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In principle, plasma welding is related to TIG welding. However, there is one essential difference. In connection with TIG, the electrode (the tungsten) constitutes one part of a tension field (an arc), and therefore it is not possible to reach a temperature higher than the melting point of tungsten at about 3200 degrees C. As a temperature as high as possible is always desirable (in order to melt the materials faster and advance the molten bath faster), PLASMA is a further development of TIG. In connection with plasma, it could be said that the gas emanating around the electrode is used as an active part of the melting process, whereas, in connection with TIG, the gas solely serves the purpose to protect the molten bath.
The plasma has a temperature of up to 30,000 degrees C which is reached by leading ionised gas in front of the electrode via a special nozzle. The gas is compressed because of the high flow velocity after the nozzle, and in this way the high temperatures are reached. This means that the heating of the material to be welded takes place much faster. In practice, it is therefore possible to reach welding speeds (i.e. the speed at which the molten bath can be advanced) that are up to five times higher than it is possible with TIG. Plasma welding can only be performed in an automatic welding machine or a robot on account of the quite thin "arc" (plasma column) which is to be advanced extremely precisely.
Plasma welding is used for major series and is an unsurpassed welding method as regards both quality and economy. In quite thin materials, the welding (in robot welder) is often performed 2-3 times faster than is the case with TIG and in a much better quality. In addition, the high welding speed which is possible results in no/only negligible deformation of the materials because the so-called heat zone is extremely narrow, and the thermal impact on the workpiece itself is therefore limited.
GBI (Gl. Bedsted industri A/S) offers plasma welding in robot welder. With our CNC-controlled machines, we possess the equipment required to produce workpieces with the precision required for plasma welding. Therefore we can process productions at absolutely favourable prices in a better quality than what can be achieved with other welding methods.
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