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Welding
Welding is a way of heating pieces of metal using electricity or a flame so that they melt and stick together. There are many kinds of welding, including arc welding, resistance welding, and gas welding. The most common type is arc welding. Anyone who is near arc welding needs to wear a special helmet or goggles because the arc is so bright. Looking at the arc will hurt your eyes, maybe forever. It is also important to cover all your skin because it can give you something like a sunburn. Hot sparks from the weld can burn any skin that is showing. One kind of welding that does not use an arc is Oxy-fuel welding (OFW), sometimes called gas welding. OFW uses a flame to heat up the metal. There are other kinds of welding that do not use an arc.
Arc Welding
Any welding process that utilizes an electrical arc is known as arc welding. The common forms of arc welding include: Shielded metal arc welding (SMAW): SMAW is also known as "stick" welding.
Gas metal arc welding (GMAW): GMAW is also known as MIG (metal/inert gas welding). Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW): GTAW is also known as TIG (tungsten inert gas welding). Arc welding heats metals by making a high-current electric arc between pieces of metal to be joined and an electrode. Use of the electrode varies based on the type of welding process. In SMAW, GMAW, and related welding processes, the electrode is consumed and becomes part of the weld. The electrode is usually made of the same kind of metal to be welded. Because the electrode is consumed by the welding process, the electrode must constantly be fed into the weld. The SMAW welding process features an "stick" electrode impregnated with a weld promoter known as flux, clamped to the end. The GMAW welding process features a continuous electrode as a thin wire on a rotating spool. The size of this electrode varies from around 0.635 millimeters to about 4 millimeters. The welding machine has a motor-driven spool inside that feeds the wire electrode into the weld. The TIG welding (GTAW) process features an electrode that is not consumed by the welding process as the metal that makes up the weld does not have any electricity flowing through it. The electrode is made of Tungsten, so used as it will not melt while immersed in the electrical arc. A filler metal, in the form of a rod, can be used to add metal to the weld area. Almost all welding uses filler metal to fill in the small gap between the metal. The extra metal helps to make the weld strong. Sometimes welds need to be made without any filler metal. Welding with no filler metal is called autogenous welding.
Welding
Welding
Other websites
The American Welding Society [1]
References
[1] http:/ / www. aws. org/
License
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported http:/ / creativecommons. org/ licenses/ by-sa/ 3. 0/