Novel method for determining the efficiency of the GTAW welding process in a S32001 duplex weld

Abstract In this paper, the efficiency of the GTAW process is assessed by evaluating the dilution ratio of the welding process. To determine the degree of dilution and, consequently, the efficiency of the GTAW welding process, the geometry of the weld bead is studied, analyzing the following variables: root dimension, face, perimeter, area, and volume of the weld bead. This work employs an experimental design using the Taguchi methodology in an L4 orthogonal array, where two main factors are defined to weld duplex stainless steel S32001 in flat profiles, 3 mm thick, using the GTAW welding process. This work evaluates the influence of welding parameters on both the process efficiency and the weld bead geometry. Of the two welding parameters studied, amperage and welding speed, amperage has the greatest influence on both the efficiency of the welding process and the geometry of the weld bead, while welding speed has the least influence. The efficiency of the GTAW welding process, as defined by the European standard, is set at a value of 0.6. However, this study determines that for duplex welding, the efficiency of the GTAW process has reached a value of 0.87.