WELDING DEFECTS

By
Ram

WELDING INSPECTION

Evaluation of welds to determine their

suitability for indented service.

TYPES OF INSPECTION AND TESTING

VISUAL INSPECTION
DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
NON DESTRUCTIVE TESTING

VISUAL INSPECTION

By using simple hand tools and gauges

to know whether there is any external
weld defects.

STAGES OF VISUAL INSPECTION

Before welding
During welding
After welding

BEFORE WELDING

Pre heating if any

Joint fit-up
Edge preparation
Alignment
Cleaning of base metal
Calibration status of fixtures if any
PQR if any
Latest drawing / Production document/
P.O

DURING WELDING

Inter pass temperature

Inter pass cleaning
Welding sequence
Process parameters

AFTER WELDING

Post weld treatment

Post heating
Cleaning
Surface quality
Internal weld quality
Dimensional accuracy
Geometrical accuracy

FACTORS DETERMINES THE

ACCEPTANCE OR REJECTION

stress to which the part will be subjected

during service
type of material used
temperature and pressure to which the
parts will be stressed
the environmental condition (corrosive/
non corrosive)
cost and accessibility for repair

WELD
DISCONTINUITY AND
WELD
DEFECT
Discontinuity
is some
feature, which
introduces an irregularity in an uniform
structure.
Defect is a specific discontinuity, which
can impair the suitability of the structure.
All defects are discontinuities but, all
discontinuities are not defects

Classification of weld
defects
Based on location
1) surface defects
2)
sub surface/ internal defect
Based on shape
3) Planar defects
4) Voluminar defects

CLASSIFICATION OF DEFECTS
1. DEFECTS INVOLVING INADEQUATE BONDING:
Incomplete fusion in fused weld.

Incomplete penetration.
2. FOREIGN INCLUSION:
Slag Inclusion.

Oxide film in fusion weld.

Tungsten Inclusion.
3. GEOMETRIC DEFECTS:
Undercut.

Excessive Reinforcement.

Burn through or excessive penetration.

Distortion.

Improper weld profile.

4. METALLURGICAL DEFECTS.

Cracks, Gas porosity, Arc strike, Embitterment

GENERAL REASONS FOR

DEFECTS

Lack of know-how.

Welding process characteristic.

Base metal defects or base metal composition, with an

inherent susceptibility towards cracking.

Defective welding filler metals.

Joint environment -design fit-up

Welding environment (Atmosphere, preheat, interpass

temperature, etc

COMMON DISCONTINUITIES

Crack
Incomplete fusion
Incomplete penetration
Inclusions
Porosity
Undercut
Under fill
Overlap
Burn through

COMMON
DISCONTINUITIES

Weld reinforcement
Arc strike
Spatter
Lamination
Lamellar tear
Dimensional defect
Geometrical defect

CRACK
DEFINITION:

A fracture type discontinuity

characterized by sharp tip and high
ratio of length and width and always
having tendency to propagate.

TYPES OF CRACK

surface crack
internal / sub surface crack
linear crack
transverse crack
cold crack
hot crack
delayed crack

TYPES OF CRACKS
BASED ON LOCATION WITH REFERENCE TO
VARIOUS PARTS OF THE WELD AGAIN
CLASSIFIED AS

Root crack
Throat crack
Toe crack
Crater crack
Under bead crack
HAZ crack
Base metal crack

VARIOUS TYPE OF
CRACKS

CRACK

CRACK

1)
2)
3)
4)

5)
6)
7)

General reasons are

Presence of hydrogen
Improper joint fit
Restrains on the joints
Presence of sulphur and phosphor in base
metal
More carbon equivalent in base metal
improper weld technique
Improper matching of electrode with base
metal

INCOMPLETE FUSION
DEFINITION:
Fusion

not taken place between weld metal and base metal

and (or) between weld beads
Properties:
Occurs any where within weld metal and in surface also.
REASONS:
Improper manipulation especially in GMAW
Presence of slag inclusion
Improper joint design
Contamination on job surface
Oxide layers, scales in the joint surface
Low arc current

INCOMPLETE FUSION

INCOMPLETE FUSION

INCOMPLETE JOINT
PENETRATION
DEFINITION:
The penetration of molten metal does not extent entirely
through the joint thickness where complete penetration is
required by specification
PROPERTIES:
Associated with groove welding
Location is always adjacent to weld root
REASONS:
Improper joint preparation
excess root face
narrow root gap
Improper selection of electrode
Improper manipulation
Improper selection of weld parameter

INCOMPLETE JOINT
PENETRATON

INCOMPLETE JOINT
PENETRATION

INCLUSIONS
DEFINITION:
Metallic or non metallic particle entrapped inside
the weld metal
PROPERTIES:
Appearing in the weld metal and surface of weld
metal
It is associated incomplete fusion
TYPES :
1.
Slag inclusion
2.
Tungsten inclusion
3.
Scale inclusion

SLAG INCLUSION

TUNGSTEN INCLUSION

POROSITY
DEFINITION:
It is a cavity type discontinuity formed by gas
entrapment during solidification
PROPERTIES:
Least detrimental discontinuity in structural
welding, characterized by spherical shape
But detrimental in pressure vessels and pipe
welding

TYPES OF POROSITY

Uniformly scattered porosity

Cluster porosity
Linear porosity
Piping porosity
single cavity type
elongated type

POROSITY
REASON:

presence of contaminations

Presence of moisture in electrode/ base metal/

shielding gas/ surroundings

Improper welding technique- long arc in SMAW

Excessive high travel speed in SAW

NOTE
If porosity is there , it indicates some parameters
are out of control and it requires investigation.

POROSITY

PIPING POROSITY

WORM HOLES
DEFINITION :
Elongated porosity at surface
PROPERTIES:
It occurs in SAW process
REASONS:
Granular flux depth is very excessive
Entrapped gas not allowed to escape

WORM HOLE
( ELONGATED POROSITY)

UNDERCUT
DEFINITION:
Surface discontinuity , occurs as linear groove in
base metal, adjacent to the weld at toe or root
PROPERTIES:
Detrimental to the structure
Act as stress raisers
REASONS:
Travel speed too high
Improper manipulation
Excess welding current/ excess heat/ excess
melting of base metal

UNDERCUT

UNDERCUT

UNDERFILL
DEFINITION:
Groove like surface discontinuity
PROPERTIES:
Associated with groove welding
Occurs in face as well root of the weld
Reduces the cross section area of the weld
REASONS:
Travel speed too high in sealing pass
Excessive heating of root pass during the second
pass

UNDERFILL

UNDERFILL

OVERLAP
DEFINITION:
Protrusion of weld metal beyond the toe or root of the
weld
PROPERTIES:
It is detrimental, act as stress raisers
It occurs on the surface
It can hide some defects
It occurs in groove weld and fillet weld
REASONS:
Slow travel speed
Improper angle
Too fluidity of filler metal

OVERLAP

OVERLAP

CONVEXITY
DEFINITION:

Excessive weld metal build-up on the face of the weld

PROPERTIES:
Associated with fillet weld
It is detrimental, act as stress risers in fatigue load condition
REASONS:
Travel speed too slow
Low current
Low volt
Presence of contaminations in base metal
Lack of wetting in weld metal

WELD REINFORCEMENT
DEFINITION:

Excessive weld metal deposition

Properties:
Associated with groove welding
Act as stress raisers/ notch effect
Occurs in face and root of groove weld

REASONS:

Travel speed too low

Low current
Low volt
Presence of contaminations in base metal
Lack of wetting of weld metal

WELD REINFORCEMENT

MISALIGNMENT
LINEAR MISALIGNMENT
Misalignment between two welded pieces such
that while their surface planes are parallel, they
are not in the required same plane.
Causes
Inaccuracies in assembly procedures or distortion
from other welds
Excessive out of flatness in hot rolled plates or
sections
Prevention
Adequate checking of alignment prior to welding
coupled with the use of clamps and wedges
Check accuracy of rolled section prior to welding

MISALIGNMENT

MISALIGNMENT

ANGULAR MISALIGNMENT
Description
Misalignment between two welded
pieces such that their surface planes
are not parallel or at the intended
angle
Causes and prevention
Same as for linear misalignment

SPATTERS
DEFINITION: Metal particles stick to the base metal
adjacent to the weld metal
PROPERTIES:

Large globules of spatters may have sufficient

heat to cause heat affected zone.

Leads to stress corrosion cracking

Affect the further inspection operations viz. MPT,

UT and DPT

Leads to premature failure of applied coatings.

SPATTERS

ARC STRIKES
DEFINITION:

Localized heating of base metal surface by

initiating arc, away from weld joint
intentionally /unintentionally
PROPERTIES:

Very detrimental in LAHS steels

Rapid cooling may produce hard, brittle

microstructure- tendency to cracking
REASON:

Indiscipline of the welder

ARC STRIKE

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections

This International Standard provides quality

levels of imperfections in fusion-welded joints
all types of steel, nickel, titanium and their alloys.
It applies to material thickness above 0,5 mm.
It covers fully penetrated butt welds and all fillet
welds
Three quality levels are given in order to permit
application to a wide range of welded fabrication,
designated by symbols B, C and D.
different quality levels are applied to individual
welded joints in the same product or component.

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections
The quality level necessary in each case
should be defined by
1. the application standard
2. the responsible designer in conjunction
with the manufacturer,
3. user and/or other parties concerned.

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections
The choice of quality level for any application
should take account of

design considerations,

subsequent processing (e.g. surfacing),

mode of stressing (e.g. static, dynamic),

service conditions (e.g. temperature,

Environment)

consequences of failure. Economic factors are

also important and should include not only
the cost of welding but also of inspection, test
and repair.

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections
Quality level
Description of the quality of a weld on the
basis of type, size and amount of
selected imperfections

Fitness-for-purpose
Ability of a product, process or service to
serve a defined purpose under specific
conditions

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections

Short imperfections
In cases when the weld is 100 mm long or longer,
imperfections are considered to be shortimperfections if, in the 100 mm which contains the
greatest number of imperfections, their total length
is less than 25 mm in cases when the weld is less
than 100 mm long, imperfections are considered to
be short imperfections if their total length is less than
25 % of the length of the weld
Systematic imperfection
Imperfections that are repeatedly distributed in the
weld over the weld length to be examined, the size of
a single imperfection being within the specified limits

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections
Assessment of imperfections

Limits for imperfections are given in Table

If, for the detection of imperfections, microexamination is used, only those imperfections shall
be considered which can be detected with a
maximum of tenfold magnification. Excluded from
this are micro lack of fusion.

Systematic imperfections are only permitted in

quality level D, provided other requirements of
Table 1 are fulfilled.

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections

Assessment of imperfections

A welded joint should usually be assessed

separately for each individual type of imperfection.
Different types of imperfection occurring at any
cross-section of the joint need special consideration.
The limits for multiple imperfections are only
applicable for cases where the requirements for a
single imperfection are not exceeded.
Any two adjacent imperfections separated by a
distance smaller than the major dimension of the
smaller imperfection shall be considered as a single
imperfection

EN ISO 5817-2007
Quality level for imperfections
a - nominal throat thickness of the fillet weld (see also
ISO 2553)
b -width of weld reinforcement
d -diameter of gas pore
h -height or width of imperfection
l -length of imperfection in longitudinal direction of
the weld
s -nominal butt weld thickness (see also ISO 2553)
t -wall or plate thickness (nominal size)
z -leg length of a fillet weld (see also ISO 2553)
angle of weld toe
angle of angular misalignment

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperf
ection
design
ation

Remarks

Surfac
e pore

Maximum
dimension
of a single
pore for
butt
welds
fillet
welds

t
mm

0,5 to 3
0,5 to 3
>3

butt
welds
>3

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

d 0,3 Not
s
permitted
d 0,3
a
d 0,2 s,
d 0,3 but max. 2
s, but
mm
max. 3
mm
d 0,2 a,

Not
permitted
Not
permitted

Not

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperf
ection
design
ation

Remarks

Incompl
ete root
penetra
tion

Only for
single side
butt welds

t
mm

0,5

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Short
imperfect
ions:
Not
h 0,2 t, permitted
but max.
2 mm

Not permitted

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfecti
on
designatio
n

Continuous
undercut
Intermittent
undercut

Remark
s

t
mm

Smooth
0,5 to 3
transitio
n is
required.
This is
not
regarded
as a
>3
systemat
ic
imperfec
tion

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Short
Short
imperfect imperfection
ions:
s:
Not permitted
h 0,2 t
h 0,1 t
h 0,2 t,
h 0,05 t,
but max. h 0,1 t,
but max. 0,5
1 mm
but max. 0,5 mm
mm

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfect Remarks
ion
designati
on

Excess
weld
metal
(butt weld)

Smooth
transition
is
required.

t
mm

0,5

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

h 1
mm +
0,25 b,
but max.
10 mm

0,5
Excessive
convexity
(fillet
weld)

h 1
mm +
0,25 b,
but max.
5 mm

h 1 mm + h 1 mm + 0,1
0,15 b,
b,
but max. 7
But max. 5 mm
mm
h 1 mm +
0,15 b,
h 1 mm + 0,1
but max. 4
b,
mm
but max. 3 mm
Not

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfect Remarks
ion
designati
on

Excessive
asymmetr
y of
fillet weld
(excessive
unequal
leg
Length)

t
mm

In cases
where an
0,5
asymmetr
ic fillet
weld has
not been
prescribed

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

h 2 mm h 2 mm + h 1,5 mm +
+ 0,2 a
0,15 a
0,15 a

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfect Remarks
ion
designati
on

t
mm

Insufficient Not
throat
applicable 0,5 to 3
thickness
to
processes
with proof
of
greater
depth of
penetratio
n
>3

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Short
Short
imperfect imperfectio
ions:
ns
h 0,2
mm +
0,1 a

Not permitted

h0,2 mm

Not permitted
h 0,3
mm +
0,1 a,

h 0,3 mm
+ 0,1 a,
but max. 1

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfectio
n
designation

Remarks

Excessive
throat
thickness

The actual
throat
thickness
of the fillet
weld is
too large.

t
mm

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Unlimited h 1 mm
0,5 .
+ 0,2 a,
but max. 4
mm

h 1 mm +
0,15 a,
but max. 3 mm

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfectio
n
designation
Stray arc

Remarks

t
mm

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Permitted Not
0,5 , if the
permitted
propertie
s of the
parent
metal are
not
affected.

Not permitted

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperfectio
n
designation

Remarks

t
mm

Spatter
0,5

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Acceptance
depends on
application

Acceptance
depends on
application

e.g.
material,

e.g. material,

Corrosion
protection

Corrosion
protection

Acceptance depends
on application
e.g. material,
Corrosion protection

ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Imperf
ection
design
ation

Lack of
fusion

Micro
lack of
fusion

Remarks

-------

Only
detectable
by micro
examination

t
mm

0,5

Limits for imperfections for quality levels

Not
permitt
ed

0,5

Not
permitted

Not
permitted

permitted
permitt
ed

permitted

THANK YOU