What Is Plasma Cutting?

Plasma cutting is a process that is used to cut steel and other metals of different thicknesses (or sometimes other materials) using a plasma torch. In this process, an inert gas (in some units, compressed air) is blown at high speed out of a nozzle; at the same time an electrical arc is formed through that gas from the nozzle to the surface being cut, turning some of that gas to plasma. The plasma is sufficiently hot to melt the metal being cut and moves sufficiently fast to blow molten metal away from the cut.

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What Angle Grinders Used For?

Angle grinders are widely used in metalworking and construction, as well as in emergency rescues. They are commonly found in workshops, service garages and auto body repair shops. There is a large variety of angle grinders to choose from when trying to find the right one for the job. The most important factors in choosing the right grinder are the disc size and how powerful the motor is. Other factors include power source (pneumatic or electric), rpm, and arbor size. Generally disc size and power increase together. Disc size is usually measured in inches or millimetres. Common disc sizes for angle grinders in the U.S.A. include 4, 4.5, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 12 inches. Discs for pneumatic grinders also come much smaller. Pneumatic grinders are generally used for lighter duty jobs where more precision is required. This is likely because pneumatic grinders can be small and light yet remain powerful, because they do not contain heavy copper motor windings, while it is harder for an electric grinder to maintain adequate power with smaller size. Electric grinders are more commonly used for larger, heavy duty jobs. However, there are also small electric grinders and large pneumatic grinders.

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What Is Oxy-Fuel Cutting?

In oxy-fuel cutting, a cutting torch is used to heat metal to kindling temperature. A stream of oxygen is then trained on the metal, and metal burns in that oxygen and then flows out of the cut (kerf) as an oxide slag.

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What Is Oxy-Fuel Welding?

Oxy-fuel welding(commonly called oxyacetylene welding, oxy welding, or gas welding in the U.S.) and oxy-fuel cutting are processes that use fuel gases and oxygen to weld and cut metals, respectively. French engineers Edmond Fouché and Charles Picard became the first to develop oxygen-acetylene welding in 1903.[1] Pure oxygen, instead of air (20% oxygen/80% nitrogen), is used to increase the flame temperature to allow localized melting of the workpiece material (e.g. steel) in a room environment. A common propane/air flame burns at about 3,630 °F (2,000 °C), a propane/oxygen flame burns at about 4,530 °F (2,500 °C), and an acetylene/oxygen flame burns at about 6,330 °F (3,500 °C

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Reasons Why Welders Wear Welding Helmets

Welding helmets are headgear used when performing certain types of welding to protect the eyes, face and neck from flash burn, ultraviolet light, sparks, infrared light, and heat. Most commonly used with arc welding processes such as shielded metal arc welding, gas tungsten arc welding, and gas metal arc welding. Welding helmets are necessary to prevent arc eye, a painful condition where the cornea is inflamed. Welding helmets can also prevent retina burns, which can lead to a loss of vision. Both conditions are caused by unprotected exposure to the highly-concentrated ultraviolet and infrared rays emitted by the welding arc. Ultraviolet emissions from the welding arc can also damage uncovered skin, causing a sunburn-like condition in a relatively short period of welding. The modern welding helmet used today, was first introduced in 1937 by Willson Products. All welding helmets include a window covered with a filter called a lens shade, through which the welder can see to work. In most helmets, the window may be made of tinted glass, tinted plastic, or perhaps a variable-density filter made from a pair of polarized lenses. Recently helmets have been developed that use an electronic LCD shutter that darkens automatically when exposed to the bright welding arc so the welder can see to work under normal ambient light while wearing the helmet. With the development of electronic auto-darkening helmets, the welder no longer has to get ready to weld and then nod their head to lower the helmet over their face. However, these electronic auto-darkening helmets are significantly more expensive.