glossary

When gases ?flashback? the flame regresses from outside (off of) the tip in use into the torch body itself. That flame will head to the point where the gases are mixed. The flame will continue to burn at that mixing point as long as fuel and oxygen are present and allowed to flow. Virtually all torches in flashback mode will ?whistle, howl, screech,? etc. If the operator does NOTHING, the torch will begin to destroy itself in a matter of seconds, with the flame burning through the torch at some weak point. In addition, if unchecked, the flame may continue to migrate upstream seeking fuel/oxygen to continue burning. Ultimately, that ?flame front? could end up at the gas source itself destroying parts and pieces along the way. Even if the fuel gas is shut off, with oxygen still flowing, the ?guts? of the torch can continue to burn.

A device to limit damage from a flashback by preventing the propagation of the flame front beyond the point at which the arrestor is installed.

The violent expulsion of small metal particles due to arcing during flash butt welding.

The welding position used to weld from the upper side of the joint at a point where the weld axis is approximately horizontal, and the weld face lies in an approximately horizontal plane.

In arc welding, fluxes are formulations that, when subjected to the arc, act as a cleaning agent by dissolving oxides, releasing trapped gases and slag and generally cleaning the weld metal by floating the impurities to the surface where they solidify in the slag covering. The flux also serves to reduce spatter and contributes to weld bead shape. The flux may be the coating on the electrode, inside the electrode as in flux cored types, or in a granular form as used in submerged arc welding.