THEORY AND PRACTICE OF SHIELDING GAS MIXTURES FOR SEMI- AUTOMATIC WELDS V.V.VAIDYA" ABSTRACT ‘The paper describes the effects of addition of oxygen and carbon dioxide to Argon on arc stability for semi-automatic weldmetals in steels, aluminum and high nickel alloys. Combinations of gas compositions on fume generation are explored, Effect of changing oxidation potential of the shielding gas on the chemistry, mechanical properties and diffusible hydrogen contents of weldmetal is discussed. The influence of nitrogen in ferztic, austenitic and duplex weldmetals is briefly described. KEYWORDS GMAW, FCAW, MCAW, oxidation potential, diffusible hydrogen, worm-tracking porosity INTRODUCTION Brief description of GMAW, MCAW and FCAW welding processes Gas metal arc welding or GMAW, is an are welding process which incorporates the automatic feeding of a continuous, consumable electrode that is shielded by an extemally supplied gas. Since the equipment provides for automatic self-regulation of the electrical characteristics of the are and deposition rate, the only manual controls required by the welder for semi-automatic operation are gun positioning, guidance, and travel speed. ‘The same equipment set up is used for the Flux cored are welding process (FCAW) or the Metal cored are welding process (MCAW). In this variation of the welding process, the welding filler metal or consumable has a cored cross section, as opposed to a solid metallic cross section of the filler metal used for the GMAW process. The cored cross section consists of a fabricated metal tube or a formed outer metallic sheath and the core filled with ferro alloys and non-metallic powders. ‘The slag formers in the core of a FCAW wire enable the use of this process in all positions, On the contrary the MCAW process has very little non-metallic components in the core, limited to a maximum of 5% by weight, Thus, a MCAW weld bead cannot be deposited easily out of position, and will not have a slag cover on the solidified weld. A MCAW weld surface will resemble that of a GMAW deposit, containing islands of metal silicates. A multipass MCAW or GMAW weld therefore will require minimal interpass cleaning. By contrast, a multi pass FCAW weld will need deslagging between the weld passes to produce a quality weld. ( Ref.1) * Director, Welding Technology & Business Development, Air Liquide Canada Inc., 1250 René-Levesque Blvd. Monireal, Quebec, Canada, H3B SE6‘The current densities experienced by FCAW or MCAW wires are higher than GMAW solid wires of equal diameters at equal average amperages, due to their inherent disparities in the wire cross sections. The FCAW and MCAW wires also contain certain amount of non-metallics These two factors contribute to better wetting and higher are speeds for the MCAW process compared to the GMAW process. Metal Transfer Modes- Semiautomatic welding processes Several modes of transfer exist for the GMAW and MCAW processes. The slag system in the FCAW wires complicates the are transfer mechanisms and may not exhibit the distinet transfer transitions displayed by the GMAW process. Short-circuit transfer occurs at relatively low voltages and is characterized by a succession of rapid ignition and extinction of the welding are. Short-circuit transfer is very suitable for welding thin material in all welding positions. In globular transfer, the welding parameters are greater than those of short-circuit transfer. The arc is continuous but the transfer is erratic and somewhat inefficient. This typically results in limited penetration, irregular bead appearance and excessive amounts of spatter. Welding is generally restricted to flat or horizontal positions. Consequently, globular transfer is generally to be avoided. In spray transfer the welding parameters are greater than those of globular transfer. However, due to the higher welding parameters, the weld pool is very fluid which limits the application of spray transfer GMAW & MCAW processes to flat or horizontal positions. In pulsed transfer the welding are pulses within a set of background and peak power settings. In the background settings, the welding arc does not extinguish and in the peak pulse settings, the welding arc can be in the spray mode. In the pulsed transfer, due to a precise control on the heat input, out of position welding can be made possible to produce a quality weld while using the GMAW or MCAW processes. New advances in the inverter power sources, electronic controls and greater reliability of the hardware, have permitted better welding productivity of automated processes. Using the pulsing capability of a power source, it is now possible to introduce two wires in the same weld puddle. The wires are independently powered to operate with peak pulses in phase or completely out of phase. The two-wire GMAW in the twin or tandem mode will in general double the deposition rate of the single wire, or increase the arc speed substantially. OBSERVATIONS AND DATA Ae Stability -Carbon steels and stainless stecls Binary mixtures Arc stability relates to the degree to which the arc remains unchanging between the electrode and the work piece. As arc stability diminishes, the arc may wander about the surface of the weld pool, fluctuate in intensity and/or possibly cease momentarily. In GMAW welding, the shielding gas influences the size and shape of the plasma column, Arc stability depends on variety offactors. The two most important factors are the physical and chemical properties of the shielding gas mixture. The physical properties of gases, which affect the plasma column, are, ionization potential, thermal conductivity, and specific gravity. The chemical properties of the gas will influence the wetting ability of the are. Both these factors will determine the arc stability ‘Thermal conductivity is an important physical property of a gas that influences significantly arc transfers. A higher thermal conductivity plasma column will constrict in size, whereas, as lower thermal conductivity plasma will expand, to transmit equal quantities of heat, Case in point would be Helium and Carbon dioxide. Both these gases display relatively high thermal conductivities at the arc temperatures. As a result of the constricted plasma column, localized electron condensation heating underneath the molten wire tip will contribute favorably towards a globular transfer. (Ref.2) Argon has a lower thermal conductivity compared to Helium and Carbon dioxide at are temperatures. The plasma column with an Argon shielding will expand beyond the molten wire tip and extend upwards, creating more surface for electron condensation heating, This heating process will rapidly melt the wire, producing a fine point at the end of the wire. Simultaneously, the presence of the strong Lorentz forces, the rapid melting will produce a fast stream of fine droplets, impinging on the base metal, producing deep directional penetration. (Fig. 1) Additions of progressive levels of carbon dioxide to pure Argon will proportionately shift the balance from a pure spray transfer mode to a globular mode. A 10% CO, mixture in Argon will be able to produce spray transfer. Beyond 15% CO» content, the mixture will be progressively incapable of producing true spray transfer. At 25% CO; in Argon, this mixture, will be unable to produce a spray transfer. Such a mixture cannot be used for spray or pulsed spray transfer. It therefore follows that for a stable metal transfer, it is best to stay clear of the globular transfer zone. GMAW and MCAW welding of carbon steels, with pure helium or CO» will produce an unstable globular arc transfer (Ref.3) and therefore is seldom used in practice. If pure Argon is used to perform GMAW welds in carbon steel or stainless steels, it can be seen that welding arc is also fairly unstable. The deposited weld will not easily wet the steel surface, and will very likely produce weld discontinuities. If one were to add progressive additions of CO; or Oz, to pure Argon, and observe the welding arc, instantaneous arc stabilization occurs upon additions of small amounts of oxidizing species. Figures 2 & 3 illustrate this dramatic weld stabilization for carbon steel GMAW welds. A similar effect is produced while welding stainless steel. In summary, the are stabilization is confirmed by improved weld bead wetting, thus producing a much wider weld bead as the gas transits from pure argon to a mixture, as seen in Figures 2 & 3. Video images in figure 2 were obtained in a simple welding experiment. While maintaining fixed welding parameters, shielding gas was changed from 100% Argon, to Ar + 5% CO3; Ar + 10% C02; Ar + 15% CO, ete every ten seconds. Video images were captured through a speed glass mounted on the automatic carriage. Welding arc travels from left to right in each picture. Video images for figure 3 were obtained in a similar manner for Argon- O mixtures.In manufacturing practice, welders will quickly notice the change in the welding are, if an on site ‘gas mixer becomes unstable. Argon + CO; blends are more susceptible to variations, as the CO; line from the bulk to the mixer can freeze up when the draw capacity is exceeded. The welding arc will tend to become unstable, due to lack of CO; in the shielding. It may be days, before the problem is discovered! The beneficial effect of oxygen on improving the fluidity, wetting and penetration of the weld bead has been well documented by P. G. Jénsson (Ref.4). Beyond are stabilization, progressive additions of the oxidizing species to the welding atmosphere, will, contribute to loss of alloying elements through the welding are. Progressive amounts of CO> additions will also increase the welding fume emissions. ‘Temary mixtures While welding carbon steels, using the GMAW and MCAW welding processes, the optimized chemistry of shielding gas to provide maximum flexibility for process application and reduction in fume levels points to a three-component mix. These mixes contain Argon as the principal gas with varying amounts of oxygen and CO», The advantages of these tri-mixes reside in reduction of the globular transfer window, while providing lower voltages to initiate spray transfer, The same gas can be used for short circuit transfer and pulsed or spray transfer covering various process applications reducing cylinder gas inventory. Fume Generation Rates for Fig. 4 summarizes the effect of CO; additions to shielding gas mixes on fume generation rates The data was developed for GMAW -ER 708-3 wires with various combinations of Argon, COr and O2 components. Fume generation is maximized while using pure COs, as shielding and are transfer would be globular, producing large amounts of spatter. CO; is relatively inexpensive compared to Argon. It is therefore a common practice to use 100% CO; shielding for FCAW welding. A fume generation analysis was conducted in a rail car manufacturing plant. The plant employed more than 600 welders and was using an all position rutile 1.6 mm diameter FCAW - ETIT-9 wire with 100% CO> shielding, Data in Table 1 (Ref.5) shows that through choice of optimized filler wire and an optimized three part shielding gas mix, fumes could be reduced by 4,752 Kg per year! Pure CO: shielding produced highest amount of pollution, at 12,790 Kg of fumes per year. It should be noted that the fume generation calculation is based on fume particulate matter captured on the test filters (AWS F 1.2-92,) Arc Stability ~Aluminum and high Nickel alloys In aluminum welding hydrogen porosity is often a problem. The high stability of aluminum oxide creates an instantancous oxide film on the wire and base metal surface. Ambient humidity reacts with the surface oxide forming chemical compounds containing water. Due to this natural process, improperly stored welding wire or non-wire brushed weld groove prior to welding may contribute to moisture in the welding arc. The moisture dissociates under the arc and hydrogen dissolves in the weld metal to create porosity upon cooling.Using clean consumables and increasing weld-freezing time through modulated or interrupted spray transfer, aluminum welds have shown reduction in weld bead porosity. Experiments have also demonstrated that additions of Oxygen to Argon and Argon-Helium mixtures greatly stabilize the aluminum weld puddle permitting higher travel speeds. Fig. 5 shows the effect of additions of oxygen through the contact tip, while welding aluminum, The researchers observed a 20% improvement in travel speed. ( Ref. 6) While GMAW welding of high nickel alloys such as Inconcl 625 and 600 series, difficulties are often encountered with the sluggishness of the weld puddle, Helium or hydrogen additions to Argon generally help, adding heat to the weld pool and improving the fluidity of the weld. Recent experimental work on micro-additions of CO: to Argon, Argon-Helium and Argon- Hydrogen mixtures has shown beneficial effect of stabilizing the arc (Ref. 7). Optimized micro- additions of CO; in the ppm range improve not only the bead appearance and shape (Fig.6), but also the are speeds. Shielding gases, their oxi ‘The European standard on shielding gases EN 439: ‘Welding consumables ~ Shielding gases for are welding and cutting’ classifies gases according to their oxidation potentials. The prefixes R(reducing), inert), M(oxidizing), C(highly oxidizing) and Flunreactive) are used for classifying the gas species. The Canadian standard CSA W48-01 (March 2001) recognizes the oxidation potential of shielding gases for prequalification of gas - wire combinations. ‘The oxidation potential is calculated by: % O2 + ¥ % COz.(Ref. 8) The AWS standard on shielding gas classification A 5.32 is more related to the composition of the gas mixes. Thus, a gas mixture containing 87%Ar + 10% CO, + 3% O2 would be classified as: M24 (EN439 European standard) & $G-ACO-10/3 (AWS 5.32) Evolution of chemistry and mechanical properties of weld metals deposited with varying oxidation potential of shielding gases From the carlier discussion it can be deduced that, as the oxidation potential in the shielding gas increases, some alloying elements will be lost through the arc. Carbon, silicon, manganese would be progressively lost as the oxidation potential of the shielding mix increases. It follows therefore that the strength of the weld will start deteriorating, as the alloying elements are lost through the oxidation process. Table 2 documents the loss of alloy content in weld deposits in Ar-O; and Ar-CO; atmospheres ( Ref.9). Tables 3, illustrates the variation in the mechanical properties of a 1% Ni MCAW tubular wire as it is coupled with gases in the Ar-CO, and Ar-COy-He systems. Notice that the Helium content has no significant effect on the tensile strength of the deposits. ( Ref 10)Tables 4 & 5 illustrate the variation of chemistries and mechanical properties of a mild steel tubular MCAW wire with shielding atmospheres of varying oxidation potentials in the Ar-O2, Ar-COp and Ar-CO;-O> mixes (Ref 10). Carbon pick up with increasing contents of CO>in the shielding gas — stainless steel weldmetal Increasing oxidation potential of the gas mixtures does not systematically reduce the carbon content of the weld deposit. Although the oxidation potential of the gas may increase with higher concentrations of CO;, the carbon content of the weld metal deposit may increase in proportion to the CO, content in the shielding gas, This may be of some significance when welding stainless steels with GMAW process. Should the weld deposit chemistry be required to be below 0.03%C, increase in CO, content of the shielding gas may offset the carbon in the deposit beyond the required limits. Table 6 and Fig.7 illustrate this variation, (Ref.11), Welding was conducted keeping the welding parameters constant in the spray transfer range. (300 amps, 29 volts, 0.045” diameter wire) The carbon transfer would be different in short circuit mode. This behavior of carbon content is not consistently repeated for stainless steel FCAW wires due to the chemical and arc transfer interference from the slag systems. Effect of shieldin, le hydrogen content of weld metal The relationship between cold cracking and diffusible hydrogen for carbon steels has been well documented in literature. Hydrogen can be introduced in the welding arc through many sources. In semiautomatic welding processes, the hydrogen may come from the filler metal, moist base metals, shielding gas, and atmospheric humidity in absence of adequate gas shielding. Moisture in the shielding gas mixture is measured by its dew point, and most shielding gas mixtures for welding are supplied with less than 10 ppm of moisture in the cylinder, Ruge & Dickehut (Ref.12) demonstrated the effect of ambient atmospheric humidity on weldmetal diffusible hydrogen content, in a controlled experiment for SMAW consumables, In this experiment, tested and sealed vacuum packed electrodes from the same lot were shipped to Various locations around the world and tested for diffusible hydrogen weldmetal content in those locations. It is interesting to note that the electrodes tested in Zurich and New Orleans produced results of 1.7 ml/100g and 4.6 ml/100g respectively, reflecting the influence of the ambient atmospheric conditions. The results are tabulated in table 7 Fortunately for the semiautomatic welding processes, due to an efficient gas shielding provided by the welding system, in an ideal set up, the atmospheric variations of temperature and humidity should not affect the deposited diffusible hydrogen content, However, inadequately stored filler metals, can quickly pick up moisture in a humid environment. This deterioration can occur while the wire spool has been left in the shop or on the feeder, in a humid environment, during the weekend, and welding is resumed after several days ( Fig.8). In the manufacturing process of fabricated tubular wires, drawing soaps are frequently used Soaps usually are hygroscopic, and if the wire baking is not adequate, residual soap on the wirewill contribute to the hydrogen pick phenomenon, Some manufacturers have perfected wire drawing techniques, where wires are rolled rather than drawn to avoid use of drawing soaps. Such wires are not baked and display a shinny look, as opposed to an oxidized appearance. Wires produced in this manner are generally cleaner and offer a better electrical contact, hence a smooth arc transfer. FCAW consumables also have many slag formers in the core that can be hygroscopic. Untreated rutile and are stabilizing titanates can significantly contribute to humidity pick up over short time. Due to some of the above reasons, FCAW wires can display varying degrees of susceptibility to hydrogen pick up as observed by D.D. Harwig et al. (Ref.13) Their work indicates that rutile FCAW wires after one week exposure to 80°F/80% R.H. conditions increased in the deposited diffusible hydrogen content of the weldmetal from 4 to 8 mi/100g for ‘one wire and 8 to 27 ml/100g for another wire respectively. Due to the lack of are stabilizers and other non-metallic substances in the core, metal-cored wires are less susceptible to moisture pick up. The MCAW wire diffusible weldmetal contents increased from 11ml/100g to 12 ml/100g, after one-week exposure to 80°F/80% R.H. conditions. The initial high level of hydrogen would be related to the manufacturing variables in the processing of the MCAW wire as discussed earlier. It is now commercially possible to produce MCAW wires to contain less than 3 ml/100g of hydrogen in the weld deposit, consistently, All position rutile FCAW wires often display worm-tracking porosity on the weld deposit, when the wire has absorbed moisture during inadequate storage ( Fig.9). If worm-tracking porosity is a persistent problem, and assuming that the wire cannot be changed due to a variety of reasons, three solutions may be considered to reduce the worm-tracking porosity. Firstly, welding could be conducted at lower amperage but with a longer electrode stick out, The resistance heating of the wire extension may evaporate some of the moisture on the wire, before it enters the welding are. Alternatively, the first two layers of the wire spool could be discarded and welds reattempted Secondly, using shielding gases with higher oxidation potential will reduce the weldmetal diffusible hydrogen contents as seen in Table 8. The mechanism for observed reduction of weldmetal diffusible hydrogen content through use of higher oxidation potential shielding gases is not well understood. However, a mechanism related to gas/metal interface can be postulated Increasing CO. content of the shielding gas will generally promote globular transfer. The increase of the droplet size, in the arc plasma, will reduce the droplet surface area compared to fine droplet spray transfer at similar deposition rates. Reduced droplet surface area, in the arc plasma, will proportionally reduce hydrogen transfer to the weldmetal. This solution should not be perused without revision or requalification of the corresponding welding procedures! Lastly, if the FCAW wire was supplied on metal wire baskets, the wire could be dried at a recommended temperature from the supplier. All cardboard inserts would have to be removed and reapplied under strict traceability control. This type of procedure should not be undertaken with out the consent of the filler metal supplier and written approval from the responsible welding engineering and quality assurance authorities.Effect of nitrogen on weld metal prope The deleterious effect of nitrogen on mild steel weld metal toughness is well known, Fig. 10 shows experimental results of impact tests conducted on carbon steel 1% Nickel metal-cored wire at -40°C. The shielding gas was doped with progressive amounts of nitrogen, to increase the nitrogen content of the weldmetal. As the nitrogen content of the weldmetal increased from 50 ppm to 250 ppm, the impact energy dropped from 100 Joules to below 20 joules at -40°C test temperature. Ferritic weld metals deposited with a shielding gas containing nitrogen in excess of 6% or 250 ppm. in the weldmetal will generally lead to weld porosity. While filling shielding gas cylinders, care is taken to ensure that all residual air is removed and the risk of nitrogen contamination is limited. Most gas manufacturers will control the nitrogen content in the shielding gas below 100 ppm. Other sources of nitrogen in FCAW, GMAW welds would originate from the steel used to manufacture the welding filler metal or base metal dilution. While welding austenitic stainless steels, it should be remembered that nitrogen is a strong austenite stabilizer. Intentional additions of controlled amounts of nitrogen to the shielding gas will result in reduction of ferrite levels in the welds. Adequate level of ferrite in the austenitic weldmetal is desirable, to avoid the risk of hot cracking. Duplex and super duplex stainless steel base metals are designed to contain controlled amounts of Nitrogen. Addition of nitrogen to the weldmetal also increases its strength. While using GTAW and GMAW welding processes to weld duplex stainless steels, shielding gases containing controlled amounts of Nitrogen (Ref .15) are often used to obtain a superior ferrite control, conserve strength and improve pitting resistance of the welds,SUMMARY In this brief overview of choice of shielding gases and the associated variation of mechanical properties of weld metals, possible mechanisms and concepts have been described to help understand the tendencies of the changes. Minute additions of oxidizing species to the gas mix shows improvement in are stabilities in stecl, stainless steel, aluminum and high nickel alloys. Oxidation potential of the shielding gases have shown to influence the mechanical properties of the deposited weld metals and diffusible hydrogen contents of the weld metals. The influence of Nitrogen on weldmetal properties of carbon steels and stainless steels is discussed. CONCLUSION 1. Observation of the welding arc while progressively increasing the oxidation potential of the shielding mixture shows are stabilization. 2. Progressive amounts of CO, additions to the shielding gas will generally increases the welding fume emissions. 3. Addition of 1-2% oxygen to Argon, shows beneficial stabilizing effect on the welding arc even while welding aluminum, (Patent pending) 4. Very small additions of CO> to Argon stabilize a GMAW-P are while welding high nickel alloys. (Patent pending) 5. GMAW, FCAW, MCAW deposits in mild stee! loose strength and alloying elements with increasing oxidation potential of the shielding gases 6. Increasing CO, content of an Argon base gas can contribute to carbon pickup in stainless steel welds. 7. Improper storage of FCAW consumable can result in substantial increase in diffi hydrogen content and may cause worm-tracking porosity. Some remedies have been suggested 8. Increasing oxidation potential of the shielding gas reduces the diffusible hydrogen content of the weld deposit. 9. Controlled addition of nitrogen to a shielding gas mixture for duplex stainless steel facilitates superior ferrite control, conserve strength and improve pitting resistance of the welds le ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The author wishes to acknowledge various people who contributed to the experimental data cited in this work. Special thanks are due to Mr. Jean Venne, Mr. Joe Smith, Mr. Pierre Geoffroy of Air Liquide Canada and Mr. J. M. Fortain and Dr. Christian Bonnet of CTAS, Air Liquide France, who have actively shared technical data and concepts with the author for this publication,10, UL. 12. REFERENCES: Vaidya, V.V. November 1989. “Flux cored Are welding wires ~ Factors affecting selection” Canadian Welder and Fabricator. Kim, Y. S. June1989. Ph.D. Thesis, Department of Material Science & Engineering, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139 Ushio, M.; Ikeuchi, K.;Tanaka, M.;Seto, T. 1993. “Effect of shielding gas composition on metal transfer phenomena in high current GMA welding” Trans, JWRI, Vol. 22 (1993) No.1 Jénsson, P.G.; Murphy, A. B.; Szekely, J.; 1995. “The influence of oxygen additions on Argon shielded gas metal arc welding processes” Welding Journal, Feb. 1995 Vaidya, V.; Hebert, P; Venne, J; 1999, Welding Efficiency audit Internal report - “CAP- Audit Report ALC-A99-7M”. March 1999 Bonnet, C.;Air Liquide, France, Internal research document — 2000. CTAS report No, 1341.“ Increase in MIG welding productivity (penetration and welding speed) of aluminum and aluminum alloys — oxygen doping of Argon and Argon-Helium mixtures. Bonnet, C.; Air Liquide, France, Internal research document - 2000. CTAS report No, 1343. “Improvement of productivity and quality in MIG welded joints in Nickel based alloys - CO, doping of Argon, Argon-Helium and Argon-Hydrogen mixtures Stenbacka, N.; Persson, K. A.:1989. " Shielding gases for gas metal arc welding” Welding Journal, November 1989 Fortain, J. M.; Air Liquide Training document - CHIM3, 1994, “ Deposit chemistries with oxidizing gas mixtures”, Product certification testing, CWB bi- annual testing 1996 ~1997, Air Liquide Canada Inc., Boucherville, Quebec laboratories Venne, J; Richard, S.; Dec 1998, “ Stainless steel welds made under Argon- COs atmospheres” Final year student project- CEGEP de Trois Rivitres, Que, Canada. Ruge & Dickehut. 1988. SchweiBen und Schneiden 40 (1988) 5, 238/241 English language E78, E79 Harwig, D.D.;Longnecker, D. P.; Cruz, J. H.; 1999, “Effects of Welding parameters and Electrode atmospheric exposure on the diffusible hydrogen content of gas shielded Flux cored are welds” AWS Welding Joumal, September 1999 Mirza, R.M.; Gee, R.; 1999. “ Effects of shielding gases on weld diffusible hydrogen contents using cored wires” Science and Technology of Welding and Joining, Vol 4, No. 21999 . ARCAL 129, European patent No, EP 680802. 10Electrode (+) Plasma Column Fig. 1 — High thermal conductivity gases like Helium promote globular transfer (left side sketch). Low thermal conductivity gases like Argon, expand the plasma column and promote spray transfer( right side sketch).100% Argon lye les [elt] 5% CO2 Fig, 2 - Addition of 5% CO: o pure Argon, improves weld bead wetting for mild steel GMAW welds100% Argon 98% Argon 2% Oxygen 7 Fig, 3 — Addition of 2% O2 to pure Argon, improves weld bead wetting for mild steel GMAW welds. Similar effect can be seen for stainless steel welds.Wire ER 7083 dia.: 1.2mm 280 - 300 A 28-30V Fig. 4 — Effect of gas composition on fume generation rate. X-axis numbers are percentagesFig. 5 —In GMAW aluminum welding, addition of oxygen to Argon shielding was shown to increase arc speeds by 20%, due to arc stabilization. In one case Argon + 1.5% O2 ‘mixture was used, in another case pure Argon was used as shielding, but 0.3 L/min flow of oxygen was introduced through the contact tip. The surface oxide was easy to remove by wire brushingFig, 6¢: Ar+ COz Fig, 6d: ArtHe+ CO; Fig. Ge: Ar+Hs* uw CO> Fig. 6 — Up to 25% improvement in arc speeds of PULSED GMAW welding of high nickel alloys, can be obtained by micro addition of CO> to Argon, Argon-Helium and Argon-Hydrogen mixtures while improving the bead appearance0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 % Carbon in deposit Fig. 7 - Carbon variation in stainless steel weld deposits with Ar/CO> mixes (Ref. 10) 0.06Fig. 8 - FCAW consumable inadequately stored in a shop for several days Fig. 9 - Worm-tracking porosity in a weld bead deposited with inadequately stored FCAW consumable8 8 Energy: Cv Joules at -40°C 80 60 40 20 0 50 100 150 200 250 Weldmetal N2 content, ppm Fig 10. ~ Deleterious effect of Nitrogen on impact energy of carbon steel weldmetalsStatus _|E71T-9 &E71T-OMFume genoration| Wire feed Voltage | Shielding gas | Fume Burden FCAW 1/16" dia | rate: g/min__| speed: igm Inuse pre-audit] Wire A 1.066 350 av | 100% C02 | 12,792Kg Proposal 1 Wire 0.768 380 2eV_ | 75% Argon | 9,996 Kg 25% CO2 Proposal 2 Wire A 0.881 380 2ev_ | 75% Argon | 10,672 Kg 25% CO2 Proposal 3 Wire 0.949) 380 Pav | 75% Argon | 17,388 Kg 25% CO2 eat Proposal 4 Wire B 0.670 350 2ev |Ar+He+CO2/ 8,040 Kg Table 1: Fume burden calculations for wire-gas combinations. Results obtained from a welding efficiency audit performed in a rail car plant for 200,000 hours of 100% arc time.GMAW Weldmetal chemistry variation with increasing % Or in Argon shielding mixture GMAW Weldmetal chemistry variation with increasing % CO: in Argon shielding mixture Wirelgas | %C %Mn | %Si Wirelgas | %C %Mn | %Si Wire 01 1.48 09 Wire | 0.08 1.25 073 2% O02 | 0.085 092 042 10% CO; | 0.065 0.98 057 10% 02 | 0.08 0.89 04 18% CO; | 0.07 0.93 05 15% Or | 0.078 0.82 03 35% CO; | 0.08 0.89 0.42 18% 0, | 0.075 0.78 032 Table 2: GMAW weldmetal chemistry variations with Ar/O, and Ar/CO> gas mixes (Ref.8)Mechanical Properties of 1%Ni metal cored wire — same wire for all tests Shielding gas UTS Mpal YS in Mpa) %E Impacts, Cv Joules @ -51°C 100% CO> 554 497 | 30. 71,62,64,49,69 Ar+15%CO2 | 613 572.5) 75,62,68,82,45 ArtHe+15% CO2| 616 557 | 30 61,72,95,92,79 Table 3: MCAW weld metal properties with Argon/CO,/helium gas mixes (Ref.9) ‘Weld metal chemistries of E4802C-6-CH metal cored wire! All tests done with the same wire spool Shielding gas %C | %Mn % Si Art2% O2 0.06 113 0.56 Art5% Op 005 | 1 0.47 Art10% COr 0.05 1.37 0.77 Ar+25% COz 0.05 13 0.66 Art4% 02-45% CO;| 0.04 1.25 0.67 CSA W485 |0.18max| 1.75max.| 0.90 requirements | Table 4: MCAW variation in weld metal chemistries with Argon/Oxygen/CO) mixtures (Ref. 9)[ Mechanical Properties of E4802C-6-CH metal cored wire - all tests done with same wire spool Shielding gas UTS Mpa | YS in Mpa | %E! — Impacts, Cv oe Pt 1 | Joules @ -30°C Ar+2% Ox sia 450° 27.5 8 Ar+5% Op 499 430 29 7 Ar+10% CO? 542 467 29 92 At+25% CO2 514 435 {25.5 12 Ar+4% O245% COr 533 456 | 30 58 CSA W48.5 500min | 410min | 22 7 requirements (Ref.9) Table 5: MCAW mechanical properties of weld metals with Argon/Oxygen/CO> mixtures Carbon % | 0.012 with the same wire spool 0.0169 Carbon variations in GMAW stainless steel weldmetals Argon/CO> gas mixes 0.0232 \Wire/Gas mix|ER308L Si Ar/2%CO2Ar/5%CO> Ar/8%CO3 0.0301 ‘Ar/10%COp|Ar/ 15%CO>| 0.0348_|_0.0408 |Ar!25%COs) 0.053 Table 6: Carbon variation in stainless steel weld deposits with Ar/CO, mixes (Ref. 10)Location [Scotland Zurich Tokyo Rio New Orleans Cape Town Ditfusible Hydrogen| mi/100g January 2 17 17 4a 28 34 August 36 3104587 46 29 Table 7: Effect of ambient humidity on diffusible hydrogen contents ~ SMAW vacuum packed consumablesGas Mix Oxidation Potential Diffusible hydrogen: ml/100; | ©%+ 12. CO,%) i 2 GMAW | MCAW AW Ar 0 1.85 9.47 Ar-2% O2 2 201 | 934 | Ar-5% COr 25 tsi | 882 | 104 Ar-15% CO; 75 95 ‘Ar-20% CO 10 129 | 57 100% CO. 50 oss | 37 | 75 Table 8. Deposited weldmetal diffusible hydrogen content vs. oxidation potential for GMAW, MCAW and FCAW processes (Ref. 9 & Ref. 14)Electrode (+) Plasma Column100% Argon95% ARGON 5% CO, ee «100% ARGON _98% Argon 2% Oxygen aBe od aoe een eed