Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel

An ultra-high-strength press-hardening steel (PHS) and a high-strength dual-phase steel (DP) were butt-joined by the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, aiming to assess the effects of a high heat input welding process on the structure-property relationship and residual stress. The post-weld micro...

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Main Authors: Alfredo E. Molina-Castillo, Enrique A. López-Baltazar, Francisco Alvarado-Hernández, Salvador Gómez-Jiménez, J. Roberto Espinosa-Lumbreras, José Jorge Ruiz Mondragón, Víctor H. Baltazar-Hernández
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Metals
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/15/7/791
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author Alfredo E. Molina-Castillo
Enrique A. López-Baltazar
Francisco Alvarado-Hernández
Salvador Gómez-Jiménez
J. Roberto Espinosa-Lumbreras
José Jorge Ruiz Mondragón
Víctor H. Baltazar-Hernández
author_facet Alfredo E. Molina-Castillo
Enrique A. López-Baltazar
Francisco Alvarado-Hernández
Salvador Gómez-Jiménez
J. Roberto Espinosa-Lumbreras
José Jorge Ruiz Mondragón
Víctor H. Baltazar-Hernández
author_sort Alfredo E. Molina-Castillo
collection DOAJ
description An ultra-high-strength press-hardening steel (PHS) and a high-strength dual-phase steel (DP) were butt-joined by the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, aiming to assess the effects of a high heat input welding process on the structure-property relationship and residual stress. The post-weld microstructure, the microhardness profile, the tensile behavior, and the experimentally obtained residual stresses (by x-ray diffraction) of the steels in dissimilar (PHS-DP) and similar (PHS-PHS, DP-DP) pair combinations have been analyzed. Results indicated that the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of the dissimilar pair PHS-DP achieves a similar strength to the DP-DP joint, whereas the elongation was similar to that of the PHS-PHS weldment. The failure location of the tensile specimens was expected and systematically observed at the tempered and softer sub-critical heat-affected zone (SC-HAZ) in all welded conditions. Compressive residual stresses were consistently observed along the weldments in all specimens; the more accentuated negative RS were measured in the PHS joint attributed to the higher volume fraction of martensite; furthermore, the negative RS measured in the fusion zone (FZ) could be well correlated to weld restraint due to the sheet anchoring during the welding procedure, despite the presence of predominant ferrite and pearlite microstructures.
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publishDate 2025-07-01
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spelling doaj-art-c7aeeebd5b2f473a87d452f7804d4d822025-08-20T03:36:22ZengMDPI AGMetals2075-47012025-07-0115779110.3390/met15070791Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive SteelAlfredo E. Molina-Castillo0Enrique A. López-Baltazar1Francisco Alvarado-Hernández2Salvador Gómez-Jiménez3J. Roberto Espinosa-Lumbreras4José Jorge Ruiz Mondragón5Víctor H. Baltazar-Hernández6Materials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoMaterials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoMaterials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoMaterials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoMaterials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoInnovabienestar de México S.A.P.I de CV, Saltillo 25290, Coahuila, MexicoMaterials Science and Engineering Program, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98000, Zacatecas, MexicoAn ultra-high-strength press-hardening steel (PHS) and a high-strength dual-phase steel (DP) were butt-joined by the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, aiming to assess the effects of a high heat input welding process on the structure-property relationship and residual stress. The post-weld microstructure, the microhardness profile, the tensile behavior, and the experimentally obtained residual stresses (by x-ray diffraction) of the steels in dissimilar (PHS-DP) and similar (PHS-PHS, DP-DP) pair combinations have been analyzed. Results indicated that the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of the dissimilar pair PHS-DP achieves a similar strength to the DP-DP joint, whereas the elongation was similar to that of the PHS-PHS weldment. The failure location of the tensile specimens was expected and systematically observed at the tempered and softer sub-critical heat-affected zone (SC-HAZ) in all welded conditions. Compressive residual stresses were consistently observed along the weldments in all specimens; the more accentuated negative RS were measured in the PHS joint attributed to the higher volume fraction of martensite; furthermore, the negative RS measured in the fusion zone (FZ) could be well correlated to weld restraint due to the sheet anchoring during the welding procedure, despite the presence of predominant ferrite and pearlite microstructures.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/15/7/791GMAW of PHS-DP steelsmicrostructure and hardnesstensile propertiesresidual stress
spellingShingle Alfredo E. Molina-Castillo
Enrique A. López-Baltazar
Francisco Alvarado-Hernández
Salvador Gómez-Jiménez
J. Roberto Espinosa-Lumbreras
José Jorge Ruiz Mondragón
Víctor H. Baltazar-Hernández
Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
Metals
GMAW of PHS-DP steels
microstructure and hardness
tensile properties
residual stress
title Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
title_full Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
title_fullStr Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
title_full_unstemmed Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
title_short Effect of the Heat Affected Zone Hardness Reduction on the Tensile Properties of GMAW Press Hardening Automotive Steel
title_sort effect of the heat affected zone hardness reduction on the tensile properties of gmaw press hardening automotive steel
topic GMAW of PHS-DP steels
microstructure and hardness
tensile properties
residual stress
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4701/15/7/791
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