Until recently thick section
electron beam welding (>75mm) has been possible only at a vacuum of ~10
-3mbar; but by using a specially developed electron gun, it is now possible to weld up to 150mm material but in the vacuum range 1 to 10mbar.
This modification to the process retains the well known advantages of:
- single pass thick section welding
- low distortion and high weld quality
- freedom from contamination by atmospheric gases
and adds to them:
- significant reduction in pumpdown time (cf. time to pump a 150m3 chamber to 10mbar is 16 mins; but down to 10-3 mbar takes 70 mins)
- cheaper pumping system (capital and running costs)
- possibility of 'local' vacuum seals
Potential application areas:
- Nuclear/power generation
- Offshore
- Marine
- Nuclear waste encapsulation
- Petrochemical
- Defence
For further information see Joining Technologies or contact us.