Need Help AWS D1.1-96 Spec

By swnorris (****)

Date 07-29-2005 11:22

AWS A5.20 is the specification for filler metal for carbon steel. Electrodes in the E70T-4 classification are used without externally applied gas shielding and may be used for single and multiple pass applications in the flat and horizontal positions. Due to low penetration, and to other properties, the weld deposits have a low sensitivity to cracking. The weld metal has very low resistance fracture resistance to moderate earthquakes and is a likely candidate for brittle fracture failure. I would not recommend using the E70T-4 electrodes
AWS A5.29 is the classification for filler metal for low alloy steel. Electrodes in the E70T-K2 classification produce a nominal 1.5% nickel deposit for notch toughness and are capable of depositing weld metals that delivers minimum CVN properties of 40 ft.-lbs. @ 70 degrees Fahrenheit and can be used in Fema applications.
AWS D1.1 is the structural welding code for steel. The reference your contractor gave, AWS D1.1-96 is not the current edition. It was published in 1996. The current edition is D1.1/D1.1M:2004, published in 2004.
You mention welding 4 3/4" stud bolts. Are you referring to headed studs? If so, the material grade is ASTM A108 Grades 1010-1020. Since I didn't see this material grade listed in the prequalified base metals in D1.1, you would need to have a procedure and welders qualified to weld them, unless you opt to weld them with automatically timed stud welding equipment (stud gun). These are manually welded all the time, but I have yet to see a qualified procedure. Am I missing something here? Keep in mind that per D1.1, if studs are manually welded, there are minimum size fillet weld criteria that must be met, that is based on the stud diameter. You might want someone to pay attention to the possibility of undercutting the stud when manually welded. I have seen this reduce the stud diameter by as much as 1/8"

By thcqci

Date 07-29-2005 11:36

Well, as a QA/QCCM here, I just really appreciate you pointing out that manually welding studs is not a pre-qualified procedure. I never really even looked to tell you the truth. 95% of the studs we apply are shot, but every now and then, the small shop is overrun with work, we bring pieces into the big shop and manually weld them. Now I will have it in the back of my mind that we don't have a valid procedure to weld them. THANKS!

And, yes, definitely look for undercutting of studs. I have one guy here who can not weld them because he can not weld them without undercutting and reducing cross section of the stud.

By gkcwi

Date 07-29-2005 13:25

My thoughts,
ASTM A108 is the requirement for the stud material itself, not the approved base metal. " Note: Approved steels: for studs, see 7.2.6: for base metals, see Table 3.1 (Groups I and II).

7.5.5 FCAW, GMAW, SMAW Fillet Weld Option.
At the option of the contractor, studs may be welded using prequalified FCAW, GMAW, or SMAW processes, provided the following requirements are met. As fillet welds are prequalified, a filled out "prequalified wps" would all that would be needed.

By swnorris (****)

Date 07-29-2005 14:52

Greg,

I respectfully disagree. You posted "ASTM A108 is the requirement for the stud material itself, not the approved base metal". Does that mean that if I wanted to weld any other metal that is not shown in Table 3.1 to a prequalified base metal, that it would be prequalified or ok? I agree that ASTM A 108 is the material specification for the stud. I agree that fillet welds are prequalified, and I agree with using a prequalified FCAW, GMAW, or SMAW process as indicated in 7.5.5, but where is it indicated that ASTM A 108 is a prequalified material to use a prequalified process to weld to it? It is not found in Table 3.1, and I didn't see the " Note: Approved steels: for studs, see 7.2.6: for base metals, see Table 3.1 (Groups I and II)" that you referred to. Am I looking in the wrong place? Another thought: Just because there are approved steels for studs doesn't mean they're prequalified, just like GMAW-S is an approved process but it is not prequalified. After further research, here's another twist which seems to contradict both of us: Look at C7.5.5. It states in the last paragraph that "Studs welded by the use of automatically timed welding equipment or fillet welded by SMAW are considered to have been welded by a prequalified WPS. The paragraph title, "C7.5.5 FCAW, GMAW, SMAW Fillet Weld Option" indicates it's ok to use either of the three, but as you read further it states that only SMAW is prequalified.

By gkcwi

Date 07-29-2005 15:27

Scott,
AWS D1.1-2004,page 253
7.2.6 STUD MATERIAL Studs shall be made from cold drawn bar stock conforming to the requirements of ASTM A108.

7.1 Scope
Note: Approved steels; for studs, see 7.2.6, for base metals see Table 3.1 (Group I and II)

So my thoughts are, you can only use ASTM A 108 for the stud itself, and you can only apply said stud material to a base metal that appears in either Group I or II material. As for qualification testing:
7.5.5 .... may be welded using prequalified FCAW, GMAW, or SMAW processes, provided the following requirements are met:

By jon20013 (*****)

Date 07-29-2005 15:32

It seems one thing missing here is Ken hasn't told us what his position is with regard to these questions. Not that the answers will change, but it helps knowing when one responds whether one is responding to an engineer, quality inspector or craftperson.

By swnorris (****)

Date 07-29-2005 15:44

Greg,

Ok. I see the note under 7.1, but with all due respect, that still doesn't convince me. 7.1 Scope refers the reader to "7.2.6 Stud Material", which is approved steels for studs. The note also says "for base metals, see Table 3.1 (Groups 1 & 2)", which is a list of prequalified base metals. However, when you go to the table, the approved stud steel is not listed, which indicates to me that it is not prequalified, but it has been approved to use. I have always thought that when it comes to welding two metals together, you are prequalified in D1.1 as long as those two metals are both listed in Table 3.1. If one is and one isn't, and you want to weld them together in accordance with D1.1, you must qualifiy a procedure to do so. Did you take a look at C7.5.5, particularly the last paragraph?

By klt Date 07-30-2005 01:15

First of all, thanks for all comments. They brought my attention to the details that we have been missing for a long time. Nobody in our design team really pays attention until now.