When was welding invented?

History of development, types and scope of application of welding equipment

Welding of refractory materials is one of the foundations of the development of human civilization. With its emergence and use in construction, it became possible to erect high-rise buildings, build bridges over rivers, and conduct utility lines. Technologies for combining metals have even penetrated into the field of human health – medicine. We will introduce you to the history of welding, types of equipment and its scope of application.

The history of welding methods

Welding joints began to be used in ancient times by fusing gold items that were found in the Egyptian pyramids using tin soldering. In Pompeii, during excavations, lead water pipes with a soldered seam (transverse) were discovered.

We also know that ancient craftsmen, during forging, connected parts of the product by heating the metal to a plastic state. This is how blades and swords appeared, consisting of several strips of metal. In the Middle Ages, large artillery cannons were made in a similar way, reinforcing a forged pipe with outer rings that were connected to it using forge welding. Ancient buildings built during the Renaissance contain steel connections to support load-bearing structures.

The progress of the 19th and 20th centuries gave a new impetus to the use of welding technologies. The study of direct current contributed to the emergence of new approaches, one of which was electric welding. The first to use such a method was Petrov, a professor at the St. Petersburg Medical and Surgical Academy, who discovered the arc discharge in 1802.

And he later used the electric arc method to melt metals. At first, non-consumable carbon electrodes were used in such welding, and then, in 1988, metal electrodes were used for the first time. Unfortunately, the arc temperature was uneven, so the seam itself was uneven and porous.

Only with the use of fluxes has the welding process become more stable and of higher quality.

The twentieth century was marked by the emergence of many devices that improved and simplified the work process. Welding machines were one of these units. Although the technological level of the devices differs from the earliest ones, the operating principle remains the same.

The first welding machine with an oxy-acetylene welding torch was designed in 1903, and in 1906 acetylene generators for industry appeared. In 1940, the first use of a tungsten electrode using helium was made, and since 1946, a safer and cleaner gas, argon, began to be used.

Since the early 60s of the 20th century, several new welding technologies have appeared: using multiple electrodes, using a powder electrode, gas laser cutting.

Types of equipment

The welding arc occurs under the influence of power sources that allow maintaining a stable discharge. For constant and uniform operation, special equipment was created, which has different purposes, sizes and applications. This includes:

• Electrodes and wire are the type of devices without which welding is basically impossible. They may differ in polarity, type of current used (direct or alternating), coating and material of manufacture.
• Semi-automatic machines for welding in an inert/active gas environment. Complex and expensive devices, but with good performance; convenient to use. They can work with iron, steel, aluminum. Welding is carried out with wire made of various metals with a thickness of 0.6 - 1.2 mm in a protective gas environment. A multi-stage current regulator allows you to make the process smoother. Sometimes the wire speed changes. These two parameters determine the operating mode.
• Devices with an alternating current transformer or transformers are used for welding with a consumable metal electrode with a coating. They are distinguished by their simplicity of design, reliability, low cost and are the most common. They work using consumable electrodes with a rutile or basic (calcium fluoride) coating, designed to protect the weld pool or impart various physicochemical properties to the finished joint, for example, alloy it. The welding method for such a device is butt and overlap.
• Devices with a DC transformer or rectifiers for working with consumable electrodes. The design of the device includes a diode or thyristor rectifier, which makes the alternating current unidirectional, while losing some of its power. The unit is more complex, heavier and more expensive. But, nevertheless, working on it is more comfortable, since the arc is more stable. Can weld ferrous metals, stainless steel, non-ferrous metals using appropriate electrodes.
• Inverters, also called pulse inverters. One of the most modern and advanced welding machines. They have various modifications, are famous for their low weight and improved quality of work due to the installed supply voltage stabilization circuits. The inverter is a direct current device and has a voltage rectification transformer at the input and output. The cost of such a device is quite high, but its advantages prevail, and it enjoys well-deserved success.
• TIG machines with argon-arc welding, allowing for high-quality fusion. This is necessary to connect particularly critical areas. When working, graphite and tungsten non-consumable electrodes are used.
• Spot welders or spotters for the local connection of two workpieces or parts.
• Plasma cutting is used in the process of cutting metal. The principle is to cut the product with a plasma jet followed by evaporation (washing out) by an ionized stream of material particles.

Scope of application

Welding equipment is as in demand today as it was at the beginning of its use. These devices have different areas of application, and now we will look at for which areas it is logical to choose a specific welding unit or connection method.

Transformers are the oldest technology, rather bulky and heavy devices that require a large amount of electricity to operate. In addition, they are sensitive to voltage fluctuations.

Therefore, their use is possible in cases of connecting rough seams of the most popular grades of steel and certain types of cast iron. Although, experienced welders can make excellent seams even with such equipment.

It all depends on the skill of the master, so transformers are quite common in industry.

Rectifiers that operate with alternating current can weld not only ferrous metals, but also any non-ferrous metals - aluminum, copper, titanium, nickel, and alloys of these metals. Therefore, the scope of application of such devices is very wide - from industry to domestic needs.

Semi-automatic devices are designed to operate in a gas environment. The electrode wire is fed automatically, which is why the devices got their name. This device makes it possible to obtain a seam of the required thickness and quality. Semi-automatic machines work with metals and alloys with any sheet sizes. The only drawback is the splashing of hot material and the creation of burns.

Inverters . Their device facilitates precise adjustment of the process and, as a result, obtaining high-quality seams. Even thin-walled metal can be welded with an inverter machine.

TIG machines , although they have low productivity, are popular due to the excellent quality of the seam with low metal loss during operation. They can connect all types of metals and their alloys.

Spot welding is widely used in the automotive industry, large service stations, and car repair shops. The work of a spotter allows you to connect small parts or body parts, so such devices are in deserved demand. By adding special welding pliers to the device, you will successfully use the spot welding method.

Plasma cutting machines can be bulky, large or small household devices. They are used both in industry for cutting metal on a large scale and for domestic purposes.

Despite the large amount of equipment for welding metals, the most popular are small devices for working with a conventional electrode. Simplicity of design and ease of operation allows the use of such units by any person who has little knowledge of welding structures and servicing such equipment.

Source: http://oborudovo.ru/art/svarka_istoria/

Main types of welding

Electric welding is divided into 2 main classes: non-arc and arc.

Non-arc welding is more often called contact welding. In resistance welding, electrodes that supply current are applied directly to the metal being welded. A short but very powerful current discharge (thousands of amperes) is supplied through the metal located between the brought electrodes. In this case, fusion occurs only between the applied electrodes.

If the electrodes are located directly opposite each other, then the welded joint is a spot weld. Although spot welding is not the only type of contact welding, it is the most common. Therefore, the concepts of “spot welding” and “resistance welding” are often used as synonyms. Spot welding voltage is a few volts.

Therefore, resistance welding is used primarily for fastening thin sheet metal. For example, in the automotive industry.

In construction, electric arc welding has become much more widespread. In electric arc welding, there is a small gap between the current source (electrode) and the metal being welded, which is filled with an electric arc.

It is a mistake to assume that this is an air gap. This is a gap of ionized gas that conducts current. Arc welding, as we imagine it today, is impossible without gas.

The gas can simply be supplied from a separate cylinder, or it can be formed as a result of burning of the electrode coating.

The most common technologies in construction are the following:

• MMA (in the domestic classification - manual arc welding, or MMA)
• TIG (argon arc)
• MIG-MAG (semi-automatic, wire).

MMA

The popularity of this type of welding is predetermined precisely by the absence of the need to carry a gas cylinder with you. The coating of the electrode is the “frozen” gas cloud. As soon as the electrode touches the metal and the resulting short circuit current melts the metal of the electrode, the coating around it will also melt. The resulting gas cloud will provide a conductive ionized environment for the arc and protect the molten metal from oxygen.

Electrodes are selected according to the type of metal and diameter. The type of metal is important, since during operation the metal of the electrode rod flows drop by drop into the metal being welded and fuses with it. For a strong connection, the metal of the electrode rod and the metal being welded must be identical. The packaging of electrodes always indicates which metals these electrodes are suitable for.

Once you have decided on the type of electrode, you need to decide on its thickness. Newbie question: why do we need electrodes of different diameters? It's simple. The thicker the electrode, the greater the current that can melt it. The same goes for the edges of the metal being welded. Therefore, the thickness of the electrode is selected to match the thickness of the metal being welded. For ferrous metals it is recommended:

MMA technology allows you to work with most common metals, with the exception of aluminum and alloys based on it. Although theoretically this is also possible with an assistant, if you ensure that the cleaned aluminum surfaces do not have time to be covered with a film before melting. But it is more correct, of course, to simply use welding technologies suitable for this.

TIG

Consumers of TIG welding are entirely professionals and advanced users, and almost all of them are not in the construction sector. TIG produces cleaner seams, but is far inferior to MMA in performance and ease of use.

For example, many “amateurs”, having honed their skills on MMA machines, are frustrated by failures during their first experience with TIG. It turns out that, unlike MMA, it is not easy to strike an arc with a TIG machine unless it is equipped with a device such as an oscillator.

(And almost all “2 in 1” devices are not equipped, of course). The welder strikes with a tungsten electrode - there is a spark, but the arc cannot be raised. But an experienced welder places a piece of coal under the electrode - and the arc starts without problems.

It is no coincidence that specialized TIG devices rarely exceed a 1% share of retail store sales.

In TIG welding, devices with the ability to switch to alternating current mode, the so-called, deserve special mention. AC/DC. These devices are the main equipment for welding aluminum. It is they who predominantly make up this very 1% of TIG in retail sales of welding equipment.

MIG-MAG

Semi-automatic wire welding is mainly used for welding sheet metal. Therefore, traditionally its main area of ​​application is body repair, as well as the construction of structures made of black sheet metal. Using wire instead of replaceable electrodes greatly improves productivity. Household devices use coils with a capacity of 1 and 5 kg, and professional ones use 5 or 15 kg.

The wire can be used both regular (without coating) and with coating (so-called flux). In the first case, it is necessary to use a gas cylinder (GAS mode). In the second, a cylinder is not required (NO GAS). Despite the fact that it is more convenient to work without a cylinder, uncoated wire is the leader in sales by a large margin. The reason is simple: it is much cheaper than flux. In addition, many professionals believe that the accuracy of the seams in the gas environment from the cylinder is higher.

Despite the fact that this type of welding also belongs to electric arc welding, the principle of the MIG-MAG device is fundamentally different from the principles of MMA and TIG. In MMA and TIG it is important to maintain current stability despite electrode fluctuations, in MIG-MAG it is important to maintain arc voltage stability.

And the strength of the welding current in MIG-MAG machines is a conditional indicator (although, according to the habit developed in MMA, most people focus on it). The strength of the welding current in MIG-MAG will depend on the set voltage, the diameter of the wire used, the gas used and the wire feed speed.

So, making a semi-automatic MIG-MAG out of an MMA device by attaching a wire feed unit and a torch will not work.

Text author: Yu. Shklyarevsky

Source: https://www.kuvalda.ru/blog/articles/polz/osnovnye-vidy-svarki.html

Electric arc welding

Electric arc welding with coated electrode

Electric welding is one of the welding methods that uses an electric arc to heat and melt metal.

The temperature of the electric arc (up to 7000 °C) exceeds the melting point of all existing metals.

History of electric welding[ | ]

1802 - V.V. Petrov discovered the phenomenon of a voltaic electric arc and pointed out that the appearing “white light or flame, from which these coals ignite faster or more slowly, and from which the dark peace can be quite clearly illuminated.”

1803 - V.V. Petrov published the book “News about galvanic-voltage experiments,” where he described methods for making a voltaic column, the phenomenon of an electric arc and the possibility of its use for electric lighting, electric welding and electric soldering of metals.

1882 - N. N. Benardos invented electric welding using carbon electrodes, which he patented in Germany, France, Russia, Italy, England, the USA and other countries, calling his method “electrohephaestus”.

1888 - N. G. Slavyanov was the first in the world to put into practice arc welding with a metal (consumable) electrode under a layer of flux. In the presence of a state commission, he welded the crankshaft of a steam engine.

1893 - At the World Exhibition in Chicago, N. G. Slavyanov received a gold medal for the method of electric welding under a layer of crushed glass.

1905 - V.F. Mitkevich was the first in the world to propose the use of a three-phase arc for welding metals.

1932 - K.K. Khrenov implemented it for the first time in the world in the Soviet Union [2].

1939 - E. O. Paton developed the technology of automatic submerged arc welding, welding fluxes and heads for automatic welding, electric welded tank turrets, and an electric welded bridge.

Process description[ | ]

Electricity is supplied to the electrode and the welded product to form and maintain an electric arc from a welding transformer (or welding unit, welding converter, welding inverter). When the welding electrode and the workpiece come into contact, welding current flows.

Under the influence of the heat of the electric arc (up to 7000°C), the edges of the parts being welded and the electrode metal are melted, forming a weld pool, which remains in a molten state for some time. In the weld pool, the electrode metal is mixed with the molten metal of the product (base metal), and the molten slag floats to the surface, forming a protective film. When the metal hardens, a welded joint is formed.

The energy required to form and maintain an electric arc is obtained from special DC or AC power sources[3].

Consumable and non-consumable electrodes can be used in the electric welding process. In the first case, the formation of a weld occurs when the electrode itself melts; in the second case, when the filler wire (rods, etc.) melts, which is introduced directly into the weld pool.

To protect the weld metal from oxidation, shielding gases (argon, helium, carbon dioxide and their mixtures) supplied from the welding head during the electric welding process are used.

To increase the stability of the electric arc, easily ionized elements (potassium, sodium, calcium) can be introduced into the electrodes [4]..

There are alternating current electric welding and direct current electric welding. When welding with direct current, the weld is obtained with less metal spatter, since there is no zero crossing and no change in current polarity.

DC electric welding machines use rectifiers.

It is possible to control the position of the welding arc when welding with direct current. The arc is a conductor of current and, like an ordinary conductor, is deflected in a magnetic field in accordance with Ampere's law.

Classification[ | ]

Arc welding is classified depending on the degree of mechanization of the process, the type of current and polarity, the type of welding arc, the properties of the welding electrode, the type of protection of the welding zone from atmospheric air, etc.

According to the degree of mechanization, they are distinguished:

• manual arc welding
• mechanized (semi-automatic) arc welding
• automatic arc welding

The assignment of processes to one or another method depends on how the ignition and maintenance of a certain length of the arc, manipulation of the electrode to give the seam the desired shape, movement of the electrode along the line of application of the seam and termination of the welding process are carried out.

In manual arc welding (MMA - Manual Metal Arc), the specified operations necessary to form a seam are performed by a person manually without the use of mechanisms.

With mechanized (semi-automatic) arc welding (MIG/MAG -Metal Inert/Active Gas) with a consumable electrode, the supply of electrode wire into the welding zone is automated, and the remaining operations of the welding process remain manual.

With automatic submerged arc welding, the operations of exciting the arc, maintaining a certain length of the arc, and moving the arc along the seam line are mechanized.

Automatic consumable electrode welding is carried out using welding wire with a diameter of 1-6 mm; in this case, the welding mode (current, voltage, arc speed, etc.)

) is more stable, which ensures uniform quality of the seam along its length; at the same time, greater precision is required in the preparation and assembly of parts for welding.

According to the type of current, they are distinguished:

• electric arc powered by direct current of straight polarity (minus on the electrode);
• electric arc fed by direct current of reverse polarity (plus on the electrode);
• electric arc powered by alternating current.

According to the type of arc they distinguish:

• direct action arc (dependent arc);
• arc of indirect action (independent arc).

In the first case, the arc burns between the electrode and the base metal, which is also part of the welding circuit, and the heat generated in the arc column and at the electrodes is used for welding; in the second, the arc burns between two electrodes.

According to the properties of the welding electrode, they are distinguished:

• consumable electrode welding methods;
• methods of welding with non-consumable electrodes (carbon, graphite and tungsten).

Consumable electrode welding is the most common welding method; in this case, the arc burns between the base metal and the metal rod fed into the welding zone as it melts. This type of welding can be performed with one or more electrodes.

If two electrodes are connected to one pole of the arc power source, then this method is called two-electrode welding, and if more - multi-electrode beam welding. If each of the electrodes receives independent power, the welding is called double-arc (multi-arc) welding.

In fusion arc welding, the arc efficiency reaches 0.7-0.9.

According to the conditions for monitoring the arc combustion process, are distinguished:

• open;
• closed;
• half-open arc.

When the arc is open, visual observation of the arc burning process is carried out through special protective glasses - light filters. An open arc is used in many welding methods: manual welding with metal and carbon electrodes and welding in shielding gases.

The closed arc is located entirely in the molten flux - slag, base metal and granular flux, and is invisible. A half-open arc is characterized by the fact that one part of it is in the base metal and molten flux, and the other is above it. The process is observed through light filters.

Used for automatic flux welding of aluminum.

Based on the type of protection of the welding zone from ambient air, there are:

• arc welding without protection (bare electrode, electrode with a stabilizing coating);
• arc welding with slag protection (thickly coated electrodes, submerged arc);
• arc welding with slag-gas protection (thickly coated electrodes);
• arc welding with gas protection (in a protective gas environment) (MIG-MAG);
• arc welding with combined protection (gas environment and coating or flux).

Stabilizing coatings are materials containing elements that easily ionize the welding arc. They are applied in a thin layer to electrode rods (thin-coated electrodes) intended for manual arc welding.

Protective coatings are a mechanical mixture of various materials designed to protect the molten metal from exposure to air, stabilize the arc, alloy and refine the weld metal.

The most widely used are medium- and thick-coated welding electrodes intended for manual arc welding and surfacing, manufactured in special workshops or factories.

Recently, plasma welding has become widespread, where an arc between inert non-consumable electrodes is used to heat an intermediate carrier, for example, water steam, at high temperatures. Welding with atomic hydrogen is also known, produced in an arc between and releasing heat when recombining into molecules on the parts being welded.

Notes[ | ]

1. Chekanov A. A. Nikolai Nikolaevich Benardos. - M.: Nauka, 1983.
2. “Handbook for a young electric welder on manual welding”, G. G. Chernyshov, V. B. Mordynsky, Moscow, “Machine Building”, 1987; page 66
3. “Welding: Welding and cutting of metals: a textbook for beginners. prof. education/G. G. Chernyshov. - M.: Publishing Center "Academy", 2008 - p. 496
4. Documentary film "Arc Welding"

Literature[ | ]

Nikolaev G. A. Welding in mechanical engineering: A reference book in 4 volumes - M.: Mechanical Engineering, 1978 (1-4 volumes).

Links[ | ]

Source: https://encyclopaedia.bid/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%BF%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%B8%D1%8F/%D0% A1%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%87%D0%BD%D1%8B%D0%B9_%D0%B0%D0%BF%D0%BF%D0%B0% D1%80%D0%B0%D1%82

Metal welding, a little history

The best way to join metals today is welding. Welding appeared in ancient times. In earlier times, various types of processing and joining of metals were used. However, they have almost never been used to create overly complex structures. For example, the ancients knew how to connect parts of metal products by soldering and welding. Egyptian pyramids contain gold parts with joints soldered using tin.

In the days before electric welding, forging was often used to weld lead pipes and lead roofing sheets. Then they heated it with charcoal. This type of forge welding was performed with hammer blows. Repair welding, which restored carriage axles, was also very popular in those days.

Invention of electric welding

At the end of the 19th century, thanks to the efforts of the Russian engineer N. G. Slavyanov, arc welding was invented. It was he who came up with a method for connecting materials using a consumable electrode made of metal. This method is now used most often. Slavyanov trained a whole team of welders, they corrected casting defects using arc welding, put steam mechanisms and other large equipment in order.

Technology development

In addition, Slavyanov created a welding generator, as well as an automatic regulator that determines the length of the arc. He developed fluxes that dramatically improve the quality of the weld. The joining technologies created by this scientist became the basis for current methods of electric welding of metal.

In the twentieth century, the famous bridge builder Academician Paton, who foresaw that electric welding would have a glorious future, dramatically changed the field of his scientific research. He created a laboratory in Kyiv in 1929, and later the first research institute of electric welding.

He developed and proposed many effective technological methods of electric welding.

Modern approach

Today's welding has received its greatest development thanks to the work of scientists, innovators and talented engineers working in this field. They created many types of equipment, different brands of electrodes.

In addition, they have developed modern welding technologies, which also include automated methods.

By the middle of the last century, a technique for obtaining permanent connections of many metals had been mastered, and the theory of manual welding technology had been developed in great detail and fundamentally.

Source: https://elsvarkin.ru/svarka-metalla/

The history of the welding inverter - CUGP Construction portal

27.2.2017

Today, welding devices are the most popular and convenient devices for welding; many craftsmen do not want to hear about anything else. They compare favorably with their competitors, transformer devices, in size, weight and versatility. With their help, you can work with seams of any complexity, for almost any thickness, using a wide variety of principles, including the so-called “plasma welding”.

Even 60-80 years ago, such efficiency in one device would have been truly fabulous; many states would have given a lot to own such a unit, but now it can be bought in most hardware stores and supermarkets, in the Alcest online store chain.

First welding equipment

            Here it is important to remember that the principle of electric heating of metal and forging was tried by the famous scientist E. Thompson in 1905. And although it was more like blacksmithing, the main practice of working with metal at that time, Thompson's experiments became the “first sign” for the development of an entire category of tools.

            In 1907, Lincoln Electronic and CC Elektrick released the first variable voltage generators and motor generators. However, it was not until 1927 that truly applicable results emerged. Thanks to V.P. Nikitin, who achieved high-quality regulation of current for welding, patented a single-case transformer for arc welding.

First inverters

            In the early 60s of the 20th century, semiconductor electrical devices became widely used. It was at that time that the first pulse converter for welding was invented, essentially the first welding inverter.

The real breakthrough that made such devices applicable occurred closer to the 90s, with the introduction of ferromagnetic alloys and the ability to operate at ultra-high frequencies. Already in the 21st century, thanks to the widespread use of IGBT transistors, inverters have become even smaller and also significantly cheaper.

Of course, even now you can find expensive “smart” machines that use a microprocessor to control parameters and fully automatic operation. But this is, as they say, out of necessity.

Source: https://cugp.com.ua/istoriya-vozniknoveniya-svarochnogo-invertora/

33.23 History of welding in Russia

Those who work with metals know well that smelting the metal is only half the battle. Then the casting needs to be turned into products. Why do you need to learn how to give a casting the required shape, divide it into parts and connect them together in a completely different quality.

Such transformations of liquid metal into structures required by humans with given technical characteristics are impossible without permanent connections, which can be made using metal welding technology. This article is devoted to the history of the development of welding in Russia.

Forge welding as the basis of ancient methods of joining metals

Ancient Rus' was distinguished by its ability not only to produce non-ferrous and ferrous metals, but also to process them into products for various purposes. Naturally, in those days the first thing was to take care of one’s own safety.

Therefore, all advanced technologies were aimed at improving weapons and creating new models. Means of protecting soldiers during combat were also in demand.

Solving the problem of creating light but durable steel armor promised great advantages over the enemy.

From the ninth to the thirteenth centuries, Rus' became a center of high technology in the field of smelting high-quality iron and methods of joining various ferrous and non-ferrous metals using forge welding. Forge welding is understood as the connection of several metal parts by heating them to a state close to melting and quickly connecting them to each other using mechanical action (hammer blows).

Unique examples of Russian self-sharpening weapons made of a steel core and bronze plates welded to it on the sides, battle hatchets created using the same technology, chain mail with welded rings, jewelry with welded drops of metal and many other artifacts indicating a high level of craftsmanship have survived to this day. Russian craftsmen in the field of blacksmithing.

However, with the beginning of the Mongol-Tatar yoke, blacksmithing and metal smelting in Rus' began to decline. For more than a hundred years, this field of activity underwent a constant decline, caused by the total control of the Golden Horde over the slightest attempts to manufacture metal products that could lead to the start of mass production of weapons in the controlled territory. In fact, blacksmithing was banned in Rus'.

With the fall of the Mongol-Tatar yoke in 1380, the rise of blacksmithing in Rus' began, but at a different technological level.

Rudnya, as a form of enterprise that combines the extraction of ore and its smelting into metal using continuous processes based on a water engine, has become the basis of the Russian metallurgical industry since the second half of the 14th century. Forge welding processes have become more advanced.

Cast welding appeared. Thus, in museums there are cannons from the 14th century, in which steel parts are combined into a single whole by casting from non-ferrous metals.

Forge welding was improved until the beginning of the 19th century. With its help, they began to produce large parts from steel by hot forging under mechanical hammers of packages of red-hot thin steel sheets, which were obtained, in turn, by repeated forging of cast iron, since there was no other way to obtain steel at that time. The technology for producing welded railway rails can be considered the peak of perfection of forge welding technology, since cast iron rails did not justify their worth.

However, by the middle of the 19th century it became clear that the rapid pace of industrialization could not be achieved with old technologies. Scientists and metallurgical practitioners began to look for new ways to produce permanent metal-based joints. And they found them.

The era of arc and flame welding in Russia

As usual, in Russia great discoveries and innovative proposals come from people far from engineering. A clear confirmation of this is the discovery of an electric arc.

The phenomenon of bright burning of a carbon rod with a significant increase in temperature when it is torn off from a short-circuited plate under voltage was described by V. V. Petrov, a professor at the Medical-Surgical Academy of St. Petersburg.

He also proposed using an arc flame for lighting, and high temperature for welding metals.

However, electric arc welding was only implemented in 1881, using carbon electrodes. The quality and strength of the weld left much to be desired, but the foundations had already been laid. All that remained was to improve the technology.

Already in 1888, the Russian scientist Nikolai Gavrilovich Slavyanov replaced carbon electrodes with metal ones, but did not think of covering them with a protective coating.

Welding with bare steel electrodes did not become widespread until 1902, when Kalberg proposed a coating composition for electrodes, which significantly simplified the welding process.

In parallel with the development of electric arc welding, to which the pundits of Russia were more inclined, the phenomenon of high-temperature combustion of acetylene in oxygen was discovered in France in 1895, and in 1903 the French inventors Edmond Fouche and Charles Picard patented an acetylene torch, which has been used practically unchanged until so far.

As usual, in Russia all research on electric arc welding was immediately curtailed and French equipment for acetylene welding and metal cutting began to be purchased en masse. It is worth noting that the dominance of acetylene welding continued even with the beginning of industrialization in the USSR until 1935.

All gas and oil pipelines, large industrial facilities of that time were built using autogenous welding.

However, electric welding technology did not stand still. By 1940, the technology of automatic submerged arc welding was developed and introduced at tank factories, with the help of which it was possible to replace riveted joints of tank parts with welded ones, which significantly simplified their production and increased their armor-protective qualities.

After the war, electric welding improved rapidly. The fifties required the development of new technologies for connecting parts of the fuselage and wings of supersonic fighters. It is for these purposes that such types of welding as argon-arc welding with a non-consumable electrode, semi-automatic welding in a shielding gas environment were initially developed and developments began in the field of air plasma cutting of metals, as well as the use of laser energy for welding and cutting of metals.

Today, all welding technologies have become available for use by almost everyone.

The combination of high technologies in the field of obtaining portable but powerful sources of welding current with previously made discoveries and achievements in the military-industrial complex was the basis of this breakthrough, making the once secret and difficult to implement welding techniques the property of the broad masses of welders. The improvement process, however, cannot be considered complete. Because every year new types of welding appear, which greatly simplify the process of joining metals with each other.

Source: http://5sklad.ru/vsyo-dlya-svarki/istoriya-svarochnogo-dela-v-rossii/

History of the origin and development of welding

The history of the development of welding can be traced back to ancient times. The earliest examples of bonded metal are ancient bronzes. It is estimated that some items were made more than 2,000 years ago.

During the Iron Age, the Egyptians and people in the eastern Mediterranean learned to weld pieces of iron together. Many instruments have been found that were made around 1000 BC. e.

In the Middle Ages, the art of blacksmithing developed; many iron products were produced, connected by the process of obtaining permanent joints with a hammer. The history of welding suggests that until the 19th century, the joining process as we know it today using gas or electricity was not used.

The first semblance of electric welding

The production of an arc between two carbon electrodes using a battery is credited to Sir Humphry Davy in 1800. In the mid-19th century, the electric generator was invented and arc lighting became popular. For the first time, the idea of ​​the arc lighting process was developed by Professor V.V. Petrov was used for welding metals. The invention of combining metals using gases did not stop either. Edmund Davy of England is credited with the discovery of acetylene (the reaction of potassium carbide with water) in 1836.

19th century French electrical engineer Auguste de Meritan used the heat of an arc to join lead plates for storage batteries while working in a laboratory in 1881.

His student, Russian engineer Nikolai Nikolaevich Benardos, working in the same French laboratory, made his contribution to the history of the development of welding by receiving a patent for the invention of this compound. Together with the Russian engineer Stanislav Olszewski, he also received a British patent in 1885 and an American patent in 1887.

The patents also included an electrode holder. This was the beginning of carbon arc welding. Carbon arc jointing became popular in the late 1890s and early 1900s.

The history of the development of welding marks the inventor of electric arc welding as the Russian engineer Nikolai Nikolaevich Berandos (1842-1905).

In 1882, Russian engineer N.N. Benardos introduced a new method into the history of welding development, in which carbon electrodes were used.

Application of electrodes

In 1888, Russian engineer Nikolai Gavrilovich Slavyanov first used electrodes, the design of which included a metal rod under a layer of flux. In the presence of a state commission, he managed to weld the crankshaft of a steam engine.

This idea of ​​electrode coating evolved. Engineers proposed a thin coating of clay or lime that would provide a more stable arc. Oskar Kjellberg from Sweden invented a coated electrode with a mixture of carbonates and silicates.

Meanwhile, welding processes have evolved to include spot, seam, projection and butt welding. In 1903, a German named Goldschmidt invented thermite welding, which was first used to join railroad rails.

Gas cutting was also improved during this period. The production of oxygen and then the liquefaction of air, along with the introduction of the blow tube or burner in 1887, helped develop this field. However, around 1900 a burner suitable for use with low pressure acetylene was developed.

The First World War brought a huge demand for the production of weapons and the history of the development of welding was in demand for the production of weapons. Many companies have emerged in America and Europe to produce welding machines and electrodes as per the requirements.

Alternating current was not invented until 1919 and did not become popular until the 1930s when mass production of electricity began. After this, the electrode with the necessary coating found wide use.

In the 1920s, various types of welding electrodes were developed. During the 1920s, there was considerable debate about the merits of metal-coated and non-metal-coated rods made by extrusion (grinding).

During the 1920s, significant research was carried out into shielding the arc and welding zone by externally applied gases. An atmosphere of oxygen and nitrogen in contact with molten weld metal caused brittle and sometimes porous welds. Engineers used hydrogen as a welding atmosphere.

Hydrogen was replaced by atomic hydrogen in the arc. Atomic hydrogen was formed by exposure to an electrical discharge. This arc produced twice the heat of an oxygen flame.

Atomic hydrogen never became popular, but was used in the 1930s and 1940s for special tool steel applications.

In 1932, for the first time in the world, underwater welding was carried out in the Soviet Union.

Engineers H. M. Hobart and P. C. Devers carried out similar work, but used an atmosphere of argon and helium gases. In its patents filed in 1926, gas arc welding was the harbinger of a new process.

In 1953, Professor Lyubavsky and assistant Novoshilov announced the use of welding with consumable electrodes in a CO2 gas atmosphere. The CO2 process immediately gained popularity due to the fact that it used already developed inert gas equipment. This variation soon became the most popular arc welding technology.

Another option is to use an inert gas with a small amount of oxygen, which provides a stable arc.

How does today's conventional household welding work?

Briefly, how today's ordinary household welding works: electricity is supplied to the electrode and the welded product to create and maintain an arc from a special device.

Under the influence of the arc temperature, the edge of the metal being welded and the metal from the electrode begin to melt.

Due to the fact that all the metals involved are melted, they mix together to form a strong bond, while at the same time the molten slag floats to the surface, which forms a protective film. After the metal hardens, a weld will be formed.

1882 - Benardos created the first welding method using carbon electrodes.

1888 - Slavyanov first used electrodes, the design of which included a metal rod under a layer of flux. In the presence of a state commission, he managed to weld the crankshaft of a steam engine.

1939 - Paton figured out how to automate submerged arc welding, welding fluxes, tank turrets, and the first bridge made of welded elements.

Today's development of science and technology has made it possible to use fundamentally new ways and methods of joining metals.

Source: https://v-nayke.ru/?p=1698

History of welding: major discoveries, past and modern methods, future of the industry

Every social process or emerging technology is not a sudden idea. Every event is natural. Everything happens at the moment when the conditions are right for it.

It is not for nothing that many historical periods are named after discoveries, tools and the level of human development of that time. All red processes are connected by a red thread to the past and the future.

Our present depends on what happened yesterday and what to expect tomorrow. And the welding process is no exception.

A little background

Welding begins its history back in the distant 8-7 centuries BC. This is now the technology of our era - modern and convenient for everyone. Things were different in those days. Metal that existed in nature had to be processed for domestic purposes.

Its shape changed due to two things - the physical strength of man and the action of the stone. Gold and copper were most often used - these were the most common metals 2-3 thousand years ago.

They had to be processed to create other tools, as well as jewelry and utensils. This process is considered the beginning of the history of cold welding.

Over time, humanity has improved its skills, including labor ones. Independent mining of lead, bronze and copper took place.

For the manufacture of large-sized products, heat treatment technology was used. Individual elements were heated and deformed. When it was necessary to create a perfect product, they turned to the casting method.

Almost 3000 years ago there was an era of the Iron Age. It’s easy to guess from the name that people learned to mine iron at this time.

And if now this process looks simple and logical, then in ancient times people’s skills were meager, and no one knew about modern technologies.

Today, iron is obtained from natural iron ores by separating the iron from them through smelting. At that time, no one knew about this method, and there were no tools.

A certain mixture was obtained from the raw materials, which contained iron particles. Of course, it was not a pure product, and it was many times different from what we have now. It contained an admixture of non-metals - slag and coal.

After a thousand years, it was possible to obtain pure iron without any additives. This was achieved using heated metal forging technology. Forge welding made it possible to obtain very beautiful and practical products, such as weapons and tools for work.

Before the Great Industrial Revolution, craftsmen were only able to work with soldering and forge welding - more advanced processing methods were unknown. Jewelry production developed thanks to soldering.

Major discoveries

The Industrial Revolution is a real breakthrough in the field of welding. It was truly a revolution in welding and its stages. Discoveries in the field of electricity played a major role in the whole process.

1802 Russian theoretical and practical physicist Vasily Petrov made a phenomenal discovery. He proved that an electric arc can be used in metal work. This idea was not immediately perceived by scientists as something unusual.

Although decades later his merits were appreciated. Petrov created a basic prototype of a modern welding machine. He wrote about this in “News on Galvani-Volt Experiments.” The book was published in 1803.

The next stage of history is the discovery of electromagnetic induction. It is a joint effort between Sir Humphry Davy and Michael Faraday, which was born in the 1830s. Faraday drew scientific conclusions about the success of the arch by studying magnetism and electricity.

20 years later, the electric arc appears in household lighting fixtures, which proved the importance of the scientist’s discoveries for the entire society.

1881 meant the appearance of the Electrohephaestus device, which was considered the first electric arc welding. After 6 years, Nikolai Benardos, a Russian engineer-inventor, patented his device after conducting a series of experiments.

Within 5 years, the whole world knew about this device - from America to Asia.

The opening of a partnership of the same name in 1885 by the same scientist meant the appearance of the first welding workshop.

Nikolai managed to obtain a patent for his device. To fulfill his plans, the scientist spent all his savings. The merchant Olshevsky helped the discoverer pay the missing funds.

After electric arc welding was recognized in dozens of countries, Benardos began developing welding with metal and coal electrodes. He is the founder of such discoveries:

• electric arc process with a metal electrode at alternating current;
• technicalization of the process and its stages;
• welding using the inclined electrode method.

The scientists we have already talked about are considered the founders of modern welding processes. They made a huge contribution to ensuring that today's craftsmen work quickly enough.

These were key events related to welding and its development. But for the next 50 years there was a serious shortage of electricity, so electric welding was not so popular.

And although we had to temporarily forget about the new discoveries, everyone remembered that it was necessary to use electricity in welding work. It's only a matter of time. There have been some transformations in welding equipment and devices in general.

1904 Cutters appear that can be used skillfully.

1908-1909 – the time of the emergence of underwater metalworking technology. It was actively used in German and French production.

For the next 20 years, gas welding was the technology leader. It was actively used during the First World War.

Welders of that time resorted to its mechanisms when they were engaged in the construction of famous structures. The main pipelines “Grozny-Tuapse” and from Baku to Batumi are the merit of gas welding and all its processes.

At this time, electric arc welding was not popular. Everything was explained by the fact that the technology needed to be improved, because the arch burned with interference.

Andrus, Stresau, Stromengenr and others worked on this issue during 1914-1917. They came to a discovery in the form of a welding electrode. The latter did an excellent job of uniformly burning the arc.

Our years

At the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries, the development of welding did not stop.

Today, there are dozens of metalworking methods, each of which boasts its own advantages. Let's talk about each of them.

Arc welding

It is so common that it is used in 8 cases out of 10. This is a real leader who stands out noticeably among the rest.

Electroslag technology

A new way of processing large structures such as rolled metal, boilers and others. The basic principle of welding is this: an electrical impulse passes through the slag.

The latter appears during the melting of flux, which is considered a conductor of electricity. As a result, after current passes through the residue, heat is released.

There are the following types of welding using slag:

• operation of electrodes operating with a large cross-section;
• three mesh wires.

Tie and press welding

William Thompson invented the cohesive welding method, which today is considered a fairly old method. Initially it was popular in the States, then it became part of Russian technology.

In this regard, a large number of historically famous scientific centers and factories were opened, such as Elektrik, the Paton Institute and dozens of others.

If we touch on the basics, then there is such a division of the connected process:

• butt - occurs due to the combination of structures on the surface of their contact. The method of cheating parts was used;
• point - carried out by connecting parts simultaneously at a single or pair of points;
• suture – several elements are connected using sutures.

Press welding is also called pressure welding. It is characterized by fastening structures without melting it.

There needs to be a distortion in the use of force. This process at the initial stage arose even before our era, when welding without heating developed.

Gas cutting machine

This process occurs by melting metal through burners. Their task is to burn flammable gases.

For the first time in history, a gas burner was used in one of the French cities in the last decade of the 19th century. Its work is based on the fusion of hydrogen with oxygen.

When a metal is cut, it seems to burn in a stream of nitrogen.

Beam welding

The work of ion and photon flows gave impetus to the development of new types of welding. They were studied by scientists specializing in quantum mechanics and optics.

There are the following types of beam metalworking:

Source: https://prosvarku.info/tehnika-svarki/ob-istorii-razvitiya-svarki