Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

ERC Starting Grant

Research proposal (Part B2)

FOR MORE INFORMATIONS VISIT http://sites.google.com/site/chaosweld/

Section 2: The Project proposal

2(a) State-of-the-art and objectives

Depending on the forces occurring in the arc and, first of all, welding current intensity, differing
material transfer modes may occur in the welding arc. On the basis of a study of the phenomenon,
the International Institute of Welding worked out a classification of material transfer modes. For
MIG/MAG welding processes the following material transfer modes are characteristic:
• short-circuit transfer,
• drop transfer,
• spray transfer,
• pulse transfer.

The stability of the welding process is a property of the welding arc. An ideal welding arc, i.e. a
stable welding process, shows the following properties:
• a uniform material transfer,
• constant arc length,
• no spatters.

The most unwanted result of poor welding-process stability are spatters. Spatters are formed of the
drops of molten metal which are not a part of the weld but solidify at the weld surface. In addition
to producing a loss of material, spatters are unwanted because of a poorer appearance of the weld.
They are a problem not only for the quality of the weld, but they also influences the welding
equipment negatively. Adhesion of spatters to a welding nozzle will reduce shielding-gas flow,
which may become turbulent. Cleaning of the welding nozzle thus is required during the operation,
which additionally extends the production time.

The stability of a welding process can be assessed by the control and analysis of the results obtained
with measurements. The least complicated and most frequently used method of analysis of the
welding process stability is based on the measurement of the dependence of welding current
intensity and welding voltage on time, which is followed by a statistical analysis of the signals
measured. An example when the process stability has been lost because of inadequate dynamics of
the power source is shown on following figure.

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Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

A good practice case how to control material transfer is pulsed MIG/MAG process which is
completed by forming one droplet of molten metal at the end of the electrode per pulse. Additional
pulse of current is added to force one droplet across the arc and into the puddle. The transmittal of
these droplets arises through the arc, one droplet per pulse. This is achieved through high-speed
manipulation of the electrical output of the welding machine.

Another case from practice is optimisation of MAG welding short-circuit metal transfer by
electronic power source parameters adjustment (see figure below). There are also other cases, like
STT™ and so on, which were invented to control the material transfer and so stabilize welding
process. They are all using force to achieve stable material transfer. We can call this “hard”
approach.

To date, however, little progress has been made towards “soft” approach or a way where we can
achieve stable material transfer by small energy inputs. This can be made by using chaos theory and
by methods to control chaos. But first we must find if material transfer has characteristic of chaotic
behaviour or not. In this field some partial work was already done by other researcher. We did find
some off their papers listed in the references. If we start from this papers than we can defined the
following objectives for this project.

Objective 1
The first objective is to understand mechanisms in welding process and material transfer. With
extensive experimental work we must identify type of behaviour in material transfer (is it
deterministic, stochastic or chaotic).

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Objective 2
Welding process and material transfer is nonlinear dynamical systems which need to be
mathematically modeled as well as qualitatively understood. Such an understanding is the first step
in controlling such processes.

Objective 3
To stabilize welding process and material transfer a theory of control of chaos will be applied.
Methods of control will be determine.

Objective 4
The final objective is to prototype control unit using all knowledge which we reach in the first three
objectives. We will evaluate the performance of the control unit including new developments made
in welding power source design. This evaluation will be carried out using extensive experimental
work.

Project research objectives are also shown in this figure.

OBJECTIVE 1
Understanding
material transfer OBJECTIVE 3
Control of
material transfer
using chaos theory

600
500
400

I [A]
300
200
100
0
tO t KS 50
40

U [V]
30
20
10
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200
t [ms]

CONTROL
UNIT

OBJECTIVE 4 CHAOS
OBJECTIVE 2
Prototyping control THEORY
Modeling
unit based on control
material transfer
of chaos

References
1) P. Xu, M. Rados, S.W. Simpson, Circuit simulation for gas metal arc welding, Science and
Technology of Welding & Joining, Volume 4, Number 6, December 1999 , pp. 341-346
2) R.J. Povinelli, X. Feng, Characterization and Prediction of Welding Droplet Release Using Time
Series Data Mining, Smart Engineering System Design, Proceedings of Artificial Neural
Networks in Engineering, Volume 10, November 2000, pp. 857-862

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Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

3) C.R. Tolle, R.A. Laviolette, H.B. Smartt, K.L. K.D.P. Pace, J.W. James, A.D. Watkins, T.
Wood, D.L. Stoner, Is there evidence of determinism in droplet detachment within the gas metal
arc welding process?, 6th International Conference on Trends in Welding Research, April, 2002
4) L. Xiaoqing, C. Biao, Z. Min, W. Zhenmin, H. Shisheng, Study on chaos in short circuit gas
metal arc welding process, China welding, Volume 16, Number 2, June 2007, pp. 77-80
5) C. Biao, L. Xiaoqing, Z. Min, H. Shisheng, Lyapunov exponent analysis of short circuit arc in
GMAW, Material Science and Technology, Volume 15, Number 3, June 2007, pp. 301-304
6) C. Biao, X.Yuan-Peng, L. Xiao-Qing, Z. Min, H. Shi-Sheng, Approximate entropy—a new
statistic to quantify arc and welding process stability in short-circuiting gas metal arc welding,
Chinese Physics B, Volume 17, Number 3, March 2008, pp. 865-877
7) X. Yuanpeng, C. Biao, Z. Min, H. Shisheng, S. Lanjuan, Determining chaotic invariant
properties of short-circuiting gas metal arc welding from an observed time series, China welding,
Volume 17, Number 3, September 2008, pp. 30-33
8) S.W. Simpson, Metal transfer instability in gas metal arc welding, Science and Technology of
Welding & Joining, Volume 14, Number 4, May 2009 , pp. 262-273
9) V. Sydorets, The Bifurcations and Chaotic Oscillations in Electric Circuits with Arc, chapter in
book Modelling Dynamics in Processes and Systems, editors W. Mitkowski, J. Kacprzyk, 2009,
pp. 29-42

2(b) Methodology

The work planned in order to carry out the objective of the project can be divided in 5 different
parts:

1) Study of the material transfer and other related processes in the arc
2) Methods of material transfer control using chaos theory
3) Construction of the prototype control unit
4) Testing of control methods
5) Project management

PROJECT PLANNING

PROJECT START
MANAGEMENT

Study of the
material transfer
Control methods
PROJECT

using chaos theory

Construction of
the prototype
Testing of control
methods

PROJECT END

1. In the first phase of the project will be carried out extensive research of the material transfer.
The major part of this phase present data acquisition of the welding parameters. Material
transfer mode will be identified in different ways (measuring the strength of welding current and
welding voltage recording with high-speed camera, the measurement of acoustic emissions).
The objective of data acquisition is to cover all transitions of the melted drops, without
omissions of any events (drop transfer), because this is very important for further analysis of
accurate data. Based on the data collected will be analyzed using different mathematical models

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with an emphasis on chaos theory. With the help of chaos theory new model of material transfer
and welding process will be made. A lot of experimental work will be put in this phase, that way
we plan to buy some experimental equipment. Also a lot of consumables for welding will be
used. Not all of the team members will be included in this phase, but there will be need for
senior staff.

2. The next stage will be using the theory of chaos control to define a way to try to stabilize
material transfer using small perturbations (pulse with very low energy). Stable material transfer
is required to achieve in whole region of welding current, from low values where the short-
circuit material transfer occur, as well as high values of welding current (spray mode of material
transfer). In whole region of welding a single drop per one small pulse is required, without
short-circuits or spatters. This phase is mainly analytical work. Almost all team members will be
included in this stage.

3. Based on results from the second phase we will design and make a prototype control unit for the
welding power source. The purpose of the control unit will be to capture the signal of welding
current and welding voltage and on the basis of the low-pulse control of the material transfer. In
this stage a hired fellow will be involved in the project work. He will help with electronic part
of the work. There will be need to buy some electronic components for control unit.

4. Once control unit is complete, testing its operation will follow. Testing will take place in all
welding conditions for various welding wires and various shielding gases using different control
methods. Control unit will also try to manipulate for use in manual metal arc welding MMA. If
at this stage any difficulties with controlling of material transfer will be shown, we will return in
the second phase. Testing will again include much experimental work, like in the first phase of
the project.

5. The purpose of project management is to foresee or predict as many of the dangers and
problems as possible and to plan, organize, and control activities so that projects are completed
as successfully as possible in spite of all the risks.

The research milestones for the project are the following:

1. We presume to finish study of material transfer using theory of control of chaos at the end of
Year 2.
2. In the middle of the Year 3 the prototype control unit will be made.
3. Testing of prototype and its improvement will be done in Year 4 and 5. At the end of Year 5 we
expect to have working prototype with excellent results on stable material transfer in welding
process.

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5

Study of the material
transfer
Control methods
using chaos theory
Construction of the
prototype
Testing of control
methods
Project management

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Dissemination of scientific results

The primary publication planned of this project is a monograph that introduces a chaos theory in
welding, illustrated by our case studies. This book will be targeted to a broader audience of general
physics and welding scientists. We can also include project results as a chapter in book “The
physics of welding” which represents the most important education book in the world in this field.

Beyond the book, the most important ongoing publication outlet of the project will be a website that
features working papers, presentations, and information on group meetings. A working paper series
will be established, where doctoral and postdoctoral fellows can publish manuscripts in preparation,
and invite comments on forum posts from the general public. The website will also feature as an
outlet for visual material that is not publishable in print. Beyond publications in the working paper
format, the website will also serve as an interactive platform to publish blog entries related to chaos
theory, physics of welding and related research.

The project will promote independent publications from doctoral and postdoctoral fellows in
international journals, and international conference presentations. An important goal is to target
major journals in the sciences.

2(c) Resources (incl. project costs)

Team members
The Principal Investigator is supposed to conceptualize, streamline and coordinate the project,
shape and moderate the dialogue of the team members, and eventually guarantee the final goal of
the project. He is responsible for the whole venture both in intellectual and in administrative terms.
Nevertheless, in order to accomplish such an ambitious project, there is a need of involving the
expertise of other team members. This project is planed to be carried out by 6 researchers presently
associated in Institute research group plus one post doctoral colleague hired. The activity is also
very compatible with thesis work (both undergraduate and graduate) and therefore an effort will be
made to search for students locally and from EU countries to engage in the project.

This project requires experience in three different fields, mainly welding process analysis with data
acquisition, chaos control theory and electronics design. These aspects are taken care by the fact
that by knowledge of each member of the team we are covering the whole field. Our main weakness
is electronic design for welding machine and that is why we hire one post doctoral colleague from
Faculty of Electrical Engineering. In addition, it is important to stress that a very innovative part for
this project is the development of an ad-hoc electronics and computer based data acquisition. This is
guaranteed by the fact that 2 members of the team have the appropriate experience to reach this
goal.

The prospect of success for the proposed project is leveraged by established, strong collaborations
with leading international scientists. The collaborators constitute a significant core competence, and
the international network also provide ample opportunities for exchange visits of students and
senior scientists.

Of course we will also need the collaboration of the Institute laboratory infrastructures and their
personal, in particularly the possibility to have dedicated area in the main building, which, as we
see, is not a problem.

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Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

Budget justification
Personnel costs include salaries of the principal investigator, postdoctoral, and doctoral fellows, and
the part time administrator. Personnel cost rates are based on Institute institutional averages.
Equipment costs cover one high-speed, one budget personal computer, high-speed camera for
material transfer filming. The high-speed computer will be used for data acquisition and analyze,
process modelling. Institute will provide office space, computer network access, and one additional
personal computer. Institute will also provide services of their laboratories.

Consumables include all material which will be used to perform welding. There will be also some
expenses for electronic components for constructing prototype control unit.

Travel costs intended to cover trips of the principal investigator to other needed laboratories,
producers of welding equipment and to academic conferences, presenting findings of the project.
Travel costs also intended to cover expenses of postdoctoral and doctoral fellows travelling to
conduct research.

Publication costs include an initial cost of setting up a project website, cost of database access,
concept papers, presentations, findings.

Subcontracting covers cost of hiring one post doctoral colleague from Faculty of Electrical
Engineering.

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Total
Cost Category Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 (Y1-5)

Personnel:
PI1 70.000 71.000 72.000 73.000 74.000 360.000
Senior Staff 43.000 43.500 44.000 30.000 31.000 191.500
Post docs 45.000 46.000 47.000 94.000 95.000 327.000
Students 15.000 15.500 31.000 61.500
Other 6.000 6.500 7.500 7.900 8.000 35.900
Total
Personnel: 164.000 167.000 185.500 220.400 239.000 975.900

Other Direct
Costs:
Direct Costs:
Equipment 12.000 2.000 10.000 7.000 31.000
Consumables 23.000 20.000 14.000 15.000 25.000 97.000
Travel 2.000 5.000 3.000 6.000 6.000 22.000
Publications,
etc 2.000 1.000 1.500 4.500
Other
Total Other
Direct Costs: 39.000 28.000 17.000 31.000 39.500 154.500

Total Direct
Costs: 203.000 195.000 202.500 251.400 278.500 1.130.400
Indirect Costs Max 20% of
(overheads): Direct Costs 30.500 29.300 30.400 37.700 41.800 169.600
Subcontracting
Costs: (No overheads) 10.000 12.000 12.000 25.000 59.000
Total Costs of (by year and
project: total) 233.500 224.300 232.900 289.100 320.300 1.300.000
Requested (by year and
Grant: total) 233.500 224.300 232.900 289.100 320.300 1.300.000

For the above cost table, please indicate the % of working time the PI dedicates 90%
to the project over the period of the grant:

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Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

2(d) Ethical issues

Ethical issues Table:

Research on Human Embryo/ Foetus YES NO

Does the proposed research involve human Embryos? X
Does the proposed research involve human Foetal Tissues/ Cells? X
Does the proposed research involve human Embryonic Stem Cells (hESCs)? X
Does the proposed research on human Embryonic Stem Cells involve cells in culture? X

Does the proposed research on Human Embryonic Stem Cells involve the derivation of X
cells from Embryos?
DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

Research on Humans YES NO

Does the proposed research involve children? X
Does the proposed research involve patients? X
Does the proposed research involve persons not able to give consent? X
Does the proposed research involve adult healthy volunteers? X
Does the proposed research involve Human genetic material? X
Does the proposed research involve Human biological samples? X
Does the proposed research involve Human data collection? X
DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

Privacy YES NO
Does the proposed research involve processing of genetic information or personal data X
(e.g. health, sexual lifestyle, ethnicity, political opinion, religious or philosophical
conviction)?
Does the proposed research involve tracking the location or observation of people? X
DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

Research on Animals YES NO

Does the proposed research involve research on animals? X
Are those animals transgenic small laboratory animals? X
Are those animals transgenic farm animals? X
Are those animals non-human primates? X
Are those animals cloned farm animals? X
DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

Research Involving Developing Countries YES NO

Does the proposed research involve the use of local resources (genetic, animal, plant, X
etc)?
Is the proposed research of benefit to local communities (e.g. capacity building, access to X
healthcare, education, etc)?
DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

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Suban Part B2 ChaosWeld

Dual Use YES NO

Research having direct military use X

Research having the potential for terrorist abuse X

DO ANY OF THE ABOVE ISSUES APPLY TO MY PROPOSAL? X

Other Ethical Issues YES NO

Are there OTHER activities that may raise Ethical Issues? X

If YES please specify: X

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Section 3: Research Environment

a. PI's Host institution

The Project is hosted by the Institut za metalne konstrukcije (Institute of metal construction
www.imk.si), an independent institution with a strong international and interdisciplinary orientation
which sustains academic independence and freedom of research and intellectual creativity in the
domain of metal constructions. Since its emergence in 1948 the Institute has established itself as an
important national platform for high quality research in these area, and has accumulated an
excellent record of project management: it has hosted and administered many national and some
major international research projects and supported the work of more than fifty researchers.

From its very foundation the Institute’s basic activity has always been the integral treatment of
problems related to metal constructions, with the main emphasis on steel constructions. In the
framework of its activity Institute has participated in scientific research work in the area of
structures, processes and materials, the design of constructions, the production, welding and
assembly control of constructions, and the testing of constructions and individual parts of
constructions using destructive or non-destructive methods.

Institute basic mission

To deal on the all fields regarding metal constructions (Multidisciplinary fields).

Institute vision
To be connecting point between academics and industry especially in the fields of: development,
design, QA.

Institute complete service on the field of the metal structures are:

• Design;
• Stress analysis;
• Welding, brazing and cutting;
• Corrosion and abrasion testing,
• Mechanical testing;
• NDT;
• LCA,
• Technical consulting and supervision.

For this services Institute has a lot of necessary equipment for ordinary work and also for research
work or projects. In accordance with its mission, Institute strives to stay in touch with the
developments in its field of activity and to ensure continuous education for its employees, with the
aim to provide high-quality research work and service to the Institute’s partners.

b. Additional institutions (additional participants)

N/A

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