Evaluation and Development of Electrodes for Wet Welding of Structural Ship Steels

To better understand the behavior of some commercial wet welding electrodes down to 20 m equivalent water depth as well as to develop a new electrode, a research program was initiated in 2007. This depth is considered the maximum expected in the in situ repair of structural parts of floating production units. The weld metal evaluation was done by microstructural characterization, Vickers hardness, Charpy and tensile tests, chemical analysis, and diffusible hydrogen measurement. The influences of pressure on the mechanical properties of the weld metal are presented and discussed on the basis of chemical composition, microstructure and porosity. The electrode under development showed promising results concerning the possibility to broaden the range of qualified welding procedures. This expectation is based on the good results of diffusible hydrogen, porosity, impact toughness and ductility down to 20 m equivalent water depth. The susceptibility of hydrogen cracking in weld metal and in heat affected zone was estimated comparatively. The presence of hydrogen cracks is discussed as an important limiting factor for the qualification of welding procedures in the class A of the AWS D3.6M:1999 specification.