Development Of Cost Effective Agglomerated Fluxes From Waste Flux Dust For Submerged Arc Welding Vinod Kumar Dr. Narendra Mohan Dr. J.S.Khamba Abstract: Submerged arc welding contributes to approximately 10% of the total welding. Approximately 10% -15% of the flux gets converted into very fine particles termed as flux dust before and after welding, due to transportation and handling. If welding is performed without removing these very fine particles from the flux, the gases generated during welding are not able to escape, thus it may result into surface pitting (pocking) and even porosity. On the other hand, if these fine particles are removed by sieving, the cost of welding will be increased significantly. And if this flux dust is dumped/ thrown, will create the pollution. Therefore to reduce the cost of welding and pollution, in the present work attempts have been made to develop the acidic and basic agglomerated fluxes by utilizing wasted flux dust. The investigation of the present study showed chemical composition and mechanical properties of the all weld metal prepared from the developed fluxes and the parent fluxes to be in the same range. The welded joints were also found to be radiographically sound. Therefore the developed fluxes prepared from the waste flux dust can be used without any compromise in mechanical properties and quality of the welded joint. It will reduce the cost of welding and pollution. Keywords: Agglomerated fluxes, submerged arc welding, tensile properties, toughness I.INTRODUCTION Submerged arc welding process is characterized by higher metal deposition rate, deep weld penetration, and high speed welding of thin sheet steels at over 2.5 m/min and with minimum emission of welding fume or arc light. Deposition rates approaching 45kg/h have been minimal welding fume or arc light is emitted. Deposition rates approaching 45kg/h have been Manuscript received January 25, 2009. Vinod Kumar is with the University college of Engineering, Punjabi University, Patiala, India (Phone: 0919815625065; fax: 0911753046324 email: vk_verma5@rediffmail.com ) Narendra Mohan is with Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, India. (email: nmohansuri@yahoo.co.in ) J.S.Khamba is with the University college of Engineering, Punjabi University, Patiala, India. (email: jskhamba@yahoo.com) reported [1]. The molten weld and the arc zone are protected from atmospheric contamination by being “submerged” under a blanket of granular flux. This typical arrangement facilitates a slower cooling rate, which, in turn, improves both mechanical properties and metallurgical characteristics of weld bead [2]. Flux plays an important role in deciding the weld metal quality. Submerged arc welding fluxes are granular, fusible mineral compounds which blanket the arc and provide shielding, cleansing, and bead shape control [3]. Flux constitutes half of the total welding cost in submerged arc welding. They greatly influence process usability and weld metal mechanical properties [4]. It has been reported that agglomerated fluxes produce weld deposits of better ductility and impact strength as compared with fused fluxes [5]-[6]. These fluxes are hygroscopic in nature, therefore baking is essential for good weld metal integrity [7]. Data and Bandyopadhyay [8] has performed optimization to determine the amount of waste slag and flux mixture that can be used without sacrificing any negative effect on bead geometry, compared to conventional SAW process, which consumes fresh flux only. Prashad and Dwivedi [9] investigated the influence of submerged arc welding process parameters on microstructure, hardness and toughness of HSLA steel weld joints. No work so far has been performed to develop the flux by using flux dust. The present study has been conducted to investigate the feasibility of developing one acidic and one basic agglomerated flux by utilizing wasted flux dust of the parent commercial available fluxes. The chemical composition and mechanical properties viz. tensile strength and toughness of the all weld metal joint using developed fluxes as well as parent commercial fluxes of the same type were compared. The radiographic examinations of all the welded joints were conducted to check weld metal integrity. It was found that the chemical composition and mechanical properties of the all weld metal prepared by using the developed fluxes are in the same range as that of parent fluxes. The welded joints were also found to be radiographically sound. Therefore the developed fluxes prepared from the waste flux dust can be used without any compromise in mechanical properties and Proceedings of the World Congress on Engineering 2009 Vol I WCE 2009, July 1 - 3, 2009, London, U.K. ISBN: 978-988-17012-5-1 WCE 2009