[AT] Welding Rails

Tue Dec 3 18:24:32 PST 2019

When I was installing remote sensing gauges for river levels, we used 
the thermite welding process to connect our gauge housings and antennas 
to the 1/0 copper wire that was buried in the ground for lightning 
protection.   It required welding 3 copper radials from the gauge 
housing to a wire buried in a 12ft diameter circle 3 ft deep. Each 
radial was also welded to a copper plated ground rod driven 9 ft deep in 
the ground.  We used Cadweld brand Thermite and molds to accomplish 
this.  We must have done it right, in the first year of operation we had 
3 of our 18 gauges take direct lightning strikes.  All 3 stayed online 
after automatic reset.
I took a crash course in lightning protection for tall structures.  It 
was one of my more interesting   projects while working for the State of 
OKla 30 years...
Cecil

On 12/3/2019 10:12 AM, Howard Pletcher wrote:
> Steel Dynamics said they were looking at friction welding of the rails 
> although I didn't ask the obvious question of how they would obtain 
> the friction since spinning the parts doesn't seem possible.  Perhaps 
> some sort of high frequency vibration?
>
> The process used in the video is very similar to what is done at Steel 
> Dynamics.
>
> Howard
>
> On Tue, Dec 3, 2019 at 10:22 AM Gene Dotson <gdotsly at watchtv.net 
> <mailto:gdotsly at watchtv.net>> wrote:
>
>       Our process at Rockwell for welding spindles on to axle tubes
>     was simply
>     called butt welding in our processes. The axle tube and spindle
>     were clamped
>     in their own vice like device and held in stationary precise
>     location. They
>     both were heated to very near melting temperature by a large high
>     frequency
>     induction coil, then high pressure cylinders forced the spindle
>     onto the
>     axle tube. The intensive pressure added the extra temperature to
>     melt the
>     mating surfaces, completing the weld which was then quenched by a
>     spray of
>     water and quenching fluid.
>
>         A later method was friction welding. The axle beam was clamped
>     stationary in a holding fixture. The spindle was located in a
>     fixture that
>     was on a rotating spindle and rotated at high speed with pressure
>     exerted on
>     the mating surface creating a very high temperature. At near melting
>     temperature, a quick application from an induction coil completed the
>     heating process at which  point the spindle was stopped with
>     molten metal at
>     junction of spindle with pressure at which time the weld was quenched
>     completing the process.
>
>                                                 Gene
>
>
>
>     -----Original Message-----
>     From: Carl Gogol
>     Sent: Saturday, November 30, 2019 7:47 AM
>     To: 'Antique Tractor Email Discussion Group'
>     Subject: Re: [AT] Welding Rails
>
>     Rails are thermite welded in the field
>     Carl
>     Manlius, NY
>
>     -----Original Message-----
>     From: AT <at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com
>     <mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com>> On Behalf Of James Peck
>     Sent: Saturday, November 30, 2019 7:27 AM
>     To: Antique Tractor Email Discussion Group
>     <at at lists.antique-tractor.com <mailto:at at lists.antique-tractor.com>>
>     Subject: Re: [AT] Welding Rails
>
>     That certainly looks like resistance welding.
>
>     Steve Offiler AT List member Mechanical Engineer
>     (soffiler at gmail.com <mailto:soffiler at gmail.com>);
>     Interesting, but not very helpful:
>
>     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9i4aMYTv8o
>
>     James AT List Member (jamesgpeck at hotmail.com
>     <mailto:jamesgpeck at hotmail.com>); You have got me curious. I am
>     going to guess resistance welding if you say that the rail ends
>     are pushed
>     together.
>
>     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_resistance_welding
>
>     Howard Pletcher AT List Member AT List Member (hrpletch at gmail.com
>     <mailto:hrpletch at gmail.com>); The
>     process is mostly automated and details are hidden by the
>     equipment. The
>     rail joint comes into the welding station, the operator cleans the
>     ends, the
>     door closes, and there’s 2 seconds of arcing.  My understanding is
>     it begins
>     with a small gap between the ends and as the steel begins to melt
>     from the
>     arc, it is shoved together with high pressure. I assume the rails are
>     clamped between (large) contacts to apply the current—should have
>     asked for
>     more details.
>
>     Mentioning dimming city lights, they melt 120 tons of scrap in an
>     electric
>     arc furnace in a batch. They said this uses the same current as
>     the city of
>     Fort Wayne. Fortunately they are on their own distribution lines
>     so the
>     lights don’t go out.
>
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