Qualification of brazing procedure for furnace brazing of austenitic steel according to requirements of the ASME BPVC section IX

Abstract

The article presents the procedure for qualifying brazing technology in a vacuum furnace on the example of stainless steel elements joined with copper filler material from the F-No group. 105, in accordance with the ASME Sec. IX, part QB (ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Qualification Standard for Welding, Brazing and Fusing; Procedures; Welders; Brazers; and Welding, Brazing and Fusing Operators). The essential variables of the furnace brazing process are discussed in relation to the requirements of the protocol of qualified PQR (Procedure Qualification Record) and BPS (Brazing Procedure Specification) in accordance with the ASME Sec. IX. The requirements for joints by the calculation code ASME Sec. VIII div.1 (Rules of Construction of Pressure Vessels), related to the working temperature of the designed device have also been taken into account. The paper presents examples of brazed joints made and their properties (strength, fill level of the clearance) obtained on the basis of the carried out tests. Attention was paid to the technological aspects during the performance of brazed joints using vacuum furnaces.

Keywords

• brazing
• furnace brazing
• austenitic stainless steel
• heat exchanger