2009

Study and observation of a Spot welding machine and Tungsten inert gas welding machine

Spot welding machine and TIG welding machine

Welding is the process of permanently joining two or more metal parts, by melting both materials. The molten materials quickly cool, and the two metals are permanently bonded. There are various types of welding process among them Spot welding and Tungsten inert gas welding are used widely to produce a better type of welding

Spot and TIG welding operation

Sobuj SUST 12/2/2009

Name of the experiment: Study and observation of a Spot

welding and Tungsten inert gas welding machine.
Objectives: 1. 2. 3. 4. To To To To learn about the spot welding machine. learn about the welding principal of spot welding. learn about the Tungsten inert gas welding machine. learn about the welding principal of Tungsten inert gas welding.

Introduction: Welding is the process of permanently joining two or more metal parts, by melting both materials. The molten materials quickly cool, and the two metals are permanently bonded. There are various types of welding process among them Spot welding
and Tungsten inert gas welding are used widely to produce a better type of welding.

Spot welding is one of the oldest welding processes. It is used in a wide range of industries but notably for the assembly of sheet steel vehicle bodies . It is one form of resistance welding, which is a method of welding two or more metal sheets together without using any filler material by applying pressure and heat to the area to be welded.

Figure: Spot welding operation On the other hand Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), also known as Tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding, is an arc welding process that uses a nonconsumable tungsten electrode to produce the weld. The weld zone is well protected from the atmospheric impurities because of using the inert gas as a shielding agent thus a better welding can be produced by Tungsten inert gas welding.

Figure: Tungsten inert gas welding operation

Part A: Spot welding

Spot welding machine: A typical resistance spot welding machine is shown bellow. It essentially consists of two electrodes, out of which one is fixed. The other electrode is fixed to a rocker arm (to provide mechanical advantage) for transmitting the mechanical force from a pneumatic cylinder

Hydraulic cylinder Rocker arm Electrode Push button control box

Welding control pedals

Figure: Spot welding machine Push button control box: Push button control box helps to control various welding parameters. Hydraulic cylinder: Hydraulic cylinder helps to create pressure to the welding zone. Rocker arm: Rocker arm is connected to the electrode and supplies the pressure to welding zone. Electrode: Electrode supplies the current for welding. Welding control pedals: Welding control pedals helps to control the welding operation time.

 Principles of spot welding: Spot welding is accomplished when current is caused to flow through electrode tips and the separate pieces of metal to be joined. The resistance of the base metal to electrical current flow causes localized heating in the joint, and the weld is made. Spot welding involves three stages: 1. The first of which involves the electrodes being brought to the surface of the metal and applying a slight amount of pressure.

Figure: Process of spot welding 2. . The material between the electrodes yields and is squeezed together. It then melts, destroying the interface between the parts. The current is switched off and the "nugget" of molten materials solidifies forming the joint. Nugget

Figure: Formation of a nugget in spot welding 3. After the current is removed from the workpiece, it is cooled via the coolant holes in the center of the electrodes. Both water and a brine solution may be used as coolants in spot welding mechanisms

Welded section

Figure: Resistance spot weld section

 Welding parameters: 1. Welding time Cycle: Weld times range from 0.01 sec to 0.63 sec depending on the thickness of the metal. A resistance welding schedule is the sequence of events that normally take place in each of the welds, The events are:

Figure: Spot Welding Time Cycle Squeeze time: The squeeze time is the time required for the electrodes to align and clamp the two workpieces. Weld time: The weld time of the current flow through the workpieces till they are heated to the melting temperature. Hold time: the hold time is the time is the time when the pressure is to be maintained on the molten metal without the electric current. During the time, the pieces are expected to be forging welded. Off time: The off time is time during which, the pressure on the electrode is taken off so that the plates can be positioned for the next spot. The off time is not normally, specified for simple spot welding, but only when a series of spots are to be made in predetermined pitch.

2. Depth of penetration: The depth of penetration of the weld world normally varies from 0.3 to 0.8 times the thickness of the joining members. A depth of penetration less than this would not give rise to enough strength whereas a very high penetration nearing the thickness would bring the nugget outside and disfigure the appearance of the sheet. This also reduces the life of the electrode tip. Also, the penetration should be equal from both the sides.

3. Width & thickness of the workpiece: The two materials being welded together are known as the workpieces and must conduct electricity. The width of the workpieces is limited by the throat length of the welding apparatus and ranges typically from 5 to 50 inches. Workpiece thickness can range from 0.008 inch to 1.25 inch. 4. The Tip diameter: The formula generally used for low carbon steel is as follows: Electrode tip diameter = 0.100 + 2t where t is the thickness in inches of one thickness of the metal to be welded. This formula is applicable to the welding of metals of dissimilar thicknesses. The formula is applied to each thickness individually, and the proper electrode tip diameter selected for each size of the joint. If the two pieces were unequal in thickness, such as one piece 0.062 and the other 0.094, two calculations would have to be made. Each thickness would be treated as the basis for one electrode tip diameter determination. 5. Required current for welding: The open circuit voltage from the transformer is typically in the 5-10 V range, but there is a large voltage drop in the electrodes and secondary side of the transformer when the circuit is closed. And the weld currents can range from 4000 to 24,000 amps for different types of mild steel. 6. Pressure Or Welding Force: The pressure exerted by the tongs and the electrode tips on the workpiece have a great effect on the amount of weld current that flows through the joint. The greater the pressure, the higher the welding current value will be, within the capacity of the resistance spot welding machine. 7. Time Calculation: Spot welding setup can be calculated using the following equation: Total weld time = (L + W + U) x N Where L is the load time in seconds, N is the number of welds, U is the unload time in seconds, and W is the weld time in seconds.

8. Heat balance: One of the very important characteristics of the resistance welding process is the transfer of heat to the two parts being joined differently so that proper fusion obtained even when the plates are dissimilar from the stand point of material of thickness.

Advantages of resistance spot welding process: There are many advantages of resistance spot welding among them some of important advantages are given bellow. 1. Very little skill is required to operate the resistance welding machine. 2. These are very well suited for mass production, as they give a high production rate. 3. Heating of the workpiece is confined to a very small part which results in less distortion. 4. It is possible to weld dissimilar metals as well as metal plates of different thicknesses. 5. There are no consumables used in this process except for the electrical power and a relatively smaller electrode wear. As a result it is a very economical process. Disadvantages of resistance spot welding process: In spite of these advantages, there are certain limitations and disadvantages of the resistance welding process. They are, 1. The resistance welding machine is highly complex with various elements such as a heavy transformer, electrodes and heavy conductors for carrying the high currents, the electrode force applying mechanism such as a pneumatic cylinder and its supply, the heavy machine structure to support the large forces and an expensive timing arrangement. All these make the resistance welding machine highly expensive, unless it is used for large scale production. 2. Certain resistance welding processes are limited only to lap joints. This limits its use to sheet metal whose thickness is less than 3 mm. the lap joints have an inherent crevice between the sheets which is responsible for stress concentration and a loss o f fatigue life. Also for materials that are prone to corrosion, the lap joint may be a source of trouble.

 Applications of spot welding:

1. Spot welding is typically used when welding particular types of sheet metal. Aluminium alloys can also be spot welded. However, their much higher thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity mean that up to three times higher welding currents are needed. This requires larger, more powerful, and more expensive welding transformers. 2. Perhaps the most common application of spot welding is in the automobile manufacturing industry, where it is used almost universally to weld the sheet metal to form a car. 3. Spot welding is also used is in the orthodontist's clinic, where small scale spot welding equipment is used when resizing metal "molar bands" used in orthodontics. 4. Another application is spot welding straps to nickel-cadmium or nickel- metalhydride cells in order to make batteries. The cells are joined by spot welding thin nickel straps to the battery terminals. Spot welding can keep the battery from getting too hot, as might happen if conventional soldering were done. Manufacturing Considerations:

1. Thickness of the parts to be welded should be equal or the ratio of thicknesses should be less than 3:1. 2. Spacing of welds: o Minimum weld to weld spacing = 10 x Stock thickness.

o Center of weld to edge distance = 2 x weld diameter, minimum. o Weld to form distance = Bend Radius + 1 weld diameter, minimum. 3. Adequate access for spot welding should be considered. Small flanges in U channels for example may restrict the electrode from entering the part. 4. Flat surfaces are easier to spot weld due to easy access. Multiple bends impose access restrictions, and special fixtures may have to be designed to handle the parts, if access is not a problem. 5. Prior to finishing, the spot welds have to be sanded or ground to blend the welds with the rest of the surface. 6. It is best to choose the same spot weld size, to minimize setups and increase throughput. 7. Plating of spot welded assemblies can cause problems when the sheet metal is overlapped. This can cause plating salts to be trapped-requiring special cleaning, or potential long-term corrosion problems. By carefully designing the assembly to allow easy draining of plating solutions this can be avoided

8. The mating parts can be self- jigged for easy location prior to welding. This can be done by lancing one part and locating in a corresponding slot in the other part; or by boss type extrusion, weld buttons, in part locating to a slot in the other. This type of design can often eliminate the need for external fixtures.

Discussion: The process description made so far is called the resistance spot welding or simply spot welding. This is the most common resistance welding process. Spot welding offers a number of advantages over other techniques, including high speed, ease of automation and energy efficiency. Although it has so much application in the modern manufacturing system but the sad news is, we dont perform the spot welding operation because of some technical problem of that machine although weve the spot welding machine in our workshop. I think itll be more effective and meaningful if we perform the spot welding operation. I think our respective teacher has already taken the necessary steps to fix the problem.

Part B: Tungsten inert gas welding

Tungsten ine rt gas welding machine: A typical tungsten inert gas welding setup is shown bellow. It consists of a welding torch at the centre of which is the tungsten electrode. The inert gas is supplied to the welding zone through the a nnular path surrounding the tungsten electrode to effectively displace the atmosphere around the weld puddle.

Electrode holder

Tungsten electrode

Gas passages

Electrical conductor Insulating sheath

Welding machine

Workpiece

Shilding gas

Inert gas supply

Figure: A typical Tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding setup

The inert gas is supplied to the welding zone through the annular path surrounding the tungsten electrode to effectively displace the atmosphere around the weld puddle.

 Equipments used in TIG welding: 1. Power supply: Gas tungsten arc welding uses a constant current power source, meaning that the current (and thus the heat) remains relatively constant, even if the arc distance and voltage change. The preferred polarity of the GTAW system depends largely on the type of metal being welded. Direct current with a negatively charged electrode (DCEN) is often employed when welding steels, nickel, titanium, and other metals.

Figure: Powe r supplier of TIG welding 2. Electrode: The electrode used in GTAW is made of tungsten or a tungsten alloy, because tungsten has the highest melting temperature among pure metals, at 3,422 C (6,192 F). As a result, the electrode is not consumed during welding, though some erosion (called burn-off) can occur. Electrode

GTAW torch Gas diffusers

Figure: GTAW torch with various electrodes, cups, collets and gas diffusers The diameter of the electrode can vary between 0.5 and 6.4 millimeters (0.02 and 0.25 in), and their length can range from 75 to 610 millimeters (3.0 to 24.0 in).

3. Welding torch: The welding torch holds the electrode and supply the necessary current to the weld zone. GTAW welding torches are designed for either automatic or manual operation and are equipped with cooling systems using air or water. But in our workshop the TIG welding machine doesnt contain the cooling system.

Figure: Welding torch The internal metal parts of a torch are made of hard alloys of copper or brass in order to transmit current and heat effectively. The tungsten electrode must be held firmly in the center of the torch with an appropriately sized collect, and ports around the electrode provide a constant flow of shielding gas. Collets are sized according to the diameter of the tungsten electrode they hold. The body of the torch is made of heat-resistant, insulating plastics covering the metal components, providing insulation from heat and electricity to protect the welder. 4. Shielding gas supply: As with other welding processes such as gas metal arc welding, shielding gases are necessary in GTAW to protect the welding area from atmospheric gases such as nitrogen and oxygen, which can cause fusion defects, porosity, and weld metal embrittlement if they come in contact with the electrode, the arc, or the welding metal. The gas also transfers heat from the tungsten electrode to the metal, and it helps start and maintain a stable arc.

Helium

Argon Argon

Figure: Inert Gas cylinder

 Welding principals: The welding technique used for TIG is essentially similar to that of the gas welding. The welding principal is given bellow. 1. GTAW normally requires two hands, since most applications require that the welder manually feed a filler metal into the weld area with one hand while manipulating the welding torch in the other. 2. To strike the welding arc, a high frequency generator provides a spark; this spark is a conductive path for the welding current through the shielding gas and a llows the arc to be initiated while the electrode and the workpiece are separated, typically about 1.53 mm (0.060.12 in) apart.

Figure: Welding ope ration 3. Once the arc is struck, the welder moves the torch in a small circle to create a welding pool, the size of which depends on the size of the electrode and the amount of current. While maintaining a constant separation between the electrode and the workpiece, the operator then moves the torch back slightly and tilts it backward about 1015 degrees from vertical. Filler metal is added manually to the front end of the weld pool as it is needed. 4. The filler rod is withdrawn from the weld pool each time the electrode advances, but it is never removed from the gas shield to prevent oxidation of its surface and contamination of the weld. Filler rods composed of metals with low melting temperature, such as aluminium, require that the operator maintain some distance from the arc while staying inside the gas shield. If held too close to the arc, the filler rod can melt before it makes contact with the weld puddle. As the weld nears completion, the arc current is often gradually reduced to allow the weld crater to solidify and prevent the formation of crater cracks at the end of the weld.

 Welding parameters: 1. Selection of polarity: The preferred polarity of the GTAW system depends largely on the type of metal being welded. Direct current with a negatively charged electrode (DCEN) is often employed when welding steels, nickel, titanium, and other metals. It can also be used in automatic GTA welding of alumin ium or magnesium when helium is used as a shielding gas. Direct current with a positively charged electrode (DCEP) is less common, and is used primarily for shallow welds since less heat is generated in the base material. A table is given bellow to show the selection of proper polarity Table: The metals that can be commonly welded by TIG welding and their choice of setups Material Stainless steel Aluminium Magnesium Deoxidized copper Monel High carbon steel cast iron Electrodes Thoriated tungsten All types Tungsten Thoriated tungsten Thoriated tungsten Power supply used DCEN AC AC DCEN AC or DCEN Preferred shielding gas. Argon Argon Argon Argon Argon

2. Selection of power supply (AC or DC): The preferred polarity of the GTAW system depends largely on the type of metal being welded. Direct current (DC) with a negatively charged electrode (DCEN) is often employed when welding steels, nickel, titanium, and other metals on the other hand Alternating current (AC), commonly used when welding aluminium and magnesium manually or semi-automatically, combines the two direct currents by making the electrode and base material alternate between positive and negative charge. 3. Selection of shielding gas: The selection of a shielding gas depends on several factors, including the type of material being welded, joint design, and desired final weld appearance. Argon is the most commonly used shielding gas for GTAW, since it helps prevent defects due to a varying arc length. When used with alternating current, the use of argon results in high weld quality and good appearance. Another common shielding gas, helium, is most often used to increase the weld penetration in a joint, to increase the welding speed, and to weld metals with high heat conductivity, such as copper and aluminium. Argon- helium mixtures are also frequently utilized in GTAW, since they can increase control of the heat input while maintaining the benefits of using argon. Normally, the mixtures are made with primarily helium (often about 75% or higher) and a balance of argon. These mixtures increase the speed and quality of the AC welding of aluminium, and also make it easier to strike an arc.

4. Selection of electrode tip shapes: The electrode tip should be prepared for proper weld penetration. The typical shapes that can be used are shown bellow though it is possible to use these electrodes without any tip preparation, it would be better to prepare the top since it enhances the weld quality.

For AC welding with high frequency unbalanced machines, the tip should be pencilpointed as shown in fig. So that the HF current gets concentrated and the arc is easily initiated, also once the arc is initiated the tip gets heated and a ball of tungsten is formed which reduces the effect of current rectification and thus, stabilizes the AC arc. With DCEN, the electrode would be made conical as shown above. Pure tungsten electrodes are never made into conical point since the end is likely to melt and contaminate the weld metal. Instead, it is better to make full round ball at the tip, as shown above. Applications: There are many applications of TIG welding some of them are given bellow. 1. This welding is useful for joining aluminium, magnesium and stainless steel. Welded area

Figure: GTAW fillet weld 2. Better penetration can be achieved by TIG welding so it uses for high strength joining. 3. Many industries use GTAW for welding thin workpieces, especially nonferrous metals.

4. It is used extensively in the manufacture of space vehicles, and is also frequently employed to weld small-diameter, thin- wall tubing such as those used in the bicycle industry. 5. As more heat is generated thus it is used for welding thick section. 6. In addition, GTAW is often used to make root or first pass welds for piping of various sizes. In maintenance and repair work, the process is commonly used to repair tools and dies, especially components made of aluminium and magnesium.

Welded area

Figure: A pipe is joined by TIG welding Discussion: In modern days the application of TIG welding is getting increase. It has much application in manufacturing products. Its fast application and reliability of application attracts many jobs. So as were going to be an Industrial and production engineer so we should aware of TIG welding process but in our workshop we dont perform the TIG welding operation although weve the TIG welding machine because of some technical problem. We just observe the TIG welding machine. I think itll be very essential for us to perform the operation with our hand. We hope our respective teacher will take the necessary step to fix this problem. Conclusion: Spot welding is one form of resistance welding, which is a method of welding two or more metal sheets together without using any filler material by applying pressure and heat to the area to be welded. Resistance spot welding is welding technique that is used for almost all known metals. Welding procedures for each type of material must be developed for the most satisfactory results. This process is used for joining sheet materials and uses shaped copper alloy electrodes to apply pressure and convey the electrical current through the workpieces. Spot welding offers a number of advantages over other techniques, including high speed, ease of automation and energy efficiency. Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), also known as tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding, is an arc welding process that uses a nonconsumable tungsten electrode to produce the weld. The weld area is protected from atmospheric contamination by a shielding gas (usually an inert gas such as argon), and a filler metal is normally used. This type of welding ensures the quality of welded zone. The TIG welding process can be used for the joining of a number of materials though the most common ones are aluminium, magnesium and stainless steel. The whole operation gives us a comprehensive concept about spot welding and Tungsten inert gas welding process.

 Assignment:
Question: Write down the difference between arc welding and Tungsten inert gas welding.
Answer: The basic difference between conventional arc welding and Tungsten inert gas welding are given bellow.

Tungsten inert gas welding

1. Tungsten inert gas welding use inert gas as a shielding agent. 2. Tungsten inert gas welding use non consumable tungsten electrode. 3. Because of the use of shielding gases, no fluxes are required to be used in inert gas shielded arc welding. 4. More heat is generated in TIG welding process thus better penetration can be achieved. 5. The inert gas protect the molten weld puddle from the atmospheric contamination thus very high quality welding can be achieve by TIG welding process. 6. As its quality of welding, it is used extensively in the manufacture of space vehicles, and is also frequently employed to weld small-diameter, thin-wall tubing such as those used in the bicycle industry.

Conventional arc welding

1. Conventional arc welding use flux as a shielding agent. 2. Conventional arc welding use consumable electrodes. 3. Conventional arc welding required flux, it is now found in belt in state with coated electrodes. 4. Conventional arc welding doesnt generate so much heat compare to TIG welding thus the penetration is much poor than TIG welding 5. Although in conventional welding, we use flux as a shielding agent, but it is not sufficient to protect the entire weld puddle and thus various contamination is occurred by atmospheric impurities. 6. The conventional arc welding is only employed where the quality is not so important.

Edited by Sobuj SUST Dept of Industrial & Production Engineering Registration No. 2008334053 k.sobuz@gmail.com