Submerged Arc Welding (SAW) is a versatile and widely employed welding technique with origins dating back to the early s. The process entails the creation of an arc between a continuously fed wire electrode and the workpiece, providing a distinctive method for joining metals. As we delve into the intricacies of this welding process, it's essential to explore both its advantages and limitations. In this blog, we will dissect the pros and cons of SAW Welding, shedding light on its applications, benefits, and challenges.
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Submerged Arc Welding is renowned for its high deposition rates, making it one of the most productive welding processes. The continuous and automated nature of SAW allows for rapid welding of thick materials, increasing efficiency and reducing labor costs.
The technique excels in providing deep weld penetration, especially in thick materials. This characteristic makes it suitable for welding heavy-duty structures, such as shipbuilding, bridges, and pressure vessels. The depth achieved is influenced by the specific characteristics of the chosen welding electrode.
Submerged Arc Welding operates with a granular flux that covers the welding arc, minimizing exposure to the surrounding air. As a result, there is a significant reduction in fumes and sparks, creating a safer working environment.
SAW is compatible with a wide range of materials, including carbon steels, stainless steels, and nickel-based alloys. This versatility makes it suitable for various industries, from construction to manufacturing.
The process generates low heat input compared to other welding methods, reducing the likelihood of distortion and minimizing the need for extensive preheating.
One of the primary drawbacks of SAW Welding is its limitation in accessing certain joint configurations. Its suitability is often restricted to flat or horizontal welding positions, making it less versatile in comparison to some other welding processes.
Submerged Arc Welding requires specialized equipment, including a flux recovery system and a welding tractor. The initial setup costs can be relatively high, posing a barrier for smaller operations or those with budget constraints.
While SAW excels in welding thick materials, it may not be the optimal choice for thin sections. The process can struggle with maintaining stability and control when working on thinner materials.
Dealing with flux is an inherent part of Submerged Arc Welding, and managing its handling and disposal can be a challenge. The spent flux must be properly removed and replaced, adding to the overall operational complexity.
The equipment used in SAW Welding is often large and stationary, limiting its portability. This lack of mobility may be a disadvantage in situations where on-site welding or repairs are required.
In deciding whether Submerged Arc Welding (SAW) is ideal for your project, consider the specific requirements and constraints you face. If the high productivity, deep penetration capabilities, and compatibility with a variety of materials align with your project needs, SAW could be the optimal choice.
For top-notch welding consumables, including reliable welding electrodes, D&H Sécheron stands as a leader in the industry. With a legacy dating back to , we prioritize quality, innovation, and customer service. As one of the most trusted welding rod manufacturers in India, our commitment to excellence ensures that your welding needs are met with precision. In situations where joint accessibility is a concern, particularly for complex configurations, some welders opt for TIG welding, which offers greater flexibility. The versatility of TIG welding allows it to complement SAW in scenarios where joint limitations may arise.
But if you believe SAW is the right process for you, contact us at D&H Sécheron for more information and expert guidance.
Operations typically use SAW in demanding heavy industrial applications such as pressure vessel fabrication, shipbuilding and offshore oil rig welding. But SAW can be beneficial in a wide variety of applications, especially those that require high productivity rates.
The biggest advantage of Submerged Arc welding is its high deposition rates, which can significantly impact productivity and efficiency. Because operations typically automate this process to some degree, they can easily achieve consistent, quality welds. In addition, SubArc improves operator comfort and safety, due to its characteristics of low fume and no open arc.
Understanding the benefits of the process — and the applications for which it is best suited — can help operations considering a conversion to the process.
Submerged Arc welding is a wire-fed process that operations typically use with carbon steels, stainless steels and some nickel alloys. It is best suited for materials that are 1/2-inch to 5-inches thick. It’s a common misconception that SAW is only for thick metals, however. Operations can use it to weld material as thin as 3/16-inch thick, by accounting for travel speed and heat input to avoid burn-through.
SAW uses granular flux to protect the arc from the atmosphere. The Submerged Arc name refers to the fact that the arc itself is buried in the flux. The arc is not visible when operations set parameters correctly and the layer of flux is sufficient.
The wire is fed through a torch that moves along the weld joint. The arc heat melts a portion of wire, flux and base material to form a molten weld pool. In this area, all important functions of the flux — degassing, deoxidizing and alloying — take place. Behind the arc, molten flux and metal freeze to form a slag-covered weld bead. When operations set the welding process correctly, the slag should come off easily. The need for flux coverage mens operations can only use the SAW process in the flat and horizontal positions.
The basic equipment necessary for Submerged Arc welding includes a power source; controller/interface; wire drive motor; torch; wire straightener; cables; and a flux hopper.
The reliability of power sources is essential in SAW, since they are often subjected to 100 percent duty cycles at high welding currents. Duty cycle refers to the number of minutes out of a 10-minute period a machine can operate, so having robust and durable equipment is important in SAW applications. A power source needs to be able to operate at welding currents as low as 350 amps for thin materials and more than 1,000 amps for thick materials.
The SAW process can use constant current (CC) and constant voltage (CV). CV equipment provides a consistent preset voltage, while CC equipment provides a consistent preset current. Technology is now available to easily switch between the two with a single machine. There are also process modes such as CV+C available, which offer additional benefits for SAW depending on the application.
SAW can use both solid and metal-cored wire. Depending on the application, operations should consider each to achieve the desired results.
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Metal-cored wires can offer increased travel speeds that result in even higher deposition rates with the same heat input. Cored wires also tend to have wider, shallower penetration profiles than solid wire, which helps to minimize the potential for burn-through on relatively thin materials or during root passes. In addition, cored wires can be filled with alloying elements to improve mechanical properties or offer additional solutions for high strength materials and high temperature applications.
The wire and flux combination should be matched to best meet application requirements. In addition, they must be classified and qualified together. Special flux/wire combinations are available to meet specific requirements of demanding industries. Flux can vary in its composition, and certain types of flux offer different mechanical properties, such as higher impact values. Flux grain size also influences carrying capacity and flux feeding and recovery.
The welding parameters in SAW — arc voltage, welding current, travel speed, stickout, torch angle, wire diameter, wire feed speed and polarity — all influence the shape and quality of the weld and productivity, so it’s important to be aware of their individual and combined influence.
The much greater deposition rates that SAW offers is one of the biggest benefits of the process. Deposition rate refers to the amount of filler metal melted into the weld joint — defined by pounds per hour.
Single wire SAW applications can achieve deposition rates of up to 40 pounds per hour, depending on wire size, type and polarity. Operations can further increase deposition rates by using a tandem torch option or pairing the process with metal-cored wire.
Submerged Arc welding is a highly productive process in even its simplest — and most widely applied — method, single wire welding. But a variety of other process options and torch configurations exist that can further increase welding productivity and help optimize results. Those include twin wire, tandem wire and multiwire SAW.
Systems with multiple wires feeding in the same puddle — called tandem SubArc welding — can achieve deposition rates of more than 100 pounds per hour with three or more torches.
These high deposition rates can offer great benefits in productivity and increased throughput.
SAW also can offer deep penetration, which is important for thicker base materials. The more heat operators put into the weld, the more penetration they can achieve. The amount of current used dictates the penetration depth.
Because Submerged Arc welding is a consistent, often highly automated process, it can offer excellent weld quality and consistent, repeatable results, with minimal spatter and weld fume.
Those characteristics also offer benefits for operator comfort and a worker-friendly environment. With SAW, the welding operator isn't bending over the workpiece welding during the process, which improves comfort and ergonomics.
Also, the low fume and lack of open arc with SAW can contribute to greater operator comfort and safety, especially when the application involves long periods of welding.
In many operations that use Submerged Arc welding, the welding equipment is a small part of the total fabrication system or process. Operations often integrate SAW equipment into additional automation equipment — such as manipulators, positioners, gantries or custom systems — to help achieve the most efficient results.
So while converting to SAW can mean a larger upfront investment, the major productivity capabilities the process provides result in a fast return on investment.
An operation or shop that switches to SAW can double or even triple productivity. They can also make more efficient use of labor time, outcomes that help justify the initial investment.
The new Digital SubArc Series of machines are easy to setup and operate, for a superior arc in demanding industrial applications.
The addition of digital control communication technology to the machines allows for more remote capabilities and an intuitive user interface, for simplified integration of the equipment in more advanced applications.
The interface provides the operator with the ability to set process parameters and control output easily, with easy setup and operation. The SAW Digital Series interface controls recognize what power source and wire drive are connected — information that previously had to be inputted manually — and automatically configure the system for proper operation.
The Miller Digital SubArc Series also offers simplified setup with the tandem cable. This provides the benefit of automatic phase shifting after connecting the cable.
Paralleling of equipment also has been simplified with the updated Miller SubArc Digital Series. Operations use paralleling in applications that need more than 1,000 amps. Hooking a parallel cable to the front of two 1,000 amp machines results in 2,000 amps. With the updated SubArc Digital Series, operators don't need any special tools or software to do this. They can achieve paralleling by simply connecting the cable between the two units, and the system automatically shares the load between the machines and updates the interface.
In addition, Hobart Filler Metals manufactures a complete line of consumables for high performance and provides many options for various applications. Hobart offers metal cored and solid wire solutions in both carbon and low-alloy steels. Hobart also offers a variety of flux offerings that best match the specific industry and application — from a low to high basicity level to achieve different levels of mechanical properties.
Process improvements can be profit-boosting initiatives for companies. The numerous advantages Submerged Arc welding offers for productivity and weld quality make an investment in the process one to consider, especially in heavy industrial applications.
Understanding the SubArc welding process and the overall equipment needs — and selecting the proper wire and flux combination for the application — can help an operation realize the full potential of the process.
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