Temperature Controlled Power Supply Design for Magnetically Impelled ARC Butt Welding

An advanced solid state welding method, known as magnetically impelled arc butt (MIAB) welding, is used for tube welding by using a rotating arc as the heat source. The components to be welded become malleable due to the heat source, and the weld is formed by heating followed by a brief upset force. This paper reports the experimental analysis carried out on the MIAB welding machine as well as the simulation study of power supply design. The need for control of current in the two stages of this weld process was realized by parametric research carried out for the joining of MS1018 tubes with an OD of 27mm and a thickness ranging between 1.5 mm. The control of the power supply circuit is simulated using SIMULINK-MATLAB. The work proposes an inverter-based power supply for AC power conversion to DC and the variation in arc resistance with temperature is used to obtain the difference in current levels. This study offers a different method for designing a power supply that may be used in industrial settings to effectively control the current levels necessary for a welding sequence.