15/11/2017 Underwater Welding | Underwater Welding Dangers | Hyperbaric Welding | Mechanical Engineering

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UNDERWATER WELDING | UNDERWATER

WELDING DANGERS | HYPERBARIC
WELDING
October 4, 2017 admin Leave a comment

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Underwater welding process

Underwater welding offers a mode of assembly or
repairs the structures underwater. It is a type of
technology for repairing marine structures.
Unconventional methods such as clamp and grout
repairs (which may set up inappropriately high
loading on offshore structures), and the use of bolted
flanges for the tie-ins, are not necessarily always
satisfactory.

Inertia Friction
Welding -
Machine Builder
Building Inertia, Direct Drive,
and Hybrid Friction Welders
since 1994.
ifweld.com

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There are many applications for underwater welding

skills such as:

1. Repairing ships,
2. Working on oil platforms and
3. Maintaining underwater pipelines.

People with skills and experience in this field can find

employment all over the world.

Why underwater welding

needed?

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Principles of underwater welding

Underwater welding is a type of welding which takes
place underwater. Among the number of different
welding techniques, arc welding is most common.

Inertia Friction Welding -

Machine Builder
AdBuilding Inertia, Direct Drive, and
Hybrid Friction Welders since 1994.
ifweld.com

Learn More

Power supply:

DC 300 to 400 Amps (AC welding is not used due to

electrical safety and difficulty in maintaining the arc
underwater)

Polarity:

Negative polarity (If positive polarity which causes

deterioration due to electrolysis takes place)

Underwater welding
Requirements:
Arc welding torch
Collet or Grip
Oxygen valve

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Flash arrester

Water proofing surface

electrodes:
Epoxy 152
Lee lac
Ployurethane

Underwater welding can be divided into two main

types that have been in use for many years:

Underwater wet welding:

Manual Metal Arc Welding (MMA) is the most
common process. Flux Cored Arc Welding (FCAW) has
been widely used. FCAW, which has the advantages of
being relatively insensitive to depth and which tends
itself to robotic operation has the potential for use in
deep water repairs.

READ Plastics | Types Of Plastics

| Classification Of Plastics

Advantages:
Very fast welding in underwater
Cheapest welding
Tensile strength is high
No habitat required
No need of construction

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Disadvantages:
Due to Rapid quenching reduces impact
strength and ductility
Poor visibility in water
Possible of Hydrogen embrittlement

Hyperbaric welding or Dry

welding:
In which a chamber is sealed around the structure to
be welded and is filled with a inert gas (commonly
Helium containing 0.5 bar of oxygen) at the generally
accepted pressure.

Cofferdam welding:

This method is carried out in the dry air; where a rigid

steel structure to house the welding is sealed against
the side of the structures to be welded and is open to
the atmosphere.

Large Habitat:

Small Habitat:

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Dry Habitat welding:

Welding takes place at ambient water pressure in a

large chamber were the water is displaced.

Dry chamber welding:

Welding at ambient water pressure in simple open

bottom dry chambers that accommodates the head
and shoulder of welder.

Dry spot welding:

Welding at ambient water pressure in a small

transparent, gas filled enclosure with the welder in
the water and arm inside the chamber.

Advantage:
Good quality welds
Possible testing methods such as NDT
inspection, driver monitoring
Safety to welder due to risks in welding

Disadvantage:
Large, complex construction equipments
required to weld
Higher costs of welding equipment
Unreachable place cant welded

Underwater Welding Dangers or

Risks:
For the humans involved, the risks are of three main
types:

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1. There is a probable risk to the welder / diver

due to electric shock. Precautions include,
completing enough electrical insulation of the
welding equipment, shutting off the electricity
supply immediately the arc is extinguished and
limiting the open circuit voltage of Manual metal
arc welding sets.
2. Hydrogen and oxygen are formed by the arc in
wet welding and cutting process. Precautions
must be taken to avoid the built up of pockets of
gas which are potentially explosive.
3. The other main area of risks is the life / health
of the welder / diver from nitrogen gas
introduced into the bloodstream during exposure
to air at increased pressure. Precautions include
the provision of an emergency air or gas supply,
stand by divers and decompression chambers to
avoid decompression sickness following
saturation diving or too rapid return to the
surface from a deep dive. For the structures
being welded by wet underwater welding,
inspection following welding may be more
difficult than for welds deposited in air.
Guaranteeing the integrity of these type
underwater welds may be more difficult and
there is a danger, which defects may stay behind
undetected.

READ Shearing Operations |

Process Done in a Pressing
Machine

Future Developments:
Alternative welding methods such as Friction
welding, Stud Welding and Explosive welding can
be used
Development of THOR -1 (TIG Hyperbaric
Orbital Robot) for the automatic welding in
underwater

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Related Posts:

NDT In Weld Process Monitoring |

Weld Quality

Resistance Spot Welding | Resistance

Spot Welding

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