The Process of underwater welding was first used back in the 1930’s by the soviet engineer Konstantinovich Khrenov. It was a very vast process used by the Soviet Navy. Today underwater welding is far more advanced and safer. Now, don’t get me wrong this procedure is immensely dangerous far beyond belief. This topic I chose was something I was very intrigued by, I want to become an exceptional welder, and this would be something to master in the future.
I have accumulated a lot of knowledge on the subject from my research and now I am going to inform you of it. This paper will discuss the great rewards from underwater welding, the vast dangers that you may face while on the job, and the beneficial part of it to all of the surrounding people you may provide for without any notice. This paper will be divided into three sections. In the first section I will give you a detailed description of the two kinds of underwater welding, which would be wet and dry.
In the second section I will discuss with you the dangers of the job, as I stated above it can be very harsh to your body, it can cause eternal injuries or even death, and for my last section I will tell you how to get certified and qualified to be an underwater welder, as well as the commercial diving certifications. I will also discuss some of the common questions I receive every day on this topic such as money or things that pertain to that. So for my first section I will be talking about the two different types of underwater welding. There is wet welding, and dry welding.
It’s kind of ironic that you can dry weld under water right? Well this is done by getting a metal chamber, and enclosing it around the weld, after this the water gets sucked out of the chamber thus giving you the conditions of a regular dry weld. This technique is extremely helpful to the work force. It can insure a quality weld with the luxuries of it being dry. Now you still may be below sea level so the pressure will still be high. (http://www. thefabricator. com/article/arcwelding/20000-welds-under-the-sea) Another variation of the weld technique above is one where you have an enclosure filled with gas surrounding the weld.
The enclosure is filled with helium and hyperbaric. This creates a lot of pressure to push the water back. The welder must be fitted with a breathing mask and other protective equipment as the gases and fumes that it gives off can affect you. This method I would say is quite useful but not as common as the other two. (http://www. thefabricator. com/article/arcwelding/20000-welds-under-the-sea) Now as for wet welding, which makes more sense right? It is strictly underwater with no efforts to remove any liquids from the work space. The welding is rigorously done plunged under water.
The welder that is used for this “generates a bubble mixture of gases which lets metal melting and joining occur more or less normally, using specially covered electrodes to avoid that too much hydrogen be absorbed in the weld. ”(Elia E. 2). This type of welding is probably the most used as the welder can go to the site, be down for about an hour, get the job done and be back up with a quality weld. Sometimes dry welding can be expensive and time consuming if you’re in a rush so that makes wet welding the most efficient type of the underwater techniques.
In the second section I will be informing you of the vast dangers that await you while doing this job. It is by far the most dangerous type of welding in the world today. Most welders today go around saying yeah, I am going to be an underwater welder and make all kinds of money. Well what they probably don’t know is the risk you take in doing this. There are so many dangers that diver welders face every day. I mean they risk their lives, the weld site could explode at any time through oxygen and hydrogen mixing together forming gas pockets that could go kaboom.
This alone is probably the most fatal, and the biggest risk you might take other than long term affects. (Mubasherin Sayed) There is always the possibility of electric shock. Of course you are working underwater with electrical tools so there is always the possibility of electric shock. No matter how many safety procedures you may take there is still a high risk of this happening. You need to have your welding equipment heavily inspected before every dive to make sure it is insulated typically very well, and have a water proof electrode attached to the welder.
Following these procedures will knock down the chance of electric shock if not completely omit the possibility. Be sure to always flip the switch on all of your electrical equipment as soon as the weld or whatever you are doing is done. (Mubasherin Sayed) Decompression sickness is something very common in underwater welders. It is probably the most recorded problem in divers today. While welding, the fumes and gases given off can be very fatal. Nitrogen diffusing in your blood is very collective. Going from a high pressure zone quickly to a low pressure zone can cause this.
If you dive too fast to the surface nitrogen bubbles will enter your blood stream, and the possibility of this happening is very common. If this happens the effects start showing up. “Decompression sickness may lead variably to rashes, joint pain, paralysis or even death of a person. ”(Mubasherin Sayed). So please take these precautions before diving. (Mubasherin Sayed) The possibility of Dental amalgam is common as well. Magnetic fields from welding are created that give you an awful taste in your mouth, which can also break down your dental amalgam.
The secondary current from the magnetic field is what cause the dental break down through the oral tissues. (Mubasherin Sayed) This next problem is very common, Musculoskeletal Issues and Hearing Impairment. This happens a lot in underwater welding. Just over time muscles and joints tend to hurt from the stress underwater. Due to some of the equipment some workers experience hearing loss and even permanent hearing loss. (Mubasherin Sayed) Cognitive problems are one of the scary ones. Underwater welders have complained about loss of memory, lack of common sense or sensible reasoning, and even a personality change.
Doctors think this might be caused by decompression sickness. (Mubasherin Sayed) Last are natural causes. Being below sea level is a lot of pressure on your ears. There is always a malfunction possibility that may lead to drowning. The sea life cannot be ignored either, such as vicious predators that swim beneath. The underwater welders are always in touch with their crew above. Constantly talking to reduce the possibility of any of these things happening. (Mubasherin Sayed) Now for my last section I will inform you of the certifications and procedures that underwater welders face to become legally inclined to do the job.
I will also discuss some common questions I get asked every day about the career. (Mubasherin Sayed) To start your career as an underwater welder, first you must become a certified welder, and commercial diver. Known as a welder-diver in the article. You need to be able to do sub –sea work as stated, and follow the underwater welding code AWS D3. 6M. You must be able to do this wet or dry. Basic surface welding skills can lead up to under water welding, you have to get extra certification to do so, as well as the commercial diving certification.
If you become a certified diver, and a welder, you can contact companies that would be willing to train their employees. There is not an age restriction to underwater welding, but it is recommended to pass the annual diving certification. (Mubasherin Sayed) Further skills needed for underwater welding can consist of- cutting cleanly, being able to rig and weld what you’re doing before you do it, be able to pre plan with the onsite manager, and really just be able to take what is thrown your way, which could be anything. “There are a number of career opportunities for experienced welder-divers.
Industry has and will continue to demand higher quality standards for underwater welds and more certification of underwater welding systems and personnel. These demands will challenge the underwater welding community to meet more complex technical specifications, safety standards, welding criteria, inspection methods, environmental factors, and other considerations. Many welder-divers go on to become engineers, instructors, and diving operation supervisors, and superintendents fill management positions, qualify as AWS Certified Welding Inspectors (CWI), and serve as consultants for underwater welding operations and other related fields. (© 2011 American Welding Society). (https://app. aws. org/education/plunge. html)
You have to go to the commercial diving academy to be trained. You must follow all of the physical and mental abilities of a diver. You must also follow all of the guidelines of the AWS D3. 6 standard which are the standards for this occupation. Now for every day questions I am asked. Probably the most common question is how much money you can make. Well honestly you don’t make that much money for the risk taken in this occupation. You make the big money while underwater which is only for an hour or two at a time.
Other than that it is not very good pay depending on your employer. Another question might be so is this job dangerous? The answer is yes, it is as dangerous as it sounds, and is it something I might consider going in to. Yes it is, in the future after I master regular welding above water. ( https://app. aws. org/education/plunge. html) Through my studies on the vast subject and up and coming career the assumptions that I have gathered from the topic are very interesting. I have found that this job can be a huge risk in life if you’re willing to adventure and do something insane.
As I said in the paper it’s something that helps everyone, such as oil lines and underwater structures that provide to millions of people. This job will sustain you very good pay for the everyday person, but I personally do not believe it is enough for what you do. I believe within the up and coming years that this business will boom. People will start considering this, and I believe the technology and safety of this will progress pulling more people in every year. It’s hard to believe that it is this dangerous now, but was first started in 1932, crazy right?