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<p>Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of stainless-steel welds in chloride-containing environments remains a major concern in structural and process industries. Although Activated Tungsten Inert Gas (A-TIG) welding has been widely investigated for improving weld penetration and mechanical properties, comparative assessment of SCC behaviour of flux-assisted A-TIG welded AISI 304L stainless steel remains limited. This study investigates the SCC response of AISI 304L stainless steel welds fabricated using conventional TIG (C-TIG) and A-TIG welding employing SiO<sub>2</sub>, TiO<sub>2</sub>, and Cr<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> activating fluxes under chloride environments. SCC susceptibility was evaluated using Slow Strain Rate Testing (SSRT) in air and 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. Mechanical degradation behaviour, time-to-failure response, fracture morphology, and localized compositional variations were comparatively assessed. Chloride exposure reduced the mechanical performance of all weld conditions. Among the investigated welds, TiO<sub>2</sub>-assisted A-TIG exhibited the most favourable SCC resistance, achieving a time-to-failure of 115&#xa0;min compared with 98&#xa0;min for the C-TIG weld. The SCC susceptibility indices further revealed lower degradation in strength and ductility for TiO<sub>2</sub>-assisted welds (Iσ ≈ 4.18% and Iε ≈ 10.82%) than for C-TIG welds (Iσ ≈ 15.96% and Iε ≈ 28.19%). Fractographic analysis also indicated comparatively reduced crack propagation in TiO<sub>2</sub>-assisted welds. The SCC resistance trend under the investigated conditions was established as TiO<sub>2</sub> A-TIG &gt; Base Metal &gt; Cr<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> A-TIG &gt; SiO<sub>2</sub> A-TIG &gt; C-TIG. The study provides a direct comparative assessment and performance-based ranking of activating fluxes with respect to SCC behaviour of AISI 304L stainless steel welds exposed to chloride environments.</p>

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Stress corrosion cracking response of AISI 304L stainless steel welds of C-TIG and A-TIG under chloride environments

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年6月19日

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  • N. Dinakar,
  • R. Elansezhian

摘要

Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of stainless-steel welds in chloride-containing environments remains a major concern in structural and process industries. Although Activated Tungsten Inert Gas (A-TIG) welding has been widely investigated for improving weld penetration and mechanical properties, comparative assessment of SCC behaviour of flux-assisted A-TIG welded AISI 304L stainless steel remains limited. This study investigates the SCC response of AISI 304L stainless steel welds fabricated using conventional TIG (C-TIG) and A-TIG welding employing SiO2, TiO2, and Cr2O3 activating fluxes under chloride environments. SCC susceptibility was evaluated using Slow Strain Rate Testing (SSRT) in air and 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. Mechanical degradation behaviour, time-to-failure response, fracture morphology, and localized compositional variations were comparatively assessed. Chloride exposure reduced the mechanical performance of all weld conditions. Among the investigated welds, TiO2-assisted A-TIG exhibited the most favourable SCC resistance, achieving a time-to-failure of 115 min compared with 98 min for the C-TIG weld. The SCC susceptibility indices further revealed lower degradation in strength and ductility for TiO2-assisted welds (Iσ ≈ 4.18% and Iε ≈ 10.82%) than for C-TIG welds (Iσ ≈ 15.96% and Iε ≈ 28.19%). Fractographic analysis also indicated comparatively reduced crack propagation in TiO2-assisted welds. The SCC resistance trend under the investigated conditions was established as TiO2 A-TIG > Base Metal > Cr2O3 A-TIG > SiO2 A-TIG > C-TIG. The study provides a direct comparative assessment and performance-based ranking of activating fluxes with respect to SCC behaviour of AISI 304L stainless steel welds exposed to chloride environments.