This article deals with the dissimilar joining of two different grade Cr-Mo steel (2.25Cr-1Mo: P22 and modified 9Cr-1Mo: P91) for power plant application. The dissimilar butt-welded joint was produced for conventional V groove design by using the gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) process with the application of an ERNiCrMo-3 Ni-based super alloy filler. A microstructure characterization was performed to measure the inhomogeneity in the microstructure and element diffusion across the interface in a welded joint. The experiments were also performed to evaluate the mechanical properties of the dissimilar welded joint in as-welded (AW) and post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) conditions. An acceptable level of the mechanical properties was obtained for the AW joint. After PWHT, a significant level of the element diffusion across the interface of the weld metal and P22 steel was observed, resulting in heterogeneity in microstructure near the interface, which was also supported by the hardness variation. Inhomogeneity in mechanical properties (impact strength and hardness) was measured across the weldments for the AW joint and was reduced after the PWHT. The tensile test results indicate an acceptable level of tensile properties for the welded joint in both AW and PWHT conditions and failure was noticed in the weak region of the P22 steel instead of the weld metal.

This work presents the dynamic modeling and analysis of a particle-reinforced and pre-stressed electro-magneto-viscoelastic plate actuator. The actuator belongs to a smart actuator category and is made of an electro-magneto-active polymer filled with a particular volume fraction of suitable fillers. An energy-based electro-magneto-viscoelastic model is developed to predict the actuator response and interrogate the impact of particle reinforcement on the dynamic oscillations of a pre-stressed condition of the actuator. An Euler–Lagrange equation of motion is implemented to deduce the governing dynamic equation of the actuator. The findings of the model solutions provide preliminary insights on the alteration of the nonlinear behavior of the actuator driven by DC and AC dynamic modes of actuation. It is observed that the enrichment in the particle reinforcement characterized by the amount of fillers strengthens the polymer and depleted the associated level of deformation. Also, the depletion in the intensity of oscillation and enhancement in the frequency of excitation is perceived with an increase in the particle reinforcement. In addition, the time-history response, Poincare plots, and phase diagrams are also plotted to assess the stability, periodicity, beating phenomenon, and resonant behavior of the actuator. In general, the current study provides initial steps toward the modern actuator designs for various futuristic applications in the engineering and medical field.