Effect of Pre-Heating and Post-Heating on Electron Beam Welding of Reduced Activation Ferrite/Martensite Steel

Reduced activation ferritic/martensitic (RAFM) steels are considered the main candidate material for the water-cooled ceramic breeder (WCCB) in a fusion reactor. High-energy density welding approaches, such as electron beam welding (EBW) and laser beam welding (LBW), are frequently utilized in the welding of RAFM steels. During the welding process, cracks and other defects are prone to appear. In this paper, EBW was selected for the welding of RAFM steels. Those with and without pre-heat and post-heat treatment by electron beams are studied by finite element simulation and trials. The results show that the experimental results are consistent with the simulation. In particular, in the case of similar deformation, the residual stress after electron beam heat treatment is far less than that without heat treatment. Without heat treatment, the residual stress near the weld is more than 400 MPa, while the residual stress after heat treatment is about 350 MPa. As the reduction of residual stress is essential to prevent the occurrence of cracks and other defects after welding, pre-heat and post-heat treatment by the electron beam is deemed as an effective way to greatly improve the welding quality in RAFM steel welding.