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Stainless steel cracking resolved

When the staff of former TWI Industrial Member Bramford Fabrications, a small sheet fabrication workshop near Ipswich, found cracks in their welds, no amount of hard thinking could produce a simple solution to their difficulties.  The welds were on parts for a stainless steel conveyor running at 720C.

It wasn't until discussing the puzzle with TWI that it was revealed that the atmosphere in the workshop was heavily laden with copper dust. Indeed TWI uses exactly this substance, which causes 'copper contamination cracking' by penetrating along grain boundaries in the HAZ, to make defect specimens used in training non-destructive testing staff. Problem solved - keep the workshop copper free.

For information about TWI’s capabilities please contact us.

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