Equipment for Submerged-arc Welding

The submerged-arc welding(SAW) process is similar to MIG where the arc is formed between a continuously-fed wire electrode and the wor piece! and the weld is formed by the arc melting the wor piece and the wire" #owe$er! in SAW a shielding gas is not re%uired as the layer of flu& generates the gases and slag to protect the weld pool and hot weld metal from contamination" 'lu& plays an additional role in adding alloying elements to the weld pool"

Essential equipment
(ssential e%uipment components for SAW are) power source wire gun flu& handling protecti$e e%uipment As SAW is a high current welding process! the e%uipment is designed to produce high deposition rates"

Power source
SAW can be operated using either a *+ or an A+ power source" *+ is supplied by a transformer-rectifier and A+ is supplied by a transformer" +urrent for a single wire ranges from as low as ,--A (."/mm diameter wire) to as high as .---A (/"-mm diameter wire)" In practice! most welding is carried out on thic plate where a single wire (0"-mm diameter) is normally used o$er a more limited range of /-- to 1--A! with a twin wire system operating between 2-- and .,--A" In *+ operation! the electrode is normally connected to the positi$e terminal" (lectrode negati$e (*+(3) polarity can be used to increase deposition rate but depth of penetration is reduced by between ,- and ,45" 'or this reason! *+(3 is used for surfacing applications where parent metal dilution is important" The *+ power source has a 6constant $oltage6 output characteristic which produces a self-regulating arc" 'or a gi$en diameter of wire! welding current is controlled by wire feed speed and arc length is determined by $oltage setting" A+ power sources usually ha$e a constant-current output characteristic and are therefore not self-regulating" The arc with this type of power source is controlled by sensing the arc $oltage and using the signal to control wire feed speed" In practice! for a gi$en welding current le$el! arc length is determined by wire

burnoff rate! i"e" the balance between the welding current setting and wire feed speed which is under feedbac control" S%uare wa$e A+ s%uare wa$e power sources ha$e a constant $oltage output current characteristic" Ad$antages are easier arc ignition and constant wire feed speed control"

Welding gun
SAW can be carried out using both manual and mechanised techni%ues" Mechanised welding! which can e&ploit the potential for e&tremely high deposition rates! accounts for the ma7ority of applications" Manual welding 'or manual welding! the welding gun is similar to a MIG gun! with the flu& which is fed concentrically around the electrode! replacing the shielding gas" 'lu& is fed by air pressure through the handle of the gun or from a small hopper mounted on the gun" The e%uipment is relati$ely portable and! as the operator guides the gun along the 7oint! little manipulati$e s ill is re%uired" #owe$er! because the operator has limited control o$er the welding operation (apart from ad7usting tra$el speed to maintain the bead profile) it is best used for short runs and simple filling operations" Mechanised welding - single wire

As SAW is often used for welding large components! the gun! wire feeder and flu& deli$ery feed can be mounted on a rail! tractor or boom manipulator" Single wire welding is mostly practised using *+(8 e$en though A+ will produce a

higher deposition rate for the same welding current" A+ is used to o$ercome problems with arc blow! caused by residual magnetism in the wor piece! 7igging or welding machine" Wire stic out! or electrode e&tension - the distance the wire protrudes from the end of the contact tip - is an important control parameter in SAW" As the current flowing between the contact tip and the arc will preheat the wire! wire burnoff rate will increase with increase in wire stic out" 'or e&ample! the deposition rate for a 0mm diameter wire at a welding current of 9--A can be increased from appro&imately 1 g:hr at the normal ;,mm stic out! to .0 g:hr at a stic out length of .92mm" In practice! because of the reduction in penetration and greater ris of arc wander! a long stic out is normally only used in cladding and surfacing applications where there is greater emphasis on deposition rate and control of penetration! rather than accurate positioning of the wire" 'or most applications! electrode stic out is set so that the contact tube is slightly proud of the flu& layer" The depth of flu& is normally 7ust sufficient to co$er the arc whose light can be seen through the flu&" <ecommended and ma&imum stic out lengths)

Wire diameter mm Current range A 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0 3.2 4.0 4.75 100 to 200 150 to 300 200 to 500 250 to 600 350 to 800 400 to 900 450 to 1000

Wire stickout Normal mm Maximum mm 12 20 20 25 30 32 35 63 76 128 165

Mechanized welding - twin wire

Tandem arc connections

SAW can be operated with more than one wire" Although up to fi$e wires are used for high deposition rates! e"g" in pipe mills! the most common multi-wire systems ha$e two wires in a tandem arrangement" The leading wire is run on *+(8 to produce deep penetration" The trailing wire is operated on A+ which

spreads the weld pool! which is ideal for filling the 7oint" A+ also minimises) interaction between the arcs! and the ris of lac of fusion defects and porosity through the deflection of the arcs (arc blow)" The wires are normally spaced ,-mm apart so that the second wire feeds into the rear of the weld pool"

Gun angle
In manual welding! the gun is operated with a trailing angle! i"e" with the gun at an angle of 04 degrees (bac wards) from the $ertical" In single wire mechanised welding operations! the gun is perpendicular to the wor piece" #owe$er! in twin wire operations the leading gun is normal to the wor piece! with the trailing gun angled slightly forwards between an angle of /- and 2- degrees" This reduces disturbance of the weld pool and produces a smooth weld bead profile"

Flu handling
'lu& should be stored in unopened pac ages under dry conditions" =pen pac ages should be stored in a humidity-controlled store" While flu& from a newly-opened pac age is ready for immediate use! flu& which has been opened and held in a store should first be dried according to manufacturer6s instructions" In small welding systems! flu& is usually held in a small hopper abo$e the welding gun" It is fed automatically (by gra$ity or mechanised feed) ahead of the arc" In larger installations the flu& is stored in large hoppers and is fed with compressed air" >nused flu& is collected using a $acuum hose and returned to the hopper" Note: +are must be ta en in recycling unused flu&! particularly regarding the remo$al of slag and metal dust particles" The presence of slag will change the composition of the flu& which! together with the wire! determines the composition of the weld metal" The presence of fine particles can cause bloc ages in the feeding system"

Protecti!e equipment
>nli e other arc welding processes! SAW is a clean process which produces minimum fume and spatter when welding steels" (Some no&ious emissions can be produced when welding special materials") 'or normal applications! general wor shop e&traction should be ade%uate" 8rotecti$e e%uipment such as a head shield and a leather apron are not necessary" 3ormal protecti$e e%uipment (goggles! hea$y glo$es and protecti$e shoes) are re%uired for ancillary operations such as slag remo$al by chipping or grinding" Special precautions should be ta en when handling flu& - a dust respirator and glo$es are needed when loading the storage hoppers"