Oxyfuel Gas Welding & Cutting

Prof. G. L. Datta

Oxyfuel Gas Welding

Welding process that uses fuel gas combined with oxygen to produce a flame This flame heat melts the metals at the joint Acetylene fuel is used in gas welding process Primary combustion process C2H2 + O2 2CO + H2 + heat This reaction dissociates into carbon monoxide and hydrogen. Secondary combustion process 2CO + H2 + 1.5 O2 2CO2 + H2O + heat

Types of flames
Neutral flame Oxidising flame Carburising flame Filler Metals : Additional material to weld the weld zone Available as rod or wire They can be used bare or coated with flux The purpose of the flux is to retard the
C2H2 + O2 C2H2 + 1.1 O2 CO + H2 CO + H2 + O2

C2H2 + 0.9 O2

CO + H2 + C

Oxyfuel Gas Welding

Fig : Three basic types of oxyacetylene flames used in oxyfuel-gas welding and cutting operations: (a) neutral flame; (b) oxidizing flame; (c) carburizing, or reducing flame. The gas mixture in (a) is basically equal volumes of oxygen and acetylene.

Torch Used in Oxyacetylene Welding

Fig : (a) General view of and (b) cross-section of a torch used in oxyacetylene valve is opened and the flame adjusted. (c) Basic equipment used in oxyfuel-gas welding. To ensure correct connections, all threads on acetylene fittings are lefthanded, whereas those for oxygen are right-handed. Oxygen regulators are usually painted green acetylene regulators red.

Welding practice & equipment

STEPS :
Prepare the edges to be joined and maintain the proper position
Open the acetylene valve and ignite the gas at tip of the torch Hold the torch at about 45 deg to the work piece plane Inner flame near the work piece and filler rod at about 30 40 deg Touch filler rod at the joint and control the movement according to the flow of the material

Filler metal
In the form of rods of 1.6 to 6 mm Composition nearly same as that of the base material Available in a wide variety of compositions Mild steel rods are thinly copper coated to protect against rusting.

Gas welding flux

Used to prevent oxidation of weld metal To dissolve or facilitate removal of oxides and other undesirable substances Fusible and nonmetallic Available as powders, pastes or liquids A flux is needed for all metals except mild steel

Flux for gas welding

Cast iron Borates or boric acid, soda ash, sodium chloride Borax, boric acid, fluorspar KCl, LiCl

Stainless steel Aluminium alloys

Copper base alloys

Nickel base alloys

Borax, boric acid, phosphate, Mg2SiO3 B2O3, Ca(OH)2

Leftward or forward

Rightward or backward

1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Flame is away from the finished weld Preheating Flame spreads Less depth of penetration Used for thin metals, cast irons More filler metal

1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Flame is directed on the finished weld Post-heating Flame concentrated More depth of penetration Used for thick metals, steels Less filler metal

Advantages of gas welding

Very versatile can be applied to a wide variety of applications Temperature of the weld metal can be controlled by manipulating the flame position Rate of heating and cooling slow Deposition rate can be controlled independently Equipment is of low cost and portable Cost of maintenance of equipment is low

Disadvantages of gas welding

Suitable for thin sections only Slow process Fluxes may produce fumes which may be irritating to the eyes, nose, throat and lungs Refractory metals (e.g., W, Mo, Ta, etc) and reactive metals (e.g., Ti, Zr) cannot be welded Prolonged heating results in larger HAZ More safety problems associated with handling and storing of gases Flux shielding is not very effective Gases are costly.

Oxy fuel cutting

Chemistry of flame cutting Fe + O2 (at 870 deg C) FeO + heat (276 kJ) 3FeO + 2O2 Fe3O4 + heat (1120 kJ) Steps: Metal heated locally to 870 deg C Extra O2 supplied Exothermic reaction takes place this heat is sufficient to melt the metal and to sustain the process Heat of fusion of Fe: 13.81 kJ/mol

Oxy-acetylene gas cutting

Principle of fuel cutting

1. Exothermic reaction to produce sufficient heat to melt the metal energy for melting has to come from the exothermic reaction only 2. Oxides produced must have a melting temp lower than that of the base metal 3. Melting temps (in deg C) of some metals and their oxides: steel (1480), FeO (1300); cast iron (1250), SiO2 (1700); Al (670), Al2O3 (2050) 4. So steel can be easily cut and not aluminium.

O2

TORCH (PREHEAT)

OXYGEN VALVE

Review Questions
Why is it easy to cut mild steel using an oxyacetylene flame but not stainless steel? Why a carburizing oxy-acetylene flame cannot be used for welding mild steels but it can be used for welding aluminum alloys? Describe the physical characteristics of the three types of oxy-acetylene flames. What are the chemical reactions between the two gases? Why is oxy-gas cutting process called a chemical cutting process?