Work

The role of heterogeneity and pop-in events when assessing brittle fracture in the weld metal of multi-pass welds

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Fracture toughness testing was conducted on 81 SE(B)-specimens extracted from the weld metal of an aged pressurizer weld, of which 42 were deep-cracked and 39 shallow-cracked specimens. The crack tips were positioned in distinct zones in the weld metal, which was achieved by polishing and etching the material to reveal prior-austenite grain boundaries prior to specimen manufacturing. Deep-cracked specimens with crack tips located in the as-welded zone and where dendrites exhibit a low inclination to the pre-crack plane, frequently showed pop-in events during testing. The length of these pop-ins correlated directly with the length of the weld zone in front of the crack tip. Toughness was evaluated both at the pop-in and at final failure, and values were assigned to the corresponding weld zones. The ductile-to-brittle transition temperature was determined separately for each zone, confirming that the as-welded zone with low dendrite inclination is the most critical in the aged weld.

Source: International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpvp.2025.105664

Authors: Daniela V. Klein, Pål Efsing, Jonas Faleskog

Institution: KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Language: English

Topic: Fatigue and fracture mechanics

Subfield: Mechanics of Materials

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,620

Funder: Strålsäkerhetsmyndigheten