UNIVERSITY OF ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES,

SUNYANI

RESEARCH TOPIC:

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF A DRY TYPE ARC WELDING MACHINE FOR A

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING WORKSHOP

BY

HONNY ISAAC JNR. UE20032716

KWAKYE PRINCE UE20033316

AKLORBORTU SHINE UE20030316

ON

20TH MAY 2019

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ABSTRACT

The machine is designed to serve with an output of about 220A/28V and an input voltage of
220V/440V. The transformer is the major component of the dry type arc welding machine. The
unit consists of a single phase transformer (with tap changing secondary).The transformer is a
step down transformer which is used to step down the voltage supply. It has two parts which are
the primary and secondary parts. The primary part is where voltage is supplied to the machine.
The secondary part is also made of wires which overlaps each other. The voltage from primary
turns flows to the secondary turn by induction.

The machine contain a power switch through which the machine can be switched on or off when
connected to the power source. The indication light simply shows when the machine is on or off
which is equally controlled by the power switch.

The welding current is adjusted by varying the spacing between the primary and secondary
windings when the cranks is rotated, clockwise the insulating block between the two winding
moves down, the magnetic flux leakage and the inductive impedance are increased, thereby
reducing the welding current in the secondary windings. Also as the insulating block is moved
upward, away between the two turns, the magnetic flux leakage and the inductive impedance are
brought down, causing the welding current to rise.

This type of arc welding process is very flexible thus a wide range of thickness of metal can be
welded in any position, portable and versatile thus it can be used to weld many different metals,
including steel, cast iron, stainless steel, nickel, aluminium and alloy metals.

In this type of welding the components needed are; electrode holder, electrode, copper wire,
welding hand shield, leather gloves etc.

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INTRODUCTION
Welding is a fabrication process that joins metals or thermoplastics, by using electricity to
generate high heat to melt parts together .Welding is a process of joining metals in which
merging of metals is obtained by heat and pressure. Arc welding is a type of welding process that
is used to join metal to metal by using electricity to create enough heat to melt metal, and the
melted metals when cool result in a binding of the metals. It also uses a power supply to create
an electric arc between an electrode and the base material to melt the metals at the point where
welding will occur. Arc welding processes may be semi-automatic, manual or fully automated.

Welding is classified into two major categories

Solid-state welding: It joins part by applying heat and pressure. The temperature is usually below
melting point of the materials joined. (e.g. Cold Welding, Friction Welding, Forge Welding,
Pressure Welding, Diffusion Welding, Roll Welding).

Fusion welding: It is less restrictive as to the materials that can be joined. (example. Arc
Welding, Gas Welding, Resistance Welding, Intense Energy Beam Welding.

The Arc welding machine is a type of machine that uses an electric power as an input, which is
being supplied through the primary and then transferred to the secondary winding which results
in the change in the flow of current in the circuit producing magnetism or an EMF to carry out
welding work by connecting to the output terminal of the welding cables. They can use either
Alternating Current (AC) or Direct (DC) and Consumable or Non consumable electrodes. Arc
welding can also be classified into two types. The type that cools with Air is the DRY TYPE
WELDING MACHINE and the one that cools with Oil is the WET TYPE WELDING
MACHINE.

A Dry Arc welding machine has main cable that receives energy from the source, the starter
switch, the transformer, the controls of tension(Voltage) and Current (Ampere), one primary
wire and two secondary wires. One of the secondary wires (the cathode) is used to ground the
machine to the structure using the ground clamp on the worktable or work and the other with the
electrode holder is to put your electrode and produce the welding. In this arc welding machine,
the positively charged (anode) will have a greater heat concentration having about two-third of
the electric current and, the cathode having about one-third of the produced current. If the
electrode is positively charged (cathode), it will melt more quickly, increasing weld penetration
and welding speed. Alternatively a negatively charged electrode (anode) result in more shallow
welds.

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PROBLEM STATEMENT

Welding different metal is difficult because of the difference compositions that lead to dissimilar
chemical properties. The dissimilar welding will form intermetallic compound. Therefore to
make a good compound, two metals with filler wire should have mutual solubility. Unalike
metals have different chemistries, so they have different physical properties such as melting
temperature. Joining metals with different melting temperatures mostly cause frustration.
Difficulties will arise when there is an attempt to melt metal together at different weld
temperatures. For example, cast iron and stainless steel have different melting points resulting
from difference in material.

Also joining of two different metals is very dangerous as it results in sudden failures of the
welded part causing it to break due to the difference in types of electrodes used for each of the
materials. Example joining a high carbon steel to a cast iron, a non-ferrous metal to a mild steel.

JUSTIFICATION
The process of dry arc welding is the most widely used for the following reasons
It is very flexible: a wide range of thickness of metal can be welded in any position
It is a very portable process: the equipment required is simple and easily transported to any site

It is versatile: it can be used to weld many different metals, including steel, cast iron, stainless
steel, nickel, aluminium and alloy metals.

OBJECTIVES
The aim of this work is to design and construct a dry type arc welding machine that can be used
to weld metals. To design and construct a dry type arc welding machine that will create an
electric arc between an electrode and the base material to melt the metals at the welding point.

METHODOLOGY
THE WELDING TRANSFORMER

The transformer is the major component of the dry type arc welding machine. The unit consists
of a single phase transformer (with tap changing secondary).The transformer is a step down

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transformer which is used to step down the voltage supply. It consists of primary and secondary
circuits. The input is given to primary windings. The transformer is a step-down transformer with
different tapping at High, Medium and Low welding tung cables.

A Step-down Transformer

The dry arc welding machine design is a two pole circuit, with the first pole been the
Primary circuit and the Second pole is the secondary circuit.

THE PRIMARY CIRCUIT

The primary circuit is design to vary in current selection without tempering with the Coil itself; it
is made up of four step coil with three looping for the selection of current capacity.

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 A circuit showing the four step circuit and the looping for the current selection

In the primary circuit, the winding starts at point S and is given 80 turns with a copper wire of
size gauge 13. The first looping is introduced after the first winding and is labeled A, the
winding continues with same size gauge for another 20 turns before the second looping labeled
B. The third looping C and the last winding labeled E is given 20 turns each with same size wire
gauge 13. The beginning of the wire marks the starting point „ S‟ and the end of the wire marks
the ending point „ E‟, both point are used for connection purposes.

THE SECONDARY CIRCUIT

The second circuit is design to consist of two coils which overlaps each other. The first Coil
(Primary coil) is wound with 114 turns size wire gauge 13 while the secondary Coil was 40 turn
of tick size wire gauge 8 as shown below. The starting point and ending point of the secondary
coil serve as the welding terminals.

A circuit showing the secondary circuit with the overlapped primary circuit

.
COPPERWIRE

Copper wire is of more advantage in process winding than that of aluminum. Copper wire has
more capacity and strong enough to resist the function of any kind of winding for a longer time.
It has different type of gauge and is coated with insulator to prevent contact of wires when
winding. For the aluminum wire its very effective when used than the copper wire, it produces
stronger magnetic flux which makes the machine more powerful. The disadvantage of an

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aluminium wire is that they are not insulated thereby need proper insulation before it can be used
for winding.
INSULATORS
Insulators are materials that do not allow electricity to pass through them in any form. They are
used to separate two wires to avoid partial contact.

THE CORE
The core is made of laminations assembled to provide a continuous magnetic path. The
lamination steel help to minimize eddy current loss and the thickness of the lamination varies
from 0.35mm for a frequency of 50Hz, 0.5mm for a frequency of 25Hz. The cores are cut in the
form of long strips. L‟s, E‟s and I‟ shapes as shown below.

In other to avoid reluctance at the joins where the laminated cores are butted against each
other, the alternate layers are stacked differently with the shape I to eliminated joins as
shown below.

Shapes of Lamination (L, E and I shape respectively)

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 The arrangement of laminated core on the coil

The Arrangement of the (I) Lamination Covering the Butted Joint

SCOPE
The machine is designed to be supplied with an input ranging from 220volts to 440volts. It is a
single phase machine which gives its output through the secondary windings. The machine with
its maximum output as 110Amps can be re-adjusted to a lower value when such output is
considered too high.
The machine is equally designed to work with electrodes with their gauge ranging from 8.10 and

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12 depending on the nature of the material and in all cases, it is expected to serve continuously
for about 48hours provided the required input voltage is being supplied to it.

WORK PLAN
When an electric current flows through a cable, the resistance of the cable to the flow of the
electricity generates heat. The flow of electricity is called current. A greater flow of current
produces a greater resistance which generate intense heat. In an electric arc welding process, the
electrode and the work serve as the electrical terminals. The current can flow either through the
electrode to the work or vice versa, and the type of polarity connection made. For instance, if
current is flowing through electrode. When it is placed to the work, the current jumps across the
air gap between the end of the electrode and the work, producing and electric arc. The air gap
produces a high resistance to the flow of the current. This high resistance generates an arc of
intense heat. The temperature is between 33000 ̊C and 55000 ̊C (6000 to 1000F) which is hot
enough to melt both the electrode and the work. There are three basic voltages of an arc welding
circuit.
The Open Circuit Voltage: Is the voltage between the terminals of a welding machine when the
machine is turn on but the arc is not struck, no welding is taking place.

The Close Circuit Voltage: Occurs when the arc is struck and is being maintained or when the
welding operation is ongoing. It is the actual welding voltage.

The Short Circuit Voltage: When an arc is struck and the electrode is brought into direct
contact with the work or the metal work table. A short circuit can cause overheating of the
winding of the transformer, resulting in damage to the generator.

Power supply is given to electrode and the work. A suitable gap is kept between the work and the
electrode. A high current is passed through the circuit. An arc is produced around the area to be
welded. The electric energy is converted into heat energy, producing a temperature of 3000 to
4000 C. This heat melts the edges to be welded and the molten pool is formed. On solidification
the welding joint is obtained.

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 A dry type welding machine

RESOURCES

COMPONENT COST TOTAL

Transformer 450
Copper wire 80
Welding electrode 50
Leather gloves 40
Welding hand shield 170
Electrode holder 65
Ghc855

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Angelo Baggini “Hand book of Power Quality”,John Wiely & Son Ltd, 2008

Rogger G.Dugan, F.McGrangana “Electrical Power quality System”, 2nd edition, McGraw-
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G.R. Slemon and A. Straughen, Electric machines (Addison Wesley Publishing Company,
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B. Klopcic, D. Dolinar and G. Stumberger, “Advanced control of a resistance spot welding

Evbogbai, J. E. and Enoch A M., (2002).Design and Construction of Alternating Current

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