Effect of filler metal on microstructure and corrosion behavior of welded AISI 316L using GTAW process

The influence of filler metals on the microstructure and corrosion behavior of AISI 316L welds was investigated. Gas Tungsten Arc welding (GTAW) process was applied to join the AISI 316L plates using ER 316L and ER 312 filler metals. The obtained microstructures were characterized by optical metallography and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Corrosion assessments were conducted in 3.5% NaCl using a three electrode cell.  Open circuit potential and potentiodynamic polarization examinations were conducted on the welds and base metal. Microstructural evaluations indicated that a combination of austenite and ferrite phases was formed in the welds fabricated by both filler metals. Based on the micro hardness tests, the weld fabricated by ER 312 filler exhibited superior harness compared to the ER 316L weld. Corrosion evaluations also show that the weld metal obtained from two filler metals has a lower corrosion rate due to the higher amount of chromium and higher ferrite compared to the base metal. Also, the lower corrosion current of ER 312 weld metal compared to ER 316L weld metal is for this reason. In contrast to the base metal compared to the two welding metals, the result of the two filler metals has shown better pitting corrosion results according to the electrochemical tests and also the examination of the surfaces using an optical microscope after these tests, that these results are due to The presence of two phases of austenite and ferrite in the vicinity of each other in weld metals and the intensification of galvanic corrosion is due to the discharge of the austenite phase from chromium and molybdenum.