ASME P-Numbers

To reduce the number of welding and brazing procedure qualifications required base metals have been assigned P-Numbers by the
ASME BPVC.  Ferrous metals which have specified impact test requirements have been assigned Group Numbers within P-Numbers.
These assignments have been based on comparable base metal characteristics, such as:
     Composition
     Weldability
     Brazeability

     Mechanical Properties

Indiscriminant substitution of materials in a set of P-Numbers or Group Numbers may lead to problems or potentially
failures.  Engineering assessment is necessary prior to a change in materials. When a base metal with a UNS number Designation is
assigned a P-Number, then a base metal listed in a different ASME material specification with the same UNS number shall be
considered that P-Number. The table below is a guide and is for instructive purposes only.  Anyone specifying materials or
requirements should refer directly to the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code to specify materials, P-Numbers, procedures, or other
requirements and not rely on the table below.  The table below is only a rather INCOMPLETE and APPROXIMATE summary of ASME
data for INSTRUCTIONAL USE ONLY.  See ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code for materials specifications and P-Numbers. 
P-Numbers Base Metal (Typical or Example)
1 Carbon  Manganese  Steels (four Group Numbers)
2 Not Used
3 Half Molybdenum or half Chromium, half Molybdenum (three Group Numbers)
4 One and a quarter Chromium, half Molybdenum (two Group Numbers)
5A Two and a quarter Chromium, one Molybdenum
5B Five Chromium, half Molybdenum or nine Chromium, one Molybdenum (two Group Numbers)
5C Chromium, Molybdenum, Vanadium (five Group Numbers)
6 Martensitic Stainless Steels (Grade 410, 415, 429) (six Group Numbers)
7 Ferritic Stainless Steels (Grade 409, 430)
Austenitic Stainless Steels
     Group 1 - Grades 304, 316, 317, 347

8      Group 2 - Grades 309, 310

     Group 3 - High Manganese Grades

     Group 4 - High Molybdenum Grades

9A, B, C Two to four Nickel Steels

10A, B, C, F Various low alloy steels
10H Duplex and Super Duplex Stainless Steel (Grades 31803, 32750)
10I High Chromium Stainless Steel
10J High Chromium, Molybdenum Stainless Steel
10K High Chromium, Molybdenum, Nickel Stainless Steel
11A Various high strength low alloy steels (six Group Numbers)
11B Various high strength low alloy steels (ten Group Numbers)
12 to 20 Not Used
21 High Aluminum content (1000 and 3000 series)
22 Aluminum (5000 series - 5052, 5454)
23 Aluminum (6000 series – 6061, 6063)
24 Not Used
25 Aluminum (5000 series - 5083, 5086, 5456)
26 to 30 Not used
31 High Copper content
32 Brass
33 Copper Silicone
34 Copper Nickel
35 Copper Aluminum
36 to 40 Not Used
41 High Nickel content
42 Nickel, Copper - (Monel 500)
43 Nickel, Chromium, Iron - (Inconel)
44 Nickel, Molybdenum – (Hastelloy B2, C22, C276, X)
45 Nickel, Chromium
46 Nickel, Chromium, Silicone
47 Nickel, Chromium, Tungsten
47 to 50 Not Used
51, 52, 53 Titanium Alloys
61, 62 Zirconium Alloys
 P-NUMBERS OF BASE METALS
Base Metal Welding Brazing
Steel and Steel Alloys P-No. 1 through P-No. 11 incl. P-No. 5A, 5B and 5C P-No. 101 through P-No. 103
Aluminum and Aluminum-base Alloys P-No.21 through P-No. 25 P-No. 104 and P-No. 105
Copper and Copper-Base Alloys P-No. 31 through P-No. 35 P-No. 107 and P-No. 108
Nickel and Nickel base Alloys P-No. 41 through P-No. 47 P-No. 110 through P-No. 112
Titanium and Titanium base Alloys P-No. 51 through P-No. 53 P-No. 115
Zirconium and zirconium base Alloys P-No. 61 through P-No. 62 P-No. 117

Stainless Steel and its Families

What is stainless steel?
Stainless steel is the generic name for a number of different steels used primarily because of their corrosion resistance. All stainless steels share a
minimum percentage of 10.5% chromium. Chromium is always the deciding factor, although other elements, particularly nickel and molybdenum,
are added to improve corrosion resistance. The success of the material is based on the fact that it has one unique advantage. The chromium in the
stainless steel has a great affinity for oxygen, and will form a film of chromium oxide on the surface of the steel at a molecular level. The film itself is
extremely thin, about 130 Angstroms and one Angstrom is one millionth of a centimetre. This layer is described as passive (does not react or
influence other materials), tenacious (clings to the layer of steel and is not transferred elsewhere) and self-renewing (if damaged, more chromium
from the steel will be exposed to the air and form more chromium oxide). This means that over a period of years a stainless steel knife can literally
be worn away by daily use and will still remain stainless.
In many cases stainless steel is the most cost efficient solution. Although producing a component or fabrication in stainless steel will often be more
expensive that using ordinary steel due to the higher cost of stainless steel and expertise required during processing it is the better life cycle costs of
stainless steel that make it such an attractive material. Through the use of a stainless steel a significantly longer service life and less maintenance
costs for equipment can be achieved. Furthermore, stainless steel is fully recyclable and has a high scrap value on de-commissioning.
Families of stainless steels and other corrosion resistant alloys
There are several families of stainless steel: Ferritic, Martensitic, Austenitic and Duplex. These names are derived from the crystal structure of the
steels, which determines their metallurgical behaviour. Other corrosion resistant alloys are nickel based alloys and titanium and its alloys.
Ferritic stainless steels
Ferritic stainless steels are plain chromium stainless steels with a chromium content varying between 10.5 and 18% and low carbon content. They
are magnetic and not hardenable by heat treatment. Ferritic alloys have good ductility and formability but relatively poor high temperature strength
compared to that of austenitic grades.
Martensitic stainless steels
Martensitic stainless steels were the first stainless steels that were commercially developed (as cutlery) and have a relatively high carbon content
(0.1 - 1.2%) compared to other stainless steels. They are plain chromium steels containing between 12 and 18% chromium. They are magnetic and
hardenable by quenching and tempering like plain carbon steels and find their main application in cutlery, aerospace and general engineering.
A relatively new group of martensitic stainless steels are the supermartensitic stainless steels. The super martensitic grades combine high strength
and low-temperature toughness with acceptable corrosion resistance in many applications.
Austenitic stainless steels
Austenitic stainless steels are non-magnetic. When nickel is added to stainless steel in sufficient amounts the crystal structure changes to
"austenite". The basic composition of austenitic stainless steels is 18% chromium and 8% nickel. This enhances their corrosion resistance and
modifies the structure from ferritic to austenitic. Austenitic grades are the most commonly used stainless steels accounting for more than 70% of
production (type 304 is the most commonly specified grade by far). They are not hardenable by heat treatment.
Super austenitic grades have enhanced pitting and crevice corrosion resistance compared with the ordinary austenitic or duplex types. This is due the
further additions of chromium, molybdenum and nitrogen to these grades.
Duplex stainless steels 
These are stainless steels containing relatively high chromium levels (between 18 and 28%) and moderate amounts of nickel (between 4.5 and 8%).
The high corrosion resistance and the excellent mechanical properties combination of duplex stainless steels can be explained by their chemical
composition and balanced ('duplex') microstructure of approximately equivalent volume fractions of ferrite and austenite. 
Super duplex grades have enhanced pitting and crevice corrosion resistance compared with the ordinary austenitic or duplex types. This is due the
further additions of chromium, molybdenum and nitrogen to these grades.
Precipitation hardening stainless steels 
Precipitation hardening stainless steels, like the martensitic types, can be strengthened (i.e. hardened) by heat treatment. The mechanism is
metallurgically different to the process in the martensitic types. This means that either martensitic or austenitic precipitation hardening structures
can be produced.
 Nickel based alloys
Nickel based alloys are a family of alloys in which the principle constituent is nickel although it might be less than 50% of the total composition.
Nickel based alloys are used for a wide range of applications requiring aqueous corrosion, high temperature strength of both. Also resistance to
mechanical damage by many mechanisms such as fatigue or creep damage is high.
Titanium
Titanium is the fourth most abundant structural metal in the earth's crust and is the ninth industrial metal. Titanium is used for its excellent corrosion
and erosion resistance, high heat transfer efficiency, and superior strength-to-weight ratio. Once judged to be expensive, titanium, in life-cycle
costing, is now more often seen to be economical. The key to cost-effective use is to utilise its unique properties and characteristics in the design
rather than to substitute titanium for another metal.