Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Materials Science & Engineering A

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

Study on microstructure and mechanical characteristics of low-carbon

steel and ferritic stainless steel joints
Mahmoud Sarkari Khorrami, Mohammad Ali Mostafaei, Hesam Pouraliakbar n,
Amir Hossein Kokabi
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, P.O. Box 11155-9466, Tehran, Iran

art ic l e i nf o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In this work, examinations on the microstructure and mechanical properties of plain carbon steel and
Received 13 December 2013 AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel dissimilar welds are carried out. Welding is conducted in both autogenous
Received in revised form and using ER309L austenitic filler rod conditions through gas tungsten arc welding process. The results
10 April 2014
indicate that fully-ferritic and duplex ferritic–martensitic microstructures are formed for autogenous
Accepted 15 April 2014
Available online 26 April 2014
and filler-added welds, respectively. Carbide precipitation and formation of martensite at ferrite grain
boundaries (intergranular martensite) as well as grain growth occur in the heat affected zone (HAZ) of
Keywords: AISI 430 steel. It is found that weld heat input can strongly affect grain growth phenomenon along with
Ferritic stainless steel the amount and the composition of carbides and intergranular martensite. Acquired mechanical
Dissimilar weld
characteristics of weld in the case of using filler metal are significantly higher than those of autogenous
Microstructure
one. Accordingly, ultimate tensile strength (UTS), hardness, and absorbed energy during tensile test of
Mechanical properties
Gas tungsten arc welding weld metal are increased from 662 MPa to 910 MPa, 140 Hv to 385 Hv, and 53.6 J m
3 to 79 J m
3,
respectively by filler metal addition. From fracture surfaces, predominantly ductile fracture is observed
in the specimen welded with filler metal while mainly cleavage fracture occurs in the autogenous
weld metal.
& 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction relatively lower price of these alloys with respect to austenitic

Over the past few years, dissimilar metal welding (DMW) has
attracted growing attention for saving costs and material con-
sumption [1]. Moreover, DMW can be utilized to join different
alloys together to provide wide variety of property requirements
[2]. Dissimilar joints usually experience various service conditions,
especially temperature changes, affecting their performance [3].
Therefore, welded metals should have a relatively good compat-
ibility in their properties depending on the necessity of the service
condition such as heat transfer characterization, oxidation and
corrosion resistance, and also high temperature mechanical prop-
erties [4]. DMW is generally more challenging than similar metal
welding due to the differences in the physical, mechanical and
metallurgical properties of the parent materials [5]. These varia-
tions may even make the selection of compatible filler metal more
complicated with both of the base metals [6].
Ferritic stainless steels have a ferrite-base microstructure and
possess suitable resistance to stress corrosion cracking, pitting and
crevice corrosion. In addition to the better corrosion resistance and
n
Corresponding author. Tel.: þ 98 912 324 5466.
E-mail addresses: hpouraliakbar@alum.sharif.edu,
h.pouraliakbar@gmail.com (H. Pouraliakbar).
stainless steels [7], ferritic stainless steels have relatively higher
thermal conductivities and lower thermal expansions [8,9]. The
latter makes them more attractive than austenitic steels in
applications where thermal cycling is present. Ferritic stainless
steels have slightly higher yield strength than austenitic ones;
however, they exhibit lower elongation during tensile loadings
[10,11].
Considering the fact that ferritic stainless steels possess lower
weldability, they are not used extensively with respect to the
austenitic ones [7]. Ferritic stainless steels have useful properties
in the wrought condition. Fusion welding causes to decrease in
their toughness, ductility and corrosion resistance due to the grain
coarsening, carbides precipitation and martensite formation
occurred in their microstructure [12]. This is responsible for their
limited weldability. Moreover, ferritic stainless steels are suscep-
tible to intergranular corrosion due to the sensitization phenom-
ena as a result of thermal cycles experienced during welding or
post-weld heat treatment. Hence, the application of this group of
alloys is limited in specific environments after welding [13].
Carbide precipitation also occurs much faster in ferritic stainless
steels than that in austenitic ones due to the higher carbon
contents and much lower solubility of carbon in the ferritic matrix
[14].

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2014.04.065
0921-5093/& 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
36 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45

Table 1
Chemical compositions of base and filler metals.

Alloy Composition (wt%)

C Si Mn Cr Ni P S Mo Co Cu Fe

AISI 430 steel 0.046 0.6 0.586 17.13 0.132 0.022 0.001 0.019 0.044 0.121 81.1
Plain carbon steel 0.021 0.005 0.22 0.011 0.035 0.012 0.009 0.005 0.01 0.046 99.6
ER309L 0.08 1.0 2.0 23 12 0.045 0.03 – – – 61.8

Table 2
Examined mechanical properties of base metals.

Alloy Elongation Ultimate tensile Hardness Absorbed

(%) strength (MPa) (Hv) energy (J m
3)

AISI 430 31.3 516 171 144

steel
Plain 35.2 334 124 109
carbon
steel

Table 3
Physical properties of base metals.

Alloy Density Heat conduction coefficient Specific heat Melting

(g cm
3) (W m
1 K
1) at 100 1C (J kg
1 K
1) point (1C)

AISI 7.80 26.1 460 1425–1510

430 Fig. 1. Configuration of welding fixture.
Carbon 7.85 51.5 486 1450–1500
steel

Table 4
The welding parameters during GTAW process to achieve complete penetrating
joints.

Parameter Welding with ER309L filler Autogenous

rod welding

Welding current (A) 85 130

Arc voltage (V) 12 12
Welding speed 2 4.27
(mm s
1)
Gas flow rate (l min
1) 12 12
Arc gap (mm) o2 1

Standard grades of ferritic stainless steels have nominal chro-

mium (Cr) contents of 12, 17, and 27 wt% equivalent to AISI 405,
430, and 446 alloys, respectively. Steels with high chromium
contents, such as AISI 446, are used at high temperature applica-
tions where their resistance to sulphurous flue gases are an
advantage [10,15]. AISI 430 steel containing 17 wt% chromium is
the most common type of ferritic stainless steels and is known as
the head of this grade [16]. Therefore, investigation of dissimilar
weld properties of this type of steel will provide a general insight
for future study and research in DMW of other types of ferritic
stainless steels.
Plain carbon steel is widely welded due to its appropriate
weldability and various kinds of applications. It is almost welded
by all conventional processes depending on its thickness, expected
joint quality and the cost of weldment [17]. In addition to the
weight and cost savings, one of the direct applications of alloy AISI
430 to plain carbon steel dissimilar joint is in some components
of low temperature area in heat recovery steam generators of
power plants. Also, it has been reported that dissimilar joint
between ferritic stainless steel and carbon steel could be used in
automotive exhaust systems [18]. To the best knowledge of the
Fig. 2. Schematic of weld sample showing configuration of regions from which
specimens were prepared for transverse tensile test (a), longitudinal tensile test
(b) and hardness measurement (c).
authors, despite the importance of dissimilar welding of ferritic
stainless steels to other types of steels, no attempt has been made
so far to examine such dissimilar joints comprehensively.
The aim of present study is to weld AISI 430 ferritic stainless
steel to plain carbon steel by using gas tungsten arc welding
(GTAW) process in both conditions of autogenous and using
ER309L austenitic filler metal. The microstructure and mechanical
properties of welded specimens as well as the influence of using
filler metal on the weld metal and HAZ properties are discussed in
detail.
 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45 37

2. Experimental procedure research. It should be noted that not any post-weld heat treatment
was applied during the welding of specimens. Welding parameters
2.1. Base metals which have been set in the manner to achieve complete penetrat-
ing joints are given in Table 4. Before welding process, the
Plain carbon steel and AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel sheet
specimens with dimensions of 20 mm  10 mm  2 mm were used
as the starting materials, and ER309L austenitic stainless steel rod
was used as filler metal. The chemical compositions of the as-
received base metals and ER309L rod are listed in Table 1. More-
over, tensile properties of the base metals have been examined
and the results are presented in Table 2. It is worth noting that the
amount of energy that a material can absorb prior to final fracture
was determined by measuring the area underneath the stress–
strain curves. From Table 2, the related values of 144 J m
3 and
109 J m
3 are obtained for AISI 430 and plain carbon steel,
respectively. Also, some physical properties of base metals are
presented in Table 3, based on their important role in DMW. As
can be seen, there is a considerable difference between heat
conduction coefficients of base metals used in this study (51.5 vs.
26.1 W m
1 K
1 at 100 1C for plain carbon and AISI 430 steel,
respectively). This difference necessitates some considerations in
welding procedure to control the heat sink effect and prevent
formation of related defects.

2.2. Welding

GTAW technique in two different conditions of autogenous Fig. 4. Stereo microscope images from cross section of welded specimens in
and by using ER309L austenitic filler metal was utilized in this autogenous (a) and filler-added (b) welding states.

Fig. 3. OM images illustrating ferritic microstructure of plain carbon steel (a) and AISI 430 steel (b); XRD patterns of as-received carbon steel (c) and AISI 430 steel (d) in
conformance with OM images.
38 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45
specimens were degreased by acetone and oxide layers were
removed by scratch brush. In order to balance the heat sink in
both sides of joints, asbestos sheets were used as heat insulator
over and beneath the plain carbon steel to inhibit excessive heat
sinking due to its higher heat conductivity (Table 3). In addition,
copper sheets were placed both beneath and over the AISI 430
steel to raise heat sink at this section. Also, fixture was imple-
mented to constrain the sheets during welding. The configuration
of welding fixture is illustrated in Fig. 1.
2.3. Microstructural examinations
The microstructure of weld samples was characterized by both
optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).
Moreover, the chemical composition of selected areas and ele-
mental concentration profiles across the cross-section of the joints
were examined by SEM equipped with energy dispersive spectro-
scopy (EDS). During metallography, conventional specimen pre-
paration stages were performed through progressive grindings
and polishing. Plain carbon steel was etched by immersion in Nital
solution and AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel was electroetched
by 10 wt% oxalic acid solution at voltage of 5 V in about 10 s.
Fig. 5. OM images showing microstructure of weld metal in the case of autogenous welding (a) and using filler metal (b); SEM images of weld metal for autogenous (c) and
filler-added (d) specimens.
In addition, weld metals were etched by Vilella reagent. In order to
detect the formed phases, X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis using
Cu-Kα irradiation was employed.
2.4. Mechanical examinations
To evaluate the quality and mechanical characteristics of
weldments, transverse and longitudinal tensile tests as well as
hardness test were carried out. The schematics of weld sample and
regions from which specimens were prepared for the mechanical
examinations are illustrated in Fig. 2. Transverse and longitudinal
tensile test specimens were machined according to ASTM E8M
standard. The gage length was 32 mm according to the subsize
dimensions. Tensile tests were carried out at room temperature by
an Instron machine with the cross head speed of 1 mm min
1.
Similar to base metals, absorbed energies were calculated from
obtained curves of longitudinal tensile specimens for both types of
weld metals. The reported results are the average of at least three
different examined data. Surface transverse hardness variation
profiles of welds and base metals are plotted by applying Vickers
hardness measurements. Similar to tensile results, the reported
hardness are the mean of three different measurements.
 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45 39

3. Result and discussion

3.1. Microstructure and phase analysis

Based on optical images, microstructure of plain carbon steel

consists of equiaxed ferrite grains (Fig. 3(a)) whereas elongated
ferrite grains exist in AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel (Fig. 3(b)). It is
noteworthy that XRD results signifying that constituent ferrite
phase in both base metals in as-received condition are consistent
with those achieved by OM (Fig. 3(c) and (d)).
The optical stereo microscope images from cross-sections of
weldments in the two states of welding with and without ER309L
filler metal are shown in Fig. 4. The weld size of specimen welded
with filler metal is about 7 mm in width and this is significantly
larger than that of autogenous one which is about 4 mm in width.
This is attributed to the more heat input needed for melting filler
metal in the former welding state. Moreover, Fig. 5 indicates weld
metal microstructure obtained through OM and SEM for speci-
mens welded in both conditions. In the case of using filler metal,
acicular martensite in the ferrite matrix is formed since the
microstructure of weld metal produced by autogenous welding
consists of only ferrite grains. Chemical composition of weld
metals resulting from EDS analysis are listed in Table 5. As it can
be seen, the concentrations of austenite-promoting elements
including nickel (Ni), carbon (C) and manganese (Mn) are higher
in the case of using ER309L filler corresponding to the more
possibility of martensite formation in weld metal.
Fig. 6 shows the XRD patterns of weld metals. Existence of
characteristic peaks (indications for (0 0 2) and (3 0 1) planes) for
the filler-added specimen (Fig. 6(b)) gives evidence of martensite
Fig. 6. XRD patterns of weld metal for autogenous (a) and filler-added (b) specimens.
formation; however, there are only ferrite characteristic peaks for
autogenous weld metal (Fig. 6(a)). These observations are com-
pletely consistent with results obtained from microstructural ferritic microstructures, the ferrite grains can grow rapidly at
examinations. Moreover, according to the obtained patterns, it is higher temperature range leading to the reduction in toughness
clear that not any carbide precipitates are formed in both weld and ductility of the weld metal [14].
metals that is in agreement with microstructures and mechanical Fig. 7 illustrates optical microscopy images of HAZ for plain
examinations which are discussed later. carbon steel and AISI 430 steel sides in both welding conditions.
Martensite formation in the weld metal and HAZ of low- and Also, Fig. 8 shows HAZ of AISI 430 steel in higher magnification. It
medium-chromium ferritic stainless steels is quite common phe- should be noted that microstructural evolution of HAZ for plain
nomenon. In fact, phase amount and its chemical composition carbon steel side is almost the same in both welding conditions.
depend on several parameters. Increase in the amount of marten- Obvious large grains are observable near the fusion line in both
site could impair ductility and toughness; furthermore, higher specimen types due to the higher experienced temperature at this
volume fractions would increase the ferrite/martensite interfaces area leading to the intense grain growth. Similar observation has
as preferential sites for intergranular stress corrosion cracking. been reported previously in the dissimilar welding of X2CrNi12
As the carbon content of base and filler metal used in this study is ferritic stainless steel and S355 steel [7]. As it can be seen, the
low enough, it seems that the transformation path from liquid extension of HAZ in the AISI 430 steel side is wider in the case of
stage to room temperature occurred in weld metal might obey L- using filler metal (about 2.5 mm) than that in the autogenous weld
L þF-F-Fþ A-FþM, in which “L”, “F”, “A”, and “M” stand for (about 1.5 mm). From Figs. 7 and 8, it is revealed that in HAZ of
liquid, ferrite, austenite, and martensite, respectively. This path AISI 430 steel, precipitations of primarily chromium-rich M23C6
results in lower volume fraction of martensite within fusion zone type carbides [14,19] and M23(C,N)6 type carbonitrides [14] are
(i.e., austenite cannot exist along with both liquid and ferrite formed inside the ferrite grains where “M” is predominantly Cr
during solidification) comparing with L-L þF-Lþ FþA-FþA- and Fe. Moreover, martensite is formed at the ferrite grain
FþM path which results in higher amount of martensite. Once boundaries known as grain boundary martensite.
austenite starts to nucleate along the grain boundaries, growth of In the previous studies, it has been pointed out that the
ferrite grains would be confined by pinning mechanism. In fully mentioned types of carbides and carbonitrides are often formed
in HAZ of ferritic stainless steels [13,14] or alloys that contains
Table 5 chromium (i.e., Ni–Cr–Mo–V steels) [19]. Also, the precipitate-free
Overall EDS microchemical analysis results of weld metals. zones adjacent to the grain boundaries are evident from micro-
graphs. These kinds of precipitates are formed due to the super-
Element Filler-added Autogenous
saturation of carbon and nitrogen in the ferrite phase at elevated
C 0.11 0.01 temperature [14]. Since solubility of carbon and nitrogen decreases
Si 0.5 0.87 dramatically upon cooling, inter- and intra-granular precipitates
Cr 9.42 11.41 can form during cooling. The formation site depends on cooling
Mn 0.73 0.52 rate; i.e., at high cooling rates, significant intragranular precipi-
Ni 2.57 0.15
Fe 86.67 87.04
tates form while at slow cooling rates, grain boundaries are
the most preferred sites for precipitation and intergranular
40 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45
Fig. 7. The microstructure of HAZ from fusion line to base metal in AISI 430 steel side (a) and plain carbon steel side (b) in the case of autogenous welding as well as in AISI
430 steel side in the case of using filler metal (c).
precipitation occurs [14]. Based on the microstructural observa-
tions, the volume fraction of intragranular precipitates is consid-
erably higher in HAZ of AISI 430 steel beside the fusion line. In fact,
in farther regions their volume fraction notably decreases due to
considerable alteration of cooling rate. The amount, formation site
and composition of precipitations will strongly affect both
mechanical and corrosion behavior of weldments. Considering
Figs. 7 and 8, it is found that the amount of precipitates as well
as grain growth occurring in the HAZ of AISI 430 steel is higher in
the case of using filler metal with respect to the autogenous
welding. This can be attributed to the amount of applied heat
input in its welding process. The higher amount of heat input
causes the more dissolution of carbon and nitrogen in the ferrite
matrix corresponding to the more supersaturation sites and
subsequently much more precipitates. In addition, higher heat
input provides lower cooling rate and longer diffusion time from
regions like intergranular martensite; hence, remarkable precipi-
tation occurs during cooling.
As mentioned before, martensite is mainly formed at the grain
boundaries of ferrite in HAZ of ferritic stainless steel. This could be
justified by the fact that austenite is formed at ferrite grain boundaries
(intergranular austenite) at high temperature during welding and due
to high cooling rate, it is transformed to martensite. As shown in Fig. 8,
some intragranular martensites (the martensite that is formed inside
the ferrite grains) are formed in addition to the intergranular
martensite; however, this is more obvious in the specimen welded
with filler metal. From appearance comparison, intragranular
martensite has morphology like isolated colonies while intergranular
martensites are formed as connected network at grain boundaries.
Gradually by getting far from fusion boundary, martensite remains at
the boundaries while intragranular precipitations disappear due to the
lack of diffusion as a result of temperature reduction. Fig. 9 shows SEM
micrograph of HAZ of ferritic stainless steel in a region far from the
fusion line containing intergranular martensite without any intragra-
nular martensite and carbide precipitations. Also, from Fig. 9, it can be
seen that martensite at the boundaries of grains located far from the
fusion line does not have connected morphology.
EDS analysis results acquired from precipitated carbides inside
the ferrite grains in HAZ of ferritic stainless steel for specimens
welded with and without filler metal are shown in Fig. 10. It is
revealed that carbon content is slightly higher for specimen
welded with filler metal due to the higher heat input and
subsequent lower cooling rate and existence of much more time
for diffusion of carbon from intergranular martensite toward
central regions of ferrite grains. One may claim that carbon
content of precipitates in the autogenous sample would be higher
due to the more grain boundaries that resulted from smaller grain
size of ferrites in HAZ. The grain boundaries can be responsible for
more short-distance diffusion and consequently more carbon-rich
precipitates. However, examinations indicate that heat input is the
prevailing factor for the carbon concentration inside the ferrite
grains as well as for the amount of precipitated carbides.
According to Fig. 10, pattern difference between martensite
phases in HAZ of welded specimens is evident. This relates to the
 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45
Fig. 8. Microstructure of HAZ in AISI 430 steel for autogenous (a) and filler-added
(b) specimens.
Fig. 9. SEM image illustrating HAZ of AISI 430 steel acquired from regions far from
the fusion line.
corroded pattern in SEM micrographs obtained by secondary
electrons. The intergranular martensite of autogenous specimen
(Fig. 10(a)) is much more corroded than ferrite matrix and has
41
dented pattern while martensite in the case of using filler metal
(Fig. 10(b)) possesses projected pattern and matrix is more
corroded. Distinct patterns relate to the chemical compositions,
especially carbon content of martensites. Microchemical analysis
results of martensites and carbides in the welded specimens are
given in Table 6. Accordingly, results are in good agreement with
those achieved by microscopical investigations. In the specimen
welded with filler metal, higher heat input and subsequent lower
cooling rate provide enough time for carbon migration; hence,
martensite at grain boundary as a carbon supplying source is
depleted from carbon while the amount of precipitates increases.
On the other hand, in the autogenously welded specimen the short
diffusion time causes higher carbon content remaining within
martensite. Increase in martensite carbon content can lead to
decrease in its corrosion resistance corresponding to its more
corrosion during etching comparing with the martensite formed in
specimen welded with filler metal.
For DMW joints, variations of alloying elements' content across
the interfaces of weld metal and base metals are important. This
importance is more outstanding for elements which directly have
especial influence on the weldment properties. Fluctuations of
some elements for both interfaces of weld metal/carbon steel and
weld metal/AISI 430 steel for specimen welded with filler metal
are illustrated in Fig. 11. As it can be seen, at the interface of plain
carbon steel and weld metal variation of only Cr is appreciable due
to the higher Cr contents of both ER390L filler metal and AISI 430
steel base metal. On the other hand, EDS analysis results declare
that contents of Cr, C, Ni, and Mn across the weld metal/AISI 430
steel interface do not have considerable variations. It can be
concluded that the composition of weld metal in the case of using
filler metal is similar to AISI 430 steel resulted from appropriate
compatibility of the base metal and selected filler rod.
3.2. Hardness test
The hardness profiles of weldments are shown in Fig. 12. In the
case of welding with filler metal, the hardness of weld metal
reaches 385 Hv; that is significantly higher than that of autoge-
nous welding (140 Hv). This observation is consistent with micro-
structures and XRD examinations indicating the presence of
duplex ferritic–martensitic structure in the weld metal of speci-
men welded with ER309L filler metal. The hardness of HAZ in AISI
430 steel reaches 242 Hv and 275 Hv for specimens welded with
and without filler metal, respectively. As can be seen from Fig. 12,
the hardness of HAZ is more than that of AISI 430 base metal. This
is due to two main reasons: martensite formation at ferrite grain
boundaries and intragranular carbide precipitations. In the speci-
men welded with filler metal, HAZ of AISI 430 steel experiences a
sudden decrease in hardness immediately after fusion line. This
might be explained by the intense grain growth of ferrite at
regions near the fusion line and lower amount of precipitations
due to higher cooling rates, and also the presence of low-carbon
intergranular martensite. The hardness increase in the HAZ of AISI
430 steel in autogenous specimen relates to the smaller ferrite
grain size and carbon-rich intergranular martensite resulted from
lower applied heat input for this case.
3.3. Tensile properties
Fig. 13 displays the stress–strain curves of welded specimens as
well as base metals. Mechanical properties of welds in the two
states of with and without filler metal obtained from longitudinal
tensile test are given in Table 7. The configurations of tensile
samples after being tested are illustrated in Fig. 14. The ultimate
tensile strength (UTS) of weld metals for both welding conditions
is higher than that for the plain carbon steel and AISI 430 steel
42 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45

Fig. 10. SEM micrographs and EDS analyses from HAZ of AISI 430 steel showing intragranular carbide precipitations in autogenous (a) and ER309L filler-added (b) specimens.

base metals. According to the tensile data, UTS of weld metal for Table 6
specimens welded with and without ER309L filler metal reaches EDS microchemical analysis results for different regions of HAZ near the fusion
zone in both specimen types (wt%).
922 MPa and 662 MPa, respectively. As can be seen, using auste-
nitic filler metal leads to considerable increase in the strength of Element Welding with ER309L filler Autogenous welding
weld metal which is related to the martensite formation and metal
higher amounts of strengthening elements such as Ni and Mn in
Intergranular Intragranular Intergranular Intragranular
the composition of weld metal. Referring to Tables 2 and 7,
martensite precipitates martensite precipitates
elongation of base metals is higher than that of weld metals.
Moreover, it should be noted that the elongation of weld metal for C o 0.01 0.29 0.38 0.10
specimen welded with and without filler metal is 11.93% and Si 0.26 0.82 0.83 0.75
10.36%, respectively. These elongation values are significantly Cr 15.43 15.49 15.34 15.34
Mn 0.83 0.65 0.97 0.87
lower than those of parent materials with considering the varia-
Fe 83.48 82.75 82.49 82.93
tion in chemical compositions of weld metal compared to the base
metals and the fact that cast structure of fusion zone can cause
reduction in ductility [20]. Comparing the absorbed energy values
during tensile test listed in Table 7, it is revealed that the weld
metal of specimen welded with ER309L filler metal has higher martensite and ferrite and strengthening elements. From the
absorbed energy along with higher strength and ductility (79.01 above discussion, it is concluded that using ER309L filler metal
vs. 53.66 J m
3) with respect to the specimen welded without for dissimilar welding of plain carbon steel to AISI 430 ferritic
filler metal. This is due to the presence of duplex microstructure of stainless steel can increase the strength of weld along with
 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45 43

Fig. 11. Line scans across the joint showing variation of alloying elements at the interface of weld metal/plain carbon steel (a) and weld metal/AISI 430 steel (b) in the
specimen welded with ER309L filler rod.

Fig. 13. Stress–strain curves obtained from longitudinal tensile testing of base and
weld metals.
Fig. 12. Hardness profiles of dissimilar joints welded with and without filler metal.

providing suitable ductility and absorbed energy during tensile

loading. Table 7
In order to investigate the quality of weldments, transverse Tensile properties of weld metals.
tensile test is performed. It is found that all welded samples
Specimen type Elongation (%) UTS (MPa) Absorbed energy (J m
3)
fracture from plain carbon steel base metal during transverse
tensile test which has lower strength with respect to the AISI 430 Autogenous 10.36 662 53.66
steel signifying that the welding parameters are appropriately Filler-added 11.93 922 79.01
chosen. Moreover, with considering results achieved by transverse
44 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45

tensile test along with results obtained from macro- and micro-
structure examinations, weld metals are free of any defect.

3.4. Fractography

The SEM micrographs from fracture surfaces of longitudinal

Fig. 14. The macroimages of longitudinal tensile testing specimens prepared from
autogenous (a) and filler-added (b) weld metals.
tensile specimens are shown in Fig. 15. For specimen welded
without filler metal, the fracture is predominately cleavage;
however, there are regions with dimple pattern signifying ductile
fracture mode (Fig. 15(b)). In contrast, the fracture surface of
specimen welded with filler metal demonstrates that ductile
fracture mode is dominant (Fig. 15(c) and (d)) due to the existence
of higher alloying elements such as Ni which improves toughness;
furthermore, a small amount of cleavage fracture zone is also
evident in the fracture surfaces (Fig. 15(d)).

Fig. 15. Fracture surfaces of weld metal acquired from longitudinal tensile testing of autogenous (a and b) and filler-added (c and d) specimens.
 M. Sarkari Khorrami et al. / Materials Science & Engineering A 608 (2014) 35–45 45

Fig. 16. SEM image and EDS analysis acquired from particles inside the dimples of fracture surface in specimen welded with filler metal.

In the specimen welded with filler metal, there are some MnS
precipitates inside the dimples. The EDS analysis of these particles
is shown in Fig. 16. Since contents of Mn and S elements in the
composition of filler metal are relatively high (Table 1), formation
of MnS precipitations inside the fusion zone during cooling is
feasible. The presence of relatively large MnS particles, comparing
with size of dimples, can significantly reduce ductility and
absorbed energy of weld metal through expediting initiation and
propagation of micro-voids during tensile loadings; nevertheless,
both absorbed energy during tensile test and elongation of speci-
men welded with filler metal are higher than those of autogenous
one. The results of mechanical properties mentioned in Table 7 are
in good conformance with the fractography examination.
4. Conclusions
presence of martensite within ferrite matrix and higher
strengthening elements of Ni and Mn.
(5) The fracture surfaces of welds show predominately cleavage and
ductile fracture for specimens welded without and with filler
metal, respectively. Attained mechanical properties and fracto-
graphy investigations proved that application of ER309L filler
metal can be useful for enhancing mechanical characteristics of
plain carbon steel and ferritic stainless steel dissimilar joints.
Acknowledgments
Authors wish to thank Mr. M. Kokabi, international welder, for
his practical assistance and the research board of Sharif University
of Technology for the provision of the research facilities used in
this study.

Dissimilar welding of plain carbon steel and AISI 430 ferritic

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