TIG2
TIG2
This chapter describes different types of tungsten electrodes used in TIG welding
process besides selection of polarity and methods of initiating welding arc for TIGW
process. Further, the basic principle of pulse gas tungsten arc welding process has
also been presented.
Keywords: Tungsten electrode, coated W electrode, DCEN, DCEP, TIG arc initiation,
carbon block, pilot arc method, pulse TIG welding
15.1 Electrode for TIG torch
The electrode for tungsten inert gas welding process can be pure (uncoated) or
coated with Zr, La or Th. However, pure tungsten electrode offers shorter life than
coated electrodes because of rapid wear and tear of the pure tungsten electrode
owing to thermal damage caused by their low current carrying capacity. The damage
to electrode primarily occurs due to the fact that tungsten carbide (formed during
steel welding of reaction between W and C) has lower melting point than tungsten.
Particles generated from pure tungsten electrode due to thermal damage cause
contamination of the weldment as tungsten particles inclusions therefore; pure
tungsten electrodes are not used for critical welding applications.
Pure tungsten electrodes are frequently coated oxides of Th, Zr, La, and Ce. These
oxides are expected to perform two important functions a) increasing arc stability and
b) increasing the current carrying capacity of the electrodes.
Increase in arc stability of tungsten electrode in presence of the oxides of thorium,
cerium, zirconium and lanthanum is primarily attributed to lower work function of
these oxides than pure tungsten. Work function of pure tungsten electrode is 4.4eV
while that of Zr, Th, La and Ce is 4.2, 3.4, 3.3 and 2.6 eV respectively. Lower the
work function of the electrode material easier will be emission of electrons in the gap
between electrode and work piece which in turn will improve the arc stability even at
low arc voltage, and welding current.
Addition of the oxides of thorium, cerium, zirconium and lanthanum helps to increase
the current carrying capacity of pure tungsten electrode up to 10 folds. Size of
tungsten electrode is generally specified on the basis of its diameter as it largely
determines the current carrying capacity of a given electrode material. The current
carrying capacity of an electrode is also influenced by cooling arrangement in a
welding torch (air/water cooled), type of power source (DCEP/DCEN, AC), electrode
extension beyond collets, nozzle diameter and shielding gas. Typical electrodes for
TIG welding and suitable type of current are given below.
2% Cerium coated electrodes: Good for both AC and DC welding
1.5−2% Lanthanum coated electrode: Gives excellent low current starts for
AC and DC welding
2% Thorium coated electrode: Commonly used for DC welding and is not
preferred for AC.
15.2 Type of welding torch
Air cooled welding torch offers lower current carrying capacity than water cooled due
to the fact that water cooling reduces overheating of the electrode during welding by
extracting the heat effectively from the electrode.
15.2.1 Type of welding current and polarity
Current carrying capacity of an electrode with DCEN polarity is found to be higher
than DCEP and AC because DCEN generates lesser (30% of arc power) heat in
tungsten electrode side compared to the DCEP and AC. Therefore, electrodes with
DCEN polarity offer longer life with same level of welding current conversely higher
current capacity for the same life. Size of welding electrode for DCEP (for the same
current and life) should be larger than that for DCEN owing to higher heat generation
at anode than cathode for the same welding current. Current carrying capacity of
electrode for AC welding is generally found between that in case of DCEP and
DCEN as continuous change in polarity during the AC welding allows the somewhat
cooling of electrode when electrode is negative for one half of the cycle.
The selection of polarity for GTAW is primarily determined by the type of metal to be
welded. The DCEN polarity is preferred for welding of steel, and nickel alloys and
other metals where cleaning action is not very crucial for developing successful weld
joints. The application of DCEP polarity is not common and is preferred for shallow
penetration welding application like thin sheet welding. AC is commonly used for
welding of aluminum and magnesium to get advantage of cleaning action and
avoiding overheating of tungsten electrode.
Gas
nozzle Anode (contact tube)
Fig. 15.1 Schematic showing the mechanism of pilot arc imitation method
Ip
Current
Im
Ib
Tp Tb T Time
Fig. 15.2 Schematic showing parameters related with the pulse current and time.
Where Ip, Ib & Im are peak current, base current and mean current respectively while
Tp, Tb & T show pulse current duration, base current duration and total cycle time for
one pulse i.e. sum of pulse and base current period (in ms).
15.5.1 Process Parameters of Pulse TIG welding
Important variables in this variant of TIG welding are peak current, background
current, peak current duration (pulse duration) and duration of background current.
Peak and background current can be controlled independently depending upon the
characteristics of the base metal to be welded such as thickness, materials etc.