Air Liquide Welding

Research & Development

CTAS

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 27

 CTAS strengths: a global approach…
From innovative Gas …new welding materials
and Packaging… and consumables…

…new equipment
…to developing new processes
and new technologies…
Conventional TOPTIG
TIG Torch Torch

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 28

 …and a high level of expertise

70 collaborators with various fields of expertise

- metallurgy, mechanical engineering, chemistry, electronics...

Academic & industrial partnerships

Participation in recognized centers of excellence

3 collaborators in the IIW committee:

- arc welding processes
- cutting & high density processes
- metallurgy & consumables

Participation:
- arc welding processes
- metallurgy & consumables

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 29

 A few recent realizations from CTAS
Welding equipment DIGI@WAVE - CITOWAVE
TOPTIG robotic welding system
Automatic Plasma Cutting
Automatic Plasma Welding
EXIAL laser hybrid welding

Welding consumables Consumables R&D

Laboratory & metallurgy
CRISTAL range
Energy consumables
Electroslag cladding

Gas packaging Gas packaging for hydrogen energy

New healthcare packaging - single use

Liquid N2 blasting NITROJET

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 30

 DIGI@WAVE - CITOWAVE
Digital MIG power sources

MARKETS ADVANTAGES
Industry All materials (mainly
and craftmanship aluminum & stainless steel)
Metal fabrication High quality welds
Equipment Easy to use
construction High level use for experts
Dedicated current waveforms
for particular applications:
- low noise pulse
- speed short arc
- cold double pulse

APPLICATIONS
Manual and robotic welding
PRINCIPLES Car industry
Numerical technology Boiler making
Microprocessor controlled waveform Shipyards
Pre-programmed welding parameters 5000 units sold

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 31

 TOPTIG Robotic Welding System
MARKETS ADVANTAGES Filler
metal Electrode
High quality welding No spatter
Liquid Arc
Thin sheet welding Precise energy control bridge transfer

Car industry Very high quality weld

Chemical & food Accessibility for robotics Moving direction

industry High productivity

PATENTED
TOPTIG
CONCEPT

Nozzle
Filler metal
fed through
Electrode
the nozzle

PRINCIPLES APPLICATIONS
Integrated concept
of tungsten electrode Car subcontractors:
and wire input seats, exhausts, steering
columns
Compact torch
Metal furniture
Automatic electrode
change Chemical industry
50 robotic systems sold
since 2006

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 32

 Automatic
Plasma Cutting
MARKETS
Job shops
Boilers
Construction
ADVANTAGES
Versatile: cutting & marking multi-material
(shipyards, …)
(mild steel, stainless steel, aluminum)
Low investment cost

Flame (oxy-fuel):
Mild steel from 10 to 300 mm 15% Plasma & Flame:
60% Mild steel 0.5 to 40 / 300 mm
Plasma: 25%
Mild steel 0.5 to 30 mm
Stainless steel 15 mm
& aluminum 1 to 150 mm
Stainless steel
& aluminum 1 to 150 mm

European Market 220 M u

OBJECTIVE:DECREASE
PRINCIPLES RUNNING COST
Electric arc constriction by Increase of electrode lifetime
super-sonic gas flow through 3.300e+04
High quality cut (square cut without dross)
fine nozzle 3.000e+04
2.800e+04
High productivity
 High-energy density plasma jet
2.600e+04
2.400e+04
2.200e+04
as cutting tool Position 2.000e+04
1.800e+04
Total control of process parameters
of 1.600e+04
1.400e+04
Shielding gas for nozzle workpiece 1.200e+04
1.000e+04
protection 8.000e+03
6.000e+03
4.000e+03
2.000e+03

Numerical simulation CFD/arc:

Temperature profile

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 33

 Automatic
Plasma Welding
MARKETS ADVANTAGES
Food Rapidity of operation
Transport Low deformation
Chemical Respect of the chemical composition
Petrochemical Excellent visual appearance
Nuclear Reduction of preparation times for assemblies
Energy by eliminating beveling for thicknesses up to 8 mm
Assurance of complete and regular penetration
High quality proof against stringent inspections

Plasma
PRINCIPLES
The term plasma applies
to gases at temperatures
exceeding 3000 °C at
atmospheric pressure
On the temperature scale,
it can be regarded as the
fourth state of matter after
the solid, liquid and gaseous
states

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 34

 EXIAL Laser Hybrid Welding
MARKETS ADVANTAGES
EXIAL MIG: Laser welding gives penetration and speed
- 3 mm/15 mm plates - mild steel, Arc welding gives high quality, filler, widening
High grade steel, Al, coated
Increased fit up tolerances and mechanical
plates, dual phase steel etc
properties
- pipelines, shipyards,
train, wind turbines…
EXIAL TIG:
- 1 mm/4 mm plates - stainless steel,
Ti, coated plates
- tubes, chemical industry, food industry, automotive…

APPLICATIONS EXIAL MIG

Wire feeding EXIAL TIG: stainless steel tubes,
PRINCIPLES speed
tailored blanks
Laser EXIAL MIG: shipyards, pipelines
Combination beam Plasma
of arc and laser wel- of metallic
vapours
ding to create new EXIAL TIG
Welding
process direction
MIG or MAG
and a unique arc
melting pool

Solidification
area
keyhole

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 35

 Consumables R&D
MISSIONS ADVANTAGES
To propose innovative Wide range of technologies available :
technical solutions MMA electrodes single/double coating
linked to market Cored wires: folded and tubular
and material trends
Agglomerated and fused fluxes for SAW
Reactivity and flexiblity due to pilot size
and customised prototypes
Manufacturing & Welding competence
IT tools: know–how capitalisation
Input values Neural network

Input layer KNOWLEDGE APPLICATIONS

Weight Chemistry, materials, New materials : Cr-Mo, 9%Cr
matrix 1
rheology, thermodynamics, Welding environment : CRISTAL range
Hidden layer
metallurgy, formulation
Electroslag range
Weight
matrix 2
Output layer

Output values

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 36

 Laboratory & Metallurgy
MATERIALS METALLURGICAL
CHARACTERISATION EXPERTISE
Specific and in depth knowledge Support to the
of the design and development market concerning
of welding consumables product and process
Experience of the characterisation developments
of all materials used in welding Unique know-how
Analytical chemistry in the group
- Spectrometry
- Grain size determinations
- Gas chromatography
- SEM with EDX probe
- X-ray diffraction
Mechanical testing

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 37

 CRISTAL range
Low fume emission rate cored wires

MARKETS ADVANTAGES
Shipbuilding industry Significant reduction of welding fume emission, making welding
safer and more comfortable, particularly in a confined environment
General construction
Better visibility of the weld pool
Less cleaning of welded pieces and lower consumption of wear
parts through low spatter level
Low oxidizing shielding gas/Metal Cored CRISTAL combination :
fume reduction up to 86%
Good weldability
PRINCIPLES Standard metal cored wire CRISTAL F208
TM

Seamless and strip technologies

To reduce fume formation during
welding with standard shielding gases:
- Fume formation phenomena understanding 70 70
60 60 average
- Wire formulation optimization - 18%

Fumes (g/h)

Fumes (g/h)
50 58 average 50 58
- 41%
40 40
47
APPLICATIONS 30
20
34
Ar/CO2
average
- 86%
30
20
Shipbuilding construction and repair 10 10
8
Ar/CO2/O2
Infrastructure, machines and equipment 0 0
Standard metal CRISTAL™ F206 Standard CRISTAL™ F119
cored wire rutile wire

For metal cored wire For rutile cored wire

Shielding gas according to Shielding gas according to EN 439 C1
EN 439 M21 for Ar/CO2 - M14 Ar/CO2/O2

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 38

 Energy: a key segment for Air Liquide Welding
Production of energy: With many different applications, sometimes technically challenging
thermal power plants, and often with high safety requirements
nuclear, wind turbines…

Transformation of energy:
refineries, turbines…

Transport of energy:
on & off shore pipelines, tankers…

Storing of energy:
tanks for oil and liquid gas…

Air Liquide Welding has a wide

range of consumables specifically
developed for and adapted to
the different applications within
the energy segment

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 39

 Electroslag Cladding
MARKETS ADVANTAGES ESW 120 mm

Uniform penetration ESW 90 mm

Petrochemical
ESW 60 mm
and nuclear industries Low dilution level SAW
Corrosion resistance, High productivity GMAW
structural integrity, Low flux consumption SMAW
high alloy cladding 0 20 40 60
Homogeneous weld metal
on low cost substrate Deposition rate kg/h
material Flat bead surface
Automatic process
Limited operator training
Low capital expenditure

PRINCIPLES
Electroconductive flux:
Fluorspar
APPLICATIONS
Pipes or tanks protection
The strip melts with wide variety
by Joule effect without of available alloys
electric arc
One side flux feeding

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 40

 Gas Packaging
for Hydrogen Energy
STAKES
Decrease greenhouse
gas emissions
Reduce our dependence ADVANTAGES
on fossil fuels Easy to use: quick connection,
 Develop Hydrogen easy to replace
as a new source of energy Safe to store and use: pressure
relief device, leak management system

APPLICATIONS
Hybrid vehicles developed within
HyChain Project and deployed in four
PRINCIPLES European countries in 2008

A user-friendly Hydrogen cartridge

A Clip' on system with pressure regulator integrated in the cylinder

9 8

3 7
Filling ramp Fuel Cell

1
5
4
6
2
Cartridge
(exchangeable part HSDS) Fixed part HSDS
Hydrogen Storage & Distribution System (HSDS)

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 41

 New Healthcare
Packaging
Single Use
MARKETS
Cluster headaches
Europe first
ADVANTAGES
Drugstores
Offer a new solution to pathologies
for consumer market
Avoid some costly
hospitalisations allowing
patient to be treated very soon
PRINCIPLES
Store a dose of drug in a user-friendly packaging

15 min @ 7 litres/min
APPLICATIONS
Weight between 800 and 900g Cluster headaches
Around the 0.5 litre water bottle size
Other specific applications
Model 1 Model 2 Model 3a Model 3b

Conserver Conserver Conserver

Conserver
Regulator
Regulator Regulator Regulator

Cylinder
400 ml Cylinder
280 ml Cylinder Cylinder
200 ml 200 ml

Low cost solution Medium cost solution

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 42

 NITROJET
MARKETS ADVANTAGES
Use of LIN high pressure Zero added secondary waste
jet for various cleaning Dry and cold process
and cutting applications
Efficiency and productivity
without secondary waste
production Explosive atmosphere compatible
Nuclear decontamination Efficient to remove or cut “mastic like” material
& dismantling
In situ cleaning
Industrial paint removal…
APPLICATIONS
Concrete striping
In situ cleaning (Heat
exchanger, furnace, reactor)
PRINCIPLES Resin removal
Combined effect of pressure (~3000bar),
Cold (~-150 °C) and N2 vaporization blast
effect enables efficient and environmental
friendly cleaning or cutting process

CTAS - 50 years - January 17, 2008 43