Microstructure and stress corrosion cracking in simulated heat-affected zones of duplex stainless steels

The effects of nitrogen content and the cooling rate on the reformation of austenite in the Gleeble simulated heat-affected zone (HAZ) of 2205 duplex stainless steels (DSSs) were investigated. The variation of stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior in the HAZ of 40 wt% CaCl₂ solution at 100 °C was also studied. Grain boundary austenite (GBA), Widmanstatten austenite (WA), intergranular austenite (IGA) and partially transformed austenite (PTA) were present in the HAZ. The types and amounts of these reformed austenites varied with the cooling rate and nitrogen content in the DSS. U-bend tests revealed that pitting corrosion and selective dissolution might assist the crack initiation, while the types and amounts of reformed austenite in the HAZ affected the mode of crack propagation. The presence of GBA was found to promote the occurrence of intergranular stress corrosion cracking. WA, IGA and PTA were found to exhibit a beneficial effect on SCC resistance by deviating the crack propagation path.