The search for better trailer welding

IN the world of aluminum trailer welding, the effort to improve quality and productivity is never-ending.

Praxair believes it has come up with an enhanced blend called StarGold Aluminum that will do that better than an argon-helium blend.

“Historically there has been some use of argon,” said WF Garth Stapon, automation specialist for Praxair Canada Inc, who was part of the Trailer Forum. “Helium has been in short supply for the past decade — the reason being that the US government considers helium a strategic resource.

“The opportunity here is to try to come up with a gas that can perform like helium without the need to get into supply issues. We are short term in a good position to supply helium, but we have to use it sparingly and ultimately come up with alternatives that can give the client process improvement.

“If you look at the properties of argon vs helium, argon typically is not as good as our customers are demanding. That's important because productivity, quality, and cleanup can be impacted by the use of argon. The impact of welding productivity can really help to reduce the factors of production costs.”

He said argon and argon-helium blends are typically used for both Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) and Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) processes. In GMAW, different bead profiles can be achieved with those gases.

Issues to consider when selecting a shielding gas:

• Weld quality — minimize porosity, inclusions.

• Welding speed.

• Improve metal transfer/arc stability.

• Optimize bead shape and penetration.

Stapon said there is a need for a new aluminum blend to improve aluminum welding performance without the need to add helium. It provides a competitive aspect in Canada because it has better arc stability and a reduced cleaning zone,...