Power Beam Processing of Stainless Steels

Abstract

Stainless steels are one of the versatile materials available in five grades viz., austenitic, ferritic, martensitic, duplex stainless steels and precipitation hardenable variety, having applications in various industrial sectors covering thermal power plants, nuclear, fertilizer, urea processing plants, cryogenic industries, aerospace & defence, etc. Each grade of stainless steels has its own unique characteristics in terms of strength, corrosion resistance, hardening behavior etc. Power beam processing using lasers or electron beam can be effectively utilized to process almost all the grades of stainless steels to enhance the performance for intended application. The non-contact and autogenous nature of the process coupled with precise and low heat input processing offers greater benefits compared to processing with conventional processes. This paper describes the application and advantages of power beam processing of different grades of stainless steels. Keywords: laser processing, electron beam processing, stainless steels, welding, cladding, hardening.