Oxy-Acetylene Welding and Cutting Part 9

The following data on cutting is given by the Davis-Bournonville Company:

Cubic Feet Cost of Thickness of Gas Inches Gases of Cutting Heating per Foot Oxygen Cut per per Foot Steel Oxygen Oxygen of Cut Acetylene Min. of Cut 1/4 10 lbs. 4 lbs. .40 .086 24 $ .013 1/2 20 4 .91 .150 15 .029 3/4 30 4 1.16 .150 15 .036 1 30 4 1.45 .172 12 .045 1 1/2 30 5 2.40 .380 12 .076 2 40 5 2.96 .380 12 .093 4 50 5 9.70 .800 7 .299 6 70 6 21.09 1.50 4 .648 9 100 6 43.20 2.00 3 1.311

_Acetylene-Air Torch._--A form of torch which burns the acetylene after mixing it with atmospheric air at normal pressure rather than with the oxygen under higher pressures has been found useful in certain pre-heating, brazing and similar operations. This torch (Figure 24) is attached by a rubber gas hose to any compressed acetylene tank and is regulated as to flame size and temperature by opening or closing the tank valve more or less.

After attaching the torch to the tank, the gas is turned on very slowly and is lighted at the torch tip. The adjustment should cause the presence of a greenish-white cone of flame surrounded by a larger body of burning gas, the cone starting at the mouth of the torch.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 24.--Acetylene-Air Torch]

By opening the tank valve more, a longer and hotter flame is produced, the length being regulated by the tank valve also. This torch will give sufficient heat to melt steel, although not under conditions suited to welding. Because of the excess of acetylene always present there is no danger of oxidizing the metal being heated.

The only care required by this torch is to keep the small air pa.s.sages at the nozzle clean and free from carbon deposits. The flame should be extinguished when not in use rather than turned low, because this low flame rapidly deposits large quant.i.ties of soot in the burner.

CHAPTER V

OXY-ACETYLENE WELDING PRACTICE

PREPARATION OF WORK

_Preheating._--The practice of heating the metal around the weld before applying the torch flame is a desirable one for two reasons. First, it makes the whole process more economical; second, it avoids the danger of breakage through expansion and contraction of the work as it is heated and as it cools.

When it is desired to join two surfaces by welding them, it is, of course, necessary to raise the metal from the temperature of the surrounding air to its melting point, involving an increase in temperature of from one thousand to nearly three thousand degrees. To obtain this entire increase of temperature with the torch flame is very wasteful of fuel and of the operator's time. The total amount of heat necessary to put into metal is increased by the conductivity of that metal because the heat applied at the weld is carried to other parts of the piece being handled until the whole ma.s.s is considerably raised in temperature. To secure this widely distributed increase the various methods of preheating are adopted.

As to the second reason for preliminary heating. It is understood that the metal added to the joint is molten at the time it flows into place. All the metals used in welding contract as they cool and occupy a much smaller s.p.a.ce than when molten. If additional metal is run between two adjoining surfaces which are parts of a surrounding body of cool metal, this added metal will cool while the surfaces themselves are held stationary in the position they originally occupied. The inevitable result is that the metal added will crack under the strain, or, if the weld is exceptionally strong, the main body of the work will he broken by the force of contraction. To overcome these difficulties is the second and most important reason for preheating and also for slow cooling following the completion of the weld.

There are many ways of securing this preheating. The work may be brought to a red heat in the forge if it is cast iron or steel; it may he heated in special ovens built for the purpose; it may be placed in a bed of charcoal while suitably supported; it may be heated by gas or gasoline preheating torches, and with very small work the outer flame of the welding torch automatically provides means to this end.

The temperature of the parts heated should be gradually raised in all cases, giving the entire ma.s.s of metal a chance to expand equally and to adjust itself to the strains imposed by the preheating. After the region around the weld has been brought to a proper temperature the opening to be filled is exposed so that the torch flame can reach it, while the remaining surfaces are still protected from cold air currents and from cooling through natural radiation.

One of the commonest methods and one of the best for handling work of rather large size is to place the piece to be welded on a bed of fire brick and build a loose wall around it with other fire brick placed in rows, one on top of the other, with air s.p.a.ces left between adjacent bricks in each row. The s.p.a.ce between the brick retaining wall and the work is filled with charcoal, which is lighted from below. The top opening of the temporary oven is then covered with asbestos and the fire kept up until the work has been uniformly raised in temperature to the desired point.

When much work of the same general character and size is to be handled, a permanent oven may be constructed of fire brick, leaving a large opening through the top and also through one side. Charcoal may be used in this form of oven as with the temporary arrangement, or the heat may be secured from any form of burner or torch giving a large volume of flame. In any method employing flame to do the heating, the work itself must be protected from the direct blast of the fire. Baffles of brick or metal should be placed between the mouth of the torch and the nearest surface of the work so that the flame will be deflected to either side and around the piece being heated.

The heat should be applied to bring the point of welding to the highest temperature desired and, except in the smallest work, the heat should gradually shade off from this point to the other parts of the piece. In the case of cast iron and steel the temperature at the point to be welded should be great enough to produce a dull red heat. This will make the whole operation much easier, because there will be no surrounding cool metal to reduce the temperature of the molten material from the welding rod below the point at which it will join the work. From this red heat the ma.s.s of metal should grow cooler as the distance from the weld becomes greater, so that no great strain is placed upon any one part. With work of a very irregular shape it is always best to heat the entire piece so that the strains will be so evenly distributed that they can cause no distortion or breakage under any conditions.

The melting point of the work which is being preheated should be kept in mind and care exercised not to approach it too closely. Special care is necessary with aluminum in this respect, because of its low melting temperature and the sudden weakening and flowing without warning. Workmen have carelessly overheated aluminum castings and, upon uncovering the piece to make the weld, have been astonished to find that it had disappeared.

Six hundred degrees is about the safe limit for this metal. It is possible to gauge the exact temperature of the work with a pyrometer, but when this instrument cannot be procured, it might be well to secure a number of "temperature cones" from a chemical or laboratory supply house. These cones are made from material that will soften at a certain heat and in form they are long and pointed. Placed in position on the part being heated, the point may be watched, and when it bends over it is sure that the metal itself has reached a temperature considerably in excess of the temperature at which that particular cone was designed to soften.

The object in preheating the metal around the weld is to cause it to expand sufficiently to open the crack a distance equal to the contraction when cooling from the melting point. In the case of a crack running from the edge of a piece into the body or of a crack wholly within the body, it is usually satisfactory to heat the metal at each end of the opening. This will cause the whole length of the crack to open sufficiently to receive the molten material from the rod.

The judgment of the operator will be called upon to decide just where a piece of metal should be heated to open the weld properly. It is often possible to apply the preheating flame to a point some distance from the point of work if the parts are so connected that the expansion of the heated part will serve to draw the edges of the weld apart. Whatever part of the work is heated to cause expansion and separation, this part must remain hot during the entire time of welding and must then cool slowly at the same time as the metal in the weld cools.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 25.--Preheating at _A_ While Welding at _B_. _C_ also May Be Heated.]

An example of heating points away from the crack might be found in welding a lattice work with one of the bars cracked through (Figure 25). If the strips parallel and near to the broken bar are heated gradually, the work will be so expanded that the edges of the break are drawn apart and the weld can be successfully made. In this case, the parallel bars next to the broken one would be heated highest, the next row not quite so hot and so on for some distance away. If only the one row were heated, the strains set up in the next ones would be sufficient to cause a new break to appear.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 26.--Cutting Through the Rim of a Wheel (Cut Shown at A)]

If welding is to be done near the central portion of a large piece, the strains will be brought to bear on the parts farthest away from the center.

Should a fly wheel spoke be broken and made ready to weld, the greatest strain will come on the rim of the wheel. In cases like this it is often desirable to cut through at the point of greatest strain with a saw or cutting torch, allowing free movement while the weld is made at the original break (Figure 26). After the inside weld is completed, the cut may be welded without danger, for the reason that it will always be at some point at which severe strains cannot be set up by the contraction of the cooling metal.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 27.--Using a Wedge While Welding]

In materials that will spring to some extent without breakage, that is, in parts that are not brittle, it may be possible to force the work out of shape with jacks or wedges (Figure 27) in the same way that it would be distorted by heating and expanding some portion of it as described. A careful examination will show whether this method can be followed in such a way as to force the edges of the break to separate. If the plan seems feasible, the wedges may be put in place and allowed to remain while the weld is completed. As soon as the work is finished the wedges should be removed so that the natural contraction can take place without damage.

It should always be remembered that it is not so much the expansion of the work when heated as it is the contraction caused by cooling that will do the damage. A weld may be made that, to all appearances, is perfect and it may be perfect when completed; but if provision has not been made to allow for the contraction that is certain to follow, there will be a breakage at some point. It is not possible to weld the simplest shapes, other than straight bars, without considering this difficulty and making provision to take care of it.

The exact method to employ in preheating will always call for good judgment on the part of the workman, and he should remember that the success or failure of his work will depend fully as much on proper preparation as on correct handling of the weld itself. It should be remembered that the outer flame of the oxy-acetylene torch may be depended on for a certain amount of preheating, as this flame gives a very large volume of heat, but a heat that is not so intense nor so localized as the welding flame itself. The heat of this part of the flame should be fully utilized during the operation of melting the metal and it should be so directed, when possible, that it will bring the parts next to be joined to as high a temperature as possible.

When the work has been brought to the desired temperature, all parts except the break and the surface immediately surrounding it on both sides should be covered with heavy sheet asbestos. This protecting cover should remain in place throughout the operation and should only be moved a distance sufficient to allow the torch flame to travel in the path of the weld. The use of asbestos in this way serves a twofold purpose. It retains the heat in the work and prevents the breakage that would follow if a draught of air were to strike the heated metal, and it also prevents such a radiation of heat through the surrounding air as would make it almost impossible for the operator to perform his work, especially in the case of large and heavy castings when the amount of heat utilized is large.

_Cleaning and Champfering._--A perfect weld can never be made unless the surfaces to be joined have been properly prepared to receive the new metal.

All spoiled, burned, corroded and rough particles must positively be removed with chisel and hammer and with a free application of emery cloth and wire brush. The metal exposed to the welding flame should be perfectly clean and bright all over, or else the additional material will not unite, but will only stick at best.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 28.--Tapering the Opening Formed by a Break]

Following the cleaning it is always necessary to bevel, or champfer, the edges except in the thinnest sheet metal. To make a weld that will hold, the metal must be made into one piece, without holes or unfilled portions at any point, and must be solid from inside to outside. This can only be accomplished by starting the addition of metal at one point and gradually building it up until the outside, or top, is reached. With comparatively thin plates the molten metal may be started from the side farthest from the operator and brought through, but with thicker sections the addition is started in the middle and brought flush with one side and then with the other.

It will readily be seen that the molten material cannot be depended upon to flow between the tightly closed surfaces of a crack in a way that can be at all sure to make a true weld. It will be necessary for the operator to reach to the farthest side with the flame and welding rod, and to start the new surfaces there. To allow this, the edges that are to be joined are beveled from one side to the other (Figure 28), so that when placed together in approximately the position they are to occupy they will leave a grooved channel between them with its sides at an angle with each other sufficient in size to allow access to every point of each surface.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 29.--Beveling for Thin Work]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 30.--Beveling for Thick Work]

With work less than one-fourth inch thick, this angle should be forty-five degrees on each piece (Figure 29), so that when they are placed together the extreme edges will meet at the bottom of a groove whose sides are square, or at right angles, to each other. This beveling should be done so that only a thin edge is left where the two parts come together, just enough points in contact to make the alignment easy to hold. With work of a thickness greater than a quarter of an inch, the angle of bevel on each piece may be sixty degrees (Figure 30), so that when placed together the angle included between the sloping sides will also be sixty degrees. If the plate is less than one-eighth of an inch thick the beveling is not necessary, as the edges may be melted all the way through without danger of leaving blowholes at any point.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 31.--Beveling Both Sides of a Thick Piece]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 32.--Beveling the End of a Pipe]

This beveling may be done in any convenient way. A chisel is usually most satisfactory and also quickest. Small sections may be handled by filing, while metal that is too hard to cut in either of these ways may be shaped on the emery wheel. It is not necessary that the edges be perfectly finished and absolutely smooth, but they should be of regular outline and should always taper off to a thin edge so that when the flame is first applied it can be seen issuing from the far side of the crack. If the work is quite thick and is of a shape that will allow it to be turned over, the bevel may be brought from both sides (Figure 31), so that there will be two grooves, one on each surface of the work. After completing the weld on one side, the piece is reversed and finished on the other side. Figure 32 shows the proper beveling for welding pipe. Figure 33 shows how sheet metal may be f.l.a.n.g.ed for welding.

Welding should not be attempted with the edges separated in place of beveled, because it will be found impossible to build up a solid web of new metal from one side clear through to the other by this method. The flame cannot reach the surfaces to make them molten while receiving new material from the rod, and if the flame does not reach them it will only serve to cause a few drops of the metal to join and will surely cause a weak and defective weld.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Figure 33.--Flanging Sheet Metal for Welding]

_Supporting Work._--During the operation of welding it is necessary that the work be well supported in the position it should occupy. This may be done with fire brick placed under the pieces in the correct position, or, better still, with some form of clamp. The edges of the crack should touch each other at the point where welding is to start and from there should gradually separate at the rate of about one-fourth inch to the foot.

This is done so that the cooling of the molten metal as it is added will draw the edges together by its contraction.

Care must be used to see that the work is supported so that it will maintain the same relative position between the parts as must be present when the work is finished. In this connection it must be remembered that the expansion of the metal when heated may be great enough to cause serious distortion and to provide against this is one of the difficulties to be overcome.

Perfect alignment should be secured between the separate parts that are to be joined and the two edges must be held up so that they will be in the same plane while welding is carried out. If, by any chance, one drops below the other while molten metal is being added, the whole job may have to be undone and done over again. One precaution that is necessary is that of making sure that the clamping or supporting does not in itself pull the work out of shape while melted.