Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116

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Journal of Alloys and Compounds

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jalcom

The effect of post-weld heat treatment temperature

on the microstructure of Inconel 625 deposited metal
Xixue Xing a, Xinjie Di a,⇑, Baosen Wang b
a
Tianjin Key Laboratory of Advanced Joining Technology, Tianjin University, No.92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin 300072, PR China
b
Baosteel Research Institute, Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd., Baoshan District, Shanghai 200431, PR China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The effect of post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) temperatures on the microstructure of Inconel 625 depos-
Received 19 August 2013 ited metal (DM) was examined using an optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
Received in revised form 27 November 2013 and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The transformation mechanism of the c00 ? d phase and
Accepted 27 December 2013
the grain growth kinetics of the c0 phase during PWHT were revealed. The results indicate that the micro-
Available online 9 January 2014
structure of as-welded DM is composed of columnar grains of different sizes, of which the average grain
size is approximately 160 lm. Certain precipitates, such as the dispersed c0 phase, blocky MC-type car-
Keywords:
bide and irregular shape Laves phase, precipitate in the microstructure of the as-welded DM. Compared
Inconel 625 deposited metal
Post-weld heat treatment
with as-welded DM, the microstructure of DM after PWHT at 650 °C for 4 h shows minimal variation.
Segregation With an increase in PWHT temperature, a large number of body-centered tetragonal c00 phases precipitate
Phase transformation at interdendrite regions in the microstructure of DM after PWHT at 750 °C for 4 h. When the PWHT tem-
Coarsening perature increases to 850 °C, the metastable c00 phase directly transforms into a stable d phase in shear
mode, which exhibits a similar chemical composition but a different crystal structure than the c00 phase.
At 950 °C, the c00 phase and the d phase disappear, whereas certain M6C-type carbides precipitate at the
grain boundaries. Alloying elements such as Nb, Mo, Si, Al and Fe in the microstructure of as-welded DM
exhibit segregation behavior. Due to an increasing PWHT temperature, the segregation behavior con-
stantly weakens with minimal evolution to the temperature of 750 °C. Above this temperature, partition
coefficients tend toward 1, and composition heterogeneity disappears at 950 °C. During PWHT, the c0
phase continuously coarsens with an increase in PWHT temperature. The dynamic analysis shows that
the coarsening behavior of the c0 phase corresponds with the formula: d 3  d
 3 ¼ A  eQ =RT =T  t with an
0
activation energy of 253 kJ/mol.
Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction stainless steels, which are commonly employed in modern indus-

Inconel 625 is a solid-solution-strengthened nickel-base super-
alloy that is extensively used in applications that require a combi-
nation of moderate strength and excellent corrosion resistance at
temperatures below 800 °C and, in some cases, at temperatures
below 1200 °C [1–3]. Inconel 625 is primarily strengthened by
the addition of substitutional alloying elements, such as Cr and
Mo, which provide solid-solution strengthening of the austenite
microstructure. Because of the existence of precipitate strength-
ened elements, such as Nb, Al and Ti, it can also be strengthened
by the dispersed c0 phase [Ni3(Al, Ti, Nb)], the metastable c00 phase
(Ni3Nb) and blocky MC (M denotes Nb, Ti), M6C (M denotes Si, Ni,
Cr), and M23C6 (M denotes Cr) carbides [4–8].
Previous studies [9–11] have shown that the use of nickel-base
superalloy Inconel 625 wire to weld high yield strength steels or
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel./fax: +86 02227405889.
E-mail address: dixinjie@tju.edu.cn (X. Di).
try, can significantly improve the high-temperature mechanical
properties and corrosion resistance of weld structures. However,
the toughness, fatigue strength and creep rupture strength of the
weld may obviously decline due to the precipitation of the inter-
metallic Laves phase (A2B type phase: A denotes Ni, Cr, Fe; B de-
notes Nb, Mo, Ti) and the d phase (Ni3Nb) when a weld structure
is employed under high temperatures for extensive periods [12–
15]. Therefore, many studies have been performed to control the
formation of the Laves phase and the d phase in weld joints. The
results revealed that the morphology, distribution and content of
the Laves phase is highly dependent on the segregation of high
concentration refractory elements, such as Nb and Cr, and the Nb
segregation and Laves formation are difficult to control [12,16].
Sundararaman et al. [17] observed the d phase in Inconel 625
heat-treated at 750 °C for 100 h but did not observe the d phase
after a similar heat treatment at 700 °C. A large number of d phases
were observed when alloy 625 was heat-treated at 800 °C, which
was the maximum temperature at which the c00 phase was

0925-8388/$ - see front matter Ó 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2013.12.224
 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116 111

observed. Although the d phase is considered to be a harmful

phase, the d phase was recently reported [18,19] to block grain
boundary sliding and to control the grain size. However, the
formation process of the d phase was not mentioned. Mechanical
properties such as the yield strength and fatigue strength of the
heat-affected zone of the weld structure significantly degrade
due to reheating when nickel-base superalloy Inconel 625 wire is
used to weld high yield strength steels or stainless steels [20–
22]. In these cases, the toughness, fatigue strength and creep
rupture strength of the weld, as well as the mechanical properties
of the heat affected zone, should be preserved through post-weld
heat treatment (PWHT). Although numerous studies have focused
on the microstructure and properties of nickel-base superalloys,
few studies on the PWHT for deposited metal (DM) of nickel-base
superalloy Inconel 625 wire are available.
This study investigated the effect of PWHT temperature on the
microstructure of nickel-base superalloy Inconel 625 DM, which
was fabricated by gas tungsten arc (GTA) overlay welding, using
OM, SEM and TEM. The transformation mechanism of the c00 ? d
phase and the growth kinetics law of the c0 phase during PWHT
were revealed.

Fig. 2. OM images of as-welded Inconel 625 deposited metal: (a) etched with mixed
2. Material and methods
acid and (b) etched with aqua regia.

A DM sample was GTA overlay welded with Inconel 625 (ERNiCrMo-3) filler
wire on a low-alloy steel plate using a current of 110 A DC and a voltage of 13 V.
The interpass temperature was controlled at 100 °C or less, and a welding speed
of 25 mm/min was maintained. The chemical composition of the superalloy DM
in this study consisted of (wt.%) 22.66 Cr, 8.71 Mo, 3.53 Nb, 0.01 C, 0.09 Mn, 0.32
Fe, 0.08 Si, 0.01 Cu, 0.14 Al, 0.21 Ti, and margin Ni. The as-welded DM sample
was evenly divided into 5 sections that were transversely oriented in the welding
direction (Fig. 1). One of the Sections (I) was selected as the as-welded sample.
The remaining Sections (II, III, IV, and V) underwent PWHT under the following con-
ditions: they were heated in 200 °C increments per hour with a four-hour hold time
at 650 °C, 750 °C, 850 °C and 950 °C, respectively, and slow-cooled in a furnace.
The as-welded samples and DM samples subjected to PWHT were polished
using standard metallographic techniques. The microstructure of the DM that cor-
responded to all thermal states was examined and analyzed by OLYMPUS GX51 OM,
JEOL JSM-6360LV SEM and PHILIPS CM200 TEM, which were equipped with an
ultra-thin window Oxford energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). Using TEM, se-
lected-area electron diffraction (SAED) analysis of the precipitates in thin foils,
which were prepared from the Inconel 625 DM, was performed. Using a current
of 75 V, the thin foils were produced by twinjet polishing with 5% perchloric acid
and 95% ethanol at temperatures that ranged from 25 °C to 29 °C.
3. Results
3.1. Microstructure characterization of as-welded DM
Fig. 2 shows OM images of the as-welded DM, which was
etched with mixed acid (hydrochloric acid:nitric acid:acetic
acid = 1:1:1) or aqua regia. The microstructure of as-welded DM
is composed of columnar grains, as shown in Fig. 2. The columnar
grain sizes in this study ranged between 100 lm and 200 lm, with
an average value of 160 lm. Two different types of cellular-den-
dritic microstructures were observed in the OM image of the
as-welded DM: the first microstructure is continuous cellular–den-
dritic, and the second microstructure is discontinuous
Fig. 1. The schematic diagram of overlay welding sample.
cellular–dendritic. The two types of cellular–dendritic microstruc-
ture exhibit identical growth directions and appear alternately. The
arm spacing of continuous cellular–dendritic microstructure
ranges from 80 – 130 lm. This result is consistent with the litera-
ture and with observations by Xu et al. [23].
Certain secondary phases precipitate in grains and at the grain
boundaries of the microstructure of the as-welded DM (Fig. 2a).
The results of the TEM analysis showed that these secondary
phases were dispersed throughout the c0 phase, the blocky MC-
type carbide and the irregular shape Laves phase (Fig. 3). The
chemical compositions of these precipitates, which were deter-
mined by TEM/EDS, are listed in Table 1. A small granular-like c0
phase is dispersedly distributed throughout the c -matrix
(Fig. 3a). The c0 phase and the c -matrix possess similar lattice con-
stants and a small lattice misfit [24]; thus, their electron diffraction
patterns are coincident. With the aid of the EDS spectrum of this
dispersed phase, it can be concluded that this precipitate is in
the c0 phase. The Laves phase exhibits a hexagonal close-packed
(hcp) crystal structure with lattice parameters of a = b = 0.46 nm,
c = 0.73 nm, and c/a = 1.59. In this study, the particle sizes of the
Laves phase range from 20–150 nm. The MC-type carbide (M de-
notes Nb, Ti) exhibits a face-centered cubic (fcc) crystal structure
with a lattice parameter of 0.43 nm and an average grain size of
approximately 0.2 lm.
3.2. Microstructure characterization of DM after PWHT
Fig. 4 shows SEM images of DM after a PWHT of 4 h at 650 °C,
750 °C, 850 °C and 950 °C. The TEM images and chemical composi-
tions of new precipitates in the microstructure of DM after PWHT
are displayed in Fig. 5 and Table 2, respectively. Compared with the
as-welded DM, the microstructure of DM after PWHT at 650 °C for
4 h varies insignificantly, with the exception of a small increase in
the size and content of the secondary phases (Fig. 4a). With an in-
crease in PWHT temperature, the amount of Laves phase decreases,
and a large number of rectangular secondary phases precipitate in
the interdendrite regions in the microstructure of DM after PWHT
at 750 °C for 4 h (Fig. 4b). The results of the TEM analysis showed
that these rectangular precipitates, which occur in the intermetal-
lic c00 phase, exhibit a body-centered tetragonal structure with
112 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116

Fig. 3. TEM images of precipitates in the microstructure of as-welded Inconel 625

deposited metal: (a) c0 phase, (b) Laves phase and (c) MC type carbide.

Table 1
Chemical composition of precipitates in the microstructure of as-welded Inconel 625
deposited metal (wt.%).

Phases Ni Cr Nb Fe Al Ti Si
c0 53.9 7.5 16.5 0.6 19.3 2.2 –
MC 5.2 3.8 76.3 – – 10.1 4.6
Laves 42.9 18.0 10.1 13.7 – 15.0 0.3

lattice parameters of a = b = 0.37 nm and c = 0.73 nm and an aver-
age grain size of approximately 70 nm (Fig. 5a).
With a further increase in temperature to 850 °C, along with
declining c00 phase, MC-type carbide and Laves phase, a substantial
number of needle-like secondary phases were observed in the
microstructure of DM (Fig. 4c). The results of the TEM analysis re-
veal that this phase consists of an orthorhombic stable intermetal-
lic d phase, which exhibits a similar chemical composition but
different lattice parameters (a = 0.51 nm, b = 0.43 nm, and
c = 0.46 nm) than the c00 phase. The d phase exhibits only three dif-
ferent orientations, and some poor c00 phase regions appear near
the d phase (Fig. 5b). Fig. 5b reveals the following orientation rela-
tionship between the d phase and the c00 phase: ð0 2 0Þd ==ð0 1 0Þc00 ;
 =½0 0 3 00 : At 950 °C, the c00 phase and the d phase disappear,
½2 0 4
d c
and small amounts of blocky secondary phases appear at the grain
boundaries (Fig. 4d). The results of the TEM analysis showed that
these new blocky precipitates comprise M6C-type carbide, which
has a face-centered cubic (fcc) structure, a lattice parameter of
1.12 nm and an average grain size of approximately 10 lm. These
blocky M6C-type carbides develop concurrently along the grain
boundaries (Fig. 5c).
Fig. 4. SEM images of Inconel 625 deposited metal after post-weld heat treatment
at different temperatures for 4 h: (a) 650 °C, (b) 750 °C, (c) 850 °C and (d) 950 °C.
3.3. Segregation behavior of alloying elements in DM
Table 3 displays the average chemical compositions for a mini-
mum of 12 points in the dendrite core and interdendrite regions in
as-welded DM, which were determined by an electron microprobe.
The results show that the elements Mo, Al, Si and Nb diffuse from
the dendrite region and the element Fe diffuses to the dendrite re-
gion during the solidification process of DM. The segregation
behavior does not appear in Cr. This finding is attributed to the dif-
ference among the partition coefficient K of Mo, Al, Si, Nb, Fe and
Cr. The K value, which is defined by K = Cs/Cl (Cs is the solid compo-
sition and Cl is the liquid composition at a particular temperature),
describes how strongly an alloying element partitions in the liquid
and solid phases during solidification. Assuming that the equilib-
rium partition coefficient K is a constant, the dendritic core compo-
sitions are determined by KCl. Therefore, the ratio between the
dendritic core composition and the interdendritic composition
can be used as an approximate partition coefficient in this study.
The approximate partition coefficients of the alloying elements
 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116 113

Fig. 6. The relationship between the partition coefficient and post-weld heat
treatment temperature.

However, a slight evolution occurred below 750 °C due to the

low diffusion rate of solute atoms in the c -matrix. Above that tem-
perature, the solubility of alloying elements in the c -matrix and
the diffusion rate of solute atoms significantly increase. Thus the
secondary phases and the enriched alloy elements Mo, Si, Nb and
Al rapidly dissolve in the c -matrix, which corresponds to a signif-
icant increase in their evolution trend. When the PWHT tempera-
ture increases to 950 °C, the values of the partition coefficients of
all elements tend toward 1. This result is consistent with the liter-
ature and observations by Cortial et al. [9].

Fig. 5. TEM images of precipitates in the microstructure of Inconel 625 deposited

4. Discussions
metal after post-weld heat treatment: (a) c00 phase, (b) d phase and (c) M6C type
carbide. 4.1. Formation process of secondary phases in the microstructure of
DM

Table 2
Based on the experimental results, secondary phases, such as
Chemical composition of precipitates in the microstructure of Inconel 625 deposited
metal after post-weld heat treatment (wt.%). the dispersed c0 phase, blocky MC-type carbide and irregular shape
Laves phase, precipitate in the microstructure of the as-welded
Phases Ni Cr Nb Fe Al Ti Si
DM, in addition to the c-matrix. According to the literature
c00 65.2 6.1 26.6 0.5 – 1.6 – [2,25], the equilibrium solidification process of as-deposited Inco-
d 65.9 2.9 28.1 1.2 – 1.0 0.9
nel 625 superalloy is as follows:
M6C 31.3 12.2 – 8.3 0.9 0.8 46.5
L ! L þ c ! L þ c þ NbC ! c þ NbC þ Laves:
In the GTA overlay welding process, the solidification in DM of
Table 3 Inconel 625 wire begins with the reaction L ! c; which causes the
Chemical composition of dendrite core and interdendrite in as-welded Inconel 625
deposited metal (wt.%).
accumulation of Nb, Ti and C elements in intergranular spaces and
liquid along the grain boundaries. Thus, MC-type carbide (M de-
Analyzed areas Ni Cr Mo Nb Fe Al Si notes Nb, Ti) precipitates in these regions via the eutectic type
Cores 64.01 23.47 8.50 1.17 0.48 0.70 0.33 reaction L ! ðc þ NbCÞ, which consumes the majority of the avail-
Spaces 60.65 23.48 9.59 2.68 0.39 1.31 0.56 able carbon. Alloying elements, such as Nb, Cr, and Fe, accumulate
K 1.06 1.00 0.89 0.44 1.23 0.53 0.59
in the intergranular spaces and liquid along the grain boundaries.
As a result, the Laves phase precipitates in the microstructure via
the reaction L ! ðc þ LavesÞ. The simultaneous presence of Ni
were calculated and are listed in Table 3. The results indicate that and the c0 phase-forming elements Al, and Ti causes the formation
Ni and Fe with K > 1 segregate to the dendritic core, whereas Mo, of the dispersed c0 phase, which can effectively strengthen the
Nb, Al and Si with K < 1 enrich the interdendritic region. Cr with mechanical properties of Inconel 625 DM through the pinning ef-
K values approximately equal to unity tends to exhibit a uniform fect for dislocation.
distribution between the dendritic core and the cellular-dendrite Compared with as-welded DM, the microstructure of DM after
interstices. PWHT at 650 °C for 4 h shows minimal variation. This finding is
Fig. 6 shows the relationships between the partition coefficients primarily attributed to the slow diffusion velocity of the alloying
K for alloying elements and the PWHT temperature. The solubility elements in DM [13]. Above 650 °C, the Laves phase constantly dis-
of the alloying elements in the c -matrix constantly increase with solves with an increase in solid solubility and diffusion velocity of
an increase in the PWHT temperature. Thus the partition alloying elements in the c -matrix. As a result, numerous Nb atoms
coefficients of Fe, Mo, Si, Nb and Al continuously trend toward 1. were released in the interdendrite regions. A study by Lippold et al.
114 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116
Fig. 7. TEM images for the transformation process of the c00 ? d phase: (a)
rectangular c00 phase, (b) short strip c00 phase and (c) needle-like d phase.
[2] indicates that the c00 phase will only form during PWHT in
which the solid solubility of Nb is exceeded in the temperature
range between 678 °C and 936 °C. Thus, a larger number of rectan-
gular c00 phases were observed to form in DM after PWHT at 750 °C
for 4 h. When a PWHT temperature of 850 °C is used, the metasta-
ble c00 phase transforms into a stable needle-like d phase, which
exhibits a similar chemical composition but a different crystal
structure (orthorhombic) than the c00 phase. These needle-like d
phases contain only three different orientations, and some poor
c00 phase regions appear near the d phase (Fig. 5b). Due to a signif-
icant increase in the solid solubility and diffusion velocity of Nb in
the c -matrix, the c00 phase and d phase disappeared and the M6C-
type carbide formed at the grain boundaries.
4.2. Transformation mechanism of the c00 ?d phase during PWHT
Fig. 7 shows the transformation process of the c00 ? d phase.
Fig. 7 shows that the rectangular metastable c00 phase initially
evolves into an irregular short strip c00 phase and subsequently
Fig. 8. The schematic diagram for the transformation of the c00 ? d phase.
transforms into a stable needle-like d phase as the PWHT temper-
ature increases.
A schematic diagram for the transformation process of the
c00 ? d phase is presented in Fig. 8. With an increase in PWHT tem-
perature, the solubility of alloying elements and the diffusion rate
of solute atoms in the c -matrix increase. Thus, a sharp corner of
rectangular c00 phase partially dissolves into the c -matrix, which
causes four square degrees of the c00 phase to disappear. As a result,
the rectangular c00 phase gradually evolves into an irregular short-
strip c00 phase [26]. The formation of the short-strip c00 phase
frequently causes lattice distortion, which can produce incorrect
permutations and stacking faults in the close-packed plane of the
short strip c00 phase. The atomic stacking mode of the c00 phase is
represented by   A1B1C1 A2B2C2 A1B1C1  . When an incomplete
dislocation slides over the B2 crystal plane, a new atomic stacking
mode   A1B1C1 A2C1A2C2 A1B1C1   is produced. This new
stacking fault with three continuous CACA atomic stacking struc-
tures comprises a crystal structure characteristic of the d phase
[27,28]. That is, the crystal nucleus of the d phase forms in the
stacking fault of the close-packed plane of the c00 phase by shear
mode. The crystal nucleus of the d phase subsequently develops
into a c -matrix along the close-packed directions of the c00 phase
and intersects with the c00 phase, which produces new stacking
faults. These new stacking faults are beneficial to the transforma-
tion of the c00 ? d phase. A stable needle-like d phase completely
replaces the metastable short strip c00 phase. As mentioned previ-
ously, the transformation process of the c00 ? d phase is not a sim-
ple dissolution and re-precipitation process but a solid phase
transformation process that resembles the bainite transformation
in steels. The d phase nucleates in the stacking fault of the close-
packed plane of the c00 phase and develops along the three basic
close-packed directions of the body-centered c00 phase unit cell,
which explains why the d phase possesses only three different ori-
entations, and why some poor c00 phase regions appear near the d
phase.
4.3. Grain growth kinetics of the c00 phase during PWHT
Fig. 9 shows TEM images of the c00 phase in DM. As shown in
Fig. 9, the c00 phase significantly coarsens, but its quantity con-
stantly decreases as the PWHT temperature increases. Because
the shape of the c0 phase is irregular, the size of the c0 phase in this
study is substituted by the average diameter of the circle with the
same projected area as the c0 phase. The relationship between the
average diameter of the c0 phase and the PWHT temperature is
presented in Fig. 10. The c0 phase coarsens slowly at low tempera-
tures, whereas the growth trend increases dramatically with an in-
crease in PWHT temperature.
According to the Gibbs–Thomson theory and the Greenwood
model [29,30], the relationship between the growth rate of the c0
phase and its radius is given as


dr
¼ D2Sum =RTr  ð1= r  1=rÞ; ð1Þ
dt
where r is the average particle radius at time t, nm; r0 is the average
particle radius at t = 0, nm; S is the concentration of solute (c0
 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116
Fig. 9. TEM images of c0 phase at different post-weld heat treatment temperature:
(a) as-welded, (b) 650 °C, (c) 750 °C and (d) 850 °C.
forming elements) in equilibrium with a particle of infinite radius,
mol/l; / is the interfacial free energy of the particle–matrix, kJ/
mol; m is the molar volume of precipitates, l/mol; D is the composite
coefficient of diffusion of several atom species; R is the gas constant,
R = 8.314J/(K mol), and T is the temperature, K. By integrating Eq.
(1), the relationship can be written as
r 3  r 30 ¼ K  t;
where K is a temperature-dependent rate constant that is defined as
follows:
K ¼ 8DSum=9RT:
By replacing D and r in Eqs. (2) and (3) by the diffusion theory
D = D0  eQ/RT and r = d/2, we obtain:
3  d
3 ¼ A  eQ =RT =T  t;
d 0
where d is the average particle diameter at temperature T and time
0 is the average particle diameter at T ? 0 and t = 0, nm; Q is
t, nm; d
the activation energy for the growth of the c0 phase, kJ/mol; A is a
115
Fig. 10. Relationship between the size of c0 phase and post-weld heat treatment
temperature.
Fig. 11. Relationship of d3 - eQ/RT/T.
constant given by A = 64D0Sum/9R. As shown in Fig. 11, the relation-
ship between the average diameter of the c0 phase and the PWHT
temperature corresponds with formula (4). Thus, the desired size
of the c0 phase can be obtained by adjusting the PWHT temperature
and the time according to formula (4). The activation energy for the
growth of the c0 phase is 253 kJ/mol, which is obtained by substitut-
ing the experimental data into Eq. (4). This value is equivalent to the
activation energy for the diffusion of the c0 phase-forming elements
in the c matrix (the values of the diffusion activation energies of Al
and Ti in the c -matrix are 257 kJ/mol and 270 kJ/mol, respectively
[31]), which indicates that the growth of the c0 phase is controlled
by the diffusion of Al and Ti atoms in the c-matrix.
ð2Þ
5. Conclusions
The microstructure of Inconel 625 DM, which is generated by a
ð3Þ PWHT of 4 h at 650 °C, 750 °C, 850 °C and 950 °C, has been inves-
tigated. The following conclusions were attained through this
study:
1. The microstructure of as-welded DM is composed of columnar
ð4Þ
grains with different sizes. The average grain size is approxi-
mately 160 lm. There are some dispersed c0 phase, blocky MC
type carbide and irregular shape Laves phase precipitating in
the microstructure of the as-welded DM.
116 X. Xing et al. / Journal of Alloys and Compounds 593 (2014) 110–116
2. No significant change in microstructure was observed between
the as-welded DM and the DM after PWHT at 650 °C for 4 h.
With an increase in PWHT temperature, a large number of
body-centered tetragonal intermetallic c00 phases precipitate
in the microstructure of DM after PWHT at 750 °C for 4 h. When
the PWHT temperature increases to 850 °C, the metastable c00
phase directly transforms into a stable orthorhombic d phase,
which possesses a similar chemical composition but a different
crystal structure (orthorhombic) compared with the c00 phase.
At 950 °C, the c00 phase and the d phase disappear, whereas cer-
tain M6C-type carbides precipitate at the grain boundaries.
3. Alloying elements, such as Nb, Mo, Si, Al and Fe, in the micro-
structure of as-welded DM demonstrate segregation behavior.
With an increase in PWHT temperature, the segregation behav-
ior constantly weakens with minimal evolution below 750 °C.
Heterogeneity practically disappeared after 4 h of treatment at
950 °C.
4. The formation of the d phase comprises a solid phase transfor-
mation process, which resembles the bainite transformation in
steels. The crystal nucleus of the d phase forms in the stacking
fault of the close-packed plane of the c00 phase by shear mode
and develops along the close-packed directions of the c00 phase.
5. With an increase in PWHT temperature, the c0 phase continu-
ously coarsens. The results of the dynamic analysis shows that
the coarsening behavior of the c0 phase corresponds with the
formula d 3  d
3 ¼ A  eQ =RT =T  t with a coarsening activation
0
energy of 253 kJ/mol.
Acknowledgements
This research is financially supported by Tianjin Natural Science
Foundation, No. 11JCYBJC06000, and Key Project of Tianjin Munici-
pal Science and Technology Support Program, No. 11ZCGYSF00100.
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