2022 IEEE 13th International Conference on Mechanical and Intelligent Manufacturing Technologies

An Investigation of the Effect of Welding Current on

2022 IEEE 13th International Conference on Mechanical and Intelligent Manufacturing Technologies (ICMIMT) | 978-1-6654-8400-8/22/$31.00 ©2022 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/ICMIMT55556.2022.9845346

the Mechanical Properties of Mild Steel Joints When

Using Arc Welding
T. R. Mupoperi M. Pita
Honours student at Department of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Faculty of Engineering and Technology
University of South Africa. University of South Africa.
Johannesburg, South Africa Johannesburg, South Africa
[email protected] [email protected]

Abstract—Welding is a fabrication process in which two or appropriate welding current and voltage in the welding system
more parts are fused together by means of heat, pressure, or both, [8]. The welding current has enormous impact on the
forming a join as the parts cool. This paper aims to investigate the construction and properties of the weld. Because of welding, a
effects of current on the mechanical properties and portion of the properties of the weld lessen, however, the
microstructure of mild steel joints when using arc welding. The properties can be improved by adding some additional material
arc welding experiment was carried out using different currents in the covering of the anodes [9]. Mild steel is one of the
(100 A, 150 A and 200 A). The hardness and impact tests were common metals joined together using arc welding. It is utilised
conducted according to ASTM E384 and ASTM E23-12C in a few engineering applications to manufacture auto parts,
standards. The results show that a high welding current generates structural shapes and sheets that are utilised in pipelines,
a high surface temperature during the arc welding process. The structures, plants, scaffolds, and metal jars. It is significantly
increase in surface temperature negatively affects the mechanical utilised as a construction material. Mild steel is known for its
properties of the welding zone. The highest hardness and high carbon content of about 0.2% to 2.1%, manganese (1.65%),
toughness were obtained at a low welding current and reported to copper (0.6%) and silicon (0.6%) [10].
be 269 HV and 205.71 J, respectively.
Study on Effect of Manual Metal Arc Welding Process
Keywords—current, properties, arc welding, mild steel, Parameters on Width of Heat Affected Zone (Haz) For Ms 1005
temperature Steel was conducted by [7]. The results shows that the original
austenite grain size increases with the increase of heat input. In
I. INTRODUCTION 2010, [11] found that when heat input increases, fatigue life of
In the process industry welding is very widely used by metal weld metal decreases whereas impact energy of weld metal
workers in fabrication, maintenance and repairs of parts and increases in first and then drops significantly. They were
structures [1]. A welding process is a very common conducting a study on Effect of arc voltage, welding current and
manufacturing stage to utilize the steel into a functional and welding speed on fatigue life, impact energy and bead
useful product with an additional coating [2]. It is a fabrication penetration of AA6061 joints produced by robotic MIG welding.
process in which two or more parts are fused together by means A review on effect of arc welding parameters on mechanical
of heat, pressure, or both, forming a join as the parts cool [3]. It behaviour of ferrous metal shows that the selection of the
is considered the most ideal method among generally used suitable process parameters are the primary means by which
assembly methods in present mechanical applications [4]. acceptable heat affected zone properties, optimized bead
Extreme heat is applied to the parts to be welded, keeping the geometry and minimum residual stresses are created [12]. At
two bits of metals together, to frame a liquid puddle at the spot 120A the grain size was most coarse with a hardness and
of weld which, during cooling, join by metallurgical particle to toughness value of 60BHN and 11 Joules respectively
form a molecular bond [5]. There are several arc welding indicating reduced strength and hardness. This was reported by
processes in which the shielded metal arc welding is a promising [13] on the study of mechanical Properties of A36 Carbon Steel
joining process and is used by several small scale industries for Weld Joints.
making products [1]. Possibly the most well-known technique
for welding metal is arc welding, which is a heat-type welding Material joining and welding plays a key role in the
[6]. It is the main assembling operation for the joining of economic development of a country. It is essential for the
components for a wide scope of utilisations, including construction of highly sophisticated devices and structures,
guideways for trains, ships, bridges, cars, and atomic reactors, including vehicles, among others [14]. productivity of welding
to name a few. It requires a persistent supply of alternating or process. Welding current and welding speed are considered as
direct current flow, which makes an electric arc to produce factors that determine the melting rate in Gas Metal Arc
sufficient heat to soften the metal and structure a weld [7]. Any Welding (GMAW) welding process [15]. New innovation for
arc welding needs heat to dissolve the metal work piece and the effectively utilizing existing equipment technology that can
welding cathode, which can be produced by applying an improve quality of welded joint with higher productivity is in

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demand [15]. Correct welding parameters play an important part standard method was used on these samples. The test was
in Arc welding process. To produce a weld with high conducted on the weld zone and for statistical consideration,
mechanical properties, the right welding current needs to be five indentations were made per sample. A test force of 100 HV
used. The objective of this paper is to investigate the welding was used and the holding time was 10 seconds. Data were
current which will result in a joint with high mechanical recorded and are presented in Table I.
properties through experimentation and mechanical tests.
TABLE I. VICKERS HARDNESS TEST DATA
II. MATERIAL
Indentation 100 A 150 A 200 A
S355JR mild steel plate samples with a thickness of 10 mm number sample sample sample
were used in this investigation as a base metal. A 0.9mm (HV) (HV) (HV)
(ER70S-6) welding wire along with terral gas was used as 1 274 182 172
2 279 192 170
joining material using MIG arc welding at different currents.
3 263 203 174
4 267 204 170
III. METHODOLOGY
5 262 194 174
A. Arc Welding Experiment Average 269 195 172

A Bekamak BMSY320 bandsaw cutting machine was used C. Impact Test

to cut six specimen samples of 30 x 30 x 10 mm rectangular An impact test was conducted on all welded samples using
dimensions with the use of emulsifier coolant. Each specimen a Izod impact test machine. The samples were cut by water jet
was bevelled on one edge to a 20°angle as shown in Figure 1(a) to the following dimensions, 55 mm long, 10 mm wide and 10
using a 900 W hand grinder. The bevelled surfaces were cleaned mm thick. A groove of 5 mm deep was machined at the centre
using a rotating wire brush before being welded together. A of the weld zone. The ASTM 23-12C standard was followed
PRO-MIG 350 welding machine which is presented in figure 1 when machining the samples. Three samples were machined per
was used to create butt weld joints between specimen samples welded sample and were named 1 representing 100 A, 2
at currents of 100 A, 150 A and 200 A as shown in Figure 2(b). representing 150 A and 3 representing 200 A samples.
ER70S-6 (0.9 mm) wire at a speed of 360 mm/min was used to Machined samples are presented in figure 3. Experimental data
create the joint and terral gas, which has a composition of 90% were recorded and are shown in Table II.
argon, 5% oxygen and 5% carbon dioxide, was also used as a
shielding gas. Slag was chipped off from each welded sample
100 A 150 A 200 A
and it was allowed to naturally cool down. samples
samples samples

Fig. 1 Welding machine.

Fig. 3. Impact testing specimen
100 A
grooves TABLE II. IMPACT TOUGHNESS TEST EXPERIMENTAL DATA
Samples Potential Potential Potential
energy (J) energy (J) energy (J)
150 A 100 A 150 A 200 A
1 232.54 177.12 144.34

2 198.60 214.21 173.96

3 182.44 226.39 208.46

(a) (b) 200 A
Average 204 205.91 175.59
Fig. 2. (a) Bevelled specimen samples, (b) Butt welded samples.

B. Hardness Test
IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A Vickers hardness test was performed on each welded
sample using an EMCO test machine at the University of South Experimental results from Tables I and II are graphically
Africa’s mechanical engineering workshop. The ASTM E384 presented in figures 4 and 5, respectively.

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 Hardness per sample
joints have an average potential energy of 204 J and 205.71 J,
280
respectively, while the 200 A joint has potential energy of
269
175.59 J. When the current is increased during welding, the
260 toughness of the joint is reduced due to the increase in
temperature. A continuous increase in surface temperature
Hardness per sample (HV)

240 results in particle size growth [19]. Particle size growth has a
negative impact on the mechanical properties of the material
220 being welded. In the study of the influence of temperature on
mechanical properties of the base material (BM) and welded
200 joint (WJ) made of steel S690QL, [20] reported that the higher
195
the temperature during the welding process, the more it
180 decreases the mechanical properties of the joint.
172
160 V. CONCLUSION
100 120 140 160 180 200
Welding current The investigation of the effect of current on the mechanical
properties on mild steel joints when using arc welding was
Fig. 4. Hardness per sample
achieved in this study. The results show that current influences
the mechanical properties of mild steel joints. The higher the
Figure 4 presents the Vickers hardness 100 HV profile of current, the lower the mechanical properties of mild steel during
sample 100 A, 150 A and 200 A. This figure shows that at the the arc welding process. The joint that was created with a high
higher welding current, the weld becomes softer compared to current of 200 A reported a hardness and toughness of 172 HV
when the current is low. The hardest weld was at 100 A, and it and 175.59 J, which are low values compared to those of a lower
was reported to be 269 HV. When the welding current increases, welding current. During the welding process, a high welding
it is observed that the weld becomes weak and softer. A higher current produces high surface temperature. This temperature
welding current generates more heat on the material, which results in particle size growth, which negatively affects the
results in a high surface temperature. A high surface temperature mechanical properties of butt joints. It can be concluded that the
has a negative impact on the mechanical properties of the lower the welding current, the higher the mechanical properties
material [16]. The same results were reported by [4] in the study of the weld zone.
of the effects of welding current on weldment properties in MIG
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
and TIG welding. It was also found by [2] that the lowest
hardness occurred in the welded sample using highest Ampere The authors acknowledge the support of the University of
in the study of Welding current effect of welded joints of base South Africa.
metal st37 on characteristics: corrosion rate and hardness. Their
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