Arc welding faults - Cracks

Reheat cracking
Cracks
Cracks may be detectable in severe cases by eye, or by surface NDT techniques, such as dye penetrant or magnetic
particle inspection (ferritic materials) or eddy current testing. Buried cracks can only be found by volumetric
inspection (radiography or ultrasonic inspection). Hydrogen cracks, in particular, may be tight, and difficult to
detect by radiography if not ideally oriented

Reheat cracking
Cause
Reheat cracking is completely intergranular in nature. It occurs in welds that are given a Post Weld Heat
Treatment (PWHT). Cracks normally form as the weldment is being heated, and occur because grain interiors are
strengthened by carbide precipitation, forcing the relaxation of residual stress by creep deformation to occur at
weaker grain boundaries. These then cavitate and crack.

Reheat cracking is aggravated by carbide forming alloying elements, coarse austenite grains, grain boundary
embrittling elements and stress concentrations.

Prevention methods
Wherever possible avoid susceptible steels, eg. 5Cr 1Mo, 2.25Cr 1Mo, 0.5Mo B, 0.5Cr 0.5Mn 0.25V (in order of
increasing risk) and high strength steels containing chromium, molybdenum and vanadium.

Use steel with low levels of grain boundary embrittling elements, eg. antimony, arsenic, tin and phosphorous.
Steels with a ∆G or PSR of less than 0 are not susceptible.

∆G = Cr + 3.3Mo + 8.1V -2
PSR = Cr + Cu + 2Mo +10V +7Nb +5Ti -2

Reduce stress concentration by grinding weld toes

Reduce Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) austenite grain size by using a weld procedure to produce fine grained HAZ
microstructures, eg. by two layer techniques and controlling the angle of attack.

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The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice, and provided as reference material only.
If you require specific advice about your own, your customers’ or your organisations’ position in relation to anything
covered in the document, that advice should always be obtained in person from an Air Products expert.