Development of a Manipulator to Study the Effect of Circularity on Temperature Distribution Arc Welding

Abstract

Proper information regarding the temperature distribution can help in the analysis of subsequent changes in a welded joint , thus helps in an improvement in the quality and reliability of a welded structure . Number of investigations has been reported regarding the thermal aspect for a welding carried out in a straight line , but information is lagging when welding is done along a circular path . In the light of this it was felt necessary to investigate distribution in are welding . With this objective in mind an experimental investigation was carried out. It includes the design and fabrication a manipulator to provide a constant tangential welding speed with different curvatures . Using this rig the transient temperature at different points near the weld centre line on M.S. specimen was recorded through thermocouples by varying the radius of curvature of the weld path.The important trends observed during this investigation includes the increase in heating rate and peak temperature and decrease in cooling rates at different temperature with an increase in the radius of curvatures . The results obtained has been discussed from the mode of heat transfer in the system.