Characterization of HAZ of API X70 Microalloyed Steel Welded by Cold-Wire Tandem Submerged Arc Welding

High-strength low-carbon microalloyed steels may be adversely affected by the high-heat input and thermal cycle that they experience during tandem submerged arc welding. The heat-affected zone (HAZ), particularly the coarse-grained heat-affected zone (CGHAZ), i.e., the region adjacent to the fusion line, has been known to show lower fracture toughness compared with the rest of the steel. The deterioration in toughness of the CGHAZ is attributed to the formation of martensite-austenite (M-A) constituents, local brittle zones, and large prior austenite grains (PAG). In the present work, the influence of the addition of a cold wire at various wire feed rates in cold-wire tandem submerged arc welding, a recently developed welding process for pipeline manufacturing, on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the HAZ of a microalloyed steel has been studied. The cold wire moderates the heat input of welding by consuming the heat of the trail electrode. Macrostructural analysis showed a decrease in the CGHAZ size by addition of a cold wire. Microstructural evaluation, using both tint etching optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, indicated the formation of finer PAGs and less fraction of M-A constituents with refined morphology within the CGHAZ when the cold wire was fed at 25.4 cm/min. This resulted in an improvement in the HAZ impact fracture toughness. These improvements are attributed to lower actual heat introduced to the weldment and lower peak temperature in the CGHAZ by cold-wire addition. However, a faster feed rate of the cold wire at 76.2 cm/min adversely affected the toughness due to the formation of slender M-A constituents caused by the relatively faster cooling rate in the CGHAZ.