I want to check the chemical composition in the HAZ (1-2 mm near weld bead) of welded stainless steel plates. Which technique is best suitable for this ?
Dear colleague, try ESMA Technology. You can perform Analysis of a defined area on an cross section and Combine this with element mapping. That is a good Information base.
Yes right EPMA can be used or even EDS can also be used for this
1. HAZ retains the chemical composition of the base metal but its microstructure and properties change drastically. However, the chemical composition of the weld bead (fused metal) may change depending upon the composition of the electrode.
2. If the microstructure and other properties (cracking, fissuring, strength, ductility etc) of HAZ are to be studied, there are several methods. High resolution optical microscopy may serve the purpose very well and good inference about the properties of HAZ (and even weld bead) can be had through this.
3. In case the material is high strength microalloyed steel (or other such material), scanning electron microscope (SEM) is required for very high resolution. If the dispersion of the microalloying elements (or other elements) in the bead is required chemical analysis is required and for this Energy Dispersion X ray Spectroscopy (EDS) is necessary.
4. In case of stainless steel, if percentage of alfa-ferrite is to be studied, ferite measuring instruments (ferrite meters) are available.
In brief the method selected will depend upon the material, the properties in which the interest lies and also, to some extent, on the availability of the SEM and other facilities.
It depends on base and filler materials. You can get some insight by mapping with EPMA. For quick results you can use EDS, but be very careful when analysing those.
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