| 2026 №04 (07) | 2026 №04 (02) |
"Avtomatychne Zvaryuvannya" (Automatic Welding), #4, 2026, pp. 3-13
Structure formation and ballistic resistance of armor steel welded joints produced by pulsed-plasma welding
О.А. Slyvinskyy1,2
, V.D. Poznyakov2, V.M. Korzhyk2, Ye.V. Illiashenko2, S.P. Bisyk3
1National Technical University of Ukraine «Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute».
37 Beresteysky Ave., 03056, Kyiv, Ukraine.
E-mail: o.slyvinsky@gmail.com
2E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the NAS of Ukraine 11 Kazymyr Malevych Str., 03150, Kyiv, Ukraine.
3National Defence University of Ukraine. 28 Prosp. Povitrianykh Syl, 03049, Kyiv, Ukraine
The results of a study on the effect of pulsed-plasma welding with combined alloying of the weld metal using an austenitic filler wire and an insert rod on the structure formation and ballistic resistance of welded joints of modern high-hardness armor steels Armox 500T and Mars 600 are presented. It was established that pulsed-plasma welding ensures the formation of full-penetration butt joints with a thickness of 5…6 mm without edge preparation at a specific heat input of Q/δ ≈ 0,16 kJ·mm2. It is shown that at the same level of thermal input, welded joints of Mars 600 steel are characterized by a smaller width of the softened zone within the heat-affected zone compared to Armox 500T steel, due to the increased resistance of the silicon-alloyed initial martensitic structure to short-term tempering. It was established that the combined alloying of the weld metal with OK Autrod 16.95 filler wire and OK Tigrod 308L insert rod, combined with a high share of the base metal in the weld formation, ensures the creation of high-strength martensitic-type structures. In the welded joints of Armox 500T steel, a martensitic-bainitic structure of the weld metal is formed, with a hardness that is not inferior to the hardness of the base metal. For Mars 600 steel, the formation of a heterogeneous martensitic structure of varying dispersion along the weld height was observed. In the upper part of the weld, a refined structure with signs of structureless martensite was detected. Based on the results of EDX and NDIR analysis, an uneven distribution of carbon and alloying elements along the weld height was established. The possible influence of the pulsating constricted plasma arc on the intensification of mass transfer and mixing of the weld pool metal is discussed, which may be one of the factors contributing to the formation of the observed structural anisotropy of the weld metal. Ballistic testing confirmed that the developed technology of pulsed-plasma welding with combined alloying of the weld metal ensures producing welded joints of armor steels of various hardness classes with ballistic resistance equivalent to that of the base metal. 29 Ref., 3 Tabl., 8 Fig.
Keywords: high hardness armor steel, pulsed plasma arc welding, combined alloying of the weld metal, microstructure formation, martensitic structures, heat-affected zone, ballistic resistance
Received: 30.04.2026
Received in revised form: 16.06.2026
Accepted: 20.07.2026
Posted online: 24.07.2026
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