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GENERAL POLICY

WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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HIS SECTION PROVIDES GENERAL STANDARDS and practices for performing welds and quality control of the welding processes on the Companys process piping at the propane piping (facilities).
GENERAL

Only welders qualified in accordance with Section 1.00 (Steel Welding Compliance) are permitted to weld on Company process piping. All welds will be performed in accordance with the equipment settings and procedures of Section 2.20 (Qualified Welding Procedure Specifications [QWPS]). If the person responsible for welding operations begins to see a noticeable change in discontinuities/defects in the weld tests; either production tests, continuity tests or requalification tests, for a company welder, the responsible party may require an eye exam be provided and/or additional training provided. The eye exam will include near vision acuity using the Jaeger J2 at 12 in. to 17in. testing. If the eye exam determines corrective lens are required by the Jaeger test, then the company will provide corrective lens for his welding helmet or require that corrective lens within his glasses be worn during all welding operations. When additional training is required, the welding inspector will approve the type of training required and obtain resources necessary to conduct the training. If the defects/discontinuities continue, the person responsible for welding operations reserves the right to disqualify the welder from further welding within the failed process. This could occur if the eye exam concludes the welders vision has surpassed a point where quality welds can no longer be produced; training is having little or no bearing on his ability to produce quality welds, or other relevant reasons determined by the person responsible for welding operations. If a contract welder begins to show signs of a noticeable change during testing as described above the person responsible for welding operation reserves the right to disqualify the welder from further welding within the failed process at Vectren. If this occurs and the contractor can prove that the welder has completed sufficient training following disqualification, and the company agrees, the contract welder can complete the appropriate testing or re-qualify depending on the severity of the continued defects/discontinuities as determined by the person responsible for welding operations their qualification may be reinstated.
PERSONAL SAFETY PROVISIONS

Before welding on Company propane process piping systems, welders will consider safety aspects such as: Purging all facilities of propane, these procedures do not address welding on live propane plant piping. Wall thickness at the location of the welding

To ensure that wall thickness is adequate and imperfections are not present, welders should ultrasonically inspect areas to be welded (see Section 3.09, Ultrasonic Wall Thickness

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WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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Inspection). Welding procedures are limited to welding wall thickness ranges based on the approved Qualified Welding Procedure Specifications (see Section 2.20, Qualified Welding Procedure Specifications (QWPS). Welders and welder helpers must comply with all Company safety practices, including the use of personal protective equipment. Welders will be equipped with, and responsible for periodic inspection and proper maintenance of, all welding or cutting equipment, as well as personal protective equipment, including, but not limited to: Welding helmets or goggles with appropriate lens shade for the welding or cutting process Safety glasses or face shields for grinding or power brushing Hearing protection for extended periods of grinding or power brushing Protective clothing Gloves

Protective eye covering must be worn by anyone in the immediate area of a grinding or drilling operation. Additional appropriate safety measures (e.g., using portable barriers or screens), should be used to protect others from overexposure of their eyes to the welding processes. Before welding in or around a structure or area containing propane facilities, personnel will use a combustible gas indicator (CGI) to test the atmosphere both above and below grade to determine if a combustible gas mixture is present. Welding may begin only when safe conditions are indicated. WARNING: Welding on Company propane facilities under pressure is prohibited. Do not use oxy-acetylene flame cutting torches on propane process piping where the facility may contain a combustible gas mixture. Welders also may not weld or cut on a pipeline facility containing air if that facility will be welded to one containing propane unless measures (e.g., controlling flow of propane with valves or stopping machines) are taken to prevent accumulation of propane where the welding will be performed.
EQUIPMENT CONSIDERATIONS

Welding equipment and electrodes must be of the size and type suitable for the particular job and must be maintained in a condition that will assure acceptable welds and continuous operation. Welding electrodes must be kept dry on the job. Work Lead Clamps, sometimes incorrectly referred to as ground clamps, should be of the mechanical type, designed, and maintained to prevent arc burns on the pipe. Do not weld the work lead clamp to the pipe. Do not weld any appurtenance onto the pipe with the sole intent of connecting the work lead to it and later grinding it off after the weld is made. Also, do not place a work lead connection into the weld joint that has been sharpened or torch cut to a point. These types of connections

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WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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do not have the proper cross sectional area for the amperage involved and may lead to overheating of the work lead cable, reduce the welding machines capability to provide proper amperage and voltages at a given setting. Unless inserts are added to visegrip type pliers or the teeth in the grip are ground smooth to provide adequate cross sectional area to carry the amperage involved and prevent arc burns they shall not be used for work lead clamps. Bungee cords may be utilized to help secure the connection to the pipe provided they are far enough from the weld to prevent overheating. Store gas cylinders for oxy-acetylene or gas metal arc welding with the valve end up and secured by a chain or clamp in a rack made for this purpose. The valve protection cap must be in place, hand-tight until the cylinder is placed in service. Keep cylinders away from sources of heat sources and electrical current. When cylinders are not in use, close the tanks shut-off valves. Do not use gas regulators and welding torches as a primary shut-off when not in use. When installing check valves, use Teflon tape and install the valves in line with oxygen and acetylene regulators. Inspect these valves periodically for leakage. Use flashback arrestors on oxygen and acetylene regulators, in both cylinder and manifold applications. Use Teflon tape on connections.
SITE CONSIDERATIONS WEATHER PROTECTION

When welding in poor weather conditions (i.e., excessive wind, rain, snow, etc.), the weld site should be protected (screened) from conditions which could adversely affect the weld. The protection should remain in place throughout the welding operation until the pipe has cooled to a hand hot condition (approximately 150 degrees F.). The Company will have the final decision concerning welding during inclement weather.
CLEARANCES AND SAFETY

When pipe is welded aboveground, the working clearance around the weld should be at least 18 inches. When pipe is welded in an excavation, the excavation must be large enough to provide the welder ready access to the joint, and easy escape in case of emergency. NOTE: Personnel must follow all appropriate trenching and shoring requirements and safety measures.
ELECTRICAL CONSIDERATIONS

When welding on lines protected by an impressed current (rectifier), the rectifier should be disconnected during welding. Portable electric equipment, such as grinders or drills, with an AC power source may be used in wet or grounded locations provided a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) type of over-current protection is installed in the power supply. Portable electric equipment with a DC power source does not require GFCI protection.

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WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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Grinders, drills or other motor driven electric equipment should be equipped with an instant trigger release that will shut off current when the machine is released from the operator's hands.
SITE CLEANUP

Welding rods and wire stubs should be placed in a container during and after the welding operation. Equipment and debris such as excess materials, containers, grinding disks, rods, should be removed from the excavation upon completing the welding operation.
WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

Before welding, the weld surfaces must be prepared for welding by machining or grinding. The weld surface must be smooth, uniform, and free of any foreign material that might be detrimental to the weld, including, but not limited to: Scale Slag Grease Paint Make sure joint design and spacing between butt-welded joints is in accordance with the QWPS Do not weld braces or supports to the pipe. Maintain minimum distances between welds: The recommended minimum distance between parallel butt welds is 12 inches or one pipe diameter, whichever is smaller. For shop fabrication or completely unrestrained conditions, the recommended minimum distance between parallel butt welds is one pipe diameter or four inches, whichever is less. The recommended minimum distance between adjacent fillet welds, or between a fillet weld and a butt weld, is 2 inches. Position pipe joints with longitudinal weld seams so the seams are in approximately the 10 oclock or 2 oclock position on the pipe and separated by a distance of at least one-fourth the pipe diameter. Align the abutting pipe lengths so the longitudinal welds are staggered at least 20 degrees. Proper joint alignment is imperative to prevent weld joint defects and pipe stresses. Aligning butt-welded joints will minimize offset between surfaces. For pipe with the same wall thickness, an offset greater than 1/16 inch (Hi-Low), caused by dimensional variations, must be equally distributed around the circumference of the pipe. Minimize hammering of the pipe to obtain proper line-up; if hammering is necessary, use only a non-ferrous hammer. Do not hammer cast or forged fittings.

In addition, adhere to these component-specific requirements:

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WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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Butt ends will be provided with mill bevels conforming to the joint design in the qualified welding procedure. Field bevels may be made by machining, grinding, or flame cutting. Bevels made by flame cutting must be dressed with a file or grinder, and must be reasonably smooth. The bevel dimensions must be in accordance with the QWPS. Tack welds at the root of the joint shall be made with filler metal equivalent to that used in the root pass. Tack welds shall be made by a qualified welder. Tack welds shall be fused with the rood pass weld, except that those which have cracked shall be removed. Between passes, remove scale and slag from each bead and groove, then clean by either hand or power tools per the QWPS. All welds will be made using the horizontal fixed position, except as otherwise specified by the welding procedure. Keep the pipe in the fixed position until the weld is completed and allowed to cool. When welding, make sure all starts and stops of filler passes will not be on the same spot of the stringer bead starts and stops. Remove by grinding all surface porosity clusters, bead starts, and high points before weld metal is deposited over them. Remove these same items on the cap weld as well. Completed welds must have a uniform cross section around the entire circumference of the pipe; at no point will the crown surface be below the outside surface of the pipe, nor raised above the outside surface by more than 1/16 inch. The face of the completed weld should be approximately 1/8 inch greater than the width of the original groove. Thoroughly brush, clean, and allow each completed weld to cool, before adding a protective coating to the joint.
PREHEAT

Preheat is required when: Using the Shielded Metal-Arc (SMAW) and Semi-Automatic Gas Metal-Arc (GMAW) process and the temperature is less than 40 F. During preheat, maintain the pipe temperature at approximately 100 F or as stated in the qualified welding procedure specification Section 2.20 (Qualified Welding Procedure Specifications [QWPS]). To preheat materials using a torch, use a multiflame-heating tip. Adjust the torch to provide a neutral flame, then apply heat with a continuous motion to avoid hot spots, over a region at least three times the thickness of the base metal on both sides of the weld joint. Verify the preheat temperature using one of these methods: Temperature indicating crayons Pyrometer Thermometer Other temperature indicating device

If crayons are used, melt points should be at least 100 F, but not more than 150 F. Allow the material to cool to the point where the crayon just melts when applied to the materials

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surface. It may be necessary to use two crayons of different melt points for reliable determinations. To confirm a good preheat, take a second temperature indication 30 seconds after the material has reached the preheat temperature. If below the proper temperature, apply more heat until a 30-second interval between two readings shows both readings at the proper temperature. Do not use liquids (e.g., water, snow, etc.) to hasten cooling of a weld. Allow the weld area to reach a "hand-hot" condition (approximately 150 F) before using liquids. Artificiallycooled welds will be rejected and removed from the pipeline.
TIME BETWEEN WELD PASSES

It is important that the hot pass weld is started within 5 minutes of completing the initial (root) bead pass. Under normal circumstances the fill and cap passes should be finished within 24-36 hours after completion of the hot pass. If a work stoppage e.g. a three day weekend occurs, this is acceptable providing no undue movement is found in the welded section and cleaning and preheat is performed, when necessary. Limiting the time between all passes will provide a better weld quality review by not delaying non-destructive testing of the weld when finished. If defects begin to occur in the root bead or hot pass it could create additional repairs that could have been caught early and remedied.
MITER JOINTS

When making mitered joints, make sure: The joints enable proper spacing, alignment and full penetration of the weld A miter joint on any process piping (fitting to pipe or pipe to pipe) will not exceed a 3 degree angular offset.

TRIMMING OF FITTINGS

Butt weld fittings manufactured in accordance with ASME 16.9 may be trimmed to produce an angular joint offset in their connections to pipe or to other butt weld fittings to no more than 3 degrees (ASME B31.3 Paragraph 328.4.2).
WELDING PIPE OF UNEQUAL WALL THICKNESS

If the nominal wall thickness of the adjoining ends varies less than 1-1/2 times the thickness of the opposite end no special end preparation is necessary provided full penetration and bond is accomplished. Whenever the nominal internal offset is more than 1-1/2 times the thickness of the other end, the joint may be taper cut on the inside end of the larger wall thickness (see Figure 2.00.2) or accommodated by the use of an intermediary section of pipe with a wall thickness between the two being welded (see Figure 2.00.3). The heavier wall pipe end is tapered back at an angle of between 14 and 30 degrees (see Figure 2.00.2).

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WELDING PROCEDURE MANUAL PROCESS PIPING INTRODUCTION: GENERAL WELDING STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

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14 Minimum 30 Maximum
Figure 2.00.2

14 Minimum 30 Maximum

14 Minimum 30 Maximum

Ex:

.188" wall thickness

.237" wall thickness

Figure 2.00.3

.250" wall thickness

EXAMPLE: .375/.250 = 1.5 which is equal to 1-1/2 times and would not require back beveling to accommodate the position of the top bevel and the land to join the smaller pipe wall thickness or a steel transition fitting. However, a .500 wall pipe joined to a .250 wall pipe (.500/.250 = 2.0 would require back beveling or a transition fitting. The key to remember is that as it approaches the 1-1/2 number the harder it will be for the welder to make the weld tie-in to the adjacent component. Using steel transition fittings is acceptable to accommodate pipe joining with unequal wall thicknesses greater than 1-1/2 times the thickness of the adjacent end. The yield strength of the transition fitting must be equal to that of the higher yield strength of the two sections. The transition fitting must be purchased to include bevels to fit the two ends and be at least 18 inches long or the length of the pipe diameter whichever is greater.
RECORD KEEPING

A record indicating the welders identification number will be maintained for each weld made on propane process piping.