Effect of filler materials on the performance of gas tungsten arc welded AISI 304 and Monel 400

Dissimilar metal welding involving AISI 304 and Monel 400 finds widespread use in marine and offshore environments for the fabrication of heat exchangers, evaporators, piping and vessels in petrochemical and power generation industries. However studies on the performance of such weldments are scantly found in the literature even though the individual metals have higher corrosion resistance and strength. This paper reports the work carried out on welding of AISI 304 and Monel 400 using Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) technique to examine the weldability, mechanical and metallurgical properties. Investigations have been carried out on the hot corrosion behavior of these joints subjected to cyclic air oxidation and K2SO4 + NaCl (60%) molten salt environment at 600 degrees C. A comparative analysis was carried out on these weldments for two different filler metals such as E309L and ENiCu-7. The oxide scales formed on the various zones of the weldment have been characterized systematically using surface analytical techniques. Weld zone was found to be more susceptible to degradation than base metals used. The effect of filler materials on the hot corrosion is discussed. The studies reported in this paper would be beneficial for fabricators embracing this type of dissimilar weldments in the petrochemical and power generation industries. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.