THE EFFECT OF POST-WELD COOLING MEDIA ON SMAW ASTM A36 STEEL ON TENSILE TEST AND MICROSTRUCTURE TEST

Abstrak

The purpose of this study was to evaluate how differences in post weld cooling media used using the shielded metal current quenching weld method impact the tensile strength and microstructure in ASTM A36 steel. The type of steel used was what is known as Post Weld Heat Treatment . was conducted at 780°C for 60 minutes with four types of cooling media, namely air, sand, furnace, and a no-cooling condition as a control. Tests were carried out with tensile tests according to ASTM E8 standards as well as looking at the microstructure of the weld metal area using an optical microscope, Heat Affected Zone, and parent metal. The results show that air cooling media provides the highest tensile strength value of 268.8 MPa, while furnace cooling produces the most ductile microstructure with 70% ferrite phase dominance in the HAZ zone. The difference in cooling media significantly affected the mechanical properties and microstructure of the welded joints. These findings provide that proper selection of cooling media can improve the quality of welds in ASTM A36 steel.