The effect of weld geometry and post-weld heat treatment on the corrosion behaviour of austenitic stainless steel immersed in 1.0 M NaCl solution

Abstract

The variation of welding parameters such as weld geometry and post-weld heat treatment on the corrosion behaviour of austenitic stainless steel in a saline environment of 1.0 M NaCl was investigated in this work. Rods of austenitic stainless steel of known chemical composition were prepared and welded using electric arc welding technique varying the aforementioned parameters. Thereafter, samples for the corrosion behaviour investigation were then cut out of the welded rods. The analysis of the experimental data revealed that the best weld geometry was chamfered and a post-weld heat treatment carried out at temperatures in excess of 700 °C followed by air cooling improves the quality of a weld.