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PRESENTED BY

P.P. SARAVANAN
S. BALAPRASANNA

III YEAR MECHANICAL ENGINEERING,

A.V.C. COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING,
MANNAMPANDAL,
MAYILDUTHURAI – 609 305
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FLUX CORE ARC WELDING

BY

P.P. SARAVANAN
S. BALAPRASANNA
III YEAR MECHANICAL ENGINEERING,
A.V.C. COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING,
MANNAMPANDAL,
MAYILDUTHURAI – 609 305

ABSTRACT:

This paper is about “The Welding Technique adopted by many Industries to get Higher
productivity”. Flux cored arc welding (FCAW).
In this paper we focused on various aspect of flux cored arc welding.
The theme of the paper is to visualize FCAW & its unique applications.
The paper deals about
Concept
Working principle
Accessories
Equipment description
Welding parameters
Merits & Demerits.
Applications
Of Flux cored arc welding.
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FLUX CORE ARC WELDING

INTRODUCTION

At present, shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) and gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW)
are the most commonly used welding processes in the fabrication industries, but because
they are manual processes, productivity is limited. There are other processes available to
improve welding deposition rate and duty cycle. For welding positions and components
where mechanised welding is applicable, submerged arc welding (SAW) is a generally
preferred and most productive process. However, for all-positional welding and
particularly for fixed pipe or site welding, the ideal high productivity process is tubular
flux cored arc welding (FCAW).

This paper describes the potential productivity benefits of using FCAW for
manufacturing industries and presents joint completion rates and time savings in
comparison to other arc welding processes. FCAW is the process in which solid wire is
replaced by a flux cored electrode wire that is called as tubular wire.

This process is growing in popularity. Some FCAW still uses CO2 shielding, but use of
flux-cored wire alone is increasing.

CONCEPT

The FCAW is a process in which coalescence is produced by heating with an electric arc
between a continuous tubular consumable electrode and the work. The electrode is flux
cored that is the flux is contained with in the electrode which is hollow. In addition to
flux, minerals and ferro-alloys in the core can provide additional protection and
composition control. The flux cored electrode is coiled and supplied to the arc as a
continuous wire.
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WORKING PRINCIPLE

 FCAW utilizes the heat of an arc between a continuously fed consumable flux-
cored electrode and the work,

 The heat of the arc melts the surface of the base metal and the end of the
electrode.

 The melted electrode is transferred through the arc to the work piece.

 Shielding is obtained due to the disintegration of the cored flux contained in the
electrode.

 The ingredients contained in the electrode form a glass like slag, which is lighter
in weight than the deposited weld metal and which floats on the surface of the
weld as a protective cover.

 The flux cored electrode is automatically fed in to the arc from a coil.

 The arc is maintained automatically and arc travel can be manual or by machine.

FLUX CORE WIRE REEL

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WELDING EQUIPMENT DESCRIPTION

 A motor is used to control the feed of the wire which drive the electrode at a
preset and uniform rate.

 A Trigger for control of electrode feed and flows of gas which gives electric
current also.

 A mount for the spooled electrode.

 A control station containing the relays, solenoids and timers needed to integrate
the system.

 A power supply to provide current.

 A water supply for cooling if necessary.

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PHOTOGRAPH OF FCAW MACHINE

PRODUCTIVITY BENEFITS OF FCAW PROCESS

Deposition rate is often used as a measure of potential productivity, although many other
factors contribute to operator duty cycle and hence productivity. A graph of comparative
deposition rates of different welding processes is shown in Figure 1.

It should be pointed out that, although compared here, the solid wire gas metal arc
welding (GMAW) process has not found widespread use in the power generation industry
mainly due to concerns over lack-of-fusion, sensitivity to welder error and demands for
more sophisticated power sources
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10
FCAW (Supercore F91, 1.2mm)
GMAW (1.2mm)
SMAW (3.2-5.0mm)
8

Deposition Rate, kg/hr

6

0
50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

Welding Current, A

Figure 1. Deposition rate of FCAW process compared with

SMAW and GMAW processes

Flux cored wire, 1.2mm diameter, is capable of a deposition rate which is competitive
with all other arc welding processes except SAW [5]. This advantage is particularly
notable for positional welding, where the ease of use and high effective operating
currents come into their own. Compared with solid wire gas metal arc welding
(GMAW), a faster burn-off rate for tubular FCAW is also promoted by higher current
density at the wire tip and I2R resistance heating of the wire extension from the contact
tip. Moreover, the flux cored wire process, which utilises spray transfer, produces
reliable fusion and penetration in all welding positions.

The duty cycle possible with the FCAW process is also higher than for the GTAW and
SMAW processes, which further improves potential productivity compared to these
processes. The better duty cycle can be attributed to two main factors: the continuous
nature of the process and the all-positional capability of the process without the need for
a change in welding parameters. For some applications, especially numerous short
welds, the duty cycle of the FCAW process may also compete with SAW if the set-up
times and positioning of the joints into the flat position contribute a significant proportion
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of the time. The ability of the FCAW to weld thick section joints relatively quickly in all
position may allow the FCAW process to compete with SAW in these situations.

The FCAW process is expected primarily to replace the SMAW process; the GTAW
process will still be required for pipe roots and other small diameter or thin wall pipe, and
the SAW process will be preferred for very thick section welds that can be rotated or
manipulated into the flat position.

WELDABLE METALS

1. Low –to medium-carbon steels.

2. Low alloy high strength steels.
3. Quenched and tempered steels.
4. Cast Iron.

JOINT DESIGN

With edge preparation, welds can be made with a single pass on materials from 6mm
through 19mm.

With multipass technique and with joint preparation the maximum thickness is practically
unlimited. Horizontal fillets can be made up to 9.5mm in a single pass, and in the flat
position fillet welds can be made to 19mm.

For maximum utilization and efficiency, different joint details are suggested :

(a) For groove welds, the square groove design can be used up to 16 mm
thickness. Beyond this thickness, bevels are required; however, the included
angle of bevel groove welds can be reduced 35-50% over that normally used
for shielded metal arc welding. This is because the smaller size electrode wire
can get deeper into the joint.
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(b) Open root can be used; however, a root face is normally required to avoid
burning through. In many structural applications the weld is made with a tight
root opening and the back side is gouged and rewelded.

(c) When welding fillets welds using CO2 shielding also, the fillet size can be
smaller, yet will have the same strength as shielded metal arc welds.

WELDING PARAMETERS

The FCAW process normally used direct current with electrode positive i.e., DCEP or
DCRP.

Direct current with constant voltage power is normally employed.

When AC type specially formulated flux-cored electrodes are used, the drooping
characteristic type power source and voltage sensing feeders are employed.

The welding current for flux-cored arc welding can vary from as low as 50 amperes to as
high as 750 amperes. Most flux-cored arc welding is done in the range of 350-500
amperes when the 2.4mm electrode wire is used.

FLUX CORED ELECTRODE WIRE

Most of the Flux cored electrode wire is manufactured by passing low-carbon steel strip
through contour-forming rolls that bend the strip into a U-shape cross-section, which is
then filled with flux through a filling device. Then, the flux-filled U-shape strip passes
through closing rolls that form it into a tube and tightly compress the core materials. The
tube is then pulled through drawing dies that reduce its diameter and further compress the
core materials.

The finished electrode wire is wound into a continuous coil or on to spools, as required.
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The functions of cored-flux are :

(a) To act as deoxidizers or scavengers to help purify the weld metal and produce
a sound deposit

(b) The form slag to float on the molten weld metal and protect it from the
atmosphere during solidification.

(c) To Act as act stabilizers to produce a smooth welding arc and reduce weld
spatter.

(d) To add alloying elements to the weld metal to increase weld strength and to
provide other required weld metal properties.

(e) To provide shielding gas.

ADVANTAGES OF FCAW

 High deposition rate - nearly three to four times higher compared to other manual
welding processes.

 High quality of weld metal at lower cost.

 Low operator skill required than SMAW.

 More flexible and adaptable than SMAW.

 Smooth and Uniform welds, less liable to porosity.

 High travel speed and considerably reduced spatter.

 It Can be easily mechanized.

 Less precleaning required than SMAW.

 Reduced distortion over SMAW.

 All position capability.

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LIMITATIONS OF FCAW

Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world! All Welding methods have some Limitations.

 Used only to weld ferrous metals.

 Equipment is more expensive, however the increased productivity compensates

for this.

 It cannot be used easily in confined spaces and spaces with limited access.

APPLICATIONS OF FCAW

FCAW is widely used on medium thickness steel fabrication where the fine wire GMAW
process would not apply and where the fit-up is such that SAW would not apply.

FCAW is also used for surfacing and for builtups.

FCAW has been widely used for welding in bridges, high rise buildings, Ship building
and Offshore drilling platforms.

FCAW with Co2 gas shielding gives deeper weld penetration and can weld thickness
from 1.6mm to 13mm with no edge preparation. When Co2 is not used, the maximum
thickness welded is only about 6mm.

CONCLUSION

Today’s Flux Cored Arc Welding are the high productivity welding solution for many
applications.

High productivity Flux Cored Arc welding fills the gap between Submerged Arc welding
and conventional SMAW with excellent all position capabilities.

Take a look at Today’s FCAW capabilities.

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REFERENCES:

BOOKS:
 Dr R.S.Parmar, “ Welding process & technology”.
 A.Banerjee, “ welding procedures & applications”.
 L.M.Gourd,” Principles of welding technology”.
 Dr O.P. Kanna, “ A text book of Welding Technology”.
 Richard L.Little, “ Welding & Welding technology”.
WEBSITES:
www.weldingengineers.com
www.twi.co.uk
www.freestudy.co.uk