
• The primary cause of hot cracking in welds are
contraction stresses imposed on the weld metal soon
after its solidification.
• At this stage, the weld metal has poor mechanical
properties and may be overstressed relatively easily.
• Segregation effects can also exert an influence on hot
cracking.
• As a result of segregation, residual elements, particularly
sulfur, can reach considerable concentrations in the last
portion of metal to freeze.
• With high travel speeds and high heats, an elongated
teardrop pool may occur with the result that rejection
into the pool creates an accumulation of residual
elements along the center line of the weld.
• These residual elements tend to
form relatively weak, low melting
compounds which give rise to
cracks under stress.
• Hot cracks are typically
longitudinally oriented or star
shaped crater cracks.
• Although these cracks are not
overly dangerous in themselves,
they may act as nuclei for the
formation of fatigue cracks.
• On a metallographic basis, hot
cracks are generally intergranular
and are often heavily oxidized
along the side wall.
• The presence of this high
temperature oxide is a definite
indication of hot cracking.
• Residual stresses:
• Residual stresses in weldments are classified into:
• a) reaction stresses caused when the weldment is restrained
externally and
• b) residual stresses produced in an unrestrained weldment.
• The residual stresses whether they are tensile or compressive
type predominantly affect the soundness, dimensional
stability and mechanical performance of the weld joints.
• The magnitude of residual stresses increases gradually to
peak value until weld joint is cooled down to room
temperature.
• Therefore, the effects of residual stresses are mostly observed
either near the last stage of welding or after some time of
welding in the form of cracks (hot cracking, lamellar tearing,
cold cracking), distortion and reduction in mechanical
performance of the weld joint.
• Residual stress of the same type as that of external one
increases the failure tendency while opposite type of stresses
(residual stress and externally applied stress) decrease the
same.
• Compressive residual stresses are intentionally induced to
enhance tensile and fatigue performance of mechanical
components whereas, efforts are made to reduce tensile
residual stresses using various approaches such as post weld
heat treatment, shot peening, spot heating, etc.
• In addition to the cracking of the weld joint under normal
ambient conditions, failure of weld joints exposed in corrosion
environment is also accelerated in the presence of tensile
residual stresses by a phenomenon called stress corrosion
cracking.
 Metalworking Failures
• Metalworking operations are classified as:
• (i) primary metalworking – where mill forms such as bar, plate, tube,
sheet, and wire are worked from ingot or other cast forms and
• (ii) secondary metalworking – where mill forms are further formed
into finished products by hot forging, cold forging, drawing, extrusion,
straightening, sizing, etc.
• These metalworking operations have a two-fold purpose: (a) they are
designed to produce parts with desired configuration
• (b) metal working can develop a final shape with internal soundness
and improved mechanical properties by:
– Improved internal quality due to compressive deformation
– Grain refinement, uniform grain structure
– Elimination of casting porosity and breakup of macrosegregation patterns
– Beneficial grain flow pattern for improved part performance
– Improved toughness and/ or fatigue resistance due to grain flow and
fibering
– Burnished surface and controlled surface quality
• Potential problems of the deformation process
include:
• (i) fracture-related problems – internal bursts or
chevron cracks, cracks on free surfaces, cracks on
die-contacted surfaces
• (ii) metal-flow-related problems – end grain and
poor surface performance; inhomogeneous grain
size; shear bands and locally weakened structures;
cold shuts, folds, and laps; flow-through defects.
• Control, materials selection and use problems –
underfill, part distortion, and poor dimensional
control; tool overload and breakage; excessive tool
wear; high initial investment due to equipment
cost; poor material use and high scrap loss.
• The movement of metal during these processes, whether
performed at room temperature or at elevated
temperatures , makes them common sources of surface
discontinuities, such as laps, seams, and cold shuts.
• Oxides, silvers or chips of the base material, or foreign
material also can be embedded into the surface during
working.
• These surface imperfections produce a notch of unknown
severity that acts as a stress raiser, which may adversely
affect strength under load.
• Subsurface and core discontinuities may also occur.
• Subsurface flaws often originate from the as-cast ingot due
to shrinkage, voids and porosity that form during
solidification.
• These imperfections can also serve as sites for crack
initiation during fabrication or in service
• Imperfections in wrought forms:
• Schematic illustration of some terms used to
describe flaws in rolled bar stock is given below.
• These imperfections, whether at or below the
surface, can adversely affect performance of a
part by creating a notch of unknown severity
and serve as a crack-initiation site during
fabrication or in service.
• Corrosion and wear damage can also be
assisted by discontinuities, especially at the
surface.
• These flaws may occur from the melting
practices and solidification of ingot, the primary
or secondary working of the material, or the
metallurgical characteristic of a particular alloy
system.
• Imperfections from the ingot:
• Many flaws in wrought products can be traced
back to the pouring and solidification of hot metal
in molds during production of ingot.
• The types of the imperfections that can be traced
to the original ingot product include:
• (i) Chemical segregation
• (ii) Ingot pipe, porosity, and centerline shrinkage
• (iii) High hydrogen content
• (iv) Nonmetallic inclusions
• (v) Unmelted electrodes and shelf
• (vi) Cracks, laminations, seams, pits, blisters, and
scabs
• Chemical segregation:
- Deviation from the mean composition at a particular
location in a cast or wrought product.
• Chemical segregation originates in alloys during the
solidification stage.
• Such deviations from the nominal composition are due to
convection currents in the liquid, gravity effects, and
redistribution of the solute during the formation of
dendrites.
• Solute rejection at the solid-liquid interface during dendrite
formation typically occurs during solidification, and thus a
compositional gradient typically exists from the cores of the
dendrites to the interdendritic regions.
• Consequently, the dendrite arms are stronger and, on
working, do not deform and flow as readily as the matrix in
which they are incorporated.
• Microsegregation characterizes concentrations of
elements in interdendritic regions that range in size
from a few to several hundred microns.
• Macrosegregation is the gradient difference
measurable on a macroscale, in alloying elements
from the surface to the center of an ingot or casting.
• Macrosegregation becomes more pronounced with
increasing section size.
• Microsegregation, particularly within secondary arm
branches, can be eliminated by homogenization.
• Macrosegregation is harder to eliminate, because
complete homogenization would require longer
times than are economically acceptable under
production conditions.
• A certain degree of alloy segregation occurs in all wrought
products, and hot working can alleviate some of the
inhomogenity.
• However, if the ingot is badly segregated, hot working just
tends to alter the shape of the segregation region into a
banded structure.
• Depending on the kind and degree of segregation that develops during
solidification, some degree of banding carries over to the wrought form.
•If banding is sever, it can lead to discontinuities that cause premature failure.
•Excessive segregation also can have an adverse effect on subsequent fabrication and
heat treatment.
• Ingot pipe, porosity and
centerline shrinkage:
• A common imperfection in
ingots is pipe, which is an
internal shrinkage cavity
formed during solidification
of ingots.
• It occurs in the upper central
portion of the ingot during
solidification and contraction
of the metal, when there
may eventually be
insufficient liquid metal to
feed the last remaining
portions as they contract.
• A concave cavity thus forms
at the top of the ingot
because of metal shrinkage
during solidification.
• The cavity usually forms in
the shape of a cone, hence
the term pipe
• In addition to the primary pipe
near the top of the ingot,
secondary regions of piping and
centerline shrinkage may extend
deeper into an ingot.
• Secondary piping and centerline
shrinkage can be very
detrimental, because they are
harder to detect in the mill and
may subsequently produce
centerline defects in bar and
wrought products.
• Such a material condition may
indeed provide the flaw or stress
concentrator for a forging burst
in some later processing
Longitudinal section through an ingot
operation or for a future product showing extensive centerline shrinkage
failure.
• High hydrogen content:
• A major source of hydrogen in certain metals and alloys is the
reaction of water vapor with the liquid metal at high temperatures.
• The water vapor may originate from the charge materials, slag
ingredients and alloy additions, refractory linings, ingot molds, or
even the atmosphere itself, if steps are not taken to prevent such
contamination.
• The resulting hydrogen goes into solution at elevated temperatures;
but as the metal solidifies after pouring, the solubility of hydrogen
decreases, and it becomes entrapped in the metal lattice.
• If hydrogen is absorbed into the base metal, it must be removed by
a bake-out heat treatment. Otherwise, severe embrittlement of the
base metal may occur, especially in steels with hardnesses above
approximately 35 HRC.
• High strength, highly stressed parts can crack and fracture as a
result of hydrogen embrittlement.
• Failure by hydrogen embrittlement is even more likely to occur if
high residual tensile stresses are present.
• Nonmetallic inclusions:
• Two categories of nonmetallic inclusions in metals are:
• (i) those that are entrapped inadvertently and originate
almost exclusively from foreign matter, such as refractory
linings, that is occluded in the metal while it is molten or
being cast.
• (ii) those that form in the metal because of a change in
temperature or composition.
• Inclusions of the latter type are produced by separation from
the metal when it is in either the liquid or the solid state.
• Some nonmetallic inclusions form in the liquid before
solidification; others form during solidification.
• In steels, for example, aluminates and silicates generally form
before solidification, while sulfides form during solidification.
• Manganese sulfide inclusions frequently form in the
interdendritic regions and primary grain boundaries of steel,
where the last of the liquid freezes.
• Vacuum or electroslag remelted alloys more commonly contain
nonmetallic inclusions, such as titanium carbonitrides or carbides,
when carbon or the hardening element form precipitate during
stabilization and aging cycles.
• Nonmetallic inclusions can easily become stress concentrators
because of their discontinuous nature and incompatibility with the
surrounding composition.
• This combination may very well yield flaws of critical size that, under
appropriate loading conditions, result in fracture.
• The deleterious nature of nonmetallic inclusions depends on several
factors, including chemical composition of the inclusion, volume
percentage, shape, orientation, and the mechanical/physical
properties of the inclusion as compared to its surrounding matrix.
• Inclusion shape - control methods are used to produce inclusions
predominately with a spherical shape, which is less of a stress
concentrator with the surrounding matrix and less damaging than
inclusions with more angular shapes
 Other ingot related imperfections

• Laminations - laminations in wrought products may occur

from various types of discontinuities introduced during
the ingot stage.
• Pipe can form into laminations in rolled products.
• Laminations may also form spatter (entrapped splashes)
during the pouring of the molten metal into the ingot
mold.
• These imperfections are elongated during rolling or other
working and are usually subsurface.
• Silvers – most often caused by a rough mold surface,
overheating prior to rolling, or abrasion during rolling.
• Very often, silvers are found with seams. Silvers usually
have raised edges.
• Scabs – are caused by improper ingot pouring, in
which metal is splashed against the side of the mold
wall.
• The splashed material or scab tends to stick to the wall
and become oxidized.
• The metal first freezes to the wall of the mold, then
becomes attached to the ingot, and finally becomes
embedded in the surface of the wrought product.
• Scabs usually show up only after rolling and, as can be
expected, give poor surface finish.
• Pits and blisters – gaseous pockets in the ingot often
become pits or blisters on the surface or slightly below
the surface of bar products.
• Other pits may be caused by overpickling to remove
scale or rust.
• Cracks and seams – cracks and seams are often
confused with each other.
• Cracks with little or no oxide present on their edges may
occur when the metal cools in the mold, setting up
highly stressed areas.
• Seams develop from these cracks during rolling as the
reheated outer skin of the billet becomes heavily
oxidized, transforms into scale, and flakes off the part
during further rolling operations.
• Unmelted electrodes – are caused by chunks of
electrodes being eroded away during consumable
melting and dropping down into the molten material as
a solid.
• Shelf – is a condition resulting from uneven
solidification or cooling rates at the ingot surfaces.
• Forging imperfections:
• The most common internal imperfections found in steel
forgings are pipe, segregation, nonmetallic inclusions, and
stringers.
• Internal flaws caused by forgings also include cracks or tears,
which may result either from forging with too light a hammer
or from continuing forging after the metal has cooled down
below a safe forging temperature.
• Other flaws in steel forgings that can be produced by
improper die design or maintenance are internal cracks and
splits.
• A number of surface flaws also can be produced by the
forging operation. These flaws are often caused by the
movement of metal over or on another surface without actual
welding or fusing of the surfaces.
• The most common surface flaws in steel forgings are seams,
laps, and silvers.
• Laps and seams are surface discontinuities that are
caused by folding over of metal without fusion.
• They are usually filled with scale and, on steel
components, are enclosed by a layer of
decarburized metal.
• Other surface flaws include rolled-in scale, ferrite
fingers, overfills, and underfills.
• Cold shuts often occur in closed-die forgings. They
are junctures of two adjoining surfaces caused by
incomplete metal fill and incomplete fusion of the
surfaces.
• Shear cracks often occur in steel forgings; they are
diagonal cracks occuring on the trimmed edges and
are caused by shear stresses.
 Control of heating
• In addition to flow-related imperfections, proper control
of heating in hot forging is necessary to prevent
excessive scale, decarburization, overheating or burning.
• Excessive scale, in addition to causing excessive metal
loss, can result in forgings with pitted surfaces.
• Severe overheating causes burning, which is the melting
of the lower-melting-point constituents. It results in
severe reduction in the mechanical properties of the
metal.
• Blistering – is a raised spot on the surface caused by
expansion of subsurface gas during heating.
• Blisters may break open and produce a defect that looks
similar to a gouge or surface lamination.
• Hot tears in forgings are surface cracks that are
often ragged in appearance.
• They result from rupture of the material during
forging and are often caused by the presence of
low-melting or brittle phases.
• Thermal cracks occur as a result of nonuniform
temperatures in the forging. Quench cracks are one
example of such thermal cracks.
• Internal cracks, another type of thermal crack, may
occur when forgings are heated too rapidly.
• These occur as a result of unequal temperatures of
the surface relative to the center of the mass, and
the resulting differences in the degree of thermal
expansion produce tensile stresses near the center.
 Extrusion-type defects
• The tail of an extrusion is unusable because of
nonuniform flow through the extrusion die.
• This results in a center-to-surface-velocity gradient,
with metal from the workpiece interior moving through
the die at a slightly higher velocity than the outer
material.
• The result shows up at the tail of the extrusion as a
suck-in or pipe, and, for extrusions, the tail is simply cut
off and discarded.
• Alternatively, a follower block of cheaper material may
be added so that most of the defect falls in the cheaper
material, and less length of the extruded workpiece is
lost.