CSWIP 3.

1 Welding Inspection

Heat treatment of welded structures

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Services
Course Reference WIS 5
Course notes section reference 18

Heat Treatment
Why?

Improve mechanical properties

Change microstructure
Reduce residual stress level
Change chemical composition

How?
Flame oven
Electric oven/electric heating blankets
induction/HF heating elements

Global

Where?

Local

Heat Treatment Methods

Advantages:
Easy to set up
Good portability
repeatability and
temperature
uniformity

Disadvantages:
Gas furnace heat treatment

Limited to size of
parts

Heat Treatment Methods

Advantages:
Ability to vary heat
Ability to
continuously
maintain heat

Disadvantages:
Elements may burn
out or arcing during
heating

Local heat treatment using electric

heating blankets

Heat Treatment Methods

Advantages:
High heating rates
Ability to heat a
narrow band

Disadvantages:
High equipment cost
Large equipment, less
portable

HF local heat treatment

Heat Treatments
The inspector, in general, should ensure that:
Equipment is as specified
Temperature control equipment is in good condition
Procedures as specified, is being used e.g.
o Method of application
o Rate of heating and cooling
o Maximum temperature
o Soak time
o Temperature measurement (and calibration)

DOCUMENTATION AND RECORDS

Heat TreatmentRecommendations

Provide adequate support (low YS at high temperature!)

Control heating rate to avoid uneven thermal expansions

Control soak time to equalise temperatures

Control temperature gradients - NO direct flame impingement!

Control furnace atmosphere to reduce scaling

Control cooling rate to avoid brittle structure formation

Heat Treatments
Many metals must be given heat treatment before and after
welding.
The inspectors function is to ensure that the treatment is given
correctly in accordance with the specification or as per the details
supplied.

Types of heat treatment available:

Preheat
Annealing
Normalising
Quench Hardening
Temper
Stress Relief

Heat Treatments
Pre-heat treatments
are used to increase weldability, by reducing sudden reduction
of temperature, and control expansion and contraction forces
during welding

Post weld heat treatments

are used to change the properties of the weld metal, controlling
the formation of crystalline structures

Heat Treatments
Preheat:
We can preheat metals and alloys when welding for a number of
reasons. Primarily we use most pre-heats to achieve one or
more of the following:
To control the structure of the weld metal and HAZ on cooling
To improve the diffusion of gas molecules through an atomic
structure.
To control the effects of expansion and contraction.
Preheat controls the formation of un-desirable microstructures
that are produced from rapid cooling of certain types of steels.
Martensite is an undesirable grain structure very hard and brittle
it is produced by rapid cooling form the austenite region.

Heat Treatments
Preheat temperatures are arrived by taking into
consideration the following:
The heat input
The carbon equivalent (CE)
The combined material thickness
The hydrogen scale required (A, B, C, D)

Heat Treatments
Pre-Heat Requirements
The welding heat input Increased - Reduced
Carbon Equivalent Increased - Increased
Hydrogen content Increased - Increased
Combined material thickness Increased - Increased

Heat Treatments
The temperatures mentioned are for steels:
Process:

Pre-heat for welding

Temperature:

50-2500C. higher by exception

Cooling:

Hold during welding.

Result:

Prevents cracking and hard zones

Heat Treatments
Advantages of preheat:
Slows down the cooling rate, which reduces the risk of hardening
Allows absorbed hydrogen a better opportunity of diffusing out,
thereby reducing the risk of cracking
Removes moisture from the material being welded
Improves overall fusion characteristics
Lowers stresses between the weld metal and parent material by
ensuring a more uniform expansion and contraction

Preheat Comparison Chart

200

Combined material thickness

180
175

150

125

100

75

50 20

160
140
120
100
80
60
40
A
20

0.43 0.45 0.47 0.53 0.55

0
0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

Heat input

3.5

4.0

4.5

5.0

5.5

6.0

Methods of Measuring Preheat

Temperature indicating crayons (Tempil sticks)
Thermocouples or touch pyrometers
At intervals along of around the joint to be welded
The number of measurements taken must allow the
inspector to be confident that the required temperature has
been reached
In certain cases the preheat must be maintained a certain
distance back from the joint faces
If a gas flame is being used for preheat application the
temperature should be taken form the opposite side to the
heat source
If this is not possible time must be allowed before taking the
preheat temperature e.g 2 mins for 25mm thickness

Post Weld Heat Treatment

Question:
What is the main reason for carrying out PWHT (to steel joints) ?

Answer:
To reduce residual stresses

Supplementary Question:
What is the benefit for reduce residual stresses ?

Supplementary Answer:
To improve resistance to brittle fracture

Post Weld Heat Treatment

Removal of Residual Stress
At PWHT temp. the yield
strength of steel reduced
so that it it is not strong
enough to give restraint.

Cr-Mo steel - typical

Yield
Strength
(N/mm2 )

500
400

C-Mn steel - typical

Residual stress reduced

to very low level by
straining (typically < ~
0.5% strain)

300
200
100
100

200

300

400

500

Temperature (C)

600

700

Post Weld Heat Treatment

PWHT Procedures - Basic Requirements
Maximum Heating Rate
usually from 300 or 400C - need to avoid large temp. gradients that may
cause distortion/cracking
max. rate depends on thickness but typically up to ~ 200C/h
Soak Temperature depends on steel type - usually specified by Code
(~550 to ~750 C )
Minimum Soak Time
need to make sure and whole item/full thickness reaches specified temp.
Codes typically specify 1h per 25mm related to max. joint thickness
Maximum Cooling Rate
usually down to 400 or 300C - for same reasons as controlled heating rate

Heat Treatments
Annealing (steels)
Temperature: 920C hold for sufficient time (full austenitization)
Cooling:

Hold, slow cooling in furnace

Result: Produces a very soft, low hardness material suitable for cold
working or machining operations. Decreases toughness and
lowers yield stressHomogenising annealing

Heat treatment temperatures

The effect of annealing temperature on

cold work material properties

Heat treatment Temperatures

Normalising (steels)
Temperature: 920C hold for sufficient time (full austenitization)
Cooling: Hold, Slow cool in air

Result: Relieves internal stresses improves mechanical properties

and increases toughness, grain refinement.

Heat Treatments
Quench Harden (Steels)
Temperature:

9200C fully austenitization

Cooling: Hold, Fast cool, quench in water, oil.

Result: Hardens carbon steels, prevents carbide precipitation in austenitic

steels. After this treatment the material has high tensile strength
and hardness.

Heat Treatments
Tempering After Quench Harden (Steels)
Temperature:

550C to 700C hold for sufficient time

Cooling: Slow cooling in air

Result: Increases toughness of quenched steel, relieves residual stresses

and may also be used to reduce hydrogen levels

Heat Treatments
A

B
(A) Normalised
(B) Fully Annealed
(C) Water-quenched
(D) Water-quenched & tempered

Heat Treatments
Stress Relief (steels)
Temperature:

550-6500C no phase transformation

Cooling:

Hold, furnace or controlled cooling

Result:

Relieves residual stresses, improves stability during

machining, reduces hydrogen levels, prevents stress corrosion
cracking

Heat treatment temperatures

Stress relief effect on mechanical properties

Heat Treatments
Post Hydrogen Release (according to BS EN1011-2)
Temperature: Approximately 250C hold up to 3 hours
Cooling: Slow cool in air
Result: Relieves residual hydrogen
Procedure: Maintaining pre-heat / interpass temperature after
completion of welding for 2 to 3 hours.

Heat Treatments

Any Questions

Questions
Heat Treatments
QU 1. How can the levels of hardness be controlled in the
HAZ?
QU 2. What is the maximum recommended heat treatment
temperature for steel weldments? State which heat
treatments may be considered when maximum toughness is
required
QU 3. What are the four main considerations for determining
preheat temperatures, and as a welding inspector which
factors require inspection when applying pre-heat to a
carbon steel joint to be welded?
QU 4. What factors need to be checked/controlled during a
heat treatment process
QU 5. Which heat treatment process is required when maximum
ductility is required for example for extensive cold working
operations.