Creep Behaviour of 304 Stainless Steel Welded Joints Composed of Two Different 308 Weld Metals

A weld metal zone composed of two or more weld metals with different creep properties is proposed as an approach to produce welded joints with well balanced performance in terms of creep lifetime and ductility. Type 304 steel was welded by depositing a 308L and/or a 308 wire. The resulting weld metal zones are composed of a ’soft’ weld metal with high ductility and 0-to-100 vol. % of a ’hard’ one with an extended creep lifetime but low ductility. The creep tests suggest that the creep behavior of a welded joint may be controlled to obtain an optimum balance between its time-to-rupture and elongation.