REPAIR OF PROCESS-RELATED DEFECTS IN ELECTROSLAG WELDING. FINAL REPORT

The primary objectives of this program were to develop a welding procedure for repair of electroslag weldments and to determine if repair welding influenced the fatigue strength of electroslag weldments. Integral to this effort was the identification of the most likely types of defects, their causes, and the potential for effective repair. The electroslag welding (ESW) process is capable of producing a higher volume of defect-free weld deposit than other processes used for joining structural steel. When defects do occur, however, ESW is not well-suited for use as a repair process since it is limited to vertical position, single-pass, full-thickness welding.