Technical challenges in narrow-gap root pass welding during tandem and hybrid laser-arc welding of a thick martensitic stainless steel

As part of a collaborative program to develop advanced manufacturing processes for next-generation hydraulic turbines, this study investigated the technological challenges for joining 25-mm thick martensitic stainless steel (MSS) plates using tandem and hybrid laser-arc welding. Although candidate materials for the intended application typically include wrought AISI 415 and cast CA6NM, a martensitic 410 stainless steel (SS) was especially selected in this study due to its greater crack sensitivity. A narrow-gap groove was designed to minimize the amount of 410NiMo filler metal required to fill the groove using a multi-pass single-sided welding technique. All the welding trials were performed using a 5.2 kW fiber laser. The root-pass quality was characterized in terms of weld bead geometry, defects and microstructure. The main technical challenges observed for the root pass were lack of penetration, lack of fusion and cracking, as detailed in this work.