3/22/2019 A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships - Part 2

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A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships –

Part 2
By Chief Engineer Mohit Sanguri | In: Marine Electrical | Last Updated on October 7, 2017

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A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships – Electrode Nomenclature and Classification

In A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships- Part 1, we discussed commonly used welding electrodes in
the engine room, use of low hydrogen electrodes, electrode selection based on size of the work piece
and current setting. In this article we shall discuss the nomenclature and classification of the electrodes
based on popular ISO 2560 and AWS standards.

Standardization of Welding Electrodes

The standardization of welding electrodes is essential as they are as important as the parent metals and
alloys in manufacturing and repair. A correctly chosen electrode, which is matched perfectly to the parent
metal, assures the effectiveness and strength of the welding.

The welding electrodes are classified on the basis of the electrode metal, flux coating, current used,
position of welding, performance characteristics, chemistry and the mechanical properties of the weld
metal etc.

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3/22/2019 A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships - Part 2

We will discuss the two popular standards; ISO 2560 and AWS in this article.

AWS Classification

AWS stands for American

Welding Society and this
classification is widely used in the
merchant marine. In this, standard electrodes for
different applications are numbered such as E6010,
E6011, E6013, and E7018 etc. For example let us
consider the welding electrode E6013 which is a
commonly used electrode on board.

E XXXX: The first character “E” in E6013 stands for flux

covered electrode as used in Metal Manual Arc Welding.

E60XX: The next two characters indicate the minimum tensile strength. The “60” in E6013 indicates that
the weld metal will have a minimum tensile strength of 62000 psi. Please refer to the chart below for the
other key numbers and the associated tensile strength.

EXX1X: The fourth character indicates the different positions in which welding can be done using this
electrode. In this case “1” in E6013 means that the welding can be done in flat, overhead, horizontal and
vertical (upwards). Please refer the table below for other key numbers and the associated welding
positions.

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3/22/2019 A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships - Part 2

EXXX3: This fifth character indicates the type of flux coating used, penetration of the electrode and the
type of current suitable for the electrode. In this case the “3” in E6013 tells that it has a rutile potassium
based flux coating. The penetration of the electrode is light and it can be used with AC and DC currents.
Please refer the table below for other key numbers and their properties.

EXXXX-X This extra character is sometimes used for additional requirements. For example in the
electrode E7018-A1, the suffix “A1” in the last refers to added chemical composition of 0.5 % Mo. Please
refer the table below for other suffixes. These suffixes generally differ from manufacturer to manufacturer
and even though the electrodes may be belonging to the same standard they may still be slightly different
as each manufacturer likes to add a personal touch.

Thus the number E6013 written on an electrode indicates that it is a rutile potassium based flux coated
mild steel electrode with 62,000 psi minimum tensile strength having light penetration which can be used
in all positions of welding except vertically down. This information is helpful for the marine engineer
preparing for a repair / fabrication and wondering which electrode to use.

ISO Standard

ISO 2560: 2009 is the standard under ISO for the classification of welding electrodes for Manual Metal
Arc Welding. It is an international standard and all other regional and domestic standards are based on it.
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3/22/2019 A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships - Part 2

For example under ISO 2560 a welding electrode is classified as E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10. We shall
discuss the key numbers one by one.

E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The character”E” here refers to a flux covered electrode for Manual Metal Arc
Welding.

E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The number 55 here indicates that the weld metal will have a minimum tensile
strength of 550 N/mm2. . Please refer the table below for the other key numbers and the associated
tensile strength.

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E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The key number “3” here indicates
are happy with it.the lowest temperature at and below which
the weld will become brittle. The weld must beOK
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3/22/2019 A Guide to Welding Electrodes on Ships - Part 2

considered non brittle. Thus “3” here means that at or below -30 deg C the weld will become brittle.

E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: This is an additional field and sometimes used. The characters “MnMo” here
refers to the alloying metal present in the weld deposit. In this particular case the key character indicates
that the weld deposit will have Manganese concentration between 1.4 to 2.0 % and Molybdenum
concentration between 0.3 to 0.6 %. Please refer the table below for further details.

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E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The key character “B” here refers to the type of flux coating. In this case it is
basic coating containing Calcium Carbonate. Please refer the table below for the other type of flux
coatings.

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E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The

character “T” here is an extra
designation to advice about the
heat treatment of the weld. Here
it indicates that the weld must be annealed to between 560 to 600 deg C for one hour then cooled in
furnace to 300 deg C and thereafter cooled in air. Please refer the example below.

E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The key character “4” here refers to current and the deposit rate. In this case it
can be used for DC only and has a deposit rate of 105 to 125 %. As it is more than the amount of metal
present in the welding electrode it means that the flux coating has some iron powder. Please refer the
table below for details.

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E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The key character “2” here refers to the welding positions the electrode can be
used in. Here it means all positions except vertically down. Please refer the table below for details.

E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10: The symbol “H10” here refers to the hydrogen content in the deposited weld
metal. In this case it is 10ml/100g. Please refer the table below for other symbols.

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Thus the meaning of the marking E55 3 MnMo B T 42 H10 on a welding electrode is that it is a basic flux
coated welding electrode having a minimum tensile strength of 550N/mm2 which will become brittle at -30
deg C. It has an alloying Manganese concentration between 1.4 to 2.0 % and Molybdenum concentration
between 0.3 to 0.6 %. It can be used with DC current and has a deposit rate between 105 to 125 %. It
can be used in all positions except vertically down. The deposited weld metal will have a hydrogen
concentration of 10 ml/100g. Thus the ISO 2560 standard is more detailed and comprehensive than AWS
but very difficult to remember unless proper specification tables are provided.

References

aws
Bohler Welding Guide: 2008
mig-welding
UNITOR HANDBOOK FOR MARITIME WELDERS
esabna
BOC: FUNDAMENTALS OF MANUAL METAL ARC WELDING

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About Chief Engineer Mohit Sanguri

Chief Engineer Mohit Sanguri is a Marine Chief Engineer (Class I Unlimited Power).
He has 12 years of experience as Marine Engineer. He is currently working with
Dynacom Tankers Ltd on their Bulk Carriers division and has served in past with Wallems Ship
Mgmt on Car Carriers and PCTC’s, MSC Ship Mgmt on Containers, Univan Ship Mgmt on RoRo’s
and Five Stars Shipping on Bulkers and SNP Ship Mgmt on General Cargo at various designations.

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