TWI Industrial Member Report Summary 208/1983
By S A Westgate and P L Threadgill
Background
The influence of single phase a.c. and three phase secondary rectified d.c. power supplies and of certain welding parameters on the bend properties and toughness of flash welded 51mm diameter carbon manganese steel bar to BS 2772 150M19 has been studied. One clean batch of steel was used throughout the work, having a low sulphur level of 0.005%. Specifically, upset pressure at three heating conditions, upset rate, flashing length and an alternative pulsation preheat technique have been investigated.
Charpy V notch impact properties of normalised welds reveal no significant differences between the power supply types in terms of weld quality. Similar toughness properties were achieved over a range of upset pressures and upset rates as, in the absence of defects, the weld microstructure was similar at each condition.