*** Nice Weld Shame About The Fusion ***

Today welding is the most common method used for joining steel fabrications largely
because of the speed at which joints can be made and the reliability of these joints in
service. However because most welding operations are now relatively simple to perform it
is all too easy to forget the complexity of the chemical and metallurgical actions that are
taking place when the weld is being deposited. Therefore not surprisingly welds
occasionally fail. 

The most common causes of weld failure can be attributed to one of the following causes:- 

Overload.
Before applying the various design formulas, the problem itself must be analysed and clearly
stated. This is not always obvious, and trying to solve the wrong problem can quickly lead to
insufficient design stresses. When a load is placed on a member, stress and strain result. Stress is
the internal resistance to the applied force. Strain is the amount of "give or deformation caused
by the stress, such as deflection in bending, elongation in tension, contraction in compression,
and angular twist in torsion.

For example of this is a lifting lug on a pressure vessel. If the vessel is lifted by a spreader
beam the loading condition on the lug consists of a simple vertical force putting the
attachment welds either in tension or shear. However if the vessel is lifted with a rope sling
the loading condition becomes more complex because there is now a horizontal component
of the force to consider as well a the vertical one, which effectively increases the loading
on the welds.
 
 

Joint Design.
A welded joint should be designed such that the welder can
easily manipulate the electrode to ensure good fusion,
particularly in the root of the joint. The profile of each run
should be  roughly as wide as it is deep; wide shallow weld
beads and particularly deep narrow beads are both ideal
candidates for hot cracking. 

This type of cracking occurs when the weld is starting to solidify, in the pasty state, as it
posses very little strength and therefore any residual loading is likely to cause it to break
before it has fully solidified. The problem can be compounded by impurities that are forced
out of the solidifying weld, becoming trapped in the centre of the weld during final
solidification. Hot cracking can occur where their is a high degree of restraint in the
structure of the fabrication or where the structure moves slightly as the weld solidifies. 

A good example of this type of failure is on the weld used

to secure the small plug in the mandrill hole of a spun
dished head on a pressure vessel, a weld that many people
do not take seriously because of its size. As the weld cools
it contracts causing the plug to move , if the weld at the
other side of the plug is still solidifying it could easily fail.
This is because of the very high contraction stresses
generated by the plug as the weld starts to solidify. 

Bad Welding Method.

It is very important when carrying out any welding to ensure that
it is done correctly. Consideration has to be given to all aspects
of the process and also the environment. Often welding has to be
carried out under site conditions, the welding is often carried out
in situation so that small general purpose electrodes are used
resulting in low weld heat input which when combined with no
preheat gives very rapid heat
dissipation Which can create
a hard micro structure particularly in the location of
the heat affected zone. This along with high levels of
residual stress will create the ideal condition for
hydrogen induced cracking, which although normally
associated with high strength steels can occur in low
carbon steels if the conditions are right. The resulting
crack may not occur immediately the weld cools
down but some time afterward, therefore if this type
of failure is expected non destructive examination
should be delayed by at least 48 hours after welding.

Metallurgical failure.
Materials that are to be welded have to tolerate severe thermal transients created by the
welding process without suffering deterioration of their mechanical properties or adverse
phase changes. The metallurgical composition or temper conditions of certain types of
metal may make them unsuitable to weld or may require special controls to be imposed
during the welding operation. For example some steels that are easy to machine may
contain high levels of sulphur that may result in cracking of any attaching weld. Therefore
this type of material should not be used on load bearing fabricated items such as the eye
bolts that are often found holding down manway covers on pressure vessels. 
 
Weld Defects.
They can usually be attributed to the welders inability to set
up and manipulate the welding equipment; although bad
joint design and faulty welding equipment can also be
responsible. The most significant defects are cracks and
those that resemble cracks such as lack of fusion, cold
overlap etc. This is because of the risk that the crack may
become unstable and propagate when loaded causing a
dramatic failure often by brittle fracture.

Porosity seldom causes weld failure in multi-run welds however it is a sign that something
has gone wrong with welding operation and can often be caused by other defects that may
not have been detected such as lack of side wall fusion. Weld profile can also cause failure,
if the weld size is too small because the joint is underfilled with weld then its load carrying
capability will be reduced, if the joint contains excessive weld metal this can create a notch
effect which can lead to failure by fatigue if the loading condition fluctuates. Bad fit up
excessive root penetration on single sided welds can create defects in the root of the weld
such as wormholes and even cracking. Distortion of welded joints can cause failure by
buckling if the welded member is subjected to compressive loads. 

Guidance on imperfection levels of welded joints is given in EN 25817 {ISO 5817}

 To minimise these problems the following points should be considered:- 

1. Design of the weld based on the loading condition(s) the joint will carry

2. Accessibility to enable ease of welding

3. Control of distortion

4. Careful consideration of the welding environment

5. Matching welding process with materials

6. A factor of safty applied to the design stress of the weld which should be based on
the   consequance of weld failure and the level of non destructive testing that is to be
carried out. 

For example a pressure vessel made to PD5500 category 3, (no radiographic inspection),
can be up to twice a thick as an equivalent vessel made to category 2, (10% Radiography).
Fillet welds and Partial Penetration welds should be used with care as they contain lack of
fusion, they are only suitable for relatively low stressed joints that are not subject to any
form of fatigue loading and should be used with a suitable factor of safety, which for fillet
welds is at least two. 

Once the weld has been designed it is then necessary to decide upon the welding method,
this is then documented in the form of a welding procedure specification. The European
Welding Standard for welding procedures, EN288 part 2, gives guidance on the content
and format of such a specification. 

However this document on its own is not sufficient because we need to prove that this
welding method will produce a weld of acceptable quality possessing the right mechanical
properties. Therefore it is necessary to simulate the joint in all essential features and weld it
under normal production conditions. The completed joint can then be subject to both non
destructive and destructive examinations to determine if the joint is going to be suitable for
the application. 

For most stringent applications the European Standard EN 288 Part 3 is preferred for
welding procedure tests in steel materials and part 4 for Aluminium and its alloys. There
are other parts of EN 288 that deal with alternative routes for qualifying procedures, other
than a procedure test, for less onerous applications. See Welding Procedure Section for
details.

Once we have established that the proposed welding method is satisfactory we then have to
ensure that the production welds will also be of the same quality. This involves making
sure the welders posses the required skill and knowledge to deposit sound welds in
accordance with the approved procedure. Whilst we can be confident that the welder who
did the procedure will be able, any other welder used must also demonstrate his ability by
successfully completing a welder approval test. The preferred standard for this is EN 287
Part 1 for steel and part 2 for aluminium and its alloys. This standard not only tests the
performance of the welder but also requires it to be monitored and revalidated every 2
years to ensure that the welders skill can be relied upon. 

Finally make sure that when the welding operation is being carried out it is supervised and
coordinated by properly qualified personnel. 

Dear Murugesan,

Today I spoke with them. They told that they are going to apply for Visit visa. Because your certificate is not
attested. So they are sending you visit visa with in 15 days or maximum 20 or 25 days. After come here we can
apply for attestation in Dubai itself. So keep everything ready. They told that you have to take the ticket
to Dubai . I request to take them, but they are telling that it is not big amount so let him take. So only
book the ticket to Dubai through internet or travel agency. After you reaching the dubai , the company
person will come and pick you. They will provide the accommodation. I am telling that the company
is my subcontract. It is small company. But they are going to pay more than me. After receiving the
visa we can confirm the ticket. Till the visa receiving work in same company. After receiving visa we
can easy to escape from company. So This is the matter. You decide yourself according. If there is any
confusion or you need any further detail feel free to contact me

 
Regards,

Babu YR