Influence of Heat Input on the Weldability of ASTM A131 DH36 Fillet Joints Welded by SMAW Underwater Wet Welding

Hugo Alexander Gonzalez Romero, Edinson Alfonso Bastos Blandón (), Lissette Patricia Casadiego Miranda and Enrique Esteban Niebles Nuñez
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Hugo Alexander Gonzalez Romero: Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación, Bogotá 111321, Colombia
Edinson Alfonso Bastos Blandón: Grupo de Investigación GLAMS, Escuela Naval de Suboficiales ARC, Armada Nacional de Colombia, Barranquilla 080020, Colombia
Lissette Patricia Casadiego Miranda: Grupo de Investigación GLAMS, Escuela Naval de Suboficiales ARC, Armada Nacional de Colombia, Barranquilla 080020, Colombia
Enrique Esteban Niebles Nuñez: Programa de Maestría en Ingeniería Mecánica, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma del Caribe, Barranquilla 080020, Colombia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 14, 1-19

Abstract: Naval vessels face multiple risks that can damage their hulls during navigation, leading to on-site repairs through the shield metal arc welding (SMAW) process and underwater wet welding (UWW). This paper presents a weldability study to identify the optimal heat input parameters to improve ASTM A131 DH36 welded joints quality, development, and sustainability. This study analyzes the influence of heat input on the microstructure and mechanical properties of underwater wet welding fillet joints welded with shield metal arc welding at 4 m water depth in a real-life environment located at the bay of Cartagena (Colombia). The methodology involves nondestructive and destructive tests, including visual inspection, fillet weld break, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Vickers hardness, and shear strength tests. The welds microstructure is composed of ferrite, pearlite, retained austenite, bainite, and martensite; the hardness values range from 170 HV1 to 443 HV1, and the shear strength values range from 339 MPa to 504 MPa. This indicates that high thermal inputs improve the weld quality produced by the underwater wet welding technique and can comply with the technical acceptance criteria of AWS D3.6, making them more sustainable, with less welding resources wastage and less impact on marine ecosystems.

Keywords: marine environments; on-site repairs; shipbuilding steel; SMAW; underwater welding (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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