High Heat Input Welding of NSSC 2120 Type Lean Duplex Steel

Duplex stainless steels offer a high strength alternative to stainless steel, while providing excellent corrosion resistance, due to their dual-phase microstructure. This microstructure can be significantly influenced during welding, thus the maximum recommended heat input is usually 2.5 kJ/mm. In this research, we inspected the high heat input (3 kJ/mm) weldability of NSSC 2120 lean duplex stainless steel, which is designed and developed specifically for this purpose. The welds were evaluated by metallographic techniques and corrosion tests. It was found the NSSC 2120 grade can be welded with high heat input without deterioration in the phase balance and microstructure