Welding News 1 • 2010

1 • 2010

Alfa Laval sharpens skills 3

LNG energy 5

New electrodes for low temperatures 6

Dr Welding
The importance of tack welding 8
Welding News 1 • 2010 2
Fredrik Hägg
Positive start to 2010!
The year has started positively and it is very
pleasing to see that more and more of our
customers have projects under way and a lot
to do!
Those who like to be upbeat might say that the past year
was “exciting”. The crisis affecting most markets and
industries is not a purely negative phenomenon. It is
part of the productivity adjusting and reshaping that is
always necessary if companies are to develop and con-
tribute to a general raising of standards.
From its solid base with a strong brand in the weld-
ing of stainless steel, Avesta Welding is maintaining
the initiatives to raise its market profile. This push will
be evident in various ways over the year. Participation
in fairs, the holding of customer days, high visibility
advertising, etc. are all continuing. We are very keen to
always be the preferred partner for the welding of stain-
less steel. To achieve this goal, it is very important that
we build upon, and expand, the close collaborations we
already enjoy with our customers. Together, we can con-
tinue to develop products that provide the basis for the
highest quality and most productive solutions in stain-
less steel welding! Once again, this edition of Welding
News presents a number of innovations in our already
extensive product programme.
Fredrik Hägg
Brand marketing manager
Editorial: Eva Söderberg, tel: 0226-85705, Layout: Centrumtryck AB, Avesta
eva.soderberg@avestawelding.com
Susanne Rosén, Susanne Rosén Kommunikation Cover picture: The Alfa Laval BTPX  710 is made at the company’s factory
in Eskilstuna. It is used for separating microorganisms (e.g. in the manufac-
Translation: Transtext2002 ture of vaccines) in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.
Highly appreciated
Indian fair
Avesta Welding took part in the popular
Essen Welding India 2010 fair in Mumbai,
10 – 12 February.
Essen Welding India 2010 was part of the fourth interna-
tional Joining, Cutting, Surfacing trade fair. At the same
time, the Tube India International and the Metallurgy
India shows were hosted at the Bombay Exhibition
Centre. The three events attracted 284 exhibitors and
around 6,000 visitors.
Böhler Welding Group had the largest stand at Essen
Welding India 2010. All the group’s six brands, Avesta
Welding included therein, were represented.
Abby K Joseph, MD of Bohler Welding Group India,
believes that Essen Welding India is a good platform
for meeting existing customers and discussing wishes
for the future. “BWG’s display generated great interest;
from new customers and sales personnel too,” he com-
ments.
In connection with the fair, BWG India also organised
a seminar at Hotel Leela in Mumbai exclusively for its
customers and distributors. A number of technical pres-
entations of new products and developments were given
at the four-hour seminar. Fredrik Hägg and Anders
Bornmyr of Avesta Welding presented the company’s
welding and post-treatment products.
“The presentations were highly appreciated by par-
ticipants from the broad spectrum of industries repre-
sented in the audience,” states Abby K Joseph.
Böhler Welding Group’s brands shared the largest stand at
Essen Welding India.
Welding News 1 • 2010 3

Alfa Laval sharpens welding skills in Avesta

“Customer focus on quality is growing all the time. To
satisfy requirements, we have to continuously adapt. Avesta
Welding’s courses give our welders good training for welding
duplex steels,” says Jarmo Meriläinen of Alfa Laval Tumba.

At its factory in Eskilstuna, Alfa and separators. Its products are used joining Alfa Laval, he worked many
Laval Tumba manufactures stainless in countless applications. Industry, years for Outokumpu.
steel separators for a wide range of the energy sector, waste water plants, OME’s welders have several excit-
applications. Jarmo Meriläinen is breweries, foodstuffs preparation ing projects at the moment. One of
the welding engineer of Operations and the merchant marine all provide these is a distributor in super duplex
Manufacturing Eskilstuna (OME). customers. 2507, the weldability of which is
He feels that, as his company buys Welding Competence Network, a markedly different from that of 2205.
filler metals for welding duplex global internet community promot- With the spotlight on quality and
steels from Avesta Welding, it is only ing exchanges of know-how between lead times, this area requires extra
natural to use the same expertise for welding units within Alfa Laval, effort being put into the identifica-
welding training. was started around half a year ago. tion of optimum methods. Increasing
“Welding duplex stainless steels is “Focused on the sharing of tech- competence via, for example, train-
a rather exclusive niche and demands nology and experience, it aims to ing courses is thus an important part
special techniques. We find it diffi- facilitate the lifting of welding levels of this work.
cult to recruit new welders with the to a global Alfa Laval standard. No “Most often, we weld rather thick
necessary skills. Thus, welders have matter where in the world we weld, materials. In this connection, we use
to undertake additional training. We we must offer the same standard. The covered electrodes for duplex steels.
are extremely pleased with Avesta network is still relatively new, but Above all else, we use filler metals
Welding’s courses. It has given our I think it will be immensely worth- such as Avesta 2205-PW and Avesta
welders good and useful know- while,” explains Jarmo Meriläinen, 2507/P100 Rutile” reveals Jarmo
how,” he explains. who has himself been involved with Meriläinen.
Alfa Laval Tumba AB OME has welding for over 20 years. Before
around 200 employees, 12 of these
being welders. Three of them have
just been to Avesta for a welding
course organised by Avesta Weld-
ing. Last autumn, welders Fredrik
Johansson and Patrik Sundkvist at-
tended a basic course in the welding
and post-treatment of austenitic and
duplex stainless steels. In February,
joined by colleague Veli-Pekka
Turunen, they went to a more in-
depth course on the TIG and MMA
welding of the same steels.
The separators made in Eskilstuna
are used in all imaginable sectors of
industry – biotech, off-shore and, not
least, dairy. Jarmo Meriläinen esti-
mates that around 90 percent of the
unit’s welding is done at the factory.
Most of this is machine top parts for
separators and distributors, the latter
being primarily made in duplex steel.
The Alfa Laval group has opera-
tions in almost one hundred countries
and is a world-leading manufacturer Welded distributor in duplex stainless steel 2205. Jarmo Meriläinen welding engineer,
of pumps, valves, heat exchangers with Fredrik Johansson, welder.
Welding News 1 • 2010 4

It is even planned to introduce

Avesta 2507/P100-3D. Compared to
the rutile option, this offers consider-
ably improved weldability. Practi-
cal welding tests have given good
results and investigations are cur-
rently under way to establish that
other requirements (impact strength
in particular) are also satisfied.

Patrik Sundkvist trying Avesta’s 4D

electrodes. Veli-Pekka Turunen.

In brief
In 1883, Gustaf de Laval and his busi-
ness partner, Oscar Lamm Jr, set up AB
Separator, the forerunner of today’s Alfa
Laval.
A separator is a piece of equipment for
separating, for example, two liquids that
do not mix. This can be a question of
separating liquids of different densi-
ties (e.g. oil and water) or liquids from
“sludged” particles. The first separator
was made by Gustaf de Laval in 1877 the highest density collect in the outer
and enabled cream to be easily separa- section of the separator bowl. Alfa Laval
ted from milk. Laval’s milk separator was has unsurpassed understanding of the
a great industrial success in Sweden. design of separator disc stacks. These
Separators can also be used to clean oil are the heart of a separator and the key
(by removing undesired particles). to good results.
High-speed separators are primarily used
for separating liquids and particles from
Source: www.alfalaval.se
liquids and each other.
Subjected to the centrifugal forces in
a separator, the liquids/particles with

King opens
Igelsta CHP plant
On the 17th of March, King Carl XVI Gustaf
opened Sweden’s largest bio-fuelled combi-
ned heat and power plant in Södertalje (see
report in previous issue of Welding News).
Avesta Welding supplied the welding con-
sumables for what is Huddinge’s, Botkyrka’s
and Södertälje’s largest environmental
investment ever.

In his speech before pulling the gigantic lever that set

off a pyrotechnic display, King Carl XVI Gustaf said:
“The excellent collaboration the municipalities estab-
lished in order to make this joint investment in the
environment serves as a model, not only here, but also
in the world at large
Welding News 1 • 2010 5

LNG in brief
Liquefied natural gas (LNG)
is becoming increasingly
important on the world’s fuel
market. Consequently, the
number of LNG process and
terminal installations is
increasing every year. The
same is true of LNG carriers.

Although natural gas is predomi-

nantly composed of methane (CH4),
it can also contain other heavy gases
such as ethane, butane and propane.
The composition varies depending
on where in the world the gas is
extracted. Broadly speaking, methane
content can be between 87 and 99.7%.
The ratio of the other gases also
varies widely. Market requirements
determine whether the ethane, bu-
tane and propane can be retained or
must be removed before selling the
natural gas. Normally, natural gas
also contains small quantities of wa-
ter and carbon dioxide (CO2). These
must be removed before the gas is
cooled to −161°C. Otherwise, they
would precipitate as solid particles in
the liquid gas and could damage the
equipment.
Why cool to −161°C at atmospheric
pressure?
The answer is easy. By cooling to this
temperature at atmospheric pressure,
the natural gas changes (as implied
by the name) to its liquid form. The
resultant volume is around one
six-hundredth of the original. This
makes the gas easier and cheaper to
transport and store.
Many of the world’s major gas
reserves are in geographically remote
locations far from the end users in
the USA, Europe and Asia. Exam-
ples of locations with large reserves
include Algeria, northern Norway,
Australia, Indonesia, Qatar, Nigeria
and Angola.
The reconversion process in a
tank of LNG can be compared to the
boiling of water. When water boils,
it will, if held at a certain pressure,
maintain a constant temperature.
Aboard ship, LNG is most often transported in spherical tanks.
The same applies to LNG. Slowly but handling of various liquid gases
surely, the gas changes (boils) from places great demands on materials.
liquid back to gas at a more or less On the whole, large land-based stor-
constant temperature (−161°C). age tanks are made of steel alloyed
LNG storage tanks usually have with 5 – 9% nickel, tanks aboard
double walls, which have insulation vessels are aluminium and trans-
between them. Land-based stor- port piping systems use austenitic
age tanks are normally cylindrical stainless steels. However, the choice
with an arched roof. Transport tanks of materials varies somewhat geo-
aboard vessels are often spherical. graphically.
Basic materials Welding methods
Especially as regards toughness at In principle, all the most common
low temperatures, the storage and fusion welding methods – TIG
Approximate condensation temperatures of several gases
Gas Condensation temperature, °C,
Butane C4H 0
Ammonia NH3 –33
Propane C3H8 –42
Carbon dioxide CO2 –78
Acetylene C2H2 –84
Ethane C2H6 –88
Ethene C2H4 –104
Methane (naturalgas, LNG) CH4 –161
Oxygen O2 –183
Argon Ar –186
Nitrogen N –196
Hydrogen H2 –253
Helium He –269
Welding News 1 • 2010 6

(GTAW), MIG/MAG (GMAW),
MMA (SMAW), FCAW and SAW –
are used in the manufacture of stor-
age tanks and piping systems.
Filler metals
To achieve the desired toughness at
low temperatures, filler metals that
give an austenitic stainless steel or
nickel base weld metal must be used.
For welding 5 – 9% Ni steel, cov-
ered electrodes or flux cored wires
of a nickel base type (ERNiCr-2/3)
are the most widely used. Examples
here include Avesta P10, Avesta P13
and the extremely user-friendly flux
cored wire, Avesta FCW P12-PW.
Avesta Welding’s solid wires for
the gas-shielded TIG and MIG/MAG
processes give a metallurgically clean
weld metal that generally has no
problems satisfying requirements in
respect of impact strength and lateral
expansion at low temperatures. To
obtain an austenitic stainless steel
weld metal, 308L/MVR and/or
316L/SKR are very popular. As
intimated above, Avesta P10 gives a
nickel base weld metal.
The slag forming MMA, FCAW
and SAW processes most often do
not give a weld metal that is as
metallurgically clean. Thus, it can
sometimes be more difficult to satisfy
requirements. This is especially the
case with austenitic flux cored wires.
Impact strength testing is usually
Charpy V at −196°C. Because the
sample cools quickly and easily in
liquid nitrogen, testing presents no
problems. Apart from minimum
impact strength at −196°C, lateral ex-
pansion is the most commonly speci-
fied requirement. Lateral expansion
is an indication of toughness. Simply
put, it measures a material’s plastic
deformation during impact testing.
The most common requirement
(0.38 mm) can be found in ASME
(e.g. ASME B31.3 for process piping),
but is also popular for structures that
are not built to ASME specifications.
For certain European projects, TÜV
has had a minimum impact strength
requirement of 32 J at −196°C. There
is generally a natural connection
between impact strength and lateral
expansion.
Product sheets for all the above
Avesta products are available under
the Products heading of our website,
www.avestawelding.com.

New electrodes for low temperatures

Previously, basic type (-15)
electrodes were the only
option for MMA welding.
These were not so user-
friendly. However, options
with a rutile coating are now
also available.
Avesta Welding’s new rutile elec-
trodes for the austenitic steels 304L
and 316L satisfy the above require-
ments. Better weldability, superior
results with softer transitions to the
parent metal and improved slag re-
moval are some of the advantages of
the rutile coating. The new electrodes
are Avesta 308L/MVR-NF, 308L/
MVR Cryo, 316L/SKR-NF and 316L/
SKR Cryo.
The NF types give a fully auste-
nitic weld metal and can, for example,
be used when low magnetism is a
desired quality of the weld. All four of
these electrodes have been developed
to fit into Avesta Welding’s famous
3D concept. Consequently, weldabil-
ity is excellent in flat welding but is
particularly outstanding in position
welding.
Product sheets for all the above
Avesta products are available under
the Products heading of our website,
www.avestawelding.com.

Chemical composition,
typical values. % 308L/MVR-NF 308L/MVR Cryo 316L/SKR-NF 316L/SKR Cryo
C 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.02
Si 0.5  0.5  0.4  0.3    
Mn 1.9  1.7  2.3  1.2   
Cr 19.4  19.0  17.5  17.2 
Ni 12.9  10.3  13.8  11.9 
Mo -   -  2.5  2.7 
Ferrite WRC-92, FN 0   4    0   4   
Mechanical properties,
308L/MVR-NF 308L/MVR Cryo 316L/SKR-NF 316L/SKR Cryo
typical values
Rp0.2, N/mm2 400 450 430 450
Rm, N/mm2 520 570 560 570
A5, % 40 43 37 35
Impact strength, J
Charpy V at −196°C 37 35 42 42
Lateral expansion, mm 0.60 0.55 0.60 0.70
Welding News 1 • 2010 7

Medals and steel structures shine

in Vancouver

One of the two stainless steel structures over the skating rink in Robson Square, Vancouver. Photo: Ziggy Welsch.

It was not only Sweden’s gold and silver medals that shone
during the Winter Olympics in Vancouver! The stainless steel
structure over the skating rink in Robson square had been
pickled to a high shine using products from Avesta Finishing
Chemicals.

Throughout the 2010 Winter Games,
Robson Square partnered being a
landmark and administrative centre
in the heart of Vancouver with also
being a meeting point that offered
family activities, free live perform-
ances, exhibitions and the chance to
meet the Olympic mascots.
Designed in the 1970s by Arthur
Erickson, Robson Square is an icon of
Canadian architecture. Its features in-
clude the provincial law courts, a city
offshoot of the University of British
Columbia, government offices and a
popular, public skating rink.
After a comprehensive million-
dollar renovation, Robson Square
reopened in 2009. Rink expansion,
new lighting and two large, glazed,
stainless steel cupolas that protect the
rink’s ice were all part of the work.
The steel structures were designed
and made by George Third and Son
Ltd., a company specialising in steel
fabrications. Using products from
Avesta Finishing Chemicals, they
were pickled to a high finish by Epic
Metals.
Welding News 1 • 2010 8
Dr. Welding
The importance of
tack welding
In many welding projects, tack welding is a necessary
preliminary step. To achieve optimal results from the
final weld and to minimise defects, it must be per-
formed correctly.
Tack welds are often short and made
in the same way as the final weld.
Deposited at some distance from
each other, they can be used to hold
edges together. Once components
have been positioned correctly, tack
welds hold them there until final
welding can be completed. If the
alignment for final welding is found
to be incorrect, this provisional as-
sembly procedure has the advantage
that the parts can be easily disas-
sembled, realigned and tack welded
again.
The temporary nature of tack
welds does not mean that quality
here is not as important as in the fi-
nal weld and that tack welds do not
have to be properly made and in-
spected. Even though the welds are
deposited in separate, short beads,
tack welding is real welding.
Tack welds ensure alignment and
complement the function of a jig or,
if required, permit its removal. They
also control movement and distor-
tion during welding and ensure that
the weldment has the mechanical
strength to withstand hoisting and
other forms of manipulation.
To ensure quality, most codes re-
quire tack welding to be carried out
in accordance with qualified weld-
ing procedures and by welders who
are fully certified in the process used
for the final weld.
In all fusion welding processes,
the sequence and the direction of
tack welds are important for distor-
tion control. Tack welds must not
only maintain the joint gap, they
must also resist transverse shrink-
age and thus ensure sufficient weld
penetration.
Tack welding sequences
Plate- Spacing, Tack
Alt. 1: From the middle
thickness, mm length,
8 6 4 2 1 3 5 7 9
mm mm
1 6 4 7 3 8 5 9 2
Alt. 2: From each end
1 – 1,5 30 – 60 5– 7
2 – 3 70 – 120 5 – 10
4 – 6 120 – 160 10 – 15
>6 150 – 200 20 – 30
Because of the greater thermal ex-
1 2 3 4 5
pansion of austenitic stainless steels,
the spacing between tack welds
should here be much shorter than
when tacking mild steels.
Tack welding must not interfere
with or degrade the quality of the fi- Quality is as important in tack
nal weld. It must not introduce weld welding as it is in final welding!
defects such as arc strikes, craters,
cracks, hard spots and residual slag.
For a long seam, tack welding
should start at the middle and, al-
ternating in both directions, proceed
along the joint length (alt.1)
Tack welding can also start at the
ends of a joint. Alternating in both
directions, the subsequent tacks are
then added half way between each
other until the whole length is cov-
ered (alt. 2).
Swedish welding manual
on the way
Having previously only been avail-
able in English and German, a Swedish
version of Avesta Welding’s popular
manual is soon to appear. Completion
of the new updated manual is sched-
uled towards summer.