Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of GMAW Weld Metal of 890 MPa Class Steel

The relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties of gas metal arc weld metal with strength over 890 MPa is discussed. The microstructure of the weld metals is characterized with OM, SEM, TEM and EBSD. The microstructure of the weld metals is mainly composed of martensite and bainite. Experimental results show that the microstructure with predominant fine lath bainite possesses good toughness of 77 J, while its yield strength is less than 800 MPa. The microstructure of coarse lath martensite and bainite has the lowest toughness of 43 J and its yield strength is 820 MPa. The mixed microstructure with fine martensite, bainite and retained austenite films bears good combination of toughness and yield strength (62 J and 880 MPa, respectively). It is concluded that fine effective grain size and ductile phase of austente films are two main factors to achieve good mechanical properties.