Stainless Steels

Stainless Steels are iron-base alloys containing Chromium. Stainless

steels usually contain less than 30% Cr and more than 50% Fe. They
attain their stainless characteristics because of the formation of an
invisible and adherent chromium-rich oxide surface film. This oxide
establishes on the surface and heals itself in the presence of oxygen.
Some other alloying elements added to enhance specific characteristics
include nickel, molybdenum, copper, titanium, aluminum, silicon,
niobium, and nitrogen. Carbon is usually present in amounts ranging
from less than 0.03% to over 1.0% in certain martensitic grades.
Corrosion resistance and mechanical properties are commonly the
principal factors in selecting a grade of stainless steel for a given
application.

Stainless steels are commonly divided into five groups:

Martensitic stainless steels

Ferritic stainless steels
Austenitic stainless steels
Duplex (ferritic-austenitic) stainless steels
Precipitation-hardening stainless steels.

Martensitic stainless steels are essentially alloys of chromium and carbon

that possess a martensitic crystal structure in the hardened condition.
They are ferromagnetic, hardenable by heat treatments, and are usually
less resistant to corrosion than some other grades of stainless steel.
Chromium content usually does not exceed 18%, while carbon content
may exceed 1.0 %. The chromium and carbon contents are adjusted to
ensure a martensitic structure after hardening. Excess carbides may be
present to enhance wear resistance or as in the case of knife blades, to
maintain cutting edges.

Ferritic stainless steels are chromium containing alloys with Ferritic, body
centered cubic (bcc) crystal structures. Chromium content is typically less
than 30%. The ferritic stainless steels are ferromagnetic. They may have
good ductility and formability, but high-temperature mechanical
properties are relatively inferior to the austenitic stainless steels.
Toughness is limited at low temperatures and in heavy sections.

Austenitic stainless steels have a austenitic, face centered cubic (fcc)

crystal structure. Austenite is formed through the generous use of
austenitizing elements such as nickel, manganese, and nitrogen.
Austenitic stainless steels are effectively nonmagnetic in the annealed
condition and can be hardened only by cold working. Some
ferromagnetism may be noticed due to cold working or welding. They
typically have reasonable cryogenic and high temperature strength
properties. Chromium content typically is in the range of 16 to 26%;
nickel content is commonly less than 35%.

Duplex stainless steels are a mixture of bcc ferrite and fcc austenite
crystal structures. The percentage each phase is a dependent on the
composition and heat treatment. Most Duplex stainless steels are
intended to contain around equal amounts of ferrite and austenite phases
in the annealed condition. The primary alloying elements are chromium
and nickel. Duplex stainless steels generally have similar corrosion
resistance to austenitic alloys except they typically have better stress
corrosion cracking resistance. Duplex stainless steels also generally have
greater tensile and yield strengths, but poorer toughness than austenitic
stainless steels.

Precipitation hardening stainless steels are chromium-nickel alloys.

Precipitation-hardening stainless steels may be either austenitic or
martensitic in the annealed condition. In most cases, precipitation
hardening stainless steels attain high strength by precipitation hardening
of the martensitic structure.

Selecting a Stainless Steel

There are a large number of stainless steels produced. Corrosion

resistance, physical properties, and mechanical properties are generally
among the properties considered when selecting stainless steel for an
application. A more detailed list of selection criteria is listed below:

Corrosion resistance Ambient strength

Resistance to oxidation and Ductility
sulfidation Elevated temperature
Toughness strength
Cryogenic strength Suitability for intended
Resistance to abrasion and cleaning procedures
erosion Stability of properties in
Resistance to galling and service
seizing Thermal conductivity
Surface finish Electrical resistivity
Magnetic properties
Suitability for intended
Retention of cutting edge
fabrication techniques

Corrosion resistance is commonly the most significant characteristic of a

stainless steel, but can also be the most difficult to assess for a specific
application. General corrosion resistance is comparatively easy to
determine, but real environments are usually more complex. An
evaluation of other pertinent variables such as fluid velocity, stagnation,
turbulence, galvanic couples, welds, crevices, deposits, impurities,
variation in temperature, and variation from planned operating chemistry
among others issues need to be factored in to selecting the proper
stainless steel for a specific environment.
AMC can provide engineering services to determine how to optimize the
selection of stainless steel for your application. Our engineering analysis
can reduce overall costs, minimize service problems, and optimize
fabrication of your structure.

Welding Stainless Steel

The stainless properties of stainless steels are primarily due to the

presence of chromium in quantities greater than roughly 12 weight
percent. This level of chromium is the minimum level of chromium to
ensure a continuous stable layer of protective chromium-rich oxide forms
on the surface. The ability to form chromium oxide in the weld region
must be maintained to ensure stainless properties of the weld region
after welding. In commercial practice, however, some stainless steels are
sold containing as little as 9 weight percent chromium and will rust at
ambient temperatures.

Stainless steels are generally classified by their microstructure and are

identified as ferritic, martensitic, austenitic, or duplex (austenitic and
ferritic). The microstructure significantly affects the weld properties and
the choice of welding procedure used for these stainless steel alloys. In
addition, a number of precipitation-hardenable (PH) stainless steels exist.
Precipitation-hardenable stainless steels have martensitic or austenitic
microstructures.

Iron, carbon, chromium and nickel are the primary elements found in
stainless steels and significantly affect microstructure and welding. Other
alloying elements are added to control microstructure or enhance
material properties. These other alloys affect welding properties by
changing the chromium or nickel equivalents and thereby changing the
microstructure of the weld metal. Generally, 200 and 300 series alloys
are mostly austenitic and 400 series alloys are ferritic or martensitic, but
exceptions exist.

Stainless steels are subject to several forms of localized corrosive attack.

The prevention of localized corrosive attack is one of the concerns when
selecting base metal, filler metal and welding procedures when
fabricating components from stainless steels.

Stainless steels are subject to weld metal and heat affected zone
cracking, the formation of embrittling second phases and concerns about
ductile to brittle fracture transition. The prevention of cracking or the
formation of embrittling microstructures is another major concern when
welding or fabricating stainless steels.

Welding Austenitic Stainless Steels

Ideally, austenitic stainless steels exhibit a single-phase, the face-

centered cubic (FCC) structure, that is maintained over a wide range of
temperatures. This structure results from a balance of alloying additions,
primarily nickel, that stabilize the austenite phase from elevated to
cryogenic temperatures. Because these alloys are predominantly single
phase, they can only be strengthened by solid-solution alloying or by
work hardening. Precipitation-strengthened austenitic stainless steels will
be discussed separately below.

The austenitic stainless steels were developed for use in both mild and
severe corrosive conditions. Austenitic stainless steels are used at
temperatures that range from cryogenic temperatures, where they
exhibit high toughness, to elevated temperatures, where they exhibit
good oxidation resistance. Because the austenitic materials are
nonmagnetic, they are sometimes used in applications where magnetic
materials are not acceptable.

The most common types of austenitic stainless steels are the 200 and
300 series. Within these two grades, the alloying additions vary
significantly. Furthermore, alloying additions and specific alloy
composition can have a major effect on weldability and the as-welded
microstructure. The 300 series of alloys typically contain from 8 to 20
weight percent Ni and from 16 to 25 weight percent Cr.

A major concern, when welding the austenitic stainless steels, is the

susceptibility to solidification and liquation cracking. Cracks can occur in
various regions of the weld with different orientations, such as centerline
cracks, transverse cracks, and microcracks in the underlying weld metal
or adjacent heat-affected zone (HAZ). These cracks are primarily due, to
low-melting liquid phases, which allow boundaries to separate under the
thermal and shrinkage stresses during weld solidification and cooling.

Even with the serious cracking concerns, the austenitic stainless steels
are generally considered the most weldable of the stainless steels.
Because of their physical properties, the welding behavior of austenitic
stainless steels is different than the ferritic, martensitic, and duplex
stainless steels. For example, the thermal conductivity of austenitic
alloys is roughly half that of ferritic alloys. Therefore, the weld heat input
that is required to achieve the same penetration is reduced. In contrast,
the coefficient of thermal expansion of austenite is 30 to 40 percent
greater than that of ferrite, which can result in increases in both
distortion and residual stresses, due to welding. The molten weld pool of
the austenitic stainless steels is commonly more viscous, or sluggish,
than ferritic and martensitic alloys. This slows down the metal flow and
wettability of welds in austenitic alloys, which may promote lack-of-fusion
defects.

Welding Ferritic Stainless Steels

Ferritic stainless steels comprise approximately half of the 400 series

stainless steels. These steels contain from 10.5 to 30 weight percent
chromium along with other alloying elements, particularly molybdenum.
Ferritic stainless steels are noted for their stress-corrosion cracking (SCC)
resistance and good resistance to pitting and crevice corrosion in chloride
environments, but have poor toughness, especially in the welded
condition.

Ideally, ferritic stainless steels have the body-centered cubic (bcc) crystal
structure known as ferrite at all temperatures below their melting
temperatures. Many of these alloys are subject to the precipitation of
undesirable intermetallic phases when exposed to certain temperature
ranges. The higher-chromium alloys can be embrittled by precipitation of
the tetragonal sigma phase, which is based on the compound FeCr.

Molybdenum promotes formation of the complex cubic chi phase, which

has a nominal composition of Fe36Cr12Mo10. Embrittlement increases
with increasing chromium plus molybdenum contents. It is generally
agreed that the severe embrittlement which occurs upon long-term
exposure is due to the decomposition of the iron-chromium ferrite phase
into a mixture of iron-rich alpha and chromium-rich alpha-prime phases.
This embrittlement is often called "alpha-prime embrittlement."
Additional reactions such as chromium carbide and nitride precipitation
may play a significant role in the more rapid, early stage 885 F
embrittlement.

The ferritic stainless steels have higher yield strengths and lower
ductilities than austenitic stainless steels. Like carbon steels, and unlike
austenitic stainless steels, the ferritic stainless alloys exhibit a transition
from ductile-to-brittle behavior as the temperature is reduced, especially
in notched impact tests. The ductile-to-brittle transition temperature
(DBTT) for the ultrahigh-purity ferritic stainless steels is lower than that
for standard ferritic stainless steels. It is typically below room
temperature or the ultrahigh-purity ferritic stainless steels. Nickel
additions lower the DBTT and there by slightly increase the thicknesses
associated with high toughness. Nevertheless, with or without nickel, the
ferritic stainless steels would need engineering review for anything other
than thin walled applications as they are prone to brittle failure.

Welding Martensitic Stainless Steels

Martensitic stainless steels are considered to be the most difficult of the

stainless steel alloys to weld. Higher carbon contents will produce
greater hardness and, therefore, an increased susceptibility to cracking.

In addition to the problems that result from localized stresses associated

with the volume change upon martensitic transformation, the risk of
cracking will increase when hydrogen from various sources is present in
the weld metal. A complete and appropriate welding procedure is
valuable to prevent cracking and produce a sound weld.

Martensitic stainless steels are essentially alloys of chromium and carbon

that possess a body-centered cubic (bcc) or body-centered tetragonal
(bct) crystal structure (martensitic) in the hardened condition. They are
ferromagnetic and hardenable by heat treatments. Their general
resistance to corrosion is adequate for some corrosive environments, but
not as good as other stainless steels.
The chromium content of these materials generally ranges from 11.5 to
18 weight percent, and their carbon content can be as high as 1.2 weight
percent. The chromium and carbon contents are balanced to ensure a
martensitic structure after hardening. Martensitic stainless steels are
chosen for their good tensile strength, creep, and fatigue strength
properties, in combination with moderate corrosion resistance and heat
resistance.

The most commonly used alloy within this stainless steel family is type
410, which contains about 12 weight percent chromium and 0.1 weight
percent carbon to provide strength. Molybdenum can be added to
improve mechanical properties or corrosion resistance. Nickel can be
added for the same reasons. When higher chromium levels are used to
improve corrosion resistance, nickel also serves to maintain the desired
microstructure and to prevent excessive free ferrite. The limitations on
the alloy content required to maintain the desired fully martensitic
structure restrict the obtainable corrosion resistance to moderate levels.

Welding Duplex Stainless Steels

Duplex stainless steels are two phase alloys based on the iron-chromium-
nickel system. Duplex stainless steels usually comprise approximately
equal proportions of the body-centered cubic (bcc) ferrite and face-
centered cubic (fcc) austenite phases in their microstructure and
generally have a low carbon content as well as, additions of
molybdenum, nitrogen, tungsten, and copper. Typical chromium contents
are 20 to 30 weight percent and nickel contents are 5 to 10 weight
percent. The specific advantages offered by duplex stainless steels over
conventional 300 series stainless steels are strength, chloride stress-
corrosion cracking resistance, and pitting corrosion resistance.

Duplex stainless steels are used in the intermediate temperature ranges

from ambient to several hundred degrees Fahrenheit (depending on
environment), where resistance to acids and aqueous chlorides is
required. The weldability and welding characteristics of duplex stainless
steels are better than those of ferritic stainless steels, but generally not
as good as austenitic materials.

A proper welding procedure is needed to obtain sound welds. Duplex

stainless steel weldability is generally good, although it is not as forgiving
as austenitic stainless steels. Control of heat input is important.
Solidification cracking and hydrogen cracking are concerns when welding
duplex stainless steels, but not as significant for some other stainless
steel alloys.

Current commercial grades of duplex stainless steels contain between 22

and 26 weight percent chromium, 4 to 7 weight percent nickel, up to 4.5
weight percent molybdenum, as well as some copper, tungsten, and
nitrogen. Modifications to the alloy compositions have been made to
improve corrosion resistance, workability, and weldability. In particular,
nitrogen additions have been effective in improving pitting corrosion
resistance and weldability.
The properties of duplex stainless steels can be appreciably affected by
welding. Due to the importance of maintaining a balanced microstructure
and avoiding the formation of undesirable metallurgical phases, the
welding procedures must be properly specified and controlled. If the
welding procedure is improper and disrupts the appropriate
microstructure, the loss of material properties can be severe.

Because the steels derive properties from both austenitic and ferritic
portions of the structure, many of the single-phase base material
characteristics are also evident in duplex materials. Austenitic stainless
steels have good weldability and low-temperature toughness, whereas
their chloride SCC resistance and strength are comparatively poor.
Ferritic stainless steels have good resistance to chloride SCC but have
poor toughness, especially in the welded condition. A duplex
microstructure with high ferrite content can therefore have poor low-
temperature notch toughness, whereas a structure with high austenite
content can possess low strength and reduced resistance to chloride SCC.

The high alloy content of duplex stainless steels also makes them
susceptible to the formation of intermetallic phases from extended
exposure to high temperatures. Significant intermetallic precipitation
may lead to a loss of corrosion resistance and sometimes to a loss of
toughness.

Duplex stainless steels have roughly equal proportions of austenite and

ferrite, with ferrite being the matrix. The duplex stainless steels alloying
additions are either austenite or ferrite formers. This is occurs by
extending the temperature range over which the phase is stable. Among
the major alloying elements in duplex stainless steels chromium and
molybdenum are ferrite formers, whereas nickel, carbon, nitrogen, and
copper are austenite formers.

Composition also plays a major role in the corrosion resistance of duplex

stainless steels. Pitting corrosion resistance is easily affected. To
determine the extent of pitting corrosion resistance offered by the
material, a pitting resistance equivalent is commonly used.

Welding Precipitation-Hardenable Stainless Steels

Precipitation-hardening (PH) stainless steels are iron-chromium-nickel

alloys. They generally have better corrosion resistance than martensitic
stainless steels. The high tensile strength of the PH stainless steels is
due to precipitation hardening of a martensitic or austenitic matrix.
Copper, aluminum, titanium, niobium (columbium), and molybdenum are
the primary elements added to these stainless steels to promote
precipitation hardening.

Precipitation-hardening stainless steels are commonly categorized into

three types martensitic, semiaustenitic, and austenitic based on their
martensite start and finish (Ms and Mf) temperatures and the resulting
microstructures. The issues involved in welding PH steels are different for
each group.
It is important to understand the microstructure of the particular type of
alloy being welded. Some of the PH stainless steels solidify as primary
ferrite and have relatively good resistance to hot cracking. In other PH
stainless steels, ferrite is not formed, and it is more difficult to weld
these alloys without hot cracking.

If your company is experiencing these or other welding problems you can

retain AMC to improve your weld processing. Hire our consultants to act
as your welding specialist.