Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.

), 2014, 27(2), 259–266

DOI 10.1007/s40195-014-0058-y

Effect of Heat Input on the Microstructure and Properties

of Dissimilar Weld Joint Between Incoloy 28 and Superaustenitic
Stainless Steel
M. S. Abdel Rahman • N. A. Abdel Raheem • M. R. El Koussy

Received: 15 August 2013 / Revised: 5 January 2014 / Published online: 22 April 2014
 The Chinese Society for Metals and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014

Abstract This work focuses on studying the effect of welding heat input within the range from 1 to 5 kJ/mm on the
microstructure and the corresponding mechanical and corrosion properties of dissimilar joint between superaustenitic
stainless steel (UNS S31254) and Incoloy 28 (UNS N08028). The two materials were butt-welded with ER NiCrMo3. The
metallurgical changes associated with welding of SASS and Incoloy 28 were studied using optical microscope, SEM, and
EDX. The mechanical and corrosion properties were investigated using tensile test, Vickers hardness test, and pitting and
crevice corrosion tests. The weld metal microstructure showed precipitates with needle-like shape at 3 and 5 kJ/mm. Also,
the microstructure showed unmixed zone (UMZ) at the fusion line of both SASS and Incoloy 28 sides at all the investigated
heat inputs. The Mo microsegregation within UMZ at Incoloy 28 side increased as the heat input increased from 1 to 5 kJ/mm
but that in SASS increased with increasing heat input from 1 to 3 kJ/mm and then decreased with increasing from 3 to 5
kJ/mm. The ultimate tensile strengths for all specimens at all the investigated heat inputs are acceptable. The average
hardness noticeably changed in weld metal as the heat input increased from 1 to 5 kJ/mm. Other zones such as HAZ or
UMZ did not demonstrate marked changes in the average hardness. The pitting and crevice corrosion rates of the weld joint
were found significant at 1 and 3 kJ/mm but insignificant at 5 kJ/mm according to ASTM G48.

KEY WORDS: Superaustenitic; Incoloy 28; Welding; Heat input; Unmixed zone; Microsegregation;
Corrosion

1 Introduction (20–24 wt%), nickel (17–25 wt%), molybdenum (C6

Superaustenitic stainless steels (SASS) are highly alloyed
austenitic stainless steels. They are used extensively in
aggressive environments such as offshore and desalination
industries for seawater handling, chlorine and chlorine
dioxide stages in bleach plants, and flue gas desulphuri-
zation plants [1]. SASS contain high contents of chromium
Available online at http://link.springer.com/journal/40195
M. S. Abdel Rahman (&)  N. A. Abdel Raheem 
M. R. El Koussy
Department of Metallurgy, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo
University, Giza, Egypt
e-mail: madye_mahmoud@yahoo.com
wt%), and nitrogen (0.15–0.5 wt%) [2, 3]. SASS such as
254 SMO were developed to enhance the corrosion resis-
tance especially to pitting and crevice corrosion in envi-
ronments containing chloride. Incoloy 28 is an alloy that is
sometimes grouped with SASS [4] due to its high chro-
mium (28 wt%) and molybdenum (3 wt%) contents but
with high nickel content (30 wt%); it is more convenient to
place it with corrosion resistant nickel-base alloys as
accepted in ASTM standard [5].
In the fabrication of equipments made from SASS, there
is a need for dissimilar weld joints between SASS and
other steels such as austenitic steels, Ni-base alloys, low
alloy steels, carbon steels, duplex, or super duplex steels.
Ni-base filler metal such as Inconel 625 is recommended
for dissimilar weld joints between the stainless steels due to

123
260 M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266

its superior corrosion resistance especially in the applica-
tions such as plants of energy generation, chemical, and
petrochemical industries [6, 7]. Also, the high molybdenum
content in SASS destabilizes the austenite phase during
weld solidification and increases the probability of micro-
segregation which in turn decreases the corrosion resis-
tance. Thus, welding with over alloyed or Ni-base
electrode such as Inconel 625 (ER NiCrMo3) provides
higher corrosion resistance [6–8]. However, Ni-base filler
metal can form unmixed zone (UMZ) between the partially
melted zone and weld nugget causing localized corrosion
[8]. The UMZ is identified as a part of the base metal that
melted and solidified without mechanical mixing with the
filler metal [9, 10]. Therefore, it was intended to investigate
the characteristics of dissimilar weld joints when welded
with ER NiCrMo3 at different heat inputs (from 1 to
5 kJ/mm) for two reasons. First, it is speculated that the
heat input might affect the formation of the UMZ. Sec-
ond, it is also questioned whether the heat input would
affect the microsegregation within the UMZ.
2 Experimental
2.1 Materials
Two alloys were investigated, namely Incoloy 28 (N08028)
and superaustenitic stainless steel (S31254). The chemical
analysis of the investigated base metals and that of filler
metal (ER NiCrMo3) are shown in Table 1. The two base
metals were supplied as strips having thickness of
(3.5 ± 0.5) mm. The as-received SASS and Incoloy 28
strips were delivered in the solution annealed condition.
2.2 Welding Conditions
Dissimilar weld joints between SASS and Incoloy 28 strips
were conducted by means of gas tungsten arc welding
(GTAW) process. The process was conducted using ER
NiCrMo3 with 2.5 mm diameter, W-2% ThO2 electrode of
3.2 mm diameter, and pure argon shielding gas with flow
rate of 12 L/min. The welding heat input was calculated
according to the following formula [11]:
EI
Q¼ ; total exposed surface area was calculated before the tests.
V
Table 2 The welding parameters of SASS and Incoloy 28 dissimilar
welds
Voltage (V) Current (A) Speed (mm/s) Heat input (kJ/mm)
15 60 0.87 ± 0.09 1.04 ± 0.1
16 80 0.43 ± 0.01 2.97 ± 0.05
17 100 0.33 ± 0.01 5.10 ± 0.2
where Q is the nominal heat input in J/mm, E is the voltage
in V, I is the current in A, and V is the welding speed in
mm/s. The welding was performed in such conditions to
accomplish average heat inputs of 1, 3, and 5 kJ/mm (see
Table 2).
2.3 Microstructure Examination
Microstructure analyses were conducted using optical
microscope, SEM, and semi quantitative EDX. The sample
surface was prepared using grinding, polishing, and etch-
ing. An etchant was prepared by mixing 3 parts of HCl, 2
parts of acetic acid, and 2 parts of HNO3 [12]. The samples
were immersed in the solution for 30 s to reveal austenite
grain boundaries.
2.4 Mechanical Tests
Two mechanical tests were conducted. The tensile test was
performed to evaluate the effect of the heat input on the
ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of the welded specimens.
The tensile test was conducted according to standard
ASTM A370 [13]. Vickers hardness test was used to
measure the hardness distribution along base metal (BM),
HAZ, UMZ, and weld metal (WM). The hardness distri-
bution was measured through a distance of 10 mm from the
right and to the left of the weld center.
2.5 Corrosion Test
Ferric chloride pitting and crevice tests were performed
according to ASTM G48 [14]. All specimen surfaces were
prepared and cleaned using grinding and polishing fol-
lowed by 24 h air passivation before the tests. The
dimensions of each test specimen were measured, and the

Table 1 The chemical composition (wt%) of base metals and filler metal
Material C Si Mn P S Cr Mo Ni Cu Fe N Nb

SASS (S31254) 0.01 0.47 0.46 0.023 0.001 19.65 6.01 18.0 0.64 Bal. 0.21 0.031
Incoloy 28 (N08028) 0.02 0.43 1.87 0.02 0.001 26.61 3.23 30.2 0.9 Bal. 0.05 0.01
ER NiCrMo3 0.01 0.08 0.35 0.01 0.004 21.2 9.1 Bal. 0.36 3.22 … 3.42

123
M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266
Each specimen was weighed to the nearest 0.0001 g before
and after the tests. Fresh solution of ferric chloride
(FeCl3•6H2O) was prepared before the tests by dissolving
100 g of the reagent in 900 mL of distilled water. The test
specimens were immersed in container filled with 600 mL
of the ferric chloride solution and covered for 72 h. Two
Teflon washers of 9.92 mm internal diameter, 15.9 mm
outer diameter, and 6.34 mm thickness were fastened to
each crevice specimen using rubber bands before immer-
sion in the container.
3 Results and Discussion
3.1 Microstructural Examination
The microstructure of SASS and Incoloy 28 base metals
is illustrated in Fig. 1. The base metal (BM) of SASS
and Incoloy 28 shows fully recrystallized austenitic
grains. The effects of heat input (from 1 to 5 kJ/mm) on
the microstructure of different zones of dissimilar weld
joint, i.e., HAZ, UMZ, and weld metal (WM), are shown
in Figs. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. The microstructure of WM at
all heat inputs is illustrated in Fig. 2. Weld metal shows
dendrites of austenite that grow in size with increasing
the heat input. This is related to the decrease of cooling
rate with the increase in heat input. Such decrease in the
cooling rate leads to a faster dendrites growth rate. Some
precipitates with needle-like shape also appear at the
interdendritic spacing at heat input of 3 and 5 kJ/mm
(see Fig. 2b, c). The presence of the precipitates at in-
terdendritic spacing of alloy 625 has been reported by
some workers [15–17]. Those precipitates were identified
as NbC, also called Chinese Script, and are enriched in
Nb and C (see Fig. 2d). The EDX analysis of the Chi-
nese Script phase shows appreciable amounts of Cr, Mo,
and Ni from the matrix phase. This may be attributed to
Fig. 1 The microstructure of the base metal of SASS and Incoloy 28
261
the difficulty of reducing the EDX spot size. No pre-
cipitates were observed at WM of the joint at 1 kJ/mm.
This can be attributed to the fact that the formation of
those precipitates depends mainly on the microsegrega-
tion of Nb within WM. Heat inputs of 3 and 5 kJ/mm
provide sufficient heat for the microsegregation of Nb
within WM.
The microstructure of the HAZ of both sides of the
joints is illustrated in Fig. 3. The grain size of the HAZ
of SASS and Incoloy 28 increased with increasing the
heat input. This can be explained by the fact that
increasing the heat input enhances the diffusion of atoms
from one side of the grain boundary to the other side
causing grain boundary migration. Also, the grain size of
the HAZ of both sides was almost similar at the same
heat input.
The microstructure of UMZ at fusion line of both SASS
and Incoloy 28 sides of the weld joint is illustrated in
Fig. 3. UMZ was observed at all investigated heat inputs at
both SASS and Incoloy 28 side. Cui et al. [10] reported that
the UMZ is caused by the insufficient convection in the
WM which develops the mechanical mixing between the
BM and WM, and the existence of a laminar boundary
layer in front of the freezing interface. The presence of
UMZ was confirmed by the fact that the chemical analysis
of UMZ was closer to that of the BM rather than that of
WM (see Fig. 4). The later result indicates that the UMZ is
formed due to the insufficient convection which causes
unmixing between BM and WM. The Mo content through
UMZ in both sides was close to that of HAZ (see Fig. 4).
When moving from HAZ toward the WM, the Ni content
increased and Fe content decreased gradually, while Cr
content remained almost unchanged as shown in Fig. 4.
This is related to higher Ni content ([58 wt%) and lower
Fe content (\5 wt%) of WM relative to SASS (18 wt% Ni
and [50 wt% Fe) and Incoloy 28 (30 wt% Ni
and [30 wt% Fe). The microstructure of the UMZ at
123
262 M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266

Fig. 2 The effect of heat input on the microstructure of weld metal of dissimilar weld joints a–c. SEM photograph for the precipitate and the
semiquantitative analysis of spectrum d

Fig. 3 The effect of heat input on the microstructure of HAZ and UMZ of dissimilar weld joints

123
M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266 263

Fig. 4 SEM photographs for the WM, UMZ, and HAZ of joint welded with heat input 1, 3, 5 kJ/mm and elements distributions through line AB:
a, c, e Incoloy 28; b, d, f SASS

fusion line is similar to an autogenous weld that consists of
austenite dendrites [18].
The effect of the heat input on the microsegregation of
Mo within UMZ of both SASS and Incoloy 28 sides was
investigated using EDX (see Fig. 5). Spectra were taken at
the dendrites core and the interdendritic spacing of UMZ to
study the differences in Mo content and the effect of the
heat input on it. According to Banovic et al. [17], Mo has
low diffusion rate in the austenite phase which causes the
Mo to microsegregate to the liquid phase leaving the first
solid depleted in Mo. The low diffusion rate of the Mo in
austenite also does not allow for Mo diffusion back to the
solid to compensate for the composition gradient. As the
solidification proceeds, the dendrites grow in size leaving
the surrounding liquid enriched in Mo. The surrounding
liquid forms the interdendritic spacing after complete
solidification. The microsegregation of Mo in the UMZ
was determined in this study by the difference in Mo
content between dendrite core and interdendritic spacing.
The Mo microsegregation in Incoloy 28 increased with
increasing heat input (see Fig. 5a). As for the SASS, the
Mo microsegregation increased with increasing heat input
from 1 to 3 kJ/mm and then decreased with increasing heat
input from 3 to 5 kJ/mm (see Fig. 5a). This may be caused
by enhanced diffusion at higher heat inputs along with the
higher Mo content of the SASS that accelerates the com-
pensation of the Mo depletion in dendrite core. Banovic
et al. [17] suggested that as cooling rate decreased with

123
264
Fig. 5 The effect of the heat input on the Mo content at dendrite core
and interdendrite spacing of UMZ at Incoloy 28 and SASS sides of
the weld joint a, on the ratio of Mo content in interdendrite spacing to
that in dendrite core b
increasing heat input, the dendrite/cell size increased and
the distance over which the solute will travel to compensate
the composition gradient through the dendrite core
increased. The Mo microsegregation was also determined
by the ratio of Mo content in the interdendritic spacing to
that in dendrite core (see Fig. 5b). As the ratio approaches
unity, the Mo microsegregation deceases, while ratios
higher than unity indicate strong Mo microsegregation.
Fig. 6 Effect of the heat input on the hardness distribution of dissimilar weld joint between Incoloy 28 and SASS
123
M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266
This ratio was higher in Incoloy 28 than that in SASS at all
heat inputs. This can be attributed to the higher Mo content
in SASS (6 wt% Mo) compared with Incoloy 28 (3 wt% Mo).
The higher Mo content in SASS can compensate for some
of the reduction of Mo at dendrite core but still insufficient
to completely eliminate the microsegregation.
3.2 Mechanical Properties
The effect of the heat input on the UTS of the welded
specimens was evaluated, and the results are given in
Table 3. The UTS varied from 670 to 729 MPa for the heat
input from 1 to 5 kJ/mm. According to ASME IX accep-
tance criterion, the UTS of welded specimens is accepted if
it is not less than the minimum specified UTS of the weaker
of base metals [19]. The minimum specified UTS of both
the SASS and Incoloy 28 are 650 and 500 MPa, respec-
tively [5, 20]. Thus, the UTS values for all specimens at all
the investigated heat inputs are acceptable. Most of the
specimens fractured in the BM of Incoloy 28 indicating
that the weld is stronger than the base metal.
The influence of the heat input on the hardness distri-
bution through welded joint is shown in Fig. 6. The hard-
ness distribution and hardness values in the WM were
affected significantly by the increase in heat input. The
average hardness of WM increased from 190 HV at 1 kJ/mm
to 240 HV at 5 kJ/mm. This can be attributed to the pre-
sence of the hard Nb carbide precipitates in the weld metal
at 3 and 5 kJ/mm (see Fig. 2). The average hardness of
SASS base metal (about 190 HV) was higher than that
of Incoloy 28 (about 165 HV) due to the higher Mo content
M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266 265

Fig. 7 Effect of the heat input on the pitting a–c and crevice d–f corrosion of dissimilar welded joint between Incoloy 28 and SASS. According
to G48, the weight loss corrosion rate larger than or equal to 0.0001 g/cm2 is significant

of SASS (6 wt%) relative to that of Incoloy 28 (3 wt%). Table 3 Effect of heat input on the ultimate tensile strength of the
The Mo has larger atomic size as compared with other weld joints
alloying elements which increases the distortion of the Heat input Ultimate tensile strength (MPa)
matrix lattice and increases the hardness. The average (kJ/mm)
Specimen 1 Specimen 2 Specimen 3 Average
hardness of the HAZ and UMZ of both SASS (about 192
HV) and Incoloy 28 (about 170 HV) was not noticeably 1 680 672 658 670 ± 11
affected by the increase in the heat input. 3 684 682 700 689 ± 10
5 717 739 730 729 ± 11
3.3 Corrosion Properties

The effect of the heat input on pitting and crevice corrosion specimens larger than or equal to 0.0001 g/cm2 is consid-
of the welded joint between SASS and Incoloy 28 is ered to be significant according to ASTM G48 [14]. The
illustrated in Fig. 7. Weight loss corrosion rate of the test pitting and crevice corrosion rates of the weld joint were

123
266 M.S. Abdel Rahman et al.: Acta Metall. Sin. (Engl. Lett.), 2014, 27(2), 259–266
significant at 1 and 3 kJ/mm but insignificant at 5 kJ/mm.
The corrosion attack was localized in the WM and in both
the HAZ and BM of Incoloy 28 (see Fig. 7a–f). This can be
attributed to Mo microsegregation within the UMZ and the
presence of the precipitates in the weld metal. The corro-
sion resistance of BM of SASS is superior to that of In-
coloy 28 due to its higher contents of Cr and Mo. Also, Mo
microsegregation with the UMZ of Incoloy 28 was more
noticeable than that of SASS (see Fig. 5). It is expected
that decreasing Mo microsegregation within the UMZ of
SASS at heat input of 5 kJ/mm would improve corrosion
resistance, while increasing precipitates of Nb carbides at
the same heat input would decrease corrosion resistance
(see Figs. 2 and 5). Obviously, at heat input of 5 kJ/mm,
the effect of decreasing Mo microsegregation within the
UMZ on corrosion resistance was more significant than the
effect of increasing precipitates of Nb carbides.
4 Conclusions
(1) The Ni-base weld metal (ER NiCrMo3) microstruc-
ture showed precipitates of NbC with needle-like
shape (Chines Script) at 3 and 5 kJ/mm.
(2) UMZ at the fusion line of both SASS and Incoloy 28
sides was observed at all the investigated heat inputs.
(3) The Mo microsegregation within UMZ at Incoloy 28
side increased as the heat input increased from 1 to
5 kJ/mm, whereas the Mo microsegregation within
UMZ at SASS side increased with increasing the heat
input from 1 to 3 kJ/mm and then decreased with
increasing from 3 to 5 kJ/mm.
(4) The UTS varies from 670 to 729 MPa at heat input
from 1 to 5 kJ/mm. The UTS for all specimens at all
the investigated heat inputs is acceptable according to
ASME IX.
(5) The average hardness in the center of the weld metal
increased significantly as the heat input increased
from 1 to 5 kJ/mm.
(6) Some improvement in corrosion resistance occurred
at the heat input of 5 kJ/mm due to decreasing the
degree of microsegregation. The pitting and crevice
corrosion rates of the weld joint were significant at 1
and 3 kJ/mm but became insignificant at 5 kJ/mm
according to ASTM G48.
123
Acknowledgments The authors appreciatively acknowledge the
members of the Mechanical Testing and Welding Laboratory at the
Department of Metallurgy for their aid in this work.
References
[1] M. Liljas, Weld. World 36, 55 (1995)
[2] J.C.M. Farrar, The Alloy Tree, 1st edn. (CRC Press, New York,
2004), pp. 79–115
[3] J. Anburaj, S.S.M. Nazirudeen, R. Narayanan, B. Anandavel, A.
Chandrasekar, Mater. Sci. Eng. A 535, 99 (2012)
[4] A. Hoseini Asli, A. Zarei-Hanzaki, J Mater. Sci. Technol. 25,
603 (2009)
[5] American Society for Testing and Materials, B668 (American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, 1997)
[6] B.A. Soares, M.M. Schvartzman, W.R. Campos, Characteriza-
tion of the dissimilar welding-austenitic stainless steel with filler
metal of the nickel alloy. Paper presented at the International
Nuclear Atlantic Conference, Santos, Brazil, 30 September 2007
[7] J.S. Ogborn, D.L. Olson, M.J. Cieslak, Mater. Sci. Eng. 203, 134
(1995)
[8] J.A. Brooks, J.C. Lippold, Welding, brazing, and soldering, in
ASM Handbook, vol. 6, ed. by D.L. Olson, T.A. Siewert, S. Liu,
G.R. Edwards (ASM International, Materials Park, 1993),
p. 1170
[9] J.R. Kearns, S.W. Borenstein, Microbiologically influenced
corrosion testing of welded stainless alloys for nuclear power
plant service water systems. Paper presented at the NACE
Annual Conference and Corrosion Show, Cincinnati, 11–15
March 1991
[10] Y. Cui, C.L. Xu, Q. Han, Scr. Mater. 55, 975 (2006)
[11] S. Kou, Welding Metallurgy, 2nd edn. (Wiley, Hoboken, 2003),
pp. 37–64
[12] G.F. Vander Voort, G.M. Lucas, E.P. Manilova, Metallography
and microstructures, in ASM Handbook, vol. 9, ed. by G.F.
Vander Voort (ASM International, Materials Park, 2004),
p. 1582
[13] American Society for Testing and Materials, A370 (American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, 1997)
[14] American Society for Testing and Materials, G48 (American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, 1997)
[15] M.J. Clieslak, T.J. Headley, T. Kollie, A.D. Romig, Metall.
Trans. A 19, 2319 (1988)
[16] J.N. DuPont, W. Banovic, A.R. Marder, Weld. J., 125 (2003)
[17] S.W. Banovic, J.N. DuPont, A.R. Marder, Sci. Technol. Weld.
Join. 7, 374 (2002)
[18] J.R. Davis (ed.), Corrosion of Weldments (ASM International,
Materials Park, 2006)
[19] American Society for Mechanical Engineers, IX (ASME Inter-
national, New York, 2010)
[20] American Society for Testing and Materials, A312 (American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, 1995)