Numerical Modelling and Measurements of Temperature for Tests of Structural Transformations in Steels under Welding Conditions

This paper presents the way in which temperature is measured in tests concerning structural transformations in various types of steel under welding conditions. In the test methodology, a small-sized steel specimen was subjected to simulated welding thermal cycles, during which the temperature of the specimen, changes in magnetic permeability and thermal expansion were measured simultaneously. The measurements of those parameters required the non-contact heating of the specimen, which involved the use of heating lamps. The temperature measurement was of key importance because the subsequent analysis of the remaining parameters was performed in the function of temperature. The tests of structural transformations resulted in the development of Continuous Cooling Transformation under welding conditions (CCT) diagrams, enabling the determination of steel weldability and constituting the source of information needed to determine the effect of welding thermal cycles on the structure and properties of the material subjected to the tests. Related numerical models to be used as the basis for the analysis of temperature distribution in the test specimen have been developed. These tests involved the analysis of the values and the distribution of temperature in relation to various model parameters, i.e. thermocouple types, geometrical features of a thermocouple junction and the diameter of thermocouple wires. The results of FEM calculations have been compared to the experiments.