Cryogenic stability of retained austenite in Fe-Cr-Ni weld metals obtained by laser welding

Fe-Cr-Ni alloy is the most potential substitute for Ni-based alloys as consumable in low-temperature nickel steel welding. In this study, six groups of Fe-Cr-Ni weld metals with different chemical composition were fabricated by single-pass laser welding. The volume fraction of retained austenite (RA) in the weld metals in as-welded condition increased from 0 to 30.2% with the increment of amounts of alloy elements (Cr, Ni and Mn). The thermal stability of RA was investigated by deep cryogenic treatment (DCT) to see whether sufficient RA can be maintained at low temperature. The results revealed that if the initial content of RA was < similar to 18%, RA would not transform into martensite after DCT. The surrounding martensite can hinder the transformation of RA, which plays a dominant role in the cryogenic stability of RA. The higher the strength/hardness of the surrounding martensite, the stronger the resistance to the transformation of RA. The carbon content of the surrounding martensite is the crucial factor affecting its strength/hardness. However, if the alloy elements amounts were too large, the thermal stability of RA would decrease and some of RA would transform to martensite after DCT. The newly formed martensite (fresh martensite) increased strain concentration of the weld metal, which enhanced the strain energy of martensite transformation and therefore restrained the further transformation of RA. The content of RA in the Fe-13.497Cr-7.249Ni-0.93Mn and Fe-15.548Cr-7.622Ni-0.961Mn weld metals after DCT dropped to similar to 18%. The optimum of initial content of RA in the weld metals for low-temperature toughness is similar to 18%.