WSA102H_Wansen Welding Materials (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd.

1、Stainless steel electrodes refer to electrodes in which the chromium content in the deposited metal is greater than 11% and the iron content exceeds any other element. For such electrodes that comply with national standards, they shall all be evaluated in accordance with the provisions of GB/T 983-2012. Chromium stainless steel electrodes have certain corrosion resistance (to oxidizing acids, organic acids, and cavitation) and heat resistance, and are typically selected as materials for equipment in power stations, chemical industries, petroleum industries, etc. However, chromium stainless steel generally has poor weldability, so attention should be paid to welding processes, heat treatment conditions, and the selection of appropriate electrodes. High-chromium steel (with 12-17% chromium) has a greater hardening tendency. After welding with chromium stainless steel electrodes, it is prone to produce high-hardness martensite and bainite, which increases brittleness and causes large residual stress, making it susceptible to cold cracking. Therefore, preheating at approximately 300°C before welding and tempering treatment after welding are generally required. Chromium-nickel stainless steel electrodes can also be used to weld chromium stainless steel, and heat treatment may not be required after welding. During the welding of chromium-nickel stainless steel, repeated heating can easily cause the precipitation of carbides, thereby reducing corrosion resistance and mechanical properties. Therefore, when welding chromium-nickel stainless steel, electrodes should be properly selected according to the equipment's working conditions (such as working temperature and medium type), and the following precautions should be noted during use:
① The coating types of stainless steel electrodes usually include three types: rutile type, titania type, and basic coating type. Among them, stainless steel electrodes with rutile or titania type coatings have relatively shallow arc penetration during AC welding, which may cause defects such as incomplete fusion at the weld root. Therefore, DC welding should be used as much as possible. Basic coating type stainless steel electrodes have better crack resistance and are suitable for welding with high restraint.
② To prevent intergranular corrosion caused by overheating, the welding current should not be too large, generally about 20% lower than that for carbon steel electrodes. At the same time, the arc should not be too long, interlayer cooling should be rapid, and narrow bead welding is preferred.
③ The amount of ferrite in the weld can be found from the Schaeffler diagram or the Delong diagram according to the chemical composition.

2. General Usage Precautions for Stainless Steel Electrodes
a. Storage Conditions:
1) Must be stored in a relatively dry warehouse. It is recommended that the indoor temperature is above 5°C, the relative humidity is ≤60%, and the storage period is within 1 year.
2) During storage, the electrodes must be placed at least 300mm above the ground and 300mm away from the walls.
3) Do not throw the electrodes arbitrarily during handling, as this may easily cause the coating to fall off.

b. Pre-Welding Preparation:
1) Electrodes need to be dried at 300–350°C for 1 hour. In cases of severe moisture, the drying temperature can be increased to 350°C or the drying time can be appropriately extended. When drying, the stacking layer should preferably not exceed 3 layers. Use the electrodes immediately after drying or store them in a powered insulation bucket for no more than 2 days. Avoid unnecessary secondary drying to prevent the electrode coating from peeling off.
2) Thoroughly clean the oil, rust, moisture, and other contaminants from the surface of the workpiece to be welded.

c. Welding Process Control:
1) Current Selection: Refer to \( I = (25–40) \times D \), where \( D \) is the electrode diameter.
2) Keep the arc length as short as possible during welding.
3) The swing width of the electrode should not be too wide, generally within 3 times the electrode diameter.
4) The welding speed should not be too slow to prevent overheating and slag inclusion. However, in cases prone to cracking, small current and slow welding speed can be selected.
5) For vertical welding, due to the characteristics of stainless steel (molten metal tends to sag), the best choice is to use the intermittent arc welding method.
6) When performing multi-layer (multi-pass) welding, clean the slag thoroughly between layers.
7) Fill the arc crater completely when ending the weld.

d. Additional Notes:
1) When using an AC power source, there is more spatter, the coating is prone to redness, the penetration is shallow, and the electrode is likely to stick to the workpiece. Therefore, DC+ (direct current electrode positive) welding is recommended.
2) When using DC power, the ground wire should preferably be connected to the middle of the working position and fixed securely to prevent arc deviation or arc breakage.

Our Capabilities

Wansen Welding Materials (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd. is an integrated welding professional company specializing in R&D, production, and operation. Founded in 1992, after more than 30 years of development, the "Wansen" brand welding materials have a series of welding materials that meet customer needs. The main products include non-alloy steel and fine-grained steel electrodes, high-strength steel electrodes, heat-resistant steel electrodes, stainless steel electrodes, surfacing electrodes, cast iron electrodes, nickel and nickel alloy electrodes for shielded metal arc welding; stainless steel, hardfacing surfacing, heat-resistant steel, and nickel-based series solid and flux-cored wires suitable for gas shielded welding.

Our Qualifications

The company adheres to the business philosophy of unity, pragmatism, innovation, service, and win-win. It has strengthened R&D efforts, adjusted product structure, continuously innovated, and strictly controlled quality. It has successively passed the ISO9001 quality management system certification and CE certification. The company implements a market strategy of integrating marketing and service, and has established a complete professional sales and service network. With the purpose of honest operation and continuous improvement of customer satisfaction, it makes unremitting efforts to achieve win-win results with customers.

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