Hydrogen environment embrittlement of orbital welded austenitic stainless steels at −50 °C

Different stainless steels were TIG orbital welded resulting in δ-ferrite contents up to 5% in the weld seam. Tensile specimens tested in He atmosphere did fracture at the fusion line/heat affected zone (FL/HAZ), which is the typical failure mode for welded structures. In contrast, all specimens (except the one made of 1.4301) tested in H2 did not fracture in the FL/HAZ but in the base material. These results clearly show that for the tests performed here δ-ferrite contents up to 5% did not enhance susceptibility to HEE compared to the base material.