Welding Processes 41

and the the billets are rolled. The cladding is done by explosive welding. Dissimilar
metal welds can be easily made by explosive welding method. Such welding process
is commonly used is electrical and cryogenic applications.
Pipes can be welded by explosive welding process with lapped joint through
the simultaneous initiation of external and internal explosive charges as indicated
in Fig. 1.21. The process can be easily applied under pipe line construction
conditions. The charges progressively denote from the apex outwards to the open
end of the angular gap established by the overlapping or bell and spigot
configuration. The intense pressure generated at the point of collision, in
combination with the angular collision geometry, causes severe flow of the surface
layer of the pipes and the formation of a jet. The jet—a mixture of the two surface
layers and their contaminants—is expelled from the collision zone leaving
uncontaminated metal surface in intimate contact for the formation of a metallurgical
or solid phase bond.
Another method of joining two pipes by explosive method is based on an inner
ring welding. A backing outer ring is placed outside the joint to take up the
detonating

Fig. 1.22 Explosive welding of two pipes with inner ring.

force. The inner ring along with the explosive is placed at the junction of the two
pipes as indicated in Fig. 1.22. When the explosive detonates, the inner ring expands
and gets welded on to the inner surfaces of the two pipes. The entire force is taken
care of by the back outer ring. By suitable dimensioning and controlled deformation,
the inner bore diameter can be properly adjusted to suit the pipes. As all the