Mir Sadat Ali et al.

/ International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST)

STUDY OF MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES IN A WELD BEAD OF
DISSIMILAR METALS
Mr. Mir Sadat Ali
Asst. Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering.
Centurion University of Technology & Management, Paralakhemundi- 761 211
E-mail: alisadat@rediffmail.com, sadat.ali@jitm.org ph: 09437619974
Dr.Ch.Srinivasa Rao
Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, AU College of Engineering.
VISAKHAPATNAM - 530 045 (AP), INDIA

Abstract:
The dissimilarity of the metals may arise due to the difference in chemical composition. The chemical
composition of the steel affects weldability and the mechanical properties of the welded joint. During the
reclamation and repair work of structural and machine components the difference in chemical composition of
the material to be welded is very much pronounced. These differences in chemical composition arise due to age
hardening, oxidation and many other factors. In this paper an attempt has been made to study the mechanical
properties of the welded joint formed between dissimilar metals and the affect of process parameters on it.
Introduction
Joining of dissimilar metals is carried out since ancient times. Nowadays, joining dissimilar metals has become
indispensable in the field of manufacturing and construction of equipment, machinery and products. Different
kinds of metals feature different chemical, physical, and metallurgical properties. Joining dissimilar metals is,
therefore, to compose different properties of metals in order to maximize the performance with minimum cost.
When welding two dissimilar materials, there are a number of aspects that need to be addressed, in addition to
those associated with welding similar materials. The different methods of welding dissimilar metals include
fusion welding, solid state welding, high energy density beam welding, brazing, and soldering. Dissimilar metal
joints can usually be made by any of these methods but low dilution and non-fusion joining processes are more
often used for high production & special applications. The joining of dissimilar metals by arc welding requires
careful consideration of aspects like selection of filler wire to optimize dilution & alloying, melting temperature
ranges of the metals, their thermal conductivities, co-efficient of thermal expansion, weld metal-base metal
interaction and joint design.
The dissimilarity of the metals may arise due to the difference in chemical composition. The chemical
composition of the steel affects weldability and other mechanical properties. Several elements are purposefully
added in the production of structural steel, but other undesirable elements may be present in the scrap materials
used to make the steel. Carbon and other elements that increase harden ability increase the risk of “cold”
cracking, and therefore higher preheat and inter pass temperatures, better hydrogen control, and sometimes post
heat are necessary to avoid cold cracking. The alloying elements and their general affects are given hereunder:
Carbon (C) is the most common element for increasing the strength of steel, but high levels of carbon reduce
weldability. Carbon increases the harden ability of the steel, increasing the formation of undesirable martensite
with rapid HAZ cooling. Higher preheats and higher heat input welding procedures may be needed when
welding a steel with relatively high carbon contents. Typical steel specifications limit carbon below 0.27%, but
some steel specifications have much lower limits.
Manganese (Mn) is an alloying element that increases strength and hardenability, but to a
lesser extent than carbon. One of the principal benefits of manganese is that it combines with undesirable
sulphur to form manganese sulfide (MnS), reducing the detrimental effects of sulfur. With high levels of sulfur,
however, numerous large MnS inclusions may be present, flattened by the rolling operation, increasing the risk

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 Mir Sadat Ali et al. / International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST)

of lamellar tearing when high through-thickness weld shrinkage strains are created. Manganese limits are
typically in the order of 1.40% or lower. A steel such as A36 does not place limits on Mn content for shapes up
to 634 kg/m (426 lb./ft.), or for plates and bars up to 20 mm.
Phosphorous (P) is an alloying element that increases the strength and brittleness of steel.
Larger quantities of phosphorous reduce ductility and toughness. Phosphorous tends to segregate in steel,
therefore creating weaker areas. Phosphorous is typically limited to 0.04% to minimize the risk of weld and
HAZ cracking.
Sulfur (S) reduces ductility, particularly in the transverse direction, thereby increasing the risk of lamellar
tearing, and also reduces toughness and weldability. Higher sulfur levels will form iron sulfide (FeS) along the
grain boundaries, increasing the risk of hot cracking. Manganese is used to form MnS to reduce this tendency. A
minimum Mn:S ratio of 5:1 to 10:1 is recommended. Typical steel specifications limit sulfur to 0.05%.
Silicon (Si) is a deoxidizer used to improve the soundness of the steel, and is commonly used to “kill” steel. It
increases both strength and hardness. Silicon of up to 0.40% is considered acceptable for most steels.
Nickel (Ni) is an alloying element used to improve toughness and ductility, while still increasing strength and
hardenability. It has relatively little detrimental effect upon weldability. Where nickel is reported as a part of
steel composition, it is generally limited to a maximum value between 0.25% and 0.50%.

For the present study the material selected, its compositions and physical properties are described in Table:1

Sl Name of Thermal Density Melting

N Material Composition in % of Weight Conduct Kg Point
o. ivity m3 0
C
W/m-k
C Mn Si Cr S P Mg
1 Mild Steel 0.2 - 0.25 - 0.05 0.05 0.57 53 7850 1540
IS-2602

2 EN-8 0.4 0.8 0.2 - 0.06 0.06 - 46 7850 1540

or
IS-45 C8

3 EN-9 0.55 0.15 0.65 - 0.06 0.06 - 46 7850 1540

or
IS-C55

4 EN-31 1.5 0.52 0.22 1.3 0.05 0.05 - 46.6 7810 1540
IS-103 Cr1

Table:1

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 Mir Sadat Ali et al. / International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST)

The mechanical properties of the material are tested by taking 10 samples from each material. The mechanical
properties are tabulated in Table: 2
Modulus Notch
Rupture
Sl. Hardness of of Impact Breaking
Energy
N Type of Material material Rupture strength Strength
(U)
o. (N/mm2) (Us) (Is)
J
J/mm3 J/mm2 N/mm2

Mild Steel 31.0 0.0088 0.4950

1 1451.630 616.466
IS-2602

EN-8
or 18.0 0.0051 0.2830
2 1866.758 737.236
IS-45 C8

EN-9
or 38.0 0.0123 0.6759
3 1711.260 891.479
IS-C55

EN-31
9.0 0.0025 0.1410
4 or 3210.048 1102.457
IS-103 Cr1

Table: 2

As it can be compared from table:1 and table: 2 that although the physical properties of all four metal specimen
selected have similar value but there is a remarkable difference in their mechanical properties. As the
mechanical properties of the parent material are different, so the effect of it on the welded joint is required to be
verified. Also the affect of process parameters on the welded joint is required to be studied while joining
materials posing such type of dissimilarity.
Experimental Details:
For doing the experiments the size of parent metal was taken as (250 x 75 x 8) mm. The edge preparation is
done to do welding as single V groove joint. In three steps the experiment was conducted.
In the first step the dissimilar metals with the prepared edges are taken for forming the welded joint. The
material pairs selected for forming the welded joints are shown in the table:

Material Pair Selected for welding

IS 2602 & IS 45 C8
IS 2602 & IS 103 Cr1

IS C 55 & IS 103 Cr1

As the second step of this experiment the welded joint was formed for defined and different input process
parameters. This step is undertaken to study the affect of process parameters on the mechanical properties of
welded joint. The process parameters selected were wire feed rate, current and voltage. The weld specimen were
prepared for different predefined set of current, voltage and wire feed rates.
As the third step the mechanical properties like hardness, toughness and the ultimate strength of the welded joint
was tested. Some non destructive tests like liquid penetration test, X-ray radiographic test and ultrasonic test
were conducted to study the acceptability of welded joint.
Result & Analysis:

The mechanical properties of the parent material and the welded bead is compared. It can be observed from
graph-1 that the hardness of parent material and the weld bead is dependent on the type of parent materials used.

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 Mir Sadat Ali et al. / International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST)

Still while joining IS-2602 & IS-103Cr1 it can be observed that the hardness resembles closely to the parent
material IS-2602. This can be attributed to the electrode material used during the welding.

3500
HardnessinN/mm^2

3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
IS-2602 IS-45 C8 IS-C55 IS-103 IS-2602 IS-2602 IS-45 C8
Cr1 & IS-45 & IS-103 & IS-103
C8 Joint Cr1 Joint Cr1 Joint
Different Type of Material

Graph-1

The graph-2, 3 & 4 shows the affect of heat input on the hardness of weld bead while joining dissimilar metals.
It can be seen that as the heat input increases the hardness of the weld bead increases. But if the heat input is
increased to a very higher value then the hardness decreases, it may be due to the decrease in heat density. The
same trend is observed in the graphs -2, 3 & 4.

Hardness of Weld Bead v/s Heat Input

1500
ead

1450
eldB

1400
m^2

1350
ardnessof W

Hardness
/m

1300
of weld
inN

1250 bead v/s

1200 Heat Input
1150
H

1100
68.8 71.9 75 78.1 81.3 84.4 90.6 93.8 96.9
He at Input in J/mm

Graph-2

Hardness of Weld Bead v/s Heat Input

1500
eldBead

1450
1400
N/mm^2
Hardnessof W

1350 Hardness
1300 of Weld
Bead v/s
1250
Heat
1200 Input
1150
68.8 71.9 75 78.1 81.3 84.4 90.6 93.8 96.9
Heat Input in J/mm

Graph- 3

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Hardness of Weld Bead v/s Power Input

1750
Hardnessof WeldBeadin

1650
1550
N/mm^2

Hardness
1450
of Weld
1350 Bead v/s
Power
1250 Input
1150
68.8 71.9 75 78.1 81.3 84.4 90.6 93.8 96.9
Heat Input in J/mm

Graph-4

Further from the graph- 5,6 & 7 it can be seen due to increase in power input as the hardness of the material is
increased but there is no substantial change in the breaking strength of the weld bead.

Breaking Strength v/s Hardness of Weld Bead

700
B reakin g S tren g th in

600
500
N /m m ^ 2

Breaking
400
Strength
300 v/s
200 Hardness
of Weld
100
Bead
0
1233 1312 1357 1390 1399 1450 1462 1369 1340
Hardness of Weld Bead in N/mm^2

Graph-5 Graph-6

The table-3 indicates the mechanical properties of weld bead joining IS 2602 & IS 45 C8 for increasing current
and ire feed rate. It can be noted from the table that for increasing current and wire feed rate the mechanical
properties like rupture energy, notch impact strength and modulus of rupture increases where as the breaking
strength of the weld bead decreases.
Mechanical Properties of Weld Bead Joining IS 2602 & IS 45 C8 for Increasing current and Wire Feed Rate
Sl No Welding Feed rate Rupture Modulus of Notch Impact Breaking
Current m/min Energy Rupture Strength Strength
3 2
In Amp (J) J/mm J/mm N/mm2
1 128 3 33 0.093 0.522 575.19
2 132 3.5 36 0.0102 0.572 533.87
3 163 4.5 45 0.0127 0.711 513.23
4 220 5.5 57 0.0170 0.896 541.39
5 227 7.5 102 0.0287 1.605 500.45
Table-3
Similar results as in table-3 are obtained by joining other dissimilar metals. In all the weld beads the breaking
strength shows a decreasing trend for increasing welding current and feed rate.

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Conclusion:

From the experimental results it can be concluded that due to slight variation of alloying elements the physical
properties of material like IS2602 may not change drastically but considerable change occurs in mechanical
properties. When the materials with considerable difference in mechanical properties are joined by arc welding
method then the mechanical properties of the weld bead depends a great extent on the type of filler material
used, the heat input applied, the preheating and post heating conditions of the weld bead.

References:-

[1] Richard E. Avery, “Pay Attention to Dissimilar-Metal Welds” Avery Consulting Associates, Inc.
[2] Technical data, “Joining Kovar alloy to other metals Brazing, Welding and Soldering” Electronics Division, Carborundum, 100 EB2A-
issue 2.
[3] Technical data, “Copper and Copper Alloys” MWS Wire Industries, 31200 Cedar Valley Drive, Westlake Village, CA 91362.
[4] D. Seferian in “The Metallurgy of Welding”, Chapman and Hall, London (1962) 299-302
[5] B. Buchmayr in “Fundamentals and Applications of ternary diffusion”, G.R. Purdy (Eds.), Pergamon press (1990) 227.

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