Ship Bulkheads Explained

Ship Construction
BULKHEAD
Introduction:
• Bulkheads are fitted inside the ship‘s hull to divide the ship into separate compartments.
• Bulkheads are indented to reduce the progressive and down flooding of the vessel in the
event of a hull damage or abnormal trim or list conditions.
• Bulkheads also reduce the progress of flame and smoke in the event of a fire on the ship.
• Bulkheads according to their orientation, give resistance against longitudinal and
transverse stresses.
• Bulkheads may be water-tight or no-water-tight.
• watertight bulkheads divide the main hull into many different watertight compartments.
Watertight bulkheads are attached to the shell, the deck, and the bottom or tank top by
welding.
• Non watertight bulkheads are any other types of bulkheads which are non water tight
such as centreline wash bulkhead in the peak tanks, partial bulkheads in the
accommodation spaces, stores and cargo holds.
• Bulkheads may be of plane type or corrugated type.
• Of all the bulkheads fitted on a ship, collision bulkhead is the most important one.
• Collision bulkheads to some extend protect the vessel by preventing flooding, in case of a
collision.
• Collision bulkheads are comparatively of heavy construction.
Regulation regarding minimum number of bulkheads and their location:

• The required number and location of bulkheads are governed by regulations in SOLAS
convention Chapter-2-1 and classification society rules.
• The transverse watertight bulkheads subdivide the ship into a number of watertight
compartments.
• Oil-tight bulkheads form the boundaries of tanks used for the carriage of liquid cargoes or
fuels.
• Non-watertight bulkheads are any other bulkheads such as engine casings, accommodation
partitions or stores compartments.
• The spacing of watertight bulkheads, which is known as the watertight subdivision of the
ship, is governed by rules dependent upon ship type, size, etc.
• All ships must have:
• (1) A collision or fore peak bulkhead which is to be positioned not less than 0.05 x length of
the ship, nor more than 0.08 x length of the ship, from the forward end of the load
waterline.
• (2) An after peak bulkhead which encloses the stern tube(s) and rudder trunk in a
watertight compartment.
• (3) A bulkhead at each end of the machinery space; the after bulkhead may, for an aft
engine room, be the after peak bulkhead.
• Additional bulkheads are to be fitted according to the vessel's length.
• Fitting less than the standard number of bulkheads is permitted in approved
circumstances where additional structural compensation is provided.
• Watertight bulkheads must extend to the freeboard deck but may rise to the uppermost
continuous deck.
• The aft peak bulkhead may extend only to the next deck above the load waterline, where
the construction aft of this deck is fully watertight to the shell.
SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

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Ship Construction
•
• The purpose of watertight subdivision and the spacing of the bulkheads is to provide an
arrangement such that if one compartment is flooded between bulkheads the ship's
waterline will not rise above the margin line.
• The margin line is a line drawn parallel to and 76 mm below the upper surface of the
bulkhead deck at the ship's side.
• The subdivision of passenger ships is regulated by statutory requirements which are in
excess of classification society rules for cargo ships, but the objective of confining flooding
and avoiding sinking are the same.
Definitions
• Bulkhead deck in a passenger ship means the uppermost deck at any point in the
subdivision length (Ls) to which the main bulkheads and the ship‘s shell are carried
watertight and the lowermost deck from which passenger and crew evacuation will not be
impeded by water in any stage of flooding upto the extend that it is assumed in damage
stability criteria.
• Oil-tight Bulk Head is a bulkhead other than the watertight bulk head such as engine
room casing boundary bulkheads, deck house boundary bulkheads etc.
• The definitions are as given in SOLAS Chapter-2-1-Part-A.
• Watertightmeans having scantlings and arrangements capable of preventing the
passage of water in any direction under the head of water likely to occur in intact
and damaged conditions. In the damaged condition, the head of water is to be
considered in the worst situation at equilibrium, including intermediate stages of
flooding.
• Weathertightmeans that in any sea conditions water will not penetrate into the
ship.
Corrugated bulkheads:
• Corrugated Bulkheads: these bulkheads are constructed with corrugations or swedges in
them to give necessary stiffness and strength, there by avoiding the requirements to have
stiffeners.
• Sufficient strength with reduction in weight is the main advantage of using corrugated
bulkheads instead of plane bulkheads.
• The troughs are vertical on transverse bulkheads but on longitudinal bulkheads they must
be horizontal in order to add to the longitudinal strength of the ship.
• The corrugations or swedges are made in the plating strakes prior to fabrication of the
complete bulkhead.

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Ship Construction
• As a consequence, the strakes run vertically and the plating must be of uniform thickness
and adequate to support the greater loads at the bottom of the bulkhead.
• This greater thickness of plate offsets to some extent the saving in weight through not
adding stiffeners to the bulkhead.
• The edges of the corrugated bulkhead which join to the shell plating may have a stiffened
flat plate fitted to increase transverse strength and simplify fitting the bulkhead to the
shell.
• On high bulkheads with vertical corrugations, diaphragm plates are fitted across the
troughs.
• This prevents any possible collapse of the corrugations.
Construction of plane bulkheads:

• The plating of a flat transverse bulkhead is generally welded in sections of horizontal
strakes.
• Smaller bulkheads may be erected as a single unit; larger bulkheads are in two or more
units.
• It has always been the practice to use horizontal strakes of plating as it is convenient to
reduce the plate thickness progressively towards the top edge.
• Apart from the depth, the plate thickness is also influenced by the supporting stiffener
spacing.
• Vertical stiffeners are fitted to the transverse watertight bulkheads of a ship.

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Ship Construction
• Since the span being less in this direction, the stiffener will have less tendency to deflect
under load.
• Stiffening is usually in the form of welded inverted ordinary angle bars, or offset bulb
plates.
• A spacing of 760mm for normal water-tight bulkheads and reduced to 610mm for collision
and oil-tight bulkheads.
• The size of the stiffener is dependent on the unsupported length, stiffener spacing, and
rigidity of the end connections.
• Rigidity of the end connections will depend on the form of end connection.
• Stiffeners in holds can be of bracketed or directly welded to the tank top or underside of
deck, whilst upper tween stiffeners need not have any connection at all.
• Vertical stiffeners may be supported by horizontal stringers permitting a reduction in the
stiffener scantling as a result of the reduced span.
• Horizontal stringers are mostly found on those bulkheads forming the boundaries of a tank
space.
• The boundaries of the bulkhead are double continuously fillet welded directly to the shell,
decks, and tank top.
• A bulkhead may be erected in the vertical position prior to the fitting of decks during
prefabrication on the berth.
• At the line of the tween decks a ‗shelf plate‘ is fitted to the bulkhead and when erected the
tween decks land on this plate which extends 300 to 400 mm from the bulkhead.
• The deck is lap welded to the shelf plate with an overlap of about 25 mm.
• The collision bulkhead must have plating some 12% thicker than other watertight
bulkheads.
• The, plating in the aft peak bulkhead around the stern tube must be doubled or increased
in thickness to reduce vibration.
• The bulkhead is stiffened by vertical bulb plates or
• In the case of a corrugated bulkhead it becomes necessary to fit filling pieces between the
troughs in way of the shelf plate.
Penetrations through bulkheads

• As much as possible the penetration through water tight bulkheads by pipes and trunks
should be avoided.
• Any penetrations must be as inboard as possible.
• If this becomes unavoidable, pipe ends on both the sides should be flanged and the bolt
hole section inside the bulkhead should be threaded.

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Ship Construction
• If pipe ends are not flanged then welding of the pipe surface to the bulk head should be
done on both the sides.
• The water tight integrity should be tested during the renewal and intermediate surveys.
• The bulkhead should be of sufficient strength to be capable of remaining watertight with a
head of water upto the top of the bulkhead.
Purpose of wash bulkheads

• Wash bulkheads are perforated bulkheads provided inside tanks intended to be filled with
liquids in bulk.
• In cargo tanks of tankers, peak tanks of all the ships will be provided with wash bulkheads.
• This arrangement helps in reducing the sloshing of liquids in tanks.
• The sloshing pressures are pressures induced by free movement of the tank liquids as a
result of ship motions.
• Sloshing causes excessive cyclic stresses to act on the boundaries of the tanks.
Use of cross ties on tankers

• Cross Ties are large transverse structural members joining longitudinal bulkheads and
used to support them against hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads.
• The cross ties are designed to stiffen the tank side boundary bulkhead structure against
transverse distortion under liquid pressure.
• Two or three horizontal cross ties are provided depending on the vessel‘s depth, but
diagonal cross ties may be fitted and will be found on a number of ships.
• The cross tie is often simply a face plate, vertically stiffened if very deep, and horizontally
stiffened to prevent buckling and distortion in that direction.
• At its ends the cross tie is bracketed to the vertical transverse webs.

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Ship Construction
Testing of bulkheads
SOLAS Ch.2-1.Regulation 11:
• Initial testing of watertight bulkheads, etc.
• Testing watertight spaces not intended to hold liquids and cargo holds intended to hold
ballast by filling them with water is not compulsory.
• When testing by filling with water is not carried out, a hose test shall be carried out where
practicable.
• This test shall be carried out in the most advanced stage of the fitting out of the ship.
• Where a hose test is not practicable because of possible damage to machinery, electrical
equipment insulation or outfitting items, it may be replaced by a careful visual examination
of welded connections, supported where deemed necessary by means such as a dye
penetrant test or an ultrasonic leak test or an equivalent test.
• In any case a thorough inspection of the watertight bulkheads shall be carried out.
• The forepeak, double bottom (including duct keels) and inner skins shall be capable of
supporting at least the pressure due to a head of water up to the bulkhead deck.
Testing of bulkheads
SOLAS Ch.2-1.Regulation 16:
• In passenger ships and cargo ships watertight doors shall be tested by water pressure to a
head of water they might sustain in a final or intermediate stage of flooding.
• Where testing of individual doors is not carried out because of possible damage to
insulation or outfitting items, testing of individual doors may be replaced by a prototype
pressure test of each type and size of door with a test pressure corresponding at least to the
head required for the intended location.
• The prototype test shall be carried out before the door is fitted.
• The installation method and procedure for fitting the door on board shall correspond to that
of the prototype test.
• When fitted on board, each door shall be checked for proper seating between the bulkhead,
the frame and the door.
Procedure for Testing of bulkheads:

• Both the collision bulkhead, as the fore peak bulkhead, and the aft peak bulkhead
provided, they do not form the boundaries of tanks are to be tested by filling the peaks with
water to the level of the load waterline.

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• All bulkheads, unless they form the boundaries of a tank which is regularly subject to a
head of liquid, are hose tested.
• Since it is not considered prudent to test ordinary watertight bulkheads by filling a cargo
hold, the hose test is considered satisfactory.
• When hose testing is required to verify the tightness of the structures, the minimum
pressure in the hose, at least equal to 2bar, is to be applied at a maximum distance of 1.5
m.
• The nozzle diameter is not to be less than 12 mm.
• Hydro-pneumatic testing is a combination of hydrostatic and air testing, consisting in filling
the tank with water up to its top and applying an additional air pressure.
• The value of the additional air pressure is at the discretion of the Society, but is to be at
least 1.5bar.
• Leak testing is an air or other medium test carried out to demonstrate the tightness of the
structure.
Note:
1.Leak or hydropneumatic testing may be accepted provided that at least one tank for each type is
structurally tested, to be selected in connection with the approval of the design. In general,
structural testing need not be repeated for subsequent vessels of a series of identical new-
buildings. This relaxation does not apply to cargo space boundaries in tankers and combination

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carriers and tanks for segregated cargoes or pollutants. If the structural test reveals weakness or
severe faults not detected by the leak test, all tanks are to be structurally tested.
2.Where applicable, the highest point of tank is to be measured to the deck and excluding hatches.
In holds for liquid cargo or ballast with large hatch covers, the highest point of tank is to be taken
at the top of the hatch.
3.Leak or hydropneumatic testing may be accepted when, at the Society's discretion, the latter is
considered significant also in relation to the construction techniques and the welding procedures
adopted.
4.When hose test cannot be performed without damaging possible outfitting (machinery, cables,
switchboards, insulation, etc.) already installed, it may be replaced, at the Society's discretion, by
a careful visual inspection of all the crossings and welded joints; where necessary, dye penetrant
test or ultrasonic leak test may be required.
Racking stresses and transverse bulkheads

• Transverse Stresses: When a ship experiences transverse forces these tend to change the
shape of the vessel‘s cross sections and thereby introduce transverse stresses.
• These forces may be produced by hydrostatic loads and impact of seas or cargo and
structural weights both directly and as the result of reactions due to change of ship motion.
• RACKING: When a ship is rolling, the deck tends to move laterally relative to the bottom
structure, and the shell on one side to move vertically relative to the other side.
• This type of deformation is referred to as ‗racking‘.
• Transverse bulkheads primarily resist such transverse deformation, the side frames
contribution being insignificant provided the transverse bulkheads are at their usual
regular spacing.
Cofferdams
• Cofferdam: This is an isolating space between two adjacent steel bulk heads or decks.
• This space may be a void space or a ballast space.
• Cofferdams are also fitted between tanks carrying fresh water and oil.
• Also the same may be used as pump room in tankers.
• A minimum of 760mm is required to be maintained between the bulkheads for the ease of
inspection and maintenance.
• When these spaces are used for purposes where regular man entry is required, proper
ventilation, lighting and gas detection arrangements are to be provided.

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Ship Construction
Comparison between flat plate & corrugated Bulkheads

• Corrugations (or swedges) are formed on a corrugated bulkhead to eliminate the need to fit
the vertical stiffener, as in those of the plain bulkhead.
• A corrugated plate is stronger than a flat plate without stiffening if subject to bending
moment or a pillar load along the corrugations.
• The elimination of vertical stiffeners also results in saving in steel weight and cost of
stiffeners.
• The angle of corrugation is normally about 45o.
• The troughs are vertical on transverse bulkheads but must be horizontal on continuous
longitudinal bulkheads, which form part of the longitudinal strength of the ship.
• Diaphragm plates or horizontal stringers are fitted on the bulkhead to keep the corrugation
in place.
• The immediate advantage of a corrugated bulkhead over plate type bulkhead is the
elimination of stiffeners and hence weight reduction.
• But this gain in reduction in weight is offset by the extra material required for same area,
in comparison with plane bulkhead.
• Also additional requirement of stools for the bottom and the top of the bulkhead, decreases
the gain in weight.
• But absence of stiffeners as in plane bulkhead is a clear advantage with regard to tank
cleanliness.
• This plays a crucial role in reduced time for tank cleaning and inspection as in the case of
chemical tankers.
• Also corrugated bulkheads are more rupture resistant compared to plate type bulkheads in
the event of over/under pressure.
• As the bulkheads can expand without rupture, by opening out the corrugations.
• This is a major advantage when carrying chemical cargoes.

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Ship Construction
Corrosion and Prevention
Introduction:
 In the ship building process and its operational period, the ship is exposed to various
chemical influences of the environment that cause different corrosion damages.
 Severe structural material damage caused by corrosion can affect both the safety and
overall life of the ship.
 90% of the ships‘ hull failure is attributed to corrosion.
 Localized corrosion is among the major type of physical defects found largely on ship‘s
structure.
 To slowdown or eliminate the corrosion process on the ships they have to be protected by
various measures and technological procedures.
 Corrosion: Chemical degradation of solid material by influence from its environment.
 There is a natural tendency for nearly all pure metals to convert back to the natural state
by reacting with surrounding atmosphere and is called corrosion.
 Rust is the most well-known corrosion product, which is yielded when steel and iron
involve in the corrosion process.
 Corrosion is a chemical process where and electrolytic cell is formed with sea water and
electrodes.

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 Corrosion prevention of marine structures is very expensive.

 Corrosion takes many forms in the marine environment.
 It can be seen as pitting on hull plates; in the disintegration of weld seams; around bow
thrusters and on the surfaces of rudders, stern area and other vital components.
 Corrosion prevention is very vital for the safety of the vessel and environmental protection.
Hull corrosion:
 Corrosion of ships is the result of several different types of corrosion.
 The most common one is general corrosion or wall thinning of the hull due to seawater
attack.
 Studies have shown that the rate of this form of corrosion is approximately 0.1 mm per
year.
 At this corrosion rate, it would take approximately 62 years to have a reduction of 6.4 mm.
 Because of this slow rate, general corrosion is normally not a consideration in a ship‘s
design life.
 Galvanic corrosion occurs between two metals with dissimilar electrochemical potentials.
 In this form of corrosion, one of the metals is more electrochemically active and corrodes,
while the second metal is protected by the corroding metal.
 The metals can even be of the same material if the electrochemical potential of one of the
materials has been changed due to stresses or differential aeration.
 Studies have indicated that most hull corrosion is galvanic in nature.
 A ship‘s structure may be subjected to corrosion caused due to atmosphere and corrosion
due to immersion in water.
 Wherever the humidity higher than 70% the degree of corrosion is more.
 The intensity of corrosion is very much dependent on the other foreign components in the
atmosphere apart from humidity.
 For example the atmosphere may become more harmful if it is having lot of suspended
smoke particles or salt particles.

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Erosion:
 Erosion is the gradual destruction of something by natural forces (such as water,
wind, or ice) the process by which something is eroded or worn away.
 Erosion is purely mechanical.
 It removes protective coating by mechanical means/ abrasion and exposes the metal
surface to the atmosphere, resulting in corrosion.
 In the ship’s structure the effect of erosion is mostly on the stern area where the
propeller action causes eddies.
 Cavitation of the propeller also causes erosion.
 Erosion on the ship’s hull causes abrasion of the paint and in extreme causes
complete removal of the coating in the area.
 Abrasive effect of dust or salt particles carried by wind, Use of bulldozers, shovels or
scrapers on deck or in the holds.
 Abrasive effect of Tug coming hard along-side the vessel or Vessel going hard against
the berth.
Corrosion triangle:
 Corrosion triangle represents the three vital elements for the formation of a
corrosion cell.
 The knowledge of the corrosion triangle is very essential for understanding the
measures to take for reduction of corrosion.
 If any one of the side of the corrosion triangle can be eliminated, the corrosion can
be eliminated.
Galvanic series of metals:

 The galvanic series (or electro-potential series) determines the nobility of metals and semi-
metals.
 When two metals are submerged in an electrolyte, while also electrically connected by some
external conductor, the less noble (base) will experience galvanic corrosion.
 The rate of corrosion is determined by the electrolyte and the difference in nobility.

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 Galvanic series relationships are useful as a guide for selecting metals to be joined, will
help the selection of metals having minimal tendency to interact galvanically, or will
indicate the need or degree of protection to be applied to lessen the expected potential
interactions.
 In general, the further apart the materials are in the galvanic series, the higher the risk of
galvanic corrosion, which should be prevented by design.
 Conversely, the nearer one metal is from another, the lesser the corrosion will be.
 The difference can be measured as a difference in voltage potential.
 However, the series does not provide any information on the rate of galvanic corrosion and
thus serves as a basic qualitative guide only.
Stress concentration & corrosion:

 Regions within a metal subject to a high local stress will contain metal atoms at a higher
strain energy state.
 As a result, high-stress regions will be anodic to low-stress regions and can corrode
selectively.
 For example, bolts under load are subject to more corrosion than similar bolts that are
unloaded.
 A good rule of thumb is to select fasteners that are cathodic (i.e. higher on
the Electrochemical Series) to the metal being fastened in order to prevent fastener
corrosion.
 Regions within a metal subjected to cold-work contain a higher concentration of
dislocations, and as a result will be anodic to non-cold-worked regions.
 Thus, cold-worked sections of a metal will corrode faster.
 For example, steel sections that are bent will often corrode at the bend.
 Also at the regions where hydraulic jack/ram has directly applied force will be more prone
to corrosion.

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 Also in the welded section, if the post weld treatments are not carried out, the area will be
subjected to higher corrosion, due to the residual thermal stresses in that region.
 The stress concentration related corrosion is more in high tensile steel structures, like hull
part of the ship structure.
 This will be more towards edges of the rolled sections and cut openings.
 By proper design to a great extend the stress concentration related corrosion can be
eliminated.
Differences in surface condition & corrosion:

 The surface of the metal may have irregular coating of oxide layer.
 This causes the formation of galvanic cells in the presence of an electrolyte.
 Also the uneven distribution of alloying elements in the surface may lead to corrosion cell
formation in localized regions on the metal surface.
 Non-uniform crystal structure at the surface of the metals also causes the formation of
galvanic cell formation.
 All these will lead to localized corrosion and local wastage of material.
 This can lead to stress concentrations and further corrosion rate will increase leading to
complete failure.
Cathodic protection by using sacrificial anodes:

 Cathodic protection of ship is an integral part of every ship on its underwater part and the
protection of coatings is the most common method of corrosion protection employed in
shipbuilding.
 The primary task of cathodic protection is an electrochemical method of protecting metals
from corrosion effects and is effective only if there is a conductive medium between the
anode and the structure that protects it.
 There are two main types of cathodic protection:
 cathodic protection by means of a sacrificial anode
 impressed current cathodic protection system
 Cathodic protection by means of a sacrificial anode:
 When two metals come in contact with each other in the presence of water, the less
precious metal will have a lower potential than the precious one.
 This potential difference between metals in contact generates an electric current between
them.
 The current flows from the precious metal (the cathode) to the less precious one (the
anode).
 A continuous flow of electricity to the less precious metal causes the release of more
positive ions, which dissolve in water.
 This leads to the slow dissolution of less precious metals in water.
 This metal dissolution is called anodic reaction, while the metal that dissolves is called the
anode.
 Sacrificial anodes consists of pieces of metal that have a lower potential in sea water than
the metal of the hull being protected.
 Anodes are made from non-precious materials and tend to corrode more easily than iron.
 Sacrificial anode is typically made from zinc, aluminium, or in rare cases, magnesium.
 Magnesium anodes were widely used in the past han today, but were eliminated due to the
generation of the large quantity of hydrogen.

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Ship Construction
 Today the most widely used material for sacrificial anodes of zinc, welded to different places
on the ship‘s plating.
 The anode has a lower potential compared to the steel plating, so that they "absorb power"
beyond the exposed part of the plating, thereby generating a circuit between the zinc anode
and the parts of ships made from copper or other precious metal alloys (e.g. the marine
propeller).
 In this way the zinc is consumed, and the steel hull is simultaneously protected.
 When the zinc anode wears out, the circuit is established between the next less precious
metal, resulting in its dissolution.
 For the protection of steel in the sea about 140 mA/m 2 , coloured steel 10-15 mA/m2. is
required.
 Therefore the cathodic protection is regularly used in combination with protective coatings.
 If the layer of paint in the underwater part of the hull is damaged, it enables a flow of
electricity between sea water and metal.
 The more serious the damage, the higher the zinc anode wear rate will be.
 When installing the anode it is important to achieve a good weld between the hull and the
anode, and the anodes must not be coated with paint.
 Anodes are usually rectangular and flat, adapted to the particular part of the hull or the
equipment requiring protection.
 Cathodic protection systems using sacrificial anodes are very flexible, because the small
anodes can be arranged so that they can ensure an effective protection of the entire ship
structure.
 The only drawback in the application of sacrificial anodes is that it requires welding onto
the hull, which can result in both external and internal traces of damage to the external
plating, also necessitating repeated repair works.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Cathodic Protection systems
Advantages Disadvantages
Between two overhauls the ship Limited duration of 1-5 years, which is
does not require particular difficult to predict,
maintenance,
Low cost, Damage to the outer plating caused by

friction against flatting objects in the sea,
which can greatly accelerate anode wear.
The availability throughout the The anodes causes slight discontinuity in

world. profile leading to increased hull friction
Impressed current cathodic protection systems:
 In Induced Current Cathodic Protection (ICCP) system, a flow of electric current is
generated from an external source, protecting the parts of the hull which are in contact
with sea water, thereby causing a cathode reaction which, in turn, protects the steel from
corrosion.
 The hull is usually connected via amplifiers to the negative half of the power source, while
the positive pole is connected to the anode and due to possible damages, built into the
bottom shell.
 Anodes are made from precious metals such as platinum, conductive polyplastics, etc.

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 The area around the set of hull anodes should be protected by special coatings.
 Currents and voltages of the cathode protection vary depending on the size of the ship, the
damaged surface of the ship, speed, sea water salinity, and the number and position of the
anodes.
 The advantages of this system consist in the minimum maintenance requirements, high
reliability, and continuous control of protection parameters.
 The initial high cost of this protection, as compared to the method using sacrificial anodes,
can be returned in six years.
 The disadvantages include the following: the possibility of erroneous connection of the
system, potentially causing rapid and intense corrosion damage to the hull, while excessive
protection may damage the protective coatings.
 In present day automatic systems the chances of over/under protection are almost
impossible.
 The systems are provided with alarms so that any inability of the system to protect the hull
will be notified.
 This happens when the required protection current range cannot be established by the
automatic control systems.
Measures to minimize corrosion:

 Methods of corrosion protection are based on the theory of corrosion processes.
 Alterations of the material properties and external environmental characteristics are the
factors which can affect the slowing down or stopping of the corrosion process.
 The various methods adopted can be any one or a combination of the following:
 Suitable materials or alloys
 Suitable combination of materials
 Prevention of formation of galvanic cells by insulation
 Protective coatings

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 Corrosion allowance while deciding the material dimensions

 Cathodic protection
 Impressed cathodic current protection systems.
 Apart from the individual measures mentioned above a combination of measures may be
adopted to achieve an effective and economically viable corrosion protection.
 In practical to protect various parts of the ships structure different methods are
simultaneously employed.
 Ship‘s immersed hull is protected by a combination of protective coating, cathodic
protection and ICCP system.
 The advantage of using a combination is partly the surety of protection and economic
advantage.
 Ship‘s cargo and ballast area is mainly protected by coating.
 Cargo tank envelops of chemical tankers may be protected either by coating or by using
stainless steel as the material of construction.
 Controlling the environment inside cargo tank also plays a role in reducing the corrosion of
the tanks structure, as in the inerted atmosphere inside the cargotank of a tanker.
 Any method adopted is for the removal of at least one side of the corrosion triangle.
Treatment of steel in shipyard:

 Corrosion protection in the shipbuilding industry is an important technological process
devised to protect the ship from corrosion effects.
 Various measures to protect the ship‘s structure from corrosion is adopted from various
stages, beginning from the storage of raw material in the shipyard premises.
 The first stage of corrosion protection in the shipbuilding industry consists of the workshop
coating (shop primer) on the plating profile and flats in a thin film, about of 15 to 25μm
thick, as excessive film thickness may negatively affect the quality of welding (the
occurrence of porosity) and cutting steel.
 Shop primer represents fast-drying coatings which are used for temporary protection of
steel in the workshop during ship construction and application of the final coating system.
 Workshop coatings used are zinc silicate and epoxy iron oxide shop primer.
 Epoxy iron oxide is applied to obtain a greater thickness, demanding more paint,
consequently resulting in higher coats and increased losses.
 Today in most shipyards zinc silicate is used as shop primer (with a share of 25-35 % zinc),
which provides a better quality welding and reduced occurrence of undesirable zinc salts.
 Shop primer must meet the following requirements:
 must be suitable for automated painting procedures,
 have the shortest drying time (3 to 5 minutes),

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 resistance to high temperatures,

 must not release toxic gases during welding and cutting,
 must not negatively affect the welding process,
 compatibility with other coating systems,
 must not affect the mechanical properties of welded joints.
 Once the hull structure is completed, the hull surface has to be prepared for the permanent
coating.
Structure of paint:
 The main constituents of paint are the binder, pigment and solvent.
 Each constituent has a specific function and effect on the formation of the film and film
properties.
 Pigments:
 Pigments are finely ground inorganic or organic powders which provide colour, opacity, film
cohesion and sometimes corrosion inhibition.
 Binders:
 Binders are usually resins or oils but can be inorganic compounds such as soluble
silicates.
 The binder is the film forming component in the paint.
 Solvents:
 Solvents are used either to dissolve the binder or act as a dispersant to facilitate application
of the paint.
 Solvents are, therefore, usually organic liquids or water.
 Paints are applied to steel surfaces by many methods but in all cases this produces a ‗wet
film‘.
 The thickness of the ‗wet film‘ can be measured, before the solvent evaporates, using a
comb-gauge.
 As the solvent evaporates, film formation occurs, leaving the binder and pigments on the
surface as a ‗dry film‘.
 The thickness of the ‗dry film‘ can be measured, usually with an electromagnetic induction
gauge.
 The relationship between the thickness of the applied ‗wet film‘ and the final ‗dry film‘
thickness is determined by the percentage by volume of solids of the paint.
 In general, the corrosion protection afforded by a paint film is directly proportional to its
dry film thickness.
Health & safety:

 Paints basically are mixtures of different natural or synthetic substances.
 Some of these chemicals can have adverse health effects on over exposure.
 Also some of the chemical ingredients can be dangerous to the marine environment.
 Over exposure can lead to irritation of eyes and respiratory system.
 Excessive exposure can result in headache, nausea, dizziness and drowsiness and in
extreme cases even loss of consciousness.
 Splashes in the eye will cause discomfort and possible damage.
 Prolonged contact with skin can lead to skin irritation and in some cases dermatitis.
 The Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the respective paints gives the required
precautions and exposure limits.

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Ship Construction
These effects can be due to inhalation, skin contact, falling in eyes and by ingestion.
Inhalation: Avoid breathing vapours; work in well ventilated areas and if necessary use
local ventilation methods such as respirator masks.
 Eye contact: Avoid splashes in the eyes by wearing suitable safety goggles or glasses.
 Skin contact: Avoid skin contact by wearing suitable clothing and gloves.
 Barrier creams are not an acceptable alternative to the proper choice of glove.
 Ingestion: Whilst there is little hazard by this route during on-board maintenance
painting, do not eat whilst handling paint.
 Inhalation: Remove sufferer to fresh air keep warm and rest.
 Eye contact: Wash with plenty of clean and fresh water for at least ten minutes holding
the eyelids apart.
 Skin contact: Remove any contaminated clothing; wash the skin thoroughly with a
proprietary skin cleanser.
“DO NOT USE SOLVENTS”
 Ingestion: Do not induce vomiting. Seek medical help.
 In cases of doubt seek medical help.
 Always follow the guidelines given in MSDS.
Common paint vehicles:

 A drying oil is an oil that hardens to a tough, solid film after a period of exposure to air.
 The oil hardens through a chemical reaction in which the components crosslink by the
action of oxygen (not through the evaporation of water or other solvents).
 Drying oils are a key component of oil paint and some varnishes.
 Drying oil is the basic vehicle of oil paints.
 Drying oil is a kind of vegetable oil which dries in normal temperature.
 Linseed or Flaxseed oil, Poppy oil, Walnut oil, Sunflower oil and Safflower oil are the typical
drying oils.
 Other kind of oils do not dry in normal temperature.
 The use of these drying oil has declined over the past several decades, as they have been
replaced by alkyd resins and other binders.
 The more the percentage of drying oils in paints, the more the paints become transparent
and glossy.
 Drying oil can be increased in its ability to give the effects by bleaching under the sun,
heating to high temperature or boiling.
 Bleached drying oil is called "Sun-Bleached oil" or "Sun-Thickened oil". Heated one is
called "Stand oil".
 Water or Turpentine dies by vaporizing, but Drying oil dries by the oxidization.
 Linseed oil has been the most important drying oil whole of the oil painting industry.
 Linseed oil dries up comparatively fast.
 Linseed oil causes yellowing of the paint and colour becomes dark after a period of time.
 So for light colours like white or yellow this oil is not suitable.
 Resins: the essence of a resin is that it can be made to form a continuous adherent film
when applied to a substrate.
 Oleo-resinous: The vehicle incorporates natural or artificial resins into drying oils.
 Some of these resins may react with the oil to give a faster drying vehicle.
 Other resins do not react with the oil but heat is applied to dissolve the resin and cause the
oil to body.

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Ship Construction
 An alkyd is a polyester modified by the addition of fatty acids and other components.
 They are derived from alcohol and an organic acid.
 The inclusion of the fatty acid confers a tendency to form flexible coating.
 They are the dominant resin or "binder" in most commercial "oil-based" coatings.
 There are two types of alkyd resins, drying (including semi drying) and non-drying.
 The drying alkyds are cured in air.
 The drying speed and the nature of the coatings depends on the amount and type of drying
oil employed (more polyunsaturated oil means faster reaction in air) and use of metal salts,
the so-called oil drying agents.
 These metal complex added are catalysts that helps in crosslinking of the unsaturated
molecules.
 Bitumen or pitch: Simple solutions of bitumen or pitch are available in solvent naphtha or
white spirit.
 The bitumen or pitch may also be blended by heat with other materials to form a vehicle.
 Oil Based and Alkyd Based paints are not suitable for under water applications.
 Chemical-resistant:Vehicles of this type show extremely good resistance to severe
conditions of exposure.
 The various chemical resistant vehicles are as follows:
 Epoxy Resins: Chemicals which may be produced from petroleum and natural gas are the
source of epoxy resins.
 These paints have very good adhesion, apart from their excellent chemical resistance.
 They may also have good flexibility and toughness where co-reacting resins are introduced.
 Epoxy resins are expensive owing to the removal of unwanted side products during their
manufacture.
 They do not give glossy finish making it unsuitable for many external decorative finishes.
 These paints often consist of a ‗two-pack‘ formulation, a solution of epoxy resin together
with a solution of cold curing agent.
 The mixed paint has a relatively slow curing rate at temperatures below 10°C.
 Coal tar/epoxy resin:This vehicle type is similar to the epoxy resin vehicle except that, as
a two-pack product, a grade of coal tar pitch is blended with the resin.
 A formulation of this type combines to some extent the chemical resistance of the epoxy
resin with the impermeability of coal tar.
 Chlorinated rubber and isomerized rubber:The vehicle in this case consists of a solution
of plasticized chlorinated rubber, or isomerized rubber.
 Isomerized rubber is produced chemically from natural rubber, and it has the same
chemical composition but a different molecular structure.
 Both these derivatives of natural rubber have a wide range of solubility in organic solvents,
and so allow a vehicle of higher solid content.
 On drying, the film thickness is greater than would be obtained if natural rubber were
used.
 Coats of this type are particularly resistant to attack from acids and alkalis.
 Polyurethane is a resilient, flexible and durable manufactured material that can take the
place of paint, cotton, rubber, metal or wood in thousands of applications across virtually
all fields.
 It can be hard like fiberglass, squishy like upholstery foam, protective like varnish, bouncy
like rubber or sticky like glue.
 Polyurethane resin is an industrial product that is used in the production of many other
industrial products, such as rubbers and medicines.

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Ship Construction
 When used for making paints, these paints have many good properties; toughness,
hardness, gloss, abrasion resistance, as well as chemical and weather resistance.
 Polyurethanes are not used under water on steel ships, only on superstructures, etc., but
they are very popular on yachts where their good gloss is appreciated.
 Vinyl resins: Vinyl resins are obtained by the polymerization of organic compounds
containing the vinyl group.
 The solids content of these paints is low; therefore the dry film is thin, and more coats are
required than for most paints.
 As vinyl resin paints have poor adhesion to bare steel surfaces they are generally applied
over a pre-treatment primer.
 Vinyl paint systems are among the most effective for the underwater protection of steel.
 Zinc-rich paints: Paints containing metallic zinc as a pigment in sufficient quantity to
ensure electrical conductivity through the dry paint film to the steel are capable of
protecting the steel cathodically.
 The pigment content of the dry paint film should be greater than 90% cent, the vehicle
being an epoxy resin, chlorinated rubber, or similar medium.
 This paints are extensively used in chemical tankers tanks.
 Also seawater washing very high, Zinc rich paints are extensively used.
Antifouling paints:
 Anti-fouling paints consist of a vehicle with pigments which give body and colour together
with materials toxic to marine vegetable and animal growth.
 Copper is the best known toxin used in traditional anti-fouling paints.
 To prolong the useful life of the paint the toxic compounds must dissolve slowly in sea
water.
 Once the release rate falls below a level necessary to prevent settlement of marine
organisms the anti-fouling composition is no longer effective.
 On merchant ships the effective period for traditional compositions was about 12 months.
 Demands in particular from large tanker owners wishing to reduce very high docking costs
led to specially developed anti-fouling compositions with an effective life up to 24 months in
the early 1970s.
 Subsequent developments of constant emission organic toxin antifouling paints having a
leaching rate independent of exposure time saw the paint technologists by chance discover
coatings which also tended to become smoother in service.
 These so called self-polishing antifouling paints with a lifetime that is proportional to
applied thickness and therefore theoretically unlimited, smooth rather than roughen with
time and result in reduced friction drag.
 Though more expensive than their traditional counterparts, given the claim that each 10
micron (10−3 mm) increase in hull roughness can result in a 1% increase in fuel
consumption.
 Their self polishingcharacteristic as well as their longer effective life, up to 5 years
protection between dry dockings, make them attractive to the ship owner.
 The benefits of the first widely used SPC (self polishing copolymer) antifouling paints can be
traced to the properties of their prime ingredient— the tributylen compounds or TBTs.
 TBTs are extremely active against a wide range of fouling organisms, also they are able to
be chemically bonded to the acrylic backbone of the paint system.

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Ship Construction
 When immersed in sea water a specific chemical reaction takes place which cleaves the TBT
from the paint backbone, resulting in both controlled release of the TBT and controlled
disappearance or polishing of the paint film.
 Unfortunately, it was found that the small concentrations of TBTs released, particularly in
enclosed coastal waters, had a harmful effect on certain marine organisms.
 This led to the banning of TBT anti-fouling paints for pleasure boats and smaller
commercial ships in many developed countries.
 Also regulations were introduced to limit the release rate of TBT for anti-fouling paints on
larger ships.
 In March 2000 the IMO‘s Marine Environmental Protection Committee tabled a draft
resolution and the Anti Fouling System (AFS) convention was adopted in 2001.
 The convention came into force from 17th September2008.
 In recent years effective TBT-free self polishing antifouling paints have been developed and
these offer equivalent performance to tin-based anti-fouling paints.
 Many of these newer paints use copper compounds as the active anti-fouling ingredient but
biocide-free products have also been developed.
 The latter copper-free anti-fouling paints are particularly suited for application to
aluminium alloy high speed craft hulls.
PAINT SYSTEMS ON SHIPS:

 The paint system applied to any part of a ship will be dictated by the environment to which
that part of the structure is exposed.
 Traditionally the painting of the external ship structure was divided into three regions.
1. Below the water-line where the plates are continually immersed in sea water.
2. The water-line or boot topping region where immersion is intermittent and a lot of
abrasion occurs.
3. The topsides and superstructure exposed to an atmosphere laden with salt spray,
and subject to damage through cargo handling.
 However with the advent of tougher paints used for the ship‘s bottom the distinction
between regions need not be so well defined.
 One scheme covering the bottom and water-line regions is sufficient.
 Internally by far the greatest problem is the provision of coatings for various liquid cargo
and salt water ballast tanks.
Below the Water-line:

 The ship‘s bottom has priming coats of corrosion inhibiting paint applied which are
followed by an anti-fouling paint.
 Paints used for steels immersed in sea water are required to resist alkaline conditions.
 The reason for this is that an iron alloy immersed in a sodium chloride solution having the
necessary supply of dissolved oxygen gives rise to corrosion cells with caustic soda
produced at the cathodes.
 Further the paint should have a good electrical resistance so that the flow of corrosion
currents between the steel and sea water is limited.
 These requirements make the standard non-marine structural steel primer red lead in
linseed oil unsuitable for ship use below the water-line.
 Suitable corrosion-inhibiting paints for ships‘ bottoms are pitch or bitumen types,
chlorinated rubber, coal tar/epoxy resin, or vinyl resin paints.

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Ship Construction
 The anti-fouling paints may be applied after the corrosion-inhibiting coatings and should
not come into direct contact with the steel hull, since the toxic compounds present may
cause corrosion.
Water-line or Boot Topping Region & Superstructures:

 Water-line or Boot Topping Region: Generally modern practice requires a complete paint
system for the hull above the water-line.
 This may be based on vinyl and alkyd resins or on polyurethane resin paints.
 Superstructures: Red lead or zinc chromate based primers are commonly used.
 White finishing paints are then used extensively for superstructures.
 These are usually oleo-resinous or alkyd paints which may be based on ‗non yellowing‘ oils,
linseed oil-based paints which yellow on exposure being avoided on modern ships.
 Where aluminium superstructures are fitted, under no circumstance should lead based
paints be applied.
 Zinc chromate paints are generally supplied for application to aluminium.
CARGO AND BALLAST TANKS:

 Severe corrosion may occur in a ship‘s cargo tanks as the combined result of carrying
liquid cargoes and sea water ballast, with warm or cold sea water cleaning between
voyages.
 This is particularly true of oil tankers.
 Tankers carrying ‗white oil‘ cargoes suffer more general corrosion than those carrying crude
oils.
 The reason being crude oil deposits a film on the tank surface providing some protection
against corrosion.
 This was the reason attributed to upto 50% steel renewal in old tankers where they were
carrying crude oil and products in alternate voyages.
 The water wash employed in those days for tank cleaning before loading of products use to
give fresh surface for corrosion.
 The uneven protective film offered by crude oil may cause local pitting corrosion and
subsequent corrosion of any bare plate when sea water ballast is carried.
 Epoxy resin paints are used extensively within these tanks, and vinyl resins and zinc rich
coatings may also be used.
Typical Marine Paint Systems for New Ships
Ships Bottom
Type of Paint No: of Coats Dry Film Thickness
Blast primer or holding primer( First 1 25µ

Coat)
Chlorinated rubber anticorrosive 3 75µ/Coat
system
Vinyl–pitch anticorrosive system 3 75µ/Coat
Pitch–epoxy 2 125µ/Coat

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Economic antifouling 2sides & Flat 50µ/Coat

Bottom
Premium antifouling 2sides & Flat 75µ/Coat
Bottom
Advanced self-polishing antifouling 3 Depends onspeed/sailing
time/timebetween
docking
Boot-top and Topsides
Type of Paint No: Dry Film

of Thicknes
Coat s
s
Conventional system based on: 3 50µ/Coa

Water resistant vehicle incorporating t
corrosion inhibiting pigments plus
Conventional system based on: 1 40µ

Oleo-resinous vehicle gloss coat with good abrasion
resistance
High performance system based on: 1 25µ

Two pack epoxy red oxide primer plus

Two pack epoxy high build coating plus

Two pack epoxy based gloss finishing coat
Superstructure—External
Type of Paint No: Dry Film

of Thickness
Coats
Conventional system based on: Water resistant vehicle incorporating corrosion 2 50µ/Coat
inhibiting pigments plus

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Ship Construction
Conventional system based on: Alkyd resin vehicle undercoat plus 1 40µ
Conventional system based on: Alkyd resin vehicle finishing coat with gloss and 1 40µ
colour retention
High performance system based on: Two pack epoxy red oxide primer plus 1 25µ
High performance system based on: Two pack epoxy high build coating plus 1 125µ
High performance system based on: Two pack polyurethane finishing coat with 1 40µ
high chalk resistance, gloss and colour retention
Dry cargo holds
Type of Paint No: Dry Film Thickness

of
Coats
Water resistant vehicle incorporating 2 50µ/Coat

corrosion inhibiting pigments plus
Oleo-resinous vehicle with aluminium 1 25µ

flake pigment
Tanks- Crude Oil
High performance two pack coal 2 125µ/Coat

tar/epoxy
Tanks-Product Carrier
Two pack epoxy oxide primer 1 25µ
Two pack epoxy high build coating 2 125µ/Coat

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Ship Construction
SURFACE PREPARATION:
 Good surface preparation is essential to successful painting, the primary cause of many
paint failures being the inadequacy of the initial material preparation.
 It is particularly important before painting new steel that any millscale should be removed.
 Millscale is a thin layer of iron oxides which forms on the steel surface during hot rolling of
the plates and sections.
 Not only does the non-uniform millscale set up corrosion cells as illustrated previously, but
it may also come away from the surface removing any paint film applied over it.
 The most common methods employed to prepare steel surfaces for painting are:
 Blast cleaning
 Pickling
 Flame cleaning
 Preparation by hand.
Blast cleaning:
 Blast cleaning is the most efficient method for preparing the surface.
 Following the blast cleaning it is desirable to brush the surface, and apply a coat of priming
paint as soon as possible since the metal is liable to rust rapidly.
 There are two main types of blasting equipment available, an impeller wheel plant where
the abrasive is thrown at high velocity against the metal surface, and a nozzle type where a
jet of abrasive impinges on the metal surface.
 The latter type should preferably be fitted with vacuum recovery equipment, rather than
allow the spent abrasive and dust to be discharged to atmosphere, as is often the case in
ship repair work.
 Impeller wheel plants which are self-contained and collect the dust and re-circulate the
clean abrasive are generally fitted within the shipbuilding shops.
 Cast iron and steel grit, or steel shot which is preferred, may be used for the abrasive, but
non-metallic abrasives are also available.
Other cleaning methods:

 Pickling involves the immersion of the metal in an acid solution, usually hydrochloric or
sulphuric acid in order to remove the mill scale and rust from the surface.
 After immersion in these acids the metal will require a thorough hot water rinse.
 It is preferable that the treatment is followed by application of a priming coat.
 Using an Oxy-acetylene flamethe mill scale and rust may be removed from a steel surface.
 The process does not entirely remove the mill scale and rust, but it can be quite useful for
cleaning plates under moist weather conditions, the flame drying out the plate.
 Hand cleaning by various forms of wire brush is often not very satisfactory, and would
only be used where the mill scale has been loosened by weathering, i.e. exposure to
atmosphere over a long period.
 Blast cleaning is preferred for best results and economy in shipbuilding; pickling which
also gives good results can be expensive and less applicable to production schemes; flame
cleaning is much less effective; and hand cleaning gives the worst results.

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Ship Construction
Surface Cleanliness Standards

 Introduction:
 The effective life of a coating of anti-corrosive paint applied to a steel surface is to a very
large extent dependent on how thoroughly the surface has been prepared prior to painting.
 It is also important to be able to specify clearly the quality of preparation required in each
particular case.
 Accordingly a Standard has been approved, specifying four grades of rusting and a number
of preparation grades, each establishing a quality grade or preparation prior to protective
painting required on a steel surface in a standard rust grade.
 Mill scale:
 Mill scale is formed on the outer surfaces of plates, sheets or profiles when they are being
produced by rolling red hot iron or steel billets in rolling mills.
 Mill scale is composed of iron oxides mostly ferric and is bluish black in colour.
 It is usually less than 0.1 mm thick and initially adheres to the steel surface and protects it
from atmospheric corrosion.
 Mill scale is not hard and may get damaged very easily during handling or storing.
 So it cannot protect the for longer periods.
 Mill scale is more cathodic compared to steel and hence will form the corrosion cell with
presence of moisture and the subsequent corrosion will be very fast.
 Also mill scale prevent the proper adhesion of coating to the steel surface and hence the
surface has to be thoroughly cleaned before the application of coatings.
 Flame cleaning, pickling and sand blasting etc., are some of the methods adopted in ship
yards for removing the mill scale from the ship building materials.
 Rust is hydrated iron oxide and thus it is different from totally Mill scale.
 SURFACE PREPARATION:
 For any given paint system, surface preparation is the single important factor which would
determine its performance.
 Various surface preparation methods are adopted depending on the requirements of the
paint system used and the surface of the substrate.
 Depending upon the material the method of treatment will vary to achieve the required
surface finish for the application of the primer.
 RUST GRADES:
 The following are the Rust Grades:
 A: Surface mostly covered with adherent mill scale, with little or no rust.
B: Mill scale has begun to flake, rust has started to form.
C: Mill scale has rusted away or can be scraped off easily and slight pitting has taken place.
D: Mill scale has rusted away and general pitting can be seen with naked eye.
 Also the condition of the surface before surface preparation is a factor for deciding on the
method for surface preparation.
 Surface preparation standards are stipulated by various bodies throughout the world to
designate the cleanliness condition of blasted steel, prior to applying a protective coating.
 The applicable cleanliness standard is usually called for by either the protective coating
manufacturer or the owner of the structure to be painted.

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 The most commonly referred to standards are Steel Structures Painting Council(SSPC of
American), National Association of Corrosion Engineers(NACE), SIS(Swedish Standards)
and International Standards Organisation(ISO).
 Each standard is divided into four standards of cleanliness, broadly described as follows;
brush off, commercial, near white metal, white metal.
 Levels of Cleanliness:
 Brush Off - Loose mill scale, loose rust and foreign particles are removed.
 Commercial - Mill scale, rust and foreign particles are substantially removed and grey
metal is visible.
 Near White Metal - Mill scale, rust and foreign particles are removed to the extent that
only traces remain in the form of spots or stripes and the cleaned surface will show varying
shades of grey.
 White Metal - Visible mill scale, rust and foreign particles are entirely removed and the
surface should have a uniform metallic colour after cleaning but may show varying shades
of grey when viewed at different angles.
 Preparation grades-Scraping and wire-brushing (St):
 It is assumed that prior to treatment the steel surface has been cleaned of dirt and grease,
and that the heavier layers of rust have been removed by chipping.
 Sa stands for Standard Abrasive &St means Standard Tooling.
 St 2: Thorough scraping and wire-brushing - machine brushing - grinding - etc.
 The treatment shall remove loose mill scale, rust and foreign matter.
 Finally, the surface is cleaned with a vacuum cleaner, clean dry compressed air or a clean
brush.
 It should the have a faint metallic sheen.
 The appearance shall correspond to the prints designated St2.
 St 3: Very thorough scraping and wire-brushing - machine brusing - grinding - etc.
 Surface preparation as for St 2, but much more thoroughly.
 After removal of dust, the surface shall have a pronounced metallic sheen and correspond
to the prints designated St3.
 Preparation grades-Blast cleaning:
 It is assumed that prior to treatment the steel surface has been cleaned of dirt and grease,
and that the heavier layers of rust have been removed by chipping.
 Sa 1: Light blast cleaning.
 Loose mill scale, rust and foreign matter shell be removed.
 The appearance shall correspond to the prints designated Sa 1.
 Sa 2: Thorough blast cleaning. Almost all mill scale, rust and foreign matter shall be
removed.
brush.
 It shall be greyish in colour and correspond in appearance to the prints designated Sa 2.
 Sa 2.5: Very thorough blast cleaning.
 Mill scale, rust and foreign matter shall be removed to the extent that the only traces
remaining are slight stains in the forms of spots or stripes.
brush. It shall correspond in appearance to the prints designated Sa 2.5.
 Sa 3: Blast cleaning to pure metal.

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Ship Construction
 Mill scale, rust and foreign matter shall be removed completely.

brush.
 It shall then have a uniform metallic colour and correspond in appearance to the prints
designated in Sa 3.
 The surface coating applied to blast cleaned substrates may be expected to last five times
as long as the same surface that had been weathered, then manually wire brushed.
 Also compared to other processes for cleaning blast cleaning is faster.
 Amplitude – Surface Profile:
 Amplitude is a measurement (given in microns), that shows the difference between the
peaks and troughs in a metal surface produced by blast cleaning.
 There must be adequate amplitude on the surface of the substrate to ensure good
adhesion.
 However, if the amplitude on the surface is too rough, then there is a risk that the peaks of
the blast cleaning process will protrude through the paint film, leading to significantly
higher paint consumption or ‗peak rashing‘ or spot rusting.
 On average, a surface that has been grit blasted should have a profile that lies between 50
to 70 microns, and shot blasted steel under blast primers should be 30 to 50 microns.
 Profiles in excess of 100 microns should be avoided.
 Degreasing:
 Any surface that is to be blast cleaned and subsequently painted must be thoroughly
degreased and cleaned before hand.
 Degreasers must be used in conjunction with an absorbent cloth which must be changed
frequently to avoid re-depositing oil / grease onto the substrate.
 When degreasing, it is necessary to wear adequate personal protection equipment.
 Material Safety Data Sheets shall be referred for relevant information.
 Surface Coating Repairs:
 The damaged coatings may be repaired, if the damage is not expensive, with certain degree
of success.
 But if the damage is extensive and wide spread then completing recoating is necessary.
 When repairing small areas the surface preparation to the pre coating standard is essential
to ensure proper adherence of the coating to the surface.
 The metal surface to be wire brushed to bright metal finish and then degreaser to be
applied.
 The surface temperature should be maintained at 2-5oC above the ambient temperature, if
possible.
 This heating should be done from the back side of the area where the repair has to be
performed.
 If the complete surface has to be sand blasted non-marine origin sand should be used for
the purpose.

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Ship Construction
Surveys Certification & Dry docking

Statutory & mandatory surveys:
• Statutory and Mandatory:
• Statutory means "of or related to statutes," or what is normally termed as laws or
regulations.
• Statutory requirements refer to those requirements which are mandatory by Law (legally
compliant).
• Compliance with Mandatory regulations is necessary to comply with statutory regulations.
• Statutory requirements for a vessel is written down by the country.
• When a ship is registered in that country, the ship has to comply with all the relevant
statutory requirements.
• Normally the classification societies undertake statutory certification on behalf of flag
administrations when and to the extent the society has been authorised to do so by the
individual flag administration.
• Statutory certification includes survey and the issuance of statutory certificates.
• When the Society acts on behalf of a flag administration, the Society follows international
statutory instruments, IACS Unified Interpretations and the class statutory Interpretations,
and generally follows guidance issued by IMO in Circulars etc. unless the flag
administration has instructed the Society otherwise.
• When a ship is classed with a classification society it is assumed by the society that
required statutory surveys for ships classed by the society will be carried out by the society
or by officers of the flag administration itself and that statutory certificates will be issued by
the society or by the flag administration.
• The society assumes the right to withdraw class if statutory certificates are not issued.
• The society may accept that Safety Management Certificates (ISM Code) are issued by a
third party that has been authorised by the flag administration.
• The society may accept that International Ship Security Certificates (ISPS Code) are issued
by a third party that has been authorised by the flag administration.
• The society may accept that Cargo Ship Safety Radio Certificates (SOLAS) are issued by a
third party that has been authorised by the flag administration.
• For a dually classed vessel, where the one society has not been authorised by the flag
administration to issue statutory certificates, that society may accept that such certificates
are issued by the dual class society provided the other class society is authorised by the
flag administration.
• Where surveyors use the services of service suppliers in making decisions affecting
statutory requirements, the suppliers shall be approved by either:
• the relevant flag administration
• a duly authorised organisations acting on behalf of the flag administration
• an equipment supplier when explicitly described by IMO conventions, resolutions or
circulars, or the society.
• The mandatory surveys, with respect to relevant statutory certificates will be conducted by
the respective classification societies to ensure that the ship is continually maintained as
regard to the requirements of the respective statutory certificate.
• The statutory certificates will be issued for a period of not exceeding five years.
• During these five years the condition of the hull and the machinery is to be maintained to
the satisfaction of the society.
• To maintain a certificate all requirements are compulsory.

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Ship Construction
• The Continuous Survey Hull (CSH) and Continuous Survey Machinery (CSM) are carried
out to check the continuous maintenance of the mooring, anchoring and
the propulsion system.
• The special survey cycle (SS) is an alternative for the CSH and Engine survey (ES) for the
CSM.
• The annual surveys are conducted to check the condition of the safety equipment.
• Annual inspections can be done during the three months period before or the three months
after the annual date.
• There must be two docking survey (DS) during the five years of the certificate.
• But it is possible to avoid one survey by doing the In-water survey with the help of a diving
inspection.
• One such examination is to be carried out in conjunction with the special survey.
• In all cases the interval between any two such examinations is not to exceed 36 months.
• Special consideration is to be given to ships of 15 years or over before being permitted to
have such examinations.
• For Enhanced Survey Program (ESP) ships of 15 years of age and over, such examinations
are to be carried out with the ship in dry-dock.
• The intermediate survey is between the second and the third year, and the scope of this
survey depends on the age the vessel.
• The interval between examinations of the outside of the ship's bottom and related items for
ships operating in fresh water and for certain harbour or non-self-propelled craft may be
greater than 36 months.
• For tankers the scope of the survey increases with age of the vessel.
• An extension of examination of the ship‘s bottom of 3 months beyond the due date can be
granted in exceptional circumstances.
• ‗Exceptional circumstances‘ means unavailability of dry-docking facilities; unavailability of
repair facilities; unavailability of essential materials, equipment or spare parts; or delays
incurred by action taken to avoid severe weather conditions.
• Some Classification Societies use the term ―Special Periodical Survey‖ others use the term
―Class Renewal Survey‖ instead of the term ―Special Survey‖.
Renewal survey or Special survey:

• Special Surveys are to be carried out at 5 years intervals to renew the Classification
Certificate.
• The first Special Survey is to be completed within 5 years from the date of the initial
classification survey and thereafter 5 years from the credited date of the previous Special
Survey.
• However, an extension of class of 3 months maximum beyond the 5th year can be granted
in exceptional circumstances.
• In this case, the next period of class will start from the expiry date of the Special Survey
before the extension was granted.
• For surveys completed within 3 months before the expiry date of the Special Survey, the
next period of class will start from the expiry date of the Special Survey.
• For surveys completed more than 3 months before the expiry date of the Special Survey,
the period of class will start from the survey completion date.
• The Special Survey may be commenced at the 4th Annual Survey and be progressed with a
view to completion by the 5th anniversary date.

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Ship Construction
• When the Special Survey is commenced prior to the 4th Annual Survey, the entire survey is
to be completed within 15 months if such work is to be credited to the Special Survey.
• A survey planning meeting is to be held prior to the commencement of the survey.
• Scope of the Survey:

• The Special Survey is to include, in addition to the requirements of the Annual Survey,
examination, tests and checks of sufficient extent to ensure that the hull, equipment and
related piping, are in satisfactory condition.
• The condition should be such that the equipment and related piping will fit for the intended
purpose for the new period of class of five years to be assigned, subject to proper
maintenance and operation and the periodical surveys being carried out at the due dates.
• The examinations of the hull are to be supplemented by thickness measurements and
testing to ensure that the structural integrity remains effective.
• The aim of the examination is to discover Substantial Corrosion, significant deformation,
fractures, damages or other structural deterioration, that may be present.
• The Special Survey is to include examination of underwater parts.
• The anchors and chain cables are to be ranged, examined and the required complement
and condition verified.
• The chain locker, holdfasts, hawse pipes and chain stoppers are to be examined and
pumping arrangements of the chain locker tested.
• At Special Survey No. 2 and subsequent Special Surveys, chain cables are to gauged and
renewed in cases where their mean diameter is worn below the limits allowed by the
Society.
• All spaces including holds and their ‗tween decks where fitted; double bottom, deep,
ballast, peak and cargo tanks; pump-rooms, pipe tunnels, duct keels, machinery spaces,
dry spaces, cofferdams and voids are to be internally examined including the plating and
framing, bilges and drain wells, sounding, venting, pumping and drainage arrangements.
• Internal examination of fuel oil, lube oil and fresh water tanks is to be carried out.
• Engine room structure is to be examined.
• Particular attention is to be given to tank tops, shell plating in way of tank tops, brackets
connecting side shell frames and tank tops, and engine room bulkheads in way of tank top
and bilge wells.
• Particular attention is to be given to the sea suctions, sea water cooling pipes and
overboard discharge valves and their connections to the shell plating.
• Where wastage is evident or suspect, thickness measurements are to be carried out, and
renewals or repairs made when wastage exceeds allowable limits.
• Where provided, the condition of corrosion prevention system of ballast tanks is to be
examined.
• For ballast tanks, excluding double bottom tanks, where a hard protective coating is found
in POOR condition and it is not renewed, the tanks in question are to be examined at
annual intervals.
• Where soft or semi-hard coating has been applied, or where a hard protective coating was
not applied from time of construction, the tanks in question are to be examined at annual
intervals.
• Thickness measurements are to be carried out as deemed necessary by the surveyor.

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Ship Construction
• Boundaries of double-bottom, deep, ballast, peak, and other tanks, including holds adapted
for the carriage of salt water ballast, are to be tested with a head of liquid to the top of air
pipes or to near the top of hatches for ballast/cargo holds.
• Boundaries of fuel oil, lube oil and fresh water tanks are to be tested with a head of liquid
to the highest point that liquid will rise under service conditions.
• Tank testing of fuel oil, lube oil and fresh water tanks may be specially considered based on
a satisfactory external examination of the tank boundaries, and a confirmation from the
Master stating that the pressure testing has been carried out according to the requirements
with satisfactory results.
• The Surveyor may extend the testing as deemed necessary.
• Close-up survey of hatch cover plating and hatch coaming plating, is to be carried out.
• Subject to cargo hold hatch covers of approved design which structurally have no access to
the internals, close-up survey shall be done of accessible parts of hatch covers structures.
• Checking of the satisfactory operation of all mechanically operated hatch covers is to be
made, including:
• stowage and securing in open condition;
• proper fit and efficiency of sealing in closed conditions;
• operational testing of hydraulic and power components, wires, chains and link
drives.
• Checking the effectiveness of sealing arrangements of all hatch covers by hose testing or
equivalent is to be carried out.
• Where deemed necessary thickness measurements may be carried out.
• All bilge and ballast piping systems are to be examined and operationally tested to working
pressure to attending Surveyor‘s satisfaction.
Annual Surveys:
• Annual Surveys are to be held within 3 months before or after each anniversary date of the
date of the initial classification survey or the completion of the last Special Survey.
• The survey is to consist of an examination of the hull, hatch covers, hatch coamings,
closing appliances, equipment and related piping are maintained in a satisfactory
condition.
• Examination of weather decks, ship side plating above water line, hatch covers and
coamings.
• Confirmation is to be obtained that no unapproved changes have been made to the hatch
covers, hatch coamings and their securing and sealing devices since the last survey.
• Where mechanically operated steel covers are fitted, checking the satisfactory conditions,
as applicable, of:
• hatch covers;
• tightness devices of longitudinal, transverse and intermediate cross junctions
(gaskets, gasket lips, compression bars, drainage channels);
• clamping devices, retaining bars, cleating;
• chain or rope pulleys;
• guides;
• guide rails and track wheels;
• stoppers, etc.;
• wires, chains, gypsies, tensioningdevices;
• hydraulic system essential to closing and securing;

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Ship Construction
• safety locks and retaining devices.

• Examination of the weld connection between air pipes and deck plating.
• External examination of all air pipe heads installed on the exposed decks.
• Examination of flame screens on vents to all bunker tanks.
• Examination of ventilators, including closing devices, if any.
• Suspect Areas identified at previous surveys are to be examined.
• Thickness measurements are to be taken of the areas of substantial corrosion and the
extent of thickness measurements is to be increased to determine areas of substantial
corrosion.
• These extended thickness measurements are to be carried out before the annual survey is
credited as completed.
intermediate Survey:
• The Intermediate Survey is to be carried out either at or between the second and third
Annual Survey.
• Those items which are additional to the requirements of the Annual Surveys may be
surveyed either at or between the 2nd and 3rd Annual Survey.
• For ships between 5 and 10 years of age, a general, internal examination of representative
ballast tanks is to be carried out.
• If there is no hard protective coating, soft or semi-hard coating, or POOR coating condition,
the examination is to be extended to other ballast spaces of the same type.
• For ships over 10 years of age, a general, internal examination of all spaces used for water
ballast is to be carried out.
• If such examinations reveal no visible structural defects, the examination may be limited to
a verification that the corrosion prevention system remains effective.
• For ballast tanks, excluding double bottom ballast tanks, if there is no hard protective
coating, soft or semi-hard coating, or POOR coating condition and it is not renewed, the
spaces in question are to be internally examined at annual intervals.
• When such conditions are found in water ballast double bottom tanks, the spaces in
question may be internally examined at annual intervals.
Areas of close-up inspection

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Ship Construction
Preparations for Survey:

• The Owner is to provide the necessary facilities for a safe execution of the survey.
• Tanks and spaces are to be safe for access, i.e. gas freed, ventilated and illuminated.
• In preparation for survey and thickness measurements and to allow for a thorough
examination, all spaces are to be cleaned including removal from surfaces of all loose
accumulated corrosion scale.
• Spaces are to be sufficiently clean and free from water, scale, dirt, oil residues etc. to reveal
corrosion, deformation, fractures, damages, or other structural deterioration.
• However, those areas of structure whose renewal has already been decided by the Owner
need only be cleaned and descaled to the extent necessary to determine the limits of the
areas to be renewed.
• Sufficient illumination is to be provided to reveal corrosion, deformation, fractures,
damages or other structural deterioration.
• Where soft or semi-hard coatings have been applied, safe access is to be provided for the
surveyor to verify the effectiveness of the coating and to carry out an assessment of the
conditions of internal structures which may include spot removal of the coating.
• Casings, ceilings or linings, and loose insulation, where fitted, are to be removed, as
required by the Surveyor, for examination of plating and framing.
• In refrigerated cargo spaces the condition of the coating behind the insulation is to be
examined at representative locations.
• The examination may be limited to verification that the protective coating remains effective
and that there are no visible structural defects.
• Where POOR coating condition is found, the examination is to be extended as deemed
necessary by the Surveyor.
• The condition of the coating is to be reported.
• If indents, scratches, etc., are detected during surveys of shell plating from the outside,
insulations in way are to be removed as required by the Surveyor, for further examination
of the plating and adjacent frames.
• For survey, means are to be provided to enable the surveyor to examine the hull structure
in a safe and practical way.
• For survey in cargo holds and water ballast tanks, one or more of the following means for
access, acceptable to the Surveyor, is to be provided:
• permanent staging and passages through structures;
• temporary staging and passages through structures;

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Ship Construction
• hydraulic arm vehicles such as conventional cherry pickers, lifts and movable
platforms;
• boats or rafts;
• other equivalent means.
• Survey at sea or at anchorage may be accepted provided the Surveyor is given the
necessary assistance from the personnel on board.
• A communication system is to be arranged between the survey party in the tank or space
and the responsible officer on deck.
• This system must also include the personnel in charge of ballast pump handling if boats or
rafts are used.
• When boats or rafts are used, appropriate life jackets are to be available for all participants.
• Boats or rafts are to have satisfactory residual buoyancy and stability even if one chamber
is ruptured. A safety checklist is to be provided.
• Surveys of tanks by means of boats or rafts may only be undertaken at the sole discretion
of the Surveyor, who is to take into account the safety arrangements provided, including
weather forecasting and ship response in reasonable sea conditions.
Requirements for Survey
Coating Condition:
• GOOD condition with only minor spot rusting.
• FAIR condition with local breakdown at edges of stiffeners and weld connections
and/or light rusting over 20% or more of areas under consideration, but less than as
defined for POOR condition.
• POOR condition with general breakdown of coating over 20% or more of areas or hard
scale at 10% or more of areas under consideration.
Harmonized system of ship surveys:

• The Harmonized System of Ship Survey & Certification (HSSC) Protocols for SOLAS and
Load Line conventions were adopted by IMO in 1998.
• The HSSC Protocols came into force from 3rd February 2000.
• The Harmonised System of Survey and Certification (HSSC) seeks to standardise the period
of validity and the intervals between surveys for the main convention certificates to a
maximum period of validly for all certificates except a passenger ship safety certificate to
five years.

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Ship Construction
• HSSC aims at simplifying the survey and certification process.

• The streamlined format of the HSSC has brought benefits to the industry in terms of
flexibility of survey schedule, reduced numbers of surveyors, survey time and paperwork,
all therefore reducing costs.
• The IMO conventions covered under the Harmonized System of Survey and Certification are
as follows:
• International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 (SOLAS 1974) and as
modified by the Protocol of 1988;
• International Convention on Load Lines, 1966 (LLC 1966) and as modified by the
Protocol of 1988;
• International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973,
(MARPOL73) as modified by the Protocol of 1978;
• International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying
Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk, as amended (IBC Code);
• International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied
Gases in Bulk, as amended (IGC Code);
• Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals
in Bulk, as amended (BCH Code).
• Under the HSSC, there are seven types of surveys:
• Initial Survey.
• Renewal Survey.
• Periodical Survey.
• Intermediate Survey.
• Annual Survey.
• Inspection of the Outside of the Ships Bottom.
• Additional Survey.
Enhanced surveys:
• As per the requirements of SOLAS Ch.11-1, Bulk carriers and oil tankers shall be subjected
to an enhanced programme of inspections in accordance with the guidelines adopted by the
Organization.
• As a result of the introduction of the Enhanced Survey Programme, oil tankers,
combination carriers, chemical tankers and dry bulk cargo ships (bulk carriers), require a
Survey Planning Questionnaire and a Survey Programme (planning document) to be
prepared in advance of the Special Survey & the Intermediate Survey on ships over 10
years of age.
• The Rules and Regulations for the Classification of Ships require a Survey Planning
Questionnaire and a Survey Programme to be prepared by the Owner at least six months in
advance of the intermediate or special survey and submitted for agreement.
• The Programme is to include proposals for the Special Survey, including the means of
providing access for close-up survey and thickness measurement.
• Special surveys may be commenced at the fourth Annual Survey, and be progressed during
the succeeding year with a view to completion by the due date of the Special Survey.
• As part of the preparation for the Special Survey, the thickness measurement shall be
commenced during the fourth annual survey.
• However, thickness measurements should not be carried out before the fourth annual
Survey.

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Ship Construction
• When Special Surveys are commenced prior to the fourth Annual Survey, the entire survey
is to be completed within 15 months if such work is to be credited towards the Special
Survey.
• Ships that are required to be surveyed in accordance with ESP requirements are identified
by the notation ESP.
• From 1st July 2001, on vessels of 20,000 DWT and above, two exclusive surveyors of the
society to attend at ‗intermediate and special surveys after 3rd special survey (15yrs
onwards).
• For vessels over 15 years age, intermediate survey requirements are same as those for
previous special survey, excluding testing of cargo and ballast tanks.
• Thickness measurements if done by an external agency has to be witnessed by surveyors.
• As per the IACS requirements tankers and bulk carriers are to have permanent safe access
for survey and inspection of double hull spaces.
Condition assessment scheme:

• In 1992 MARPOL was amended to make it mandatory for tankers of 5,000 dwt and more
ordered after 6 July 1993 to be fitted with double hulls, or an alternative design approved
by IMO (regulation 19 in Annex I of MARPOL).
• The requirement for double hulls that applies to new tankers has also been applied to
existing ships under a programme that began in 1995 (under old regulation 13G (now
regulation 20 in Annex I of MARPOL) all tankers of 30years would have to be converted or
decommissioned.
• CAS is applicable to old tankers as specified in MARPOL regulations.
• Under the regulation, the Condition Assessment Scheme (CAS) is applicable to all single-
hull tankers of 15 years, or older.
• The Regulation 20 allows the Administration (flag State) to permit continued operation of
category 2 or 3 tankers beyond 2010 subject to satisfactory results from the CAS.
• But the continued operation must not go beyond the anniversary of the date of delivery of
the ship in 2015 or the date on which the ship reaches 25 years of age after the date of its
delivery, whichever is earlier.
• Survey is carried out by a Recognized Organization (R.O), i.e classification society on behalf
of the Administration.
• It is conducted concurrently with, intermediate or renewal survey, when enhanced survey
program is applicable.
• IMO Oil Tanker Category:

• Category –1 : Commonly known as pre MARPOL oil tankers of size 20,000 dwt and above
to carry Crude oil, Fuel Oil, Lubricating Oil or Heavy Diesel Oil as cargo and of 30,000 and
above carrying other oils, which do not comply with requirements for protectively
located segregated ballast tanks.
• Category –2 : Commonly known as MARPOL oil tankers of size 20,000 dwt and above to
carry Crude oil, Fuel Oil, Lubricating Oil or Heavy Diesel Oil as cargo and of 30,000 and
above carrying other oils, which do comply with requirements for protectively located
segregated ballast tanks.
• Category –3 :Oil tankers of 5000dwt and above but less than dwt specified for Categories 1
and 2.

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Ship Construction
• Two qualified, trained and exclusive surveyors of the R.O must conduct the survey and
monitor the repairs.
• The surveyors must witness thickness measurement carried out by the approved persons
or company.
• The owner has to submit past records and structural drawings, with the application and
survey plan before commencing the survey.
• An overall survey of the ships‘ structure in the way of cargo tanks, pump rooms,
cofferdams, void spaces, pipe tunnels within the cargo area and all ballast tanks will be
carried out during the survey.
• All transverse web frames inside and adjacent structure of the cargo wing tanks and ballast
tanks spaces will be carried out.
• All transverse bulk heads in cargo tanks will be surveyed.
• The attending surveyor will expand the scope of the survey according to the general
condition of the vessel.
• The survey includes, overall inspection, close up survey, thickness measurement,
inspection of tank coatings and inspection of corrosion protection devises.
• If substantial deterioration of the structure if found, the extend of thickness measurement
will be increased.
• The result of the thickness measurements are to be recorded in the prescribed format of the
classification society.
• The results are then sent to the headquarters of the society for evaluation.
• Survey is not complete unless all conditions of class are rectified.
• Surveyors prepare detailed report with supporting evidences like thickness measurement
reports, photographs, sketches, observations etc.
• Another surveyor in RO head office reviews the report.
• After the satisfactory completion of the survey an interim certificate will be issued by the
classification for period of not exceeding 5months will till the Statement of Compliance is
received or the expiry of the interim certificate which comes first.
• Final report is sent to the administration for approval.
• On being satisfied, administration issues a ‗Statement of Compliance‘ (SOC), valid upto the
next intermediate or renewal survey.
• The administration informs IMO about the details of SOC or refusal to issue SOC.
• CAS may become necessary in future for other ships as well beyond certain age.
• The ship staff will have to prepare the tanks for the survey well before the expected survey.
• A survey plan has to be submitted with ship‘s arrangements, previous thickness records,
tank inspection records and other relevant records as required by the classification society
conducting the survey.
• The companies guidelines regarding the safety has to be followed.
• Tanks will have to be gas freed and made ready for safe entry and exit of the surveyor.
• Company‘s enclosed space entry checklists are tofollowed for these.
• Close up inspection requires the surveyors to have access to the top of the tank structures.
• Sufficient scaffolding arrangements should be arranged for this.
• Suitable safety check list are to be followed during these occasions.

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Ship Construction
Condition assessment program:

• The Condition Assessment Program (CAP) was introduced by various major classification
societies with view to grade the aging oil tankers in order to ensure that oil is transported
in quality tankers.
• It was developed in co-operation with the industry stakeholders and intended to increase
competitiveness of the quality operators in the market.
• Following the Erika and Prestige accidents, a good CAP rating from reputable classification
society has become a requirement for trading old tankers.
• CAP is a very effective quality measuring tool for older vessels focusing on technical and
functional condition.
• The program in general is designed for oil tankers and bulk carriers of more 15years of age.
• But it can be applied for any other vessel of any other age.
• The condition assessment program report, by most of the reputed classification societies
include narrative descriptions, photos, and analyses and rates the vessel accordingly.
• The ratings are usually from 1 (best) to 4 (lowest).
• The main benefit of condition assessment program is that the vessels are judged by the
actual condition on board rather than only by the age.
• CAP is voluntary carried out by class on owners‘ request whereas CAS is a regulatory
survey on behalf of the flag state.

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Ship Construction
Watertight and weather tight doors:

 In 1994 the ro-ro passenger ferry ESTONIA sank in the Baltics with the loss of 852 lives.
 In addition to the official report, there have been other opinions expressed concerning the
sequence of events that led to the sinking.
 At a Lloyd‘s List Event Conference in London in 2003, Anders Bjørkman of Heiwa Co
informed that the vessel had 22 doors in 12 watertight bulkheads, and that those doors
could be opened from the bridge.
 The vessel had 10 watertight doors on the tanktop level of the ship.
 Watertight doors on board ESTONIA could be opened from the bridge (which is no
longer allowed for passenger ships built after 1992), and it is possible that closed
doors may have been opened by mistake, due to the confusion of the meaning of red
and green indicators.
 New regulations no longer allow doors to be opened from the bridge of passenger
ships .
 There may have been confusion about the colour of indicating lights on the bridge panel for
doors open or closed doors
 It was international practice to use green lights for closed doors and red lights for open
doors, but it has been alleged that it was the opposite on board ESTONIA.
 Passenger and car ferry, Canadian flag, 125 m long, built 1969
 Two compartment ship, 11 transverse bulkheads with 11 sliding doors.
 On board : 59 passengers (of max 650) and 42 crew members
 Struck Gil Island 22.03.2006, extensive damage to hull, initial water ingress to at least 3
main compartments, lost propulsion, sank in 430 m water.
 2 persons not accounted for, declared dead.
 At the time of accident several watertight doors were open.
 Watertight door between main engine room and auxiliary engine room was closed manually,
after ingress of water.
 Watertight door between engine room and workshop obstructed by debris, not closed.
 In 2000 the Greek ro-ro passenger ferry EXPRESS SAMINA with 534 people on board hit
rocks and sank in 45 minutes.
 The vessel was 34 years old and more than one thing went wrong.
 The rocks tore a 6m long, 1m wide hole in the hull, but well above the waterline.
 After impact, the rocks also bent the starboard stabilizer fin backwards, resulting in
another hole, this time below the water line and next to the engine room.
 •The water ingress caused the electrical supply to stop.
 The ship had 11 watertight doors in subdivision bulkheads, 9 of which were open and
could not close due to lack of power. An expert opinion at the time was that the
vessel sank as a result of the doors being open. 82 people died, in what is considered
to be the worst ever Greek ferry disaster.
Different Types of Watertight Doors on Ships

 TYPE A
This type of doors may be left open and are to be closed only during an emergency.
 TYPE B
This type of watertight doors should be closed and are made to remain open only when
personnel are working in the adjacent compartment.
 TYPE C
This type of watertight doors is to be kept closed all the time. It may be opened only for
sufficient time when personnel are passing through the door compartment.
 Watertight doors: SOLAS Chapter-2-1-B1 & B2 gives the requirements for the watertight
doors fitted for the openings below the bulkhead deck.
 The number openings to be kept as minimum as possible.
 All the openings are to be provided with effective means of closure.

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Ship Construction
 The watertight doors for the bulkheads separating cargo spaces and cargo spaces with
passenger spaces shall not be of remotely controlled type. (SOLAS Ch.2-1-Reg.13 & 14).
 There shall not be more than one door, apart from the doors to shaft tunnels, may be fitted
in each watertight bulkhead within spaces containing the main and auxiliary propulsion
machinery including boilers serving the needs of propulsion.
 Where two or more shafts are fitted, the tunnels shall be connected by an
intercommunicating passage.
 There shall be only one door between the machinery space and the tunnel spaces where
two shafts are fitted and only two doors where there are more than two shafts.
 All these doors shall be of the sliding type and shall be so located as to have their sills as
high as practicable.
 The hand gear for operating these doors from above the bulkhead deck shall be situated
outside the spaces containing the machinery.
 Other than the watertight doors for bulkheads bounding machinery spaces and watertight
doors in bulkheads separating cargo spaces, the doors shall be of remotely controlled type
capable of being operated simultaneously from navigation bridge.
 The power operated doors shall close within 60s with ship in upright position, after it is
initiated.
 The doors shall be capable of being operated manually or by power even when the ship is
listed by 15o either way.
 The operating system shall have sufficient power to close the door even when the water is
1m above the upper sill of the door frame.
 Watertight door controls, including hydraulic piping and electric cables, shall be kept as
close as practicable to the bulkhead in which the doors are fitted, in order to minimize the
likelihood of them being involved in any damage which the ship may sustain.
 The position of watertight doors and their and their controls shall be separated from the
sides by at least B/5.
 All power-operated sliding watertight doors shall be provided with means of indication
which will show at all remote operating positions whether the doors are open or closed.
 The remote operating provision shall be given only on bridge.
 Local operation of the doors from either side of the door shall be arranged.

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Ship Construction
 Arrangement shall be provided to close the door from an accessible position above the
bulkhead deck with an all round crank motion or some other movement providing the same
degree of safety acceptable to the Administration.
 Direction of rotation or other movement is to be clearly indicated at all operating positions.
 The time necessary for the complete closure of the door, when operating by hand gear,
shall not exceed 90 s with the ship in the upright position.
 All power-operated sliding watertight doors shall be provided with means of indication
which will show at all remote operating positions whether the doors are open or closed.
 All remotely controlled doors shall be provided with an audible alarm, distinct from any
other alarm in the area.
 The alarm should sound whenever the door is closed remotely by power and which shall
sound for at least 5s but no more than 10s before the door begins to move and shall
continue sounding until the door is completely closed.
 In the case of remote hand operation it is sufficient for the audible alarm to sound only
when the door is moving.
 Additionally, in passenger areas and areas of high ambient noise the Administration may
require the audible alarm to be supplemented by an intermittent visual signal at the door.
 The door shall have an approximately uniform rate of closure under power.
 The closure time, from the time the door begins to move to the time it reaches the
completely closed position, shall in no case be less than 20 s or more than 40 s with the
ship in the upright position.

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 The electrical power required for power-operated sliding watertight doors shall be supplied
from the emergency switchboard either directly or by a dedicated distribution board
situated above the bulkhead deck.
 The associated control, indication and alarm circuits shall be supplied from the emergency
switchboard either directly or by a dedicated distribution board situated above the
bulkhead deck and be capable of being automatically supplied by the transitional source of
emergency electrical power in the event of failure of either the main or emergency source of
electrical power.
 Power operated sliding doors shall have a centralized or individual hydraulic system with
two independent power sources each consisting of a motor and pump capable of
simultaneously closing all doors.
 In addition, there shall be for the whole installation hydraulic accumulators of sufficient
capacity to operate all the doors at least three times, i.e., closed-open-closed, against an
adverse list of 15°.
 This operating cycle shall be capable of being carried out when the accumulator is at the
pump cut-in pressure.
 The fluid used shall be chosen considering the temperatures liable to be encountered by
the installation during its service.
 The power operating system shall be designed to minimize the possibility of having a single
failure in the hydraulic piping adversely affect the operation of more than one door.
 The hydraulic system shall be provided with a low-level alarm for hydraulic fluid reservoirs
serving the power-operated system and a low gas pressure alarm or other effective means of
monitoring loss of stored energy in hydraulic accumulators.
 These alarms are to be audible and visual and shall be situated on the central operating
console at the navigation bridge.
 For individual systems loss of stored energy indication at each local operating position shall
also be provided.
 Instead of hydraulic power operated doors an independent electrical system and motor for
each door with each power source consisting of a motor capable of opening and closing the
door also is approved.

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 In such systems the power source shall be capable of being automatically supplied by the
transitional source of emergency electrical power in the event of failure of either the main or
emergency source of electrical power and with sufficient capacity to operate the door at
least three times, i.e., closed-open-closed, against an adverse list of 15°.
 Power systems for power-operated watertight sliding doors shall be separate from any other
power system.
 A single failure in the electric or hydraulic power-operated systems excluding the hydraulic
actuator shall not prevent the hand operation of any door.
 Control handles shall be provided at each side of the bulkhead at a minimum height of 1.6
m above the floor and shall be so arranged as to enable persons passing through the
doorway to hold both handles in the open position without being able to set the power
closing mechanism in operation accidentally.
 The direction of movement of the handles in opening and closing the door shall be in the
direction of door movement and shall be clearly indicated.
 As far as practicable, electrical equipment and components for watertight doors shall be
situated above the bulkhead deck and outside hazardous areas and spaces.
 The enclosures of electrical components necessarily situated below the bulkhead deck shall
provide suitable protection against the ingress of water.
 Electric power, control, indication and alarm circuits shall be protected against fault in
such a way that a failure in one door circuit will not cause a failure in any other door
circuit.
 Short circuits or other faults in the alarm or indicator circuits of a door shall not result in a
loss of power operation of that door.
 Arrangements shall be such that leakage of water into the electrical equipment located
below the bulkhead deck will not cause the door to open.
 A single electrical failure in the power operating or control system of a power-operated
sliding watertight door shall not result in a closed door opening.
 Availability of the power supply should be continuously monitored at a point in the
electrical circuit as near as practicable to each of the motors.
 Loss of any such power supply should activate an audible and visual alarm at the central
operating console at the navigation bridge.
 The central operating console at the navigation bridge shall have a ―master mode‖ switch
with two modes of control: a ―local control‖ mode which shall allow any door to be locally
opened and locally closed after use without automatic closure, and a ―doors closed‖ mode
which shall automatically close any door that is open.
 The ―doors closed‖ mode shall automatically close any door that is open.
 The ―doors closed‖ mode shall permit doors to be opened locally and shall automatically re-
close the doors upon release of the local control mechanism.
 The ―master mode‖ switch shall normally be in the ―local control‖ mode.
 The ―doors closed‖ mode shall only be used in an emergency or for testing purposes.

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 Special consideration shall be given to the reliability of the ―master mode‖ switch.
 The central operating console at the navigation bridge shall be provided with a diagram
showing the location of each door, with visual indicators to show whether each door is open
or closed.
 A red light shall indicate a door is fully open and a green light shall indicate a door is fully
closed.
 When the door is closed remotely the red light shall indicate the intermediate position by
flashing.
 The indicating circuit shall be independent of the control circuit for each door.
 It shall not be possible to remotely open any door from the central operating console.
Periodical testing & inspection of watertight doors

 SOLAS Ch.2.1.Part-B4.Reg-21 gives requirements for regular testing and inspection of
watertight doors in passenger vessels.
 Drills for the operating of watertight doors, sidescuttles, valves and closing mechanisms of
scuppers, ash-chutes and rubbish-chutes shall take place weekly.
 In ships in which the voyage exceeds one week in duration a complete drill shall be held
before leaving port, and others thereafter at least once a week during the voyage.
 All watertight doors, both hinged and power operated, in watertight bulkheads, in use at
sea, shall be operated daily.
 The watertight doors and all mechanisms and indicators connected therewith, all valves,
the closing of which is necessary to make a compartment watertight, and all valves the
operation of which is necessary for damage control cross connections shall be periodically
inspected at sea at least once a week.
 A record of all drills and inspections required by this regulation shall be entered in the log-
book with an explicit record of any defects which may be disclosed.
 Maintenance of the doors should consist of testing it‘s full operation, and visual check of
operating mechanisms.
 Hoses and connections checked for chaffing and tightness.
 Guides should be clear of obstructions and greased.
 Wear surfaces should be checked to make sure they are secured and not worn beyond
tolerances.
 The hydraulic ram should be checked for leaks, these can be caused by a damaged cylinder
ram.
 Manual pumps for the door should get a good "once over" checking the fluid level, lever and
it's eccentrics for looseness.
 Check for leaks at the piping joints.
 The hydraulic power pack: Checks include things such as hoses, fluid levels, loose wiring.
 Check piping for leaks.
 Some power packs have pressure reservoirs so that doors can be actuated with a power
failure.
 These reservoirs store hydraulic energy by compressing nitrogen at high pressure, these
can be particularly prone to leakage.
 Additionally the controls for the power pack should be checked.
 Start and stop buttons, remotes start and stop buttons should be checked for operation
with no binding.
 Audible signals should be checked.
 Warning lights, if equipped, should be working.
 Contact switches should be checked for operation and proper setting.

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Ramp doors of ro-ro ships

 SOLAS Ch.2-1-Reg:17-1, gives the requirements for the ramp doors fitted on ro-ro vessels.
 Any access to below bulkhead deck shall be provided with minimum 2.5m high coaming
measured from the bulkhead deck.
 Where vehicle ramps are installed to give access to spaces below the bulkhead deck, their
openings shall be able to be closed weather-tight to prevent ingress of water below, alarmed
and indicated to the navigation bridge.
 Indicators shall be provided on the navigation bridge for all shell doors, loading doors and
other closing appliances which, if left open or not properly secured, could, in the opinion of
the Administration, lead to flooding of a special category space or ro-ro space.
 The indicator system shall be designed on the fail-safe principle and shall show by visual
alarms if the door is not fully closed or if any of the securing arrangements are not in place
and fully locked.
 by audible alarms if such door or closing appliances become open or the securing
arrangements become unsecured.
 The indicator panel on the navigation bridge shall be equipped with a mode selection
function ―harbour/sea voyage‖ so arranged that an audible alarm is given on the navigation
bridge if the ship leaves harbour with the bow doors, inner doors, stern ramp or any other
side shell doors not closed or any closing device not in the correct position.

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 The power supply for the indicator system shall be independent of the power supply for
operating and securing the doors.
 Ro-ro vessels may be fitted with stern doors of the hinge down or hinge up type which if
large are articulated.
 Bow doors are either of the visor type or of the side hinged type.
 These are situated above the freeboard deck and where the bow doors lead to a complete or
long forward enclosed superstructure Lloyd‘s require an inner door to be fitted which is
part of the collision bulkhead.
 Stern and bow door strengths are equivalent to the strength of the surrounding structure
and where they give access to enclosed superstructures they are required to close weather-
tight.
 Stern doors and bow visors can be mechanically raised and lowered with wire rope and
purchase arrangements but in general they and the side hinged bow doors are
hydraulically opened and closed.
 These weather-tight doors are gasketted and cleated.

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Side Doors and Loaders

 Side door/ramps are available for ro-ro operations and are similar to stern door/ramp
installations.
 Most side door installations, however, are intended for quayside fork lift operations with
palletized cargo being loaded onto a platform at the door by the quayside forklift and
stowed in the ship by another fork lift truck.
 Upward folding doors with hydraulic cylinders actuating the hinge are usually fitted to the
side opening, the load platform being fitted inside the door and hinged at the bottom of the
opening, automatically being lowered when the door is opened.
 Combined side door/hatch covers are fitted in designs where the ship is low in the water
relative to the height of quay in order to provide sufficient head room for forklift truck
operation.
Side Doors and Loaders inspection and surveys;

 Annual Survey: The survey is to consist of an examination to verify, as far as is
practicable, that the bow, inner, side shell and stern doors are maintained in a satisfactory
condition.
 Confirmation is to be obtained that no unapproved changes have been made to the bow,
inner, side shell and stern doors since the last survey.
 If an Operating and Maintenance Manual (OMM) is required, it is to be verified that an
approved copy is on board and any possible modifications are included.
 It is to be verified that documented operating procedures for closing and securing doors are
kept on board and posted at an appropriate place.
 The surveyor shall examine the OMM with special attention to the register of inspections
and its contents as a basis for the survey.
 Structural examination:
 Bow, inner, side shell and stern doors are to be examined with particular attention paid to:
 Structural arrangement of doors including plating, secondary stiffeners, primary
structure, hinging arms and welding;
 Shell structure surrounding the opening of the doors and the securing, supporting
and locking devices including shell plating, secondary stiffeners, primary structure,
and welding;
 Hinges and bearings, thrust bearings;
 Hull and door side supports for securing, supporting and locking devices;
 Close-up survey of securing, supporting and locking devices including welding.

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 Whenever a crack is found, an examination with NDT is to be carried out in the

surrounding area and for similar items as considered necessary by the surveyor.
 Measurement of clearances:
 Clearances of hinges, bearings and thrust bearings are to be taken, where no dismantling is
required.
 Where the function test is not satisfactory, dismantling may be required to measure the
clearances.
 If dismantling is carried out, a visual examination of hinge pins and bearings together with
NDT of the hinge pin is to be carried out.
 Clearances of securing, supporting and locking devices are to be measured, where indicated
in the OMM.
 Sealing arrangement:
 An examination of packing material / rubber gaskets and retaining bars or channels,
including welding is to be carried out.
 Drainage arrangement An examination of drainage arrangement, including bilge wells and
drain pipes is to be carried out, where fitted.
 A test of the bilge system between the inner and outer doors is to be carried out.
 Function test of doors:
 Checking of the satisfactory operation of the bow, inner, side shell and stern doors during a
complete opening and closing operation is to be made, as applicable, including:
 Proper working of the hinging arms and hinges;
 Proper engagement of the thrust bearings;
 Device for locking the door in the open position;
 Securing, supporting and locking devices;
 Proper sequence of the interlock system for the opening / closing system and the
securing and locking devices;
 Mechanical lock of the securing devices;
 Proper locking of hydraulic securing devices in the event of a loss of the hydraulic
fluid, according to the procedure provided by the OMM;
 Correct indication of open / closed position of doors and securing / locking devices
at navigation bridge and other control stations;
 Isolation of the hydraulic securing / locking devices from other hydraulic systems;
 Confirmation that the operating panels are inaccessible to unauthorized persons;
 Verification that a notice plate giving instructions to the effect that all securing
devices are to be closed and locked before leaving harbour is placed at each
operating panel and supplemented by warning indicator lights;
 Examination of electrical equipment for opening, closing and securing the doors.
 Function test of the indicator system:

 Checking of the satisfactory operation of the indicator system, where fitted, is to be carried
out, as applicable, including:
 Proper visible indication and audible alarm on the navigation bridge panel,
according to the selected function "harbour / sea voyage" and on the operating
panel;
 Lamp test function on both panels;
 Verification that it is not possible to turn off the indicator light on both panels;
 Verification of fail safe performance, according to the procedure provided by the
OMM;
 Confirmation that power supply for indicator system is supplied by the emergency
source or other secure power supply and independent of the power supply for
operating the doors;
 Proper condition of sensors and protection from water, ice formation and
mechanical damage.
 Test of water leakage detection system:

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 Where fitted, the water leakage detection system is to be tested including proper audible
alarm on the navigation bridge panel and on the engine control room panel, according to
the procedure provided by the OMM
 Test of television surveillance system:
 Where fitted, the television surveillance system is to be tested including proper indication
on the navigation bridge monitor and on the engine control room monitor.
 Tightness test: A hose test or equivalent is to be carried out.
 If the visual examination and function test have shown satisfactory results, the tightness
test of shell doors on Ro-Ro cargo ships need not be carried out unless considered
necessary by the attending surveyor.
 NDT and Thickness Measurements:
 When considered necessary by the surveyor, NDT and thickness measurements may be
required after visual examination and function test.

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WELDING
Introduction
 Englishman named Wilde obtained the first electric welding patent in 1865.
 He successfully joined two small pieces of iron by passing an electric current through both
pieces producing a fusion weld.
 Approximately twenty years later, Bernado, a Russian, was granted a patent for an electric
arc welding process.
 He maintained an arc between a carbon electrode and the pieces to be joined, fusing the
metals together as the arc was manually passed over the joint to be welded.
 During the 1890's, arc welding was accomplished with bare metal electrodes that were
consumed in the molten puddle and became part of the weld metal.
 The welds were of poor quality due to the nitrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere forming
harmful oxides and nitrides in the weld metal.
 Early in the Twentieth Century, the importance of shielding the arc from the atmosphere
was realized.
 Covering the electrode with a material that decomposed in the heat of the arc to form a
gaseous shield appeared to be the best method to accomplish this.
 As a result, various methods of covering electrodes, such as wrapping and dipping, were
tried.
 These efforts led to the development of extruded coated electrode in the mid-1920's,greatly
improving the quality of the weld metal and providing the most significant advance in
electric arc welding.
 Welding is a metal joining process, in which the edges of the metal to be joined are heated
to the melting temperature and the gap is filled with a filling, mostly of the same metal or
the melting edges are pressed together to fuse each other.
 Initially welding was used in ships as means of repairing various metal parts.
 Prior to WWI welding was not trusted as a method to join two metals due to crack issues.
 Riveting was the predominant means of joining ship plates and sections.
 But in the latter part of the 20th century riveting was completely replaced by welding.
 This was due to the many advantages of welded construction over the riveted construction.
 For the ship builder the advantages are:
 Welding allows the adoption of prefabricated techniques.
 It is easier to get water and oil tightness with welded joints.
 Joints are produced more quickly.
 Less skilled labour is required.
 For the ship owner advantages are:
 Reduced hull weight; Therefore more dead weight.
 Less maintenance from slack rivets, leaky joints etc.
 The smoother hull with elimination of laps leads to reduced hull friction and hence reduced
fuel costs.
 Other than some blacksmith work involved in solid plate welding, the welding process
employed in shipbuilding are of fusion welding type.
 Fusion welding involves a heat source which is intense enough to melt the edges of the
material to be joined as it is traversed along the joint.
 The heat source may be generated in a number of ways like heat generated due to:
 Burning of the gas as in gas welding
 High current passing through the joint as in electric arc welding

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 Friction between the tool and the metal as in friction welding

 Burning of metal power with an oxidizing agent as in thermit welding.
Manual welding
 Manual Metal Arc welding(MMA) or Shielded Metal Arc Welding(SMAW) or stick welding, is
purely a manual process of welding.
 Welding is performed with the heat of an electric arc that is maintained between the end of
a coated metal electrode and work piece.
 The heat produced by the arc melts the base metal, electrode core rod and the coating.
 As the molten metal droplets are transferred across the arc and into the molten weld
puddle, they are shielded from the atmosphere by the gases produced from the
decomposition of the flux coating.
 The molten slag floats to the top of the weld puddle where it protects the weld metal from
the atmosphere during solidification.
 One reason for the wide spread application of the SMAW process is the simplicity of the
necessary equipment.
 Though AC or DC power source can be successfully used, DC power source is suitable for
all types of electrodes.
 AC is not suitable for some non-ferrous type and a low hydrogen ferritic (steel containing
leass than 0.1% carbon and also may contain other non metallic elements like silica and
other ceramic elements) type electrodes, as may not give a stable arc.
 Both starting and maintaining a short arc will be easier with DC power.
 Vertical and overhead welding on thick sections will be easier with DC.

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 In DC straight polarity (electrode negative) can be used for MMAW of all steels except for
non-ferrous metals.
 With straight polarity, more of the arc heat is concentrated on the electrode and
consequently melting and deposition rates are higher, welding is more rapid and the welded
piece is less susceptible to distortion.
 Reverse polarity (electrode positive) is used with basic low hydrogen electrodes and for
most non-ferrous metals.
 For sheet metal welding, D.C. straight polarity minimises burn-through problems because
of its shallow penetration.
 D.C. however, can cause problems of arc blow, specially so when welding ends of joints,
corners etc.
 A.C. does not present such problems.
 The electrode size refers to the diameter of its core wire. Current range depends on the
diameter of the electrode.
 For light job where over-heating must be avoided, small size electrodes (e.g. 1.6mm - 2mm)
can be used with current 25 amps to 40amps.
 For heavy work where maximum heat for adequate fusion is necessary, electrodes of large
size and high current capacity e.g., 5 mm - 6.3 mm with 240 - 320 amps can be used.
 Various types of electrodes are available, the type often being defined by the nature of the
coating.
 General purpose electrodes are ‗Rutile‘ electrodes which contain high percentage of natural
ore of titanium oxide(Titania).
 Low hydrogen electrodes are basic electrodes which contain high lime content in coating
material.
 Also the in low hydrogen coatings the moisture content is maintained at a minimum to
ensure low hydrogen properties.
 The mechanical properties of weld metal deposited with low hydrogen electrodes are
superior to that of general electrodes.
 Low hydrogen electrodes are generally specified for welding high tensile steel structures.
 An experienced welder is required to carry out manual welding with low hydrogen
electrodes as the control over the welding process is less.
 Also the low hydrogen electrodes are to be kept in places having least humidity and
electrodes are to be dried out in special ovens just before it is used for welding.
 Manual electrode welding can be done in any positions.
 Each of these positions require correct type of electrode, correct current, correct technique
and experience, especially for vertical and overhead positions.
 The electrodes used in manual welding process contains a core wire suitable to the metal
being welded and a coating for the electrode.

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 The electrode coating normally consists of mineral silicates, hydrocarbons, oxides,

fluorides, powdered metal alloys and a liquid binder.
 After mixing the necessary ingredients the compound is coated on the core wire and then
dried out.
 The electrode coating should provide gas shielding, easy striking and arc stability, a
protective slag, good weld shape, and most important of all a gas shield consuming the
surrounding oxygen and protecting the molten metal.
 In this the quality of welding is dependent on human skill and judgment.
 The process is slow compared to automated processes.
 The uniformity of the different welded sections cannot be ensured and hence thorough
inspection may be required to ensure quality of welded joints in critical areas.
Automatic welding process:
 Productivity and Weld quality are the two very important advantages of automatic welding
processes.
 Compared to manual welding the initial equipment cost is very high.
 But this high initial investment will be able to be recovered within a short time period.
 Consistency in weld quality is a big advantage and hence testing can be very easy.
 In the manual welding process the weld quality will vary from welder to welder and hence
more length of weld testing is required which is going to be expensive and time consuming.
 In countries where labor is expensive this adds on to the final cost of the product.
 Also where high quality is required, the manual method cannot be used as this cannot
guarantee the consistency and quality.
 But automatic welding rigs require specific welding infrastructure.
 In manual welding however portability is a very big advantage and hence extensively used
in ship construction where automatic welding cannot be employed.
 The weld quality in this case is ensured by close monitoring and elaboratenon destructive
tests for the weld.
Electro-slag welding:
 Electro-slag Welding (ESW):
 Electro-slag welding offers good productivity and quality in heavy structural and pressure
vessel fabrications.
 ESW is technically not an arc welding process, although it utilizes a current carrying
consumable electrode.
 The only time there is an arc between the electrode and the work piece is when current is
initially charged through the electrode.
 This initial charge heats a layer of loose flux that becomes molten and extinguishes the arc.
 The weld metal in ESW process is obtained by fusion of electrode wire under the blanket of
flux layers.
 The heat for melting is obtained as resistance heat by passage of current through slag pool
covering the complete surface of the weld metal.
 A pool of molten slag is formed between the edges of the parts to be welded and the
travelling moulding shoes.
 The metal electrode is dipped into the molten slag.
 The current passing through the electrode and the molten slag heats up the slag pool.
 The slag melting point is higher than those of the wire and the parent metal.

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 Hence the electrode wire melts and the molten metal settles at the bottom of the slag pool
and solidifies to form the weld metal.
 To keep welding stable, it is necessary for the slag pool to maintain its temperature.
 In electro-slag welding the slag pool is 40-50 mm deep and it offers a conductive path
between the electrode and base metal.
 Thus the current flow is maintained after the arc is extinguished.
 Both non-consumable and consumable guides are used in ESW.

 The first method has a contact tube which directs the wire electrode into the slag bath.
 The welding head moves upwards steadily along with the shoes as the weld is deposited.
 In the consumable guide arrangement, a consumable tube is used.
 The welding head remains fixed at the top of the joint. The axis of the weld is vertical.
 The welding machine moves upwards consistent with the deposition rate.
 The amount of slag remains constant.
 A small amount of flux has to be added to the slag.
 When the weld is complete the welding machine can be withdrawn.
 The welding wire chosen must match with the base material and the diameter is generally
of the order of 3-4 mm.
 The flux should have high boiling point to enable melting of base metal and the welding
wires.
 It must have good conductivity and viscosity so as to maintain the temperature of the slag
pool and to prevent the flow of the slag through gaps between work piece and the cooling
shoes.
 The ESW process is completely continuous and so productivity will be faster.
 No edge preparation of the parts to be joined is necessary.
 There will be saving in the quantity of filler metal and the flux.
 After the welding process, the welded components require heat treatment.
 The process should be continuous and should not be interrupted due to power failure etc.
 Otherwise the molten metal will shrink forming a cavity at the centre.
 Normally other defects like slag inclusions, porosity, undercuts, notches etc., are not
encountered in ESW process.
 Constant potential power source with 750-1000 amps at 100 per cent duty and with a open
circuit voltage of 60 V minimum is used.
 The electrode could be solid or flux-cored fed at a rate of 20-150 mm/second.
 The quality of weld in ESW depends on
 (a)the ratio of width of the weld pool and its maximum depth, known as Form
Factor,

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 (b) weld current and voltage,

 (c) electrode extension and oscillation,
 (d) slag depth,
 (e) number of electrodes and their spacing etc.
 The weld will be more crack-resistant if the form factor is high.
 Weld voltage controls the depth of fusion.
 Increasing voltage increases the depth of fusion and the width of the weld.
 Increasing welding current will increase the deposition rate and also the depth of molten
weld pool.
 However, too high a current may result in deposits which will be crack-prone.
 Oscillation of electrode will ensure proper heat distribution and fusion.
 The slag bath depth should be sufficiently deep so that the wire enters into it and melts
beneath the surface.
 With shallow bath the slag will split and arcing will occur at the surface.
 For best results the bath depth should be around 40 mm.
 In ESW, the dilution is to the extent of 30 - 50 per cent by the base metal.
 Plates and other heavy sections upto 450 mm are commonly welded by electro-slag process.
 Heavy pressure vessels for chemical, petrochemical and power generating industries are
usually welded by ES process only.
Electro-Gas Welding:
 Electro-Gas Welding is similar to ESW as far as the mechanical aspects are concerned.
 The equipment is automatic, the welding head travels vertically, and the molten puddle is
retained by shoes on the sides of the joint.
 The difference is that Electro-Gas Welding utilizes an arc and it is externally gas shielded.
 The power source is also limited to DC operation.
 The electrodes used in EGW can be either solid or flux cored.
Tungsten Inert Gas Welding:
 Tungsten Inert Gas Welding (TIG Welding) is a welding process performed using the heat of
an arc established between a non consumable tungsten electrode and the work piece.
 The electrode, the arc, and the area surrounding the molten weld puddle are protected from
the atmosphere by an inert gas shield.
 The electrode is not consumed in the weld puddle as in shielded metal arc welding.
 If a filler metal is necessary, it is added by continuously feeding to the molten puddle.
 TIG welding can be of either manual or automatic operation.
 In manual operation, the welder holds the torch in one hand and directs the arc into the
weld joint.
Metal Inert Gas Welding:

 MIG welding is a versatile process that may be used to weld a wide variety of metals
including Carbon Steels, low alloy steels, Stainless Steels, Aluminium alloys, Magnesium,
Copper and Copper alloys, and Nickel alloys.
 It can be used to weld sheet metal or relatively heavy sections.
 Welds may be made in all positions, and the process may be used for semiautomatic
welding or automatic welding.
 In semiautomatic welding, the wire feed speed, voltage, amperage, and gas flow are all pre-
set on the control equipment.

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 The operator needs merely to guide the welding gun along the joint at a uniform speed and
hold a relatively constant arc length.
 In automatic welding, the gun is mounted on a travel carriage that moves along the joint, or
the gun may be stationary with the work moving or revolving beneath it.
 It may be used in shipbuilding as a semi automatic process, particularly for welding deck
houses and other lighter steel assemblies.
 Use of semi automatic MIG process can considerably increase the weld out put and reduce
the cost.
Submerged Arc Welding:

 Submerged Arc Welding (SAW) is different from the previous arc welding processes in that
the arc is not visible.
 The arc is submerged beneath loose granular flux.
 A continuous electrode is fed by automatic drive rolls through an electrode holder where
current is passed by the contact tube.
 The electrode moves into the loose flux and the arc is initiated.
 The flux is deposited from a separate container that moves at the same pace as the
electrode assuring complete coverage.
 The flux helps form the molten puddle, slows the cooling rate, and acts as a protective
shield.
 The flux, which is in close contact with the arc, is fused into a slag cover.
 Unused flux is not fused is collected for reuse.
 The flux can contain alloying elements that, when molten, will pass into the weld metal
affecting the metallurgy.
 Some fluxes are specifically prepared for their alloy altering capabilities while others,
known as neutral fluxes, are chosen when a minimal alloy change is desired.
 Although these latter fluxes are called "neutral", they still have the ability to slightly alter
the weld chemistry.
 Although there are hand-held welding guns for the submerged arc process, the majority of
SAW is done with fully automatic equipment.
 The basic components include a wire feeder, a power source, a flux delivery system, and in
some instances, an automatic flux recovery system.

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 The power source can be a constant current AC transformer, or it may be a DC rectifier or

generator of either the constant current or constant voltage variety.
 The power source must be rated for high current output.
 When current requirements exceed the value of a single machine, two or more of the same
type may be connected in parallel.
 A variety of ferrous and nonferrous electrodes are used in submerged arc welding.
 They are usually solid electrodes refined with the appropriate alloys at the steel mill, and
then shipped to electrode manufacturers where they are drawn down to a specific diameter
and packaged.
 There is another type of sub arc electrode known as a composite electrode, that is
fabricated in the same manner as a flux cored electrode.
 A chief advantage of this type is that the alloying elements can be added to the core of the
electrode more cheaply than a steel mill can produce those same alloys in a solid form.
 The wire diameter may vary from 1.6mm to 6.3mm.
 Submerged arc welding has some advantages over other welding processes.
 Since the radiance of the arc is blanketed by the loose flux, there is no need for a protective
welding hood (although safety glasses are recommended), there is no spatter and only a
very minimal amount of fumes escape from under the blanket.
 High welding currents, quite commonly in the 300 to 1600 ampere range, are used.
 These high currents, combined with fast travel speeds, make SAW a high deposition
process that is especially suitable for applications that require a series of repetitious
welds.
 Some setups allow two or more electrodes to be fed simultaneously into the joint, further
increasing the deposition rate and speed.
 Although SAW has these advantages, it does have some limitations.
 The flux must be deposited and collected for every welding pass.
 This requires additional equipment and handling.
 Also because of the loose flux, the process is limited to the flat and horizontal positions.
 The equipment for SAW is commonly quite bulky which limits its mobility, and although
the process works well on thick materials, it usually is not satisfactory for thin gauge
material.
 The process requires care in the operation.
 The amperages commonly used may cause excessive heat build up in the base metal, that
may result in distortion or brittleness.

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Resistance Welding:
 Electric resistance welding is a non-fusion welding process.
 Resistance Welding is a welding process, in which work pieces are welded due to a
combination of a pressure applied to them and a localized heat generated by a high electric
current flowing through the contact area of the weld.
 Heat is produced by the passage of electric current across the interface of the joint.
 Typical examples of this type of joining are spot and seam welding where sheet metals are
pressed together at the joint by copper alloy electrodes and, projection welding where the
metal itself is shaped so that local contact at the joint concentrates the current flow,
thereby producing heat.
Butt, Lap & Fillet Welding:

 Butt Joints and Welds:
 Butt joints are used where high strength is required.
 They are reliable and can withstand stress better than any other type of weld joint.
 To achieve full stress value, the weld must have 100 % penetration through the joint.
 This can be done by welding completely through from one side.
 The alternative is working from both sides, with the welds joining in the center.
 Lap Joints and Welds:

 Lap joints may be either single fillet, double fillet, plug slot, or spot-welded.
 They require very little joint preparation.
 Where corrosive liquids are involved, both edges of the joint must be welded.
 One of the major problems with lap joint design is where the component parts are not in
close contact, a bridging fillet weld must then be made.
 This leads to incomplete fusion at the root of the weld and oversize fillet weld dimensions.
 When using this type of design in sheet or plate material, clamps or tooling must be used to
maintain adequate contact of the material at the weld joint.
 Lap Joints and Welds:

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Ship Construction
 Lap joints may be either single fillet, double fillet, plug slot, or spot-welded.
 They require very little joint preparation.
 Where corrosive liquids are involved, both edges of the joint must be welded.
 One of the major problems with lap joint design is where the component parts are not in
close contact, a bridging fillet weld must then be made.
 This leads to incomplete fusion at the root of the weld and oversize fillet weld dimensions.
 When using this type of design in sheet or plate material, clamps or tooling must be used to
maintain adequate contact of the material at the weld joint.
 Fillet-Joints and Welds:
 Various T-joint designs are used to join parts at an angle to each other and fillet welds are
used for making these joints.
 Depending on the intended use of the weldment, the joint may be made with a single fillet,
double fillet, or a groove and fillet weld combination and may be continuous or intermittent.
 Fillet welds are made to specific sizes that are determined by the allowable design load.
 Where design loads are not known, the fillet weld leg lengths must equal the thickness of
the thinner material.
 The main problem in making fillet welds is lack of penetration at the joint intersection.
 Double continuous fillets may be used for specially important structural connections and for
water and oil tightness.
 Intermittent fillets areused for joints where water tightness is not required.
 The length and spacing of the fillets depends on the role of the welded structure.
 As compared with continuous fillets, intermittent fillets reduce weight and distortion.
 Tack welds are spots of welding done to keep the parts in position before a proper weld is
started.

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Ship Construction
Preparation of plate edges for welding:

 Edge preparation consists of removing material along edges of metal surfaces.
 Appropriate edge preparation is essential to:
 impart required strength, to the welded parts and assemblies;
 achieve full welding penetration;
 The weld replaces the removed material and makes a complete bridge between the joining
parts.

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Ship Construction
 Tack welds are spots of welding done to keep the parts in position before a proper weld is
started.
 Tack welding can be done even by a person not having much experience.
 While welding assemblies the final alignment will be done after tack welding.
 Tack welding is followed by final welding to fill the gap completely.
Weld Faults:
 Various faults may be observed in butt and fillet welds.
 These faults may be due to a number of factors like; Bad design, incorrect welding
procedure, use of wrong materials, and to some extend due to bad workmanship.
 The judgment of seriousness of the weld fault rests with the inspector and surveyor.
 When a weld quality is totally unacceptable the same may be cropped and re-welded.
 Welding defects may be due to welding process or due to material properties
 Weld process defects may be divided into Internal or External.

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Ship Construction
 Lack of Fusion and Penetration:Lack of fusion is defined as unfused area between weld
metal and base material or previously welded layer. This happens when the base metal or
the previous layer are not completely or insufficiently molten.
 Lack of Reinforcement: A weld is considered as failed if it has lack reinforcement or

excess reinforcement.
 Ineffective reinforcement makes the welded joint weak.
 When the weldment surface is concave, then it is due to lack of reinforcement.
 Lack of reinforcement causes narrow throat and hence insufficient strength.
 When the weldment surface is convex, then it is due to excessive reinforcement.

 This can lead to slag inclusions, if multi-layer welding is carried out.

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Ship Construction
 Lack of Root Penetration: Lack of root penetration causes the welded joint to become
weak.
 Insufficient root penetration can be due to:
 Inadequate temperature of the filler metal
 Speed of travel of the weld headtoo high
 Too narrow the gap between the edges.
 Slag Inclusion: Slag or any other

solid particle inclusion in the weldment has the same effect as the crack.
 The welded joint becomes weak and hence joint failure is the result.
 In multi pass welding the chances of weld inclusions are more and hence thorough cleaning
is very important.
 To prevent any other solid particle inclusion, general cleanliness has to be observed in the
work place.

 Slag Inclusion Causes:As slag is the residue of the flux coating in MMA welding, it is
principally a deoxidation product from the reaction between the flux, air and surface oxide.
 The slag becomes trapped in the weld when two adjacent weld beads are deposited with
inadequate overlap and a void is formed.
 When the next layer is deposited, the entrapped slag is not melted out.
 The degree and probability of slag inclusions depend upon:
 The type of flux coating;
 Welding technique;
 Weld joint design; and
 Accessibility for cleaning.

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Ship Construction

 Porosity: Porosity causes incomplete weldment and hence a weak welded joint.
 The porosity is caused mainly due to the entrapment of gas bubbles in the weld puddle.

 The gas bubbles formed during the welding process if not able to rise to the top of the weld
puddle or not able to dissolve in the molten metal then entrapment will take place.
 These gas bubbles prevent complete filling of the joint gap with molten metal and the joint
becomes weak.
 Overlap (Cold lapping): This is an imperfection at a toe or root of a weld caused by metal
flowing on to the surface of the parent metal without fusing to it.
 It may occur in both fillet and butt welds.
 Common causes: This is often caused by poor manipulation of the electrode or welding
gun, especially when the weld pool is large and 'cold', where the welder allows gravity to
influence the weld shape before solidification.

 Tightly adherent oxides or scale on the metal surface can also prevent the weld metal
fusing with the parent metal to cause the overlap imperfection.
 Avoidance: Avoidance is achieved through an acceptable level of welder skill and a
reduction in weld pool size (obtained by reducing current or increasing travel speed).

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Ship Construction
 Adequate cleaning of the parent plate is also important.

 Undercut:This is an irregular groove at the toe of a run in the parent metal.
 The latter can result in slag becoming trapped in the undercut region.
 When arc and gas welding, undercut is probably the most common shape imperfection.
 With single-sided pipe welds it may also be found at the bore surface.
 In critical applications the imperfection can be 'corrected' by blend grinding or by
depositing an additional weld bead.
 This imperfection may be avoided by reducing travel speed and/or the welding current and
by maintaining the correct arc length.
Gas Cutting :
 Gas Cutting :Gas cutting is the easiest and cheapest method for cutting thick metal
sections.
 Modern gas cutting equipments are computer controlled and is used for cutting thick steel
plates to the desired shape.
 Also edge preparations for thick steel plates are done by automatic gas cutting machines in
a modern shipyard.
 The common method used are Oxy-gas, Air Carbon Arc and Plasma Arc cutting.
 The method depends on the type of metal to be cut and the equipment available.
 In ship construction Oxy-gas cutting and Air Carbon Arc cutting are the most common
methods adopted for ferrous metals.
 The gas cutting process involves heating of the metal to kindling or ignition temperature
(760oC to 871oC)and then directing a jet of oxygen.
 When oxygen comes in contact with hot metal, oxidation of metal takes place with
additional heat being liberated.
 This heat melts the metal at a rapid rate and the molten metal is blown off with oxygen jet.
 In oxygas cutting, only that portion of the metal that is in the direct path of the oxygen jet
is oxidized.
 The narrow slit, formed in the metal as the cutting progresses, is called the kerf.
 Most of the material removed from the kerf is in the form of oxides (products of the
oxidation reaction).

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Ship Construction

 The remainder of the material is molten metal that is blown or washed out of the kerf by
the force of the oxygen jet.
 Gas cutting is extensively used for operations, such as bevelling plate, cutting and bevelling
pipe, piercing holes in steel plate, and cutting wire rope.
 The flames can be divided into:
 Neutral flame; Used for most of the operations.
 Reducing or Carbonizing flame; Used for special applications, as the excess carbon in the
flame will carbonize the metal and hence remove the excess oxygen in the metal; or
 Oxidizing flame; Used in fusion welding of Bronze, Brass etc.
 In Air Carbon Arc Cutting process instead of gas flame heating the metal, carbon arc is
used for heating the metal to the melting point and then the molten metal is blown off with
compressed air.
 This method is used for cutting Aluminum, Magnesium, and also can be used for steel and
other ferrous alloys.

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Ship Construction
 In Plasma Arc Cutting process air, nitrogen or oxygen; depending upon the metal; at high
pressure is directed towards the location and at the same time an electric arc is established
between the metal and the electrode.
 The heat produced due to the electric arc will convert the gas into plasma and the
temperature of plasma is sufficient to cut the metal.
Various Tests for Welds:

 Tests must be made to qualify the process(es) and the operators.
 Inspection usually involves the examination of completed welds to establish their quality
and their confirmation to specifications.
 Testing and inspection determines whether or not the quality standards of materials and
workmanship are being met.
 In welded joints, the complexity is further increased by the nature of the joint which is far
from homogeneous, metallurgically or chemically.
 In addition to the base metal, the welded joint consists of weld metal and a heat-affected-
zone.
 A variety of properties are thus to be expected throughout the welded joint.
 Destructive Tests:
 Tension test:Tension test is conducted for checking the tensile strength of the welded
section.
 Tension-shear tests may be used to evaluate the shear properties of fillet welds.
 The tension-shear test is the most widely used method for determining the strength of
resistance spot welds.
 Nick-Break test: This test is performed to reveal internal imperfections such as slag
inclusion, lack of fusion, incomplete penetration, porosity, etc in a butt weld.
 Bend test: Various types of bend tests are used to evaluate the ductility and soundness of
welded joints.
 Hardness test: Hardness measurements can provide information about the metallurgical
changes caused by welding.

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Ship Construction
 Fatigue test: This test is performed to ensure that work piece will be able to withstand the
loads of various magnitude and frequency, for which the joint is designed.
 Impact test: Impact test is the most common cold test method for the welded joint.
 By this test the energy absorption capacity of the joint can be assessed.
 The ductility of the joint can be interpreted from the appearance of the fractured joint.

 Non-Destructive Tests (NDT):
 Visual examinations: It is the most widely used non-destructive testing technique.
 It is extremely effective and is the least expensive inspection method.
 The welding inspector can utilize inspection visual inspection throughout the entire
production cycle of a weldment.
 It is an effective quality control method that will ensure procedure conformity and will catch
errors at early stages.
 Visual inspection methods can be divided into three sub-groups:
 Visual examinations prior to welding: drawings, material specifications, edge
preparation, dimensions, cleanliness of the welding joint etc.
 Visual examination during welding: welding process, electrode selection, operating
conditions, preheat requirements, welder performance etc.

 Visual examinations of the finished weldment: weld size (using weld gauges), defects
(surface cracks, crater cracks, surface porosity, incomplete root penetration, undercut,
under-fill), warpage, base metal defects etc.
 Radiography testing: Radiography is a non-destructive examination method that uses
invisible X-ray, or Gamma radiation to examine the interior of materials.
 It gives a permanent film recordof defects that is relatively easy to interpret.
 Although this is a slow and expensive method of non-destructive examination, it is a
positive method for detecting porosity, inclusions, cracks, and voids in the interior of
castings, welds, other structures.

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
 Magnetic testing: Magnetic particle testing can be applied for detecting cracks on ferrous
materials (Magnetisable).
 Fine powder of iron, mixed with oil is applied over the test area and a strong magnetic field
is created by placing a U-magnet.
 If the crack is present then the iron particles will be seperated, which roughly show the
edges of the crack.
 Ultrasonic inspection: It is a non-destructive examination method that employs
mechanical vibrations similar to sound waves but of a higher frequency.
 A beam of ultrasonic energy is directed into the specimen to be examined.
 This beam travels through a material , except when it is intercepted and reflected by a
discontinuity or by a change in material.
 Ultrasonic examination is capable of finding surface and subsurface discontinuities.

 Penetrant examinations: Liquid-penetrant examination is used to detect surface defects in
aluminium, magnesium, and stainless steel weldments when the magnetic particle
examination method cannot be used.
 It is very useful for locating leaks in all types of welds. Welds in pressure and storage
vessels and in piping for the petroleum industry are examined for surface cracks and for
porosity.
 Fluorescent Fluorescent--Penetrant Examination: The penetrant is fluorescent and
when it is exposed to ultraviolet or black light it shows a glowing fluorescent type of read-
out.
 It provides a greater contrast than the visible dye penetrants.
 Used for leak detection in magnetic and nonmagnetic weldments.

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 A fluorescent penetrant is applied to one side of the joint and a portable ultraviolet light is
then used on the reverse side of the joint to examine the weld for leaks.
 Inspect the root pass of highly critical pipe welds.

 Stethoscope test: In this method the welded structure is hammered and the sound is
listened through a stethoscope.
 Any internal flaws will be identified by a change in the sound.
 Eddy-Current Inspection: Eddy Current Non Destructive Testing is a reliable, quick and
inexpensive way to carry out preventative maintenance and ensure safety.
 The eddy current testing utilises electromagnetic induction to detect discontinuities in
conductive materials.
 The electrical conductivity variations or magnetic permeability of the test-part, or the
presence of any discontinuities, will cause a change in eddy current and a corresponding
change in phases and amplitude of the measured current.

 Function of Flux: The electrode is formed by a metal rod known as the core covered by a
flux coating of mineral or organic materials.
 Flux coating function: Gas protection by releasing fumes, fusion bath protection by the
covering slag, electric isolation of the electrode, addition of alloy elements, addition of easily
ionized elements (improves the electric arc stability) and making the priming easier.

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
Single pass Multi Pass Welding:
 Single pass welding is adopted for thin metals and multi pass welding is used for welding
thick sections.
 Back run welding is used for ensuring complete penetration of the weldment.
 This is done on the reverse side of the welded joint.
 In making a butt weld with manual arc welding, where the plate thickness exceeds say 5 to
6 mm it will become necessary to make more than one welding pass to deposit sufficient
weld metal to close the joint.
 With the higher current automatic welding processes thicker plates may be welded with a
single pass, but at greater thicknesses multi-pass welds become necessary.
 In ship work unless a permanent backing bar is used, or the ‗one sided‘ welding technique
is adopted during fabrication, a back run of weld is required to ensure complete weld
penetration.
 This is made on the reverse side of the joint after cleaning out the slag, etc., by chipping or
gouging.
Full Penetration Fillet Weld:
 In full penetration fillet welding process the molten metal penetrates completely to the
entire thickness of the plate edge.
 This ensures complete fusion and the welded joint becomes strong.

Distortions in welding
 Distortions in welding may be due to incorrect dimensions, fit-up errors or due to thermal
effects.
 Incorrect measurements are common in repair jobs, where invariably manual welding is
employed.
 This can be avoided by proper drawings, templates and/or by jig arrangements.

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 Fit-up errors are mainly human related and it may be due incorrect drawings or incorrect
interpretation of drawings.
 In the shipyard control measures are in place avoid this type of errors.
 By identifying each and every piece to be joint by specific identity numbers, the chances of
fit up errors are almost nonexistent.
 Thermal distortions are mainly due incorrect setting of welding equipment‘s parameters.
 As the thickness of the welded sections increases the chances of thermal distortions are
more.
 This problem is more with metals with comparatively low thermal conductivity.
 The non-uniform heat distribution causes uneven expansions and contractions which
leads to work piece distortion.
 Tolerances can be calculated in such a way that the finished weld piece after distortion will
be confirming to the dimensions and shapes.
 Also by modifying welding techniques distortions can be reduced.

Classification Society Weld Tests
 Classification societies specify a number of destructive tests which are intended to be used
for initial electrode and weld material approval.
 These tests are carried out to ascertain whether the electrode or wire-flux combination
submitted is suitable for shipbuilding purposes in the category specified by the
manufacturer.
 Tests are made for conventional electrodes, deep penetration electrodes, wire-gas and wire-
flux combinations, consumables for electro-slag and electro-gas welding, and consumables
for one sided welding with temporary backing.
 Tensile, bend and impact tests are carried out on the deposited weld metal and welded
plate specimens. Other tests are made for the composition of the weld metal deposited and
possible cracking.
 All works where electrodes, wire-flux and wire-gas combinations, consumables for electro-
slag and electro-gas welding, and consumables for one sided welding with temporary
backing are produced, and have been initially approved, are subject to annual inspection.

74

Ship Bulkheads Explained

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Ship Bulkheads Explained

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Ship Construction

Regulation regarding minimum number of bulkheads and their location:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Construction of plane bulkheads:

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Penetrations through bulkheads

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Purpose of wash bulkheads

Use of cross ties on tankers

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Procedure for Testing of bulkheads:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Racking stresses and transverse bulkheads

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Comparison between flat plate & corrugated Bulkheads

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Corrosion and Prevention

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

 Corrosion prevention of marine structures is very expensive.

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Galvanic series of metals:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Stress concentration & corrosion:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Differences in surface condition & corrosion:

Cathodic protection by using sacrificial anodes:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Low cost, Damage to the outer plating caused by

The availability throughout the The anodes causes slight discontinuity in

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Measures to minimize corrosion:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

 Corrosion allowance while deciding the material dimensions

Treatment of steel in shipyard:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

 resistance to high temperatures,

Health & safety:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Common paint vehicles:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

PAINT SYSTEMS ON SHIPS:

Below the Water-line:

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Water-line or Boot Topping Region & Superstructures:

CARGO AND BALLAST TANKS:

Type of Paint No: of Coats Dry Film Thickness

Blast primer or holding primer( First 1 25µ

SeaSkills Maritime Academy, Coimbatore

Economic antifouling 2sides & Flat 50µ/Coat

Typical Marine Paint Systems for New Ships

Boot-top and Topsides

Type of Paint No: Dry Film

Conventional system based on: 3 50µ/Coa

Conventional system based on: 1 40µ

High performance system based on: 1 25µ

High performance system based on: 1 125µ

High performance system based on: 1 50µ

Typical Marine Paint Systems for New Ships

Type of Paint No: Dry Film