Influence of Flux Cored Arc Welding Parameters on the Weld Bead Geometry in 316l Stainless Steel Claddings Deposited on Aisi 1020 Carbon Steel Plates

In recent years, stainless steel cladding applications have increased in industrial environments due to this process allows anti-corrosive surfaces be produced from low cost materials, such as carbon steel or low alloy steels. However, to ensure the final quality of the claddings, it is important to know the welding parameters’ effects on the process outputs. This contributes to an appropriate operation monitoring. Given that the main difference between surfacing and conventional welding is related to the geometric profile of the weld bead, this work aimed to analyze the influence of flux cored arc welding parameters on geometric characteristics of 316L stainless steel claddings deposited on AISI 1020 carbon steel plates. The weld bead geometry was described by bead width, reinforcement and dilution. The FCAW parameters analyzed were wire feed rate, voltage, welding speed and contact tip to work piece distance. To verify the parameters’ influence, mathematical models were developed based on Design of Experiments and Response Surface Methodology techniques. The results showed that the mathematical models developed for geometry of claddings presented good adjustments and good statistical significance. Thus, these expressions can be characterized as reliable relationships in representing and controlling the process, especially in the optimization of the final welding bead geometry characterized by a maximum bead width and a minimum dilution. All parameters analyzed were significant. However, the degree of significance among them varied according to the responses of interest. The interaction effects of parameters were also significant, showing that the combined effect of two parameters can significantly affect a response, even when taken individually the two might produce little effect.