Effects of electron beam welding on the microstructure and impact properties of three reconstituted steels

Specimen reconfiguration technology is important for the in-service safety of reactor pressure vessels (RPVs) in nuclear power plants. To verify the feasibility of electron beam welding for restructured specimens, this paper adopts electron beam welding to restructure the X6 NiCrTiMoVB 25-15-2, 16MND5, and 10Cr12Ni3Mo2VN Charpy impact specimens of three kinds of steels by welding and characterize the microstructure and test the mechanical properties of the restructured specimens. Non-destructive flaw detection, optical microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy were used to characterize and test the Vickers hardness, impact toughness, and other mechanical properties of the specimens. The results show that: the weld zone microstructure of the three steels are relatively dense and the quality of 10Cr12Ni3Mo2VN restructured specimens is optimal. The mechanical properties of the 10Cr12Ni3Mo2VN restructured specimen are closer to those of the original specimen, reflecting the potential application of electron beam welding for restructuring technology in the nuclear power field.