The Effect of Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Properties of Explosively Welded Titanium-Steel Plates

This paper describes a study of explosively welded titanium-carbon steel S355J2+N plates. Following the welding, plates underwent heat treatment at temperature of 600 °C for 90 min with cooling in furnace to 300 °C and in air to room temperature. The structure of the bonding was examined by using light, scanning electron (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy. The mechanical properties before and after heat treatment were examined applying three-point bending tests with cyclic loads and hardness measurements. Fracture surfaces were investigated using computer tomography and SEM. It has been found that the bonding areas are characterized by a specific chemical composition, microstructure and microhardness. Between the steel and the Ti cladding, a strongly defected transition zone was formed and melted areas with altered chemical composition were observed. It was also demonstrated that the heat treatment commonly applied to welded steel-Ti plates had a significant and negative impact on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the welded plates due to formation of brittle intermetallic phases.