All about SKV Welding

(A Complete guide on AT Welding for P.Way Engineers / Officers)

CONTENTS
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Course material with Pictorials Circulars & Correction Slips on AT welding Ultrasonic testing of AT Welds Extracts from T-19 Manual Recent developments in A.T. Welding\ Salient features of AT Welding manual Check list for inspection during A.T.Welding Training module for AT Welding courses

Course material with Pictorials

1. 1.1

Need for welding of rails Why joints in track? Indian Railways has about 1,09,000 TKM. The track structure consists of Rails on sleepers over elastic medium (ballast). The rails are manufactured in certain definite lengths which used to be joined traditionally at site by means of fish plating to form a continuous track. A fishplated joint always being a weak point needs to be eliminated in the track structure for safe running of trains. Joints however are inevitable and cannot be completely eliminated as we can not manufacture the rails for very long and indefinite lengths as o The transportation from plant to site becomes very difficult. o It is difficult to cool longer rails in controlled conditions at plant.

1.2

Disadvantages of fish plated joints Cause discomfort to passenger due to noise and poor riding quality. 20% additional energy will be consumed on fish plated track Holes in the rails will reduce the strength of rails. At higher speeds maintainability is difficult. These are prone for sabotage as fishplates and bolts can be removed easily by miscreants. To overcome these drawbacks, rails are to be manufactured in longer lengths to the extent possible and joined by welding them.

1.3

Present status of rail manufacturing In India rails are manufactured and supplied by Bhilai steel plant alone. Rails are now manufactured in lengths of 13m & 26m, 65m & 78m. Future plans are to manufacture rails upto 480m length. Even if it is possible to produce longer lengths of rails, joint becomes a must at points and crossing location.

Therefore rails need to be necessarily joined by welding.

2. 2.1

Rail Welding Types of rail welding There are four suitable methods of welding for rails : 1) Flash butt welding 2) Alumino thermic welding 3) Gas pressure welding Out of these three methods as mentioned above, only first two methods are the most widely used methods for welding of the rails amongst various countries of the world. The Alumino-thermic welding is also referred to as Thermit welding. Flash butt welding is normally done at plant and the AT welding is done at site. Alumino Thermic welding Alumino thermic welding is a process that causes fusion of metals by heating them with superheated molten metal from an alumino thermic reaction between a metal oxide and aluminium. The alumino thermic process is extensively being used world over for joining the ends of the rails. On Indian Railways Alumino thermic welding with short pre-heating process called SKV welding is used for welding of rails of different chemistry and sections.

2.2

2.3

Advantages of SKV welding It is possible to do it at site under field constraints with reasonable quality. It is used to weld flash butt panels of 3 rail/ 10 rail/ 20 rail panels into long panels. Most suitable for taking up repair work of fractures and isolated welding. No pressure application is required and needs normal surface preparation compared to other types of weldings.

3. 3.1

Principles of Thermit Welding and its Formula Thermic reaction: Alumino thermic process is based on chemical reaction of iron oxide with aluminium. The reaction is exothermic and is associated with heat generation.

3.2

After exothermic reaction lasting for few seconds, approximately equal volumes of molten steel and liquid Al203 are separated at a temperature of about 24000C. Al203 (slag), being lighter, floats on top of the molten metal. Ferro-manganese is added to the mixture together with pieces of mild steel to control exothermic reaction to match wear resistance of thermit steel to that of the various grades of rail steel to be welded. Fe2O3 + 2Al = Al203 + 2Fe (25000C, 43.2 K Joules).

Process of AT welding RDSO has issued a Manual for Fusion Welding of Rails by the AluminoThermic Process. The alumino thermic process is to apply it for joining two pieces of rail, end to end, by casting molten steel into a refractory mould that has been placed around the spacing between the two rails. The ends of the rail must be straight and the correct welding gap established. The rails must be properly aligned with faces free of rust, dirt & grease. The rails must then be preheated sufficiently to provide conditions for complete fusion between molten steel and the base metal of rails to be welded. Prefabricated moulds are fixed and joints are filled with luting sand. The thermit reaction is carried out in a conical metallic shell lined with magnesite, called crucible, prior to tapping into the moulds. The weld must then be cooled prior to allowing any traffic hydraulic rail tensor if used during the welding. Reference documents for Quick thermit welding with short pre-heat (SKV process) The thermit welding with short pre-heat (SKV), despite all the improvements, still requires great care by the welders and supervisors during execution. For executing good quality welds, following documents should be referred to; Indian Railway Standard Specification for fusion welding of rails by Alumino-thermic process (IRS-T-19-1994). Manual for fusion welding of rail joints by the alumino thermic process (Printed in Sept.1998), read with C.S.No.1 to 5. Instructions issued from time to time for improving the quality of welds and to contain weld fracture.

3.3

4.
S.No. A A1 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. A2. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. A3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Thermit Welding Equipment and Accessories

Description Pre-Heating Equipment Air-Petrol pre-hearing Pressure tanks with pressure gauges complete Vaporisers (burner) complete Nozzles prickers Nozzle keys Vaporiser stand Goose neck attachment to vaporiser Compressed air-petrol pre-heating pressure gauges Torch (burner) complete Torch (burner) keys Torch (burner) stand Goose neck attachment to vaporiser Oxy-LPG pre-heating Oxy-LPG torch (burner) Oxygen cylinder with pressure gauge LPG cylinder with pressure gauge Torch (burner) stand Connecting hose pipe 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos. 4 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos. 4 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos. Quantity Mass Welding Repair Welding

2 Nos. 2 Nos. 4 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos. 4 Nos.

1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos.

B 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Other Equipment Crucible complete Crucible caps Crucible forks Crucible stands Crucible rings Mould pressure (clamp) Cleaning rod round Tapping rod Straight edge 1m long

2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Sets 2 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos.

1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 1 Set 1 No. 1 No. 1 No.

Sl. No.

Description

Quantity Mass Welding Repair Welding

10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.

Straight edge 10cm long Aluminium steel rod for thermal plugging Leather washers for pump Gap gauges and height gauge Filler gauge Tools for punching the marking Mould shoes Stop Watches Pyrometer/ thermal chalk for measurement of rail temperature Wooden wedges for rail alignment First aid box filled with medicines, bandages, cotton etc. Mirror 150 X 100 mm with handle Tool box containing : (i) Hot sets (chisels) (For emergency use only) (ii) Funnel tin (for pouring petrol) (iii) Adjustable spanner (iv) Hammer 1 kg (v) Sledge hammer double panel 5 kg (vi) Steel wire brush (vii) Blue goggles (viii) Paint brush 50 mm (ix) Slag container (bowl) (x) Asbestos gloves (xi) Hose clips (xii) Pliers (xiii) Rail file 350 x 40 x 6 mm (For emergency use only)

2 Nos. 2 Nos. 4 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 2 Sets. 6 Pairs 1 No. 1 No. 24 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos. 1 No. 2 Pairs 1 No. 2 Nos. 4 Pairs 4 Nos. 1 No. 4 Nos.

1 No. 2 Nos. 2 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 1 Set. 2 Pairs 1 No. 1 No. 12 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos. 1 No. 1 No. 1 No. 2 Nos 1 No. 1 Pair 1 No. 1 No. 2 Pairs 4 Nos. 1 No. 2 Nos.

Sl. No.

Description

Quantity Mass Welding Repair Welding

23. 24. 25. 26.

Weld trimmer Insulation hood for control cooling (for 110 UTS rail welding) Rail profile guided grinding trolley To ensure quality, protective clothing, shoes gear & leather gloves

1 No. 1 No. 1 No.

1 No. 1 No. 1 No.

5.

Storage, Preservation and Handling of Portions & Moulds The portion being hygroscopic in nature, will have double packing, first in a polythene bag and then in a cloth bag. Damaged/torn polythene bag may result in moist/damp portion and should not be used. Once portion absorbs moisture, the same cannot be removed even by drying as ingredients react chemically. All such portions should not be used for welding. Therefore suitable storage condition for portion & mould to avoid contact from moisture is to be made. These should be stored in water tight stores kept 0.3m away from wall and 0.5m above Ground to avoid ingress of moisture. The acceptance slip for the portion given by the RDSO shall be found inside the bag. RDSOs seal should be available on top of the bag. The portion should conform to IRS-T-19-1994. It should be ensured that the portion to be used must match the rail section, grade of rail and the welding technique. The portion should be poured into the crucible through fingers remains undisturbed After filling, the portion should be heaped at the center of crucible and a small recess made at the top into which the igniter can be placed Portion should not be mixed with any foreign material or any amount of additional portion. The crucible cap should then be placed in position and an igniter (sparkler) hooked on to the crucible cap ready for use. Particulars of portion contained in the acceptance slip such as Batch No., Portion No., Date of Manufacture, etc. should be recorded in a register kept for this purpose. Moulds shall be handled with due care to avoid any breakage. with a spraying action and striking the crucible wall so that the bottom plugging

Shelf life of portions: There is no specific shelf life for portions. It depends on the quality of packing and storage conditions.

If packing is intact and there is no entry of moisture, the portion can be used even after a long time. However, if they need to be used beyond two years after the date of manufacturing, following procedure is to be adopted for permitting use of portions.

(a) One random sample per batch of 300 or part there of may be drawn from the portions available in stores. (b) The sample shall be tested for reaction test. If reaction is normal, batch represented by the sample can be used without further tests. (c) In case the reaction is found to be quiet or boiling, a test joint should be made from one more sample selected from the batch for conducting Aluminium content test and Load deflection test. (d) The above tests should be conducted at Zonal CMTs organization and / or the Flash Butt Welding Plant. If values obtained in the above tests are within the specified values as given in Para 4.1.3 and 4.2.3.1 of IRS: T-19-94, the batch represented by the sample can be used, otherwise batch should be rejected. (e) Rejected portions are to be disposed-off by igniting five portions at a time in a pit away from the store. Moulds Only prefabricated moulds supplied by the portion manufacturer shall be used for welding. Moulds are made by mixing high silica sand to IS: 1987 with sodium silicate to the required consistency, followed by passage of carbon dioxide gas. These prefabricated moulds shall have adequate permeability for escape of mould gases and adequate reinforcement to avoid mould crushing during transportation and welding. Before mounting on the rail ends to be welded, each pair of moulds shall be examined for defects, dampness, cracks, blocked vents, etc., and defective moulds discarded. The prefabricated moulds shall be handled with care, as they are fragile and liable to breakage.

6.

Thermit Portion Portion is a mixture of different materials when melted forms the material of type rail steel designed for doing one weld. The portion used for welding shall conform to the technical requirements as mentioned in IRS : T-19-1994. The suitability of the Portion for the welding process in respect of the type and section of rails to be welded shall be ensured before commencing welding. Different main ingredients used in manufacture of AT portion are o Mill scales o Aluminum o Ferro-manganese o Steel chips o Silicon carbide o Ferro vanadium o Flour spar The proportion and quantity of the same depends upon the type of rail section and type of welding and is the trade secrete of the manufacturing company. Only RDSO certified/passed portions should be used for welding. In India, though many labour contracting firms are approved by RDSO for executing AT welding with portion and technique developed by Thermit Portion Plant, N. Railway, Luknow, only 4 firms are approved for manufacturing of portions and execution of welding. they are India Thermit Corporation Ltd., Kanpur. Harshad Thermite Industries, Raipur. Sagar Electrical and General Industries, Hyderabad. Raybon Metals Private Limited, Bilaspur. Inspection of Rails before Welding It should be ensured that the end bends of rails are within +0.5mm, -0mm in vertical and +/_ 0.5mm in lateral direction with 1m straight edge. The new rails/ Old rails to be welded shall conform to the tolerances specified in Table 1 and Table 2 of Manual for thermit welding Old rails : o Rails older than 50 years should not be welded. o Rails should be free from corrosion, excessive scabbing, wheel burns, and corrugations. o Lateral wear on rail head should not be greater than 6mm. o The ends should be cropped to eliminate fish bolt holes.

7.

o If fish bolt holes are not present, the ends should preferably be cropped for a minimum of distance150mm. o Rails should be cut using sawing/ abrasive rail cutter only. o Rails should be got tested with USFD. o Rails should be match-marked to match the rail ends for welding. 8. Preparation of Rail Ends The rail end face and adjacent sides at foot (top and bottom), web and head up to 50mm shall be thoroughly cleaned using kerosene oil and brushing with wire brush to remove all dirt, grease and rust before welding. Any burrs at the rail ends shall be removed by chiseling or grinding. Normally, no alumino-thermic welded joint shall be located closer than 4m from any other welded or fish plated joint.

9.

Gap between Rail Ends The two rail ends to be welded shall be held in position with a uniform vertical gap of 25mm+/-1mm for normal welding and a wide gap of 501/751 mm for repairing fractured/defective welds. The uniformity and verticality of the gap shall be measured by a gauge prior to welding. The gap is measured at four corners of rail section. The permissible tolerance in squareness of joint is 0.6mm. In LWR/CWR territory, hydraulic / mechanical rail tensor of suitable and approved design should be used for maintaining correct rail gap during welding. Preliminary Work Prior to Welding Internal stresses will develop during in-situ welding as all the sleepers and rails are fastened tightly and will not allow to expand freely on temperature rising. The stresses reduce, as the length of unsupported rail is more during welding. Therefore in case of in-situ welding rail fastenings for at least five sleepers on either side of the proposed weld shall be removed. Sleepers adjacent to the joint to be welded shall be shifted to obtain a clear working space of 250mm on either side to accommodate moulds, clamps, preheating equipment, etc., When the welding work is carried out on cess, full rail length shall be leveled by supporting on at least ten wooden blocks on either side.

10.

The rails shall then be properly aligned in horizontal and vertical direction and held in position.

11.

Alignment of Rail Ends Before Welding Lateral alignment: The two rail ends, after alignment shall be within 0.5 mm when checked with a 1.0 m straight edge at rail ends. Any difference in the widths of rail heads shall always be fully kept on the non gauge side, correctly aligning the rail ends on the gauge face. Vertical alignment : The joint shall be kept higher by 3 to 4 mm for 72 UTS rails and 2 to 2.4 mm for higher UTS rails when measured at the end of 1 m straight edge ( as a compensation against sagging caused by differential shrinkage on cooling). This shall be achieved by wedges applied on the rail supporting blocks on both sides of the joint. Gap between rail ends may be rechecked after completion of alignment. Datum marks shall be made on foot of both rails as well as on joint sleepers in order to observe any longitudinal movement of rails. If excessive longitudinal movement occurs during pre-heating and produces a welding gap outside the prescribed limits, the welding of joint shall be temporarily abandoned and joint allowed to cool.

12.

Fixing of Moulds It shall be ensured that the center of the rail gap coincides with the center line of the mould to avoid cross joint. The mould jackets/shoes hold the pre-fabricated mould in a snug fit condition by tightening with adequate pressure. Excessive pressure may cause breakage of mould and dropping of sand inside the mould cavity. It is essential for the moulds to fit flush to each other across the bottom of the rail flange which can be checked by feeling with fingers across the junction of the two halves of the moulds and by looking down the riser aperture. The moulds should touch the bottom of rail foot to ensure proper size of collar at the bottom. After fixing the moulds, the gap between mould and the rail shall be packed firmly with luting sand to prevent leakage of liquid weld metal. To protect the rail table from metal splashes during reaction, the adjacent rail surface on either side of the moulds shall be covered with metal cover or smeared with luting sand up to 15cm on either side of the moulds.

13.

Luting It is the process of sealing the gaps of moulds. The material used is called luting sand.

After fixing of the mould shoes, luting of the junction of the mould should be done, starting from the underside of the rail foot and continuing on both sides towards the head of the rail. Luting sand with minimum moisture content (6%) supplied for this purpose only should be used. To avoid any sand particle dropping into the mould, a luting cover may be placed over mould aperture. Improper luting may result in leakage of weld metal. It may lead to formation of a fin at the underside of flange which may lead to development of half moon crack under repetitive loading and may cause the failure of weld.

14.

Preheating Process of pre heating Pre-heating is done to remove moisture from surface of rails and is given by torches. The rail ends shall be uniformly pre-heated throughout the rail section with specially designed air petrol/ compressed air petrol/oxygen-LPG burner. The burner shall be properly adjusted during preheating to ensure that the head, web and foot of both the rail ends are heated uniformly to the desired rail temperature. The pre-heating shall be done from the top of the mould box for stipulated period for welding technique adopted, so as to achieve a temperature of around 600200C. Higher temperature will cause metallurgical transformation and therefore should be avoided. Presently, on Indian Railways air-petrol mixture, compressed air petrol mixture and Oxy-LPG are being used requiring about 10- 12min, 4-6 min & 1-2 min. The pre-heating torches should not be bent or damaged or their holes blocked. Positioning of the pre-heating torch in the mould box must be carefully adjusted because it affects the quality of pre-heating. Recommended pressure should be ensured while pre-heating Proper pre-heating of the rail ends consists of fulfilling three requirements namely.

14.1

Minimum pre-heat time ii) Achieving proper and the uniform colour of the rail ends.

iii) Observation of the entire preheating process to ensure that rail end(s) is not melted and there is no breakage of the mould. In the event a portion of the rail head or rail face of either rail end is melted, the weld must not be executed. Rail ends and moulds must heat evenly. Uneven heat can cause internal cracking of the weld due to uneven cooling. During the preheating process, a fairly usual occurrence may be the breakage of the mould. This is where a piece of the mould may break off and fall into the weld cavity. In the event this happens, welding should be stopped, the mould should be removed & disposed off properly and new mould installed.

14.2

Pre heating equipment Air Petrol Burner Compressed Air petrol blower Oxy-LPG heating system

14.3

Preheating time & pressure Preheating time: Preheating time would be about 10 to 12 minutes and 2 to 2.5 minutes for air-petrol and oxy-LPG preheating techniques respectively. Preheating Pressure:70.70 kg/cm2 in welding process using air petrol burner In case of pre heating by oxy LPG process, pressure for oxygen and LPG cylinders shall be adjusted in the range of 7.0 8.0 kg/ cm2 and 2.0-2.5 kg/ cm2 respectively. While preheating with oxy LPG burner, LPG supply should be opened first,ignited and thereafter oxygen supply should be opened. While closing, oxygen supply should be stopped first followed by LPG supply. Control over heating time: By stop watch or by temperature measuring devices like optical pyrometer, contact type pyrometer or temperature indicating crayons may be used for measuring rail end temperature.

15.

Maintenance of Crucible The crucible lines with refractory material should be preheated from inside to remove moisture with the preheating torch before making the first weld. Preheating should be done from top to bottom. Failure to properly dry the crucible may cause. o a defective AT weld that is full of porosity. o danger of hot steel splashing forcefully out of the crucible causing serious personal injury.

Slag should be cleared from the crucible side walls after each weld. Slag shall be cleaned from the crucible after each reaction, if necessary. During cleaning, care shall be taken not to damage the refractory crucible lining. The lining shall be examined regularly and patch repairing , or relining as necessary shall be carried out. The pouring gate with thimble is designed to have a precise diameter, specific for the process. While cleansing it with a thimble drift, care should be taken not to damage the orifice of the thimble. Thimbles with enlarged orifice should be replaced. Proper seating of the thimble is very important. Improper seating of the thimble or application of the plugging material may. o cause premature tapping of the molten weld metal, due to a bypass of the thimble or in the event the thimble being cracked. o prevent the molten weld metal from tapping into the moulds.

The crucible should be placed on the crucible fork fixed to swivel stand on a universal mounting. The crucible should be located in a proper position such that the tapping hole is central to the pouring gate of the mould and at a height of 50mm from the top of the pouring gate. Inaccuracies in these are likely to result in turbulent flow of molten metal. The tap hole in the crucible should then be covered with a closing pin, the head of which should be covered with asbestos pulp and alumina slag. This heat seal enables the welder to tap the molten metal at the precise time he desires. After adjustment of the crucible to obtain correct pouring position, the crucible should be swung clear of the moulds for charging.

16. 16.1

Executing of Welding. Ignition and reaction After the pre-heating, the preheating torch is removed and the dried sand core placed in the central pouring apparatus of the mould. The crucible is then swung into position centrally above the sand core, care being taken not to disturb the tapping pin. The crucible cap is removed. The portion in the crucible is then ignited using sparkler by placing the igniter slowly and firmly into the center of portion & crucible cap replaced. After the reaction subsides, about 5 seconds should be allowed for separation of the slag from the metal.

The molten metal is then tapped into the mould by pushing up the closing pins shank with the tool provided for the purpose. The crucible should not move during tapping and no turbulence should occur while pouring. In case of occurrence of boiling or vigorous reaction, because of moisture content in the portion or crucible, the metal should be tapped outside and not in the mould. Off center pours will cause defective welds due to slag inclusion. Welding staff shall wear welding gloves and welding goggles. During the initial violent phase of the reaction, all welding staff must stand clear.

16.2

Tapping time Tapping time is defined as the total time, from the time the portion is ignited, till the molten weld metal begins to pour into the mould cavity. Tapping time is very important for the final weld quality. Premature tapping can cause a high aluminium content in the weld metal with possibility of slag inclusion too. Delayed tapping, on the other hand, causes loss of heat from the molten metal with the risk of lack of fusion. The optimum tapping time is 20-23 sec which is Reaction time + Waiting time( For slag to rise on molten metal).

16.3

Mould waiting time It is the time the molten metal shall be allowed to cool and solidify after pouring with mould intact for the stipulated time. It depends upon the rail section and ambient temperature. The mould waiting time is generally 4-6 minutes for 25 mm gap joints and 12 minutes for 75 mm gap joints. The mould shoes shall be removed just prior to completion of mould waiting time.

16.4

Chipping of weld metal On completion of pouring, the crucible is lifted off and slag bowls removed from the mould shoes. After the mould waiting time has elapsed, the trimming should be done by using weld trimmer of suitable and approved design without knocking out the mould. In the eventuality of sudden failure of weld trimmer, manual chipping may be resorted to.

In case of welding of old rails, if it is not possible to use weld trimmer due to flow of metal at rail head, manual chipping should be done. During the trimming operation, it shall be ensured that the wedges used in aligning are in their proper places without loosening, and they are not removed for a t least 20 minutes after stripping. With the use of hydraulic weld trimmer, mould from the top and sides is removed leaving at least 1mm excess metal on the rail table for removal during final grinding. The runner and riser must not be removed until cold, and that too only by knocking towards the rail.

16.5

Importance of risers The side holes of the moulds are called risers. Slag comes out from this. The risers are basically designed to allow slower rate of cooling of the weld metal to form Pearlitic structure ( fine grained with high fractured toughness) Lower UTS rails are less susceptible to heat than higher UTS rails, hence for the same welding type, lower UTS rails form a better joint

16.6

Grinding Finish grinding of rail top and sides should be carried out by profile grinders. Use of hand files should not be resorted to. Grinding should commence only after removing the wedge kept for joint alignment and putting back the fastenings. Final grinding should be done to the original profile of the rail as per the dimensional tolerances prescribed in the Manual on Fusion Welding of Rails. The accuracy of grinding shall be checked by using 10 cm straight edge. While grinding, only light pressure should be applied and grinding wheel should be moved to and from to avoid local over heating. The best finish grinding on the running surface of the rail head can be achieved when the weld has completely cooled to ambient temperature. No welding shall be carried out if it is raining. In case, the rains start while the joint is under execution, immediate arrangements to adequately cover the site shall be made.

17. 17.1

Block Period & Train Passing Time : Block period Minimum block period required for doing SKV weld is 75 mints.

17.2

Train passing time:

The first train should be allowed to pass on the newly welded joint only after 30 minutes have elapsed since pouring of weld metal. Necessary speed restriction shall be observed until the grinding operation is over.

17.3

Precautions for newly welded joints: Before the passage of traffic, the wedges used for aligning should be removed and joint sleepers which were shifted to obtain the clear gap of 250mm on either side shall be re-shifted to the original location and repacked. The newly weld need to be tested by USFD at the earliest Till tested as good by USFD, the weld done in situ shall be joggle fish plated with two clamps. Painting of weld collar should be done on all welds to protect them against corrosion immediately after the welding.

18.

Marking of Joints : Each joint shall have a distinctive mark indicating month, year, agency, welders code and weld number of the welded joint. This should be done by punching on an aluminium strip of suitable thickness and dimension of 30 X 100 mm which should be fixed to the web of the rail with epoxy adhesive at approximately 300 mm from the joint. The welded joints shall be serially numbered in a kilometer. Repair welds/additional welds done at a later date may be given continuing weld number in that kilometer. For example, the last thermit weld umber in a particular kilometer was 88 and subsequently a thermit weld has been executed, it shall be numbered 89, irrespective of its location in that kilometer. PWI shall maintain Thermit Weld Register as per program given in Annexure 5 of Thermit welding manual. No punch marking should be done on the rail.

19.

Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) : It is the length of rail affected by fusion from center line of weld. For normal SKV welding of 25mm+/-1mm, The fusion Zone is 45mm and the HAZ is 55mm. For Wide gap welding Fusion zone = gap/2 +32mm and HAZ = Gap/2 +42mm. No holes should be within HAZ.

Fixing of Responsibility for failure of weld is based on the HAZ. Normally a failure occurred with in 100mm from center line of weld is considered as weld failure. And the one beyond 100mm is considered as rail failure.

20.

Frequency of In-service Painting: Once in 4 years in areas not prone to corrosion. Once in a year in corrosion areas. On conditional basis in areas prone to severe corrosion.

21. 21.1

Acceptance Tests on Welds : Visual inspection All the welded joints shall be examined carefully to detect any visible defect like cracks, blow holes, etc. Any joint, which shows any visible defect should be rejected.

21.2

Dimensional check: All finished joints shall be checked for dimensional tolerances which should be within the tolerances. (i) (ii) Vertical alignment : Variation not more that +1.0 mm, -0 mm measured at the end of one metre straight edge. Lateral alignment : Variation not more that +0.5 mm measured at center of one metre straight edge.

(iii) Finishing of top surface : +0.4mm, -0mm measured at the end of 10cm straight edge. (iv) Head finishing on sides : +0.3mm over gauge side of the rail head measured at the center of 10cm straight edge. 21.3 Ultrasonic flaw detection test : All the fusion welded joints shall be ultrasonically tested and accepted by the purchaser or his representative as per the Procedure for ultrasonic testing of thermit welded rail. Subsequently USFD testing of A.T. welds shall be done as per the provisions given in Manual for Ultrasonic Testing of Rails and Welds (1998).

21.4

Rewelding of defective joints The details of geometry of each joint shall be jointly signed by the firms and Railways representative and kept as record. Any joint found not conforming to the above stipulations shall be cut and rewelded, free of cost, by the firm. Where one bad joint is required to be replaced by two new joints, the entire cost of both the joints hall be borne by the firm

21.5

Sample testing of joints One out of every 100 joints welded shall be selected at random and should be got tested within one month of welding for its hardness, transverse load/deflection tests and porosity. If the sample test joint fails to satisfy any of the requirements of specification two more randomly selected joints from the same lot of 100 joints shall be subjected to retests and both the joints should clear the tests. If this report is also not satisfactory, further welding of joints shall be suspended until the firms welding technique has been examined certified by RDSO. Rail joints welded by a firm shall be guaranteed against failure for a period of two years and if fails within the guarantee period shall be rewelded free of cost by firm. In case of failure of sample test joint, the period of guarantee for 100 joints represented by the sample joint shall be extended for a further period of one year The welded joints with the extended period of guarantee shall be marked X with yellow paint on the outer side of the web of the rail near the joint Welding shall be supervised by trained welding supervisor and carried out by trained welder having valid competency certificate from RDSO/TPP/NR, Lucknow A welding supervisor shall supervise not more than two welding teams deployed within 50m distance at a time. A copy of the thermit welding manual shall be available with each PWI and at each welding site

21.6

Guarantee

21.7

Other requirements

22.

A.T.Welding Defects, Causes & Remedial Measures The major types of defects which can cause weld failure because of improper weld execution are given under. 1. Flame cutting of rail ends is prohibited due to likelihood of cracking in web. Lack of fusion in Flame cutting of rail When producing the rail foot ends welding gap, never flame cut rail ends without using a cutting glued. Cold spot lack Gap between rail ends Maintain the welding gap of fusion. too wide-rail ends between rail ends specified outside the collar in the approved parameters formation. of the technique. Never attempt to weld a gap, which is too wide, with standard mould. Cold spot lack Mould fitted vertically Take care to centralize the of fusion and but off centre to the mould to the gap. Never try associated local web gap. to fit both mould halves porosity. simultaneously. Lack of fusion on Mould fitted center to Take care to fit mould both foot of one rail the gap but inclined to vertical and central to the end. the vertical. weld gap. Do not incline mould to the vertical. Gross lack of Standard mould fitted Do not try to weld worn to fusion on rail end. to rails of dissimilar new rail, or rails dissimilar depth. depth with standard mould. Porosity in the Luting sand too wet. Luting sand must be moist thermit steel but not too wet. Never use wet luting sand. Sand inclusion in Dropping of luting sand Take care when sealing the the rail foot and into the mould. mould with sand. It must sand burn marks not be allowed to drop into transversely the mould. across the rail head. Gross porosity Use of damp crucible is Carefully dry out the throughout the detrimental to thermit crucible lining using the whole weld reaction and results in preheating burner. section. gross porosity of weld metal. Longitudinal crack in rail web Cutting of war resistant grade rails by flame cutting.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10. Gross porosity throughout the whole weld section.

11. Gross inclusion of slag in the rail head. 12. Gross slag inclusion in rail head on one side.

Use of damp portion. Moisture present in portion reacts with aluminium and in its characteristic, there by affecting the thermit reaction and resultant steel. This change cannot be reversed by drying out. Pouring without the plug in the position.

It is essential only to use dry thermit portions. Never use portions, which have been damped and dried out.

After preheating, fit the sand core with the riser aperture of the mould and press down lightly. Ensure that the crucible is positioned centrally over the sand core and the crucible does not move during the thermit reaction. Never allow the thermit steel to pour directly into either pouring gate. During solidification and immediately after thermit weld should not be subjected to tensile force.

Pouring off centre to the plug.

13. Fracture through weld centre.

14. Cracking of weld after cooling at rail ends.

Immediate imposition of tensile forces on weld metal cause internal tearing of weld metal which leads to total transverse fracture. Failure to use the correct thermit portion and welds. Procedure as approved for specific rail section/rail chemistry.

Always check the chemistry and type of rail to be welded and use correct type of portion and adopt correct welding parameters at the time of welding of rail joints.

23.

Precautions to be taken During SKV Welding While carrying out welding at site, the following precautions shall be observed: (i) (ii) (iv) (v) (vi) It should be ensured that the portion being used matches with type and chemistry of rail. Rail ends should be square. Rail ends should be properly cleaned with kerosene oil and wire brushes. Stop watch should be provided to the welding supervisor at each welding site. Pressure in the tanks/cylinder should be properly maintained during preheating.

(iii) Alignment of rail ends should be perfect as checked by straight edge.

(vii) Correct gap between rail ends at head, web and foot shall be ensured. (viii) Correct preheating time for rail ends shall be ensured. (ix) (x) (xi) Tightness of clips fitted with hose connections to compressor tank and burner shall be checked before commencing preheating. Nozzles of burners shall be cleaned periodically to avoid back fire. The compressor tank shall be kept at least 2 to 3 m away from the burner to prevent fire hazard.

(xii) The tapping shall be done within the time specified for that particular technique. Welding parameters for techniques presently being used are available at Item No. 25. For special type of welding i.e. 75mm gap, combination joint, etc. the time of reaction and tapping shall be as stipulated by RDSO for that particular welding technique. (xiii) Arrangements for giving first aid shall be available at site. (xiv) Welders should be provided with gloves and coloured glasses. (xv) Boiling portion shall be out tapped. (xvi) No moist portion/torned portion bag shall be used for welding. (xvii) Dampness in moulds can lead to Porosity and early fatigue failure of welds. (xviii)Only those contractual agencies which have clearance from the RDSO/Railway Board can execute welding work. Supply of portions must be from sources approved by RDSO/Railway Board. (xix) Many weld failures show evidence of badly cut rail ends. The evenness and verticality of a rail cut depends solely upon the skill of the welder. With portable disc cutters, very little skill is required to produce good cut.

24.

Parameters for different gaps of A.T. Welding Techniques

24.1.

Dimensional Tolerances for finished AT Welds

25. 25.1

Alumino Thermit Welding - Dos & Donts Dos Welding is to be done only in adequate traffic block. For doing cess welding, rail should be supported on a minimum of 10 wooden blocks duly pegging the rail for better alignment. Welding is to be done either insitu or on the cess, but not on the ballast shoulders. Battered / hogged rails are to be end cropped before welding. Rail ends should be cut true to square. The rail ends should be cleaned with K.oil before welding to remove dust, grease particles. Fittings for a minimum of 5 sleepers on either side are to be removed for alignment and levelling. Welding gaps should be as specified for that type of welding. (25mm/50mm/75mm) Rails are to be properly aligned before taking up welding. Moulds utilized for welding should not be cracked or wet. Dry moulds should be fixed centrally on the joint. Mould shoe should match with dry moulds. Rail ends are to be pre-heated uniformly Crucible should be charged with magnesite powder at regular intervals of 8-10 weld joints. The crucible should be free of moisture and charging should be done periodically. The height between the crucible and dry mould should be approximately 50mm, Gauges of the pressure tanks should be functional to develop proper pressure as specified Adequate tank pressure should be maintained.

Stipulated pre heating time is to be ensured. Ensure that weld portion bags are intact and portions are not contaminated. The shell life of portions is 2 years, beyond which portions should be tested for reaction before utilization. Portions should be thoroughly mixed for uniformly in a steel Pan before pouring in the crucible. Cap should be placed on the crucible when the reaction is in progress. Tapping should be done centrally in the mould, so that the discharge falls centrally on the cake. Chipping of weld should be done after maintaining cooling time of 4-6 minutes for a 25mm gap welding and 12 minutes for 75mm gap welding. The first train should be passed with restricted speed only after 30 minutes of welding duly grinding the weld, fish plating and supporting the rail on wedges. It should be ensured that chisel marks are not made on the finished welds. Finishing of weld to be done within 24 hours after welding. On completion of the welding, particulars of welding like date of welding, type of welding, welders code etc.,are to be printed on aluminium strip glued to web of rail. Anti corrosive painting should be done for a length of 10 cm on either side of weld.
25.2 Donts

Do not do welding in inadequate traffic block. Welding should not be done in rain or rapidly cooling temperature. Unqualified welders should not be employed for welding. Gas cut rails should not be used for welding. Do not use untested rails for welding. The distance between two welds should not be less than 4 mts. Welding old rails, should not be done without end cropping.

72 UTS portions should not be utilized for 90 UTS rails. Rail ends should not be welded without cleaning with K.oil and wire brush. No bolt hole should be within 40mm from the rail end. Worn out and damaged tools, equipment should not be used for welding. Location where portions are stocked should not be damp/wet. Weld portions and luting sand should not be utilized after expiry date. Damaged dry moulds should not be used for welding. Damaged and loose portions should not be utilized. Portions should not be tampered with. Luting sand should not be mixed with ordinary local sand in case of shortage. Wedges under the rail should not be removed for a minimum of 20 minutes after chipping. Portions should not be utilized without proper mixing prior to welding. Rail tensor should not be used for distressing before weld cools down. The first train should not be allowed over the welds before 30 minutes after the molten steel poured in to mould Speed restriction should not be relaxed till grinding of weld is completed.

Circulars and Correction Slips on

AT Welding

MANUAL FOR FUSION WELDING OF RAILS BY ALUMINO THERMIC PROCESS REPRINTED-2006 ADDENDUM & CORRIGENDUM SLIP NO.06 OF AUGUST, 2007 1. Following shall be added at the end of Para 4.1

Significant advancements have taken place in pre-heating techniques, type of moulds, type of crucible and process automation in the field of AT Welding. These advancements offer significant benefits in terms of service life of AT welds. In order to absorb these technological advancements, use of compressed air-petrol or better pre haring, single shot crucible, automatic tapping of molten metal and three piece moulds shall be increasingly used for rails of 52Kg and higher sectional weight with 90UTS and higher grades. Airpetrol pre heating with manual pressurization and/or manual tapping of molten metal and/or use of two piece moulds shall be phased out for such rails. 2. Para 4.10.4 shall be modified as under:

After pre-heating the rail joint , the sparkler shall be ignited and inserted in the portion at the centre top to start the reaction. The reaction shall not be vigorous or boiling. By the time the reaction is complete, the burner shall be removed quickly and the gap closed with a dried sand core in case of central pouring to prevent loss of heat and turbulence during flow of metal. In case of manual tapping, the time period between removal of burner and tapping of metal should be as minimum as possible. After the reaction subsides, about three seconds shall be allowed for the separation of slag from the metal, which may be judged by looking into the crucible through coloured glass to IS:5983 when manual tapping of molten metal is employed.. Thereafter, the molten steel shall be tapped into the mould by striking the closing pin with a tapping rod. It shall be ensured that since the commencement of the reaction, thermit steel is tapped within the time limit specified. Incase of automatic tapping of molten metal, these aspects are taken care of automatically. Care shall b taken to ensure that the crucible does not move from its position during tapping. When pouring is over, the crucible and swivel stand shall be removed and kept aside without disturbing the joint. If the reaction is found to be boiling, the metal shall be out-tapped. Vigorous reaction and loose closing of crucible may cause self tapping. In this case also, the metal shall be out tapped. If, in any case, self tapped metal enters the mould, the joint shall be rejected, cut and re-welded. In cases of out tapping, the joint should be cooled to ambient temperature and the process of welding restarted afresh. However, if temperature can be measured, the rail ends may be heated to an extent so as to achieve temperature of about 600-20C and welding of joint may be completed. 3. Para 4.1.1.1(c) and (d) shall be modified as under:

Para 4.1.1.1(c)

Departmental welders certified by TPP/Thermit welding Centre (TWC), Vijayawda with TPP portions, Para 4.1.1.1(d) Departmental welders certified by TPP/Thermit Welding Centre(TWC), Vijayawada with portions, consumables and preferably equipments also supplied by an RDSO approved portion manufacturer. This is applicable for 25mm gap welding only. 4. Para 4.1.2.3 shall be modified as under: 4.1.2.3 Training and certification of Departmental welders and supervisors shall be done by Thermit Portion Plant (TPP), Northern Railway, Lucknow and Thermit Welding Centre (TWC), South Central Railway, Vijayawada as per procedure for certification given in Annexure-1.

5.

Following shall be added as the end of para 4.8.3: In case of three piece moulds, care should taken to ensure proper fixing of bottom plate to avoid formation of fin at the edges of bottom flanges of weld.

6.

Para 9(xii) shall be modified as under:

The tapping shall be done within the time specified for that particular technique or automatically. For special type of welding i.e. 75mm gap, combination joint etc., the time of reaction and tapping shall be as stipulated by RDSO for that particular welding technique. 7. Following note shall be added at the end of Annexure-I:

Note: Thermit welding centre (TWC), South Central Railway, Vijayawada is also authorized for training and certification of departmental welders and supervisors following the complete procedure indicated in Annexure-I for TPP. 8. Last line of para 4.2.3.1 of Annexure-8 of the Manual shall be reworded as follows:

The test weld shall withstand minimum transverse breaking load as indicated in column 4 of Table-2. The deflection at centre at the actual transverse breaking load shall not be less than that specified in column 5 of Table-2. 9. Heading of column 5 in Table 2 of Para 4.2.3.1 of Annexure 8 of the Manual shall be reworded as Minimum deflection in mm at the centre at the actual transverse breaking load. 10. Para 8.1 shall be modified as under:

Welding shall be supervised by trained welding supervisor and carried out by carried welder having valid competency certificate from RDSO/TPP, NR, Lucknow/TWC, Vijayawda in their possession.

MANUAL FOR FUSION WELDING OF RAILS BY ALUMIO-THERMIC PROCESS-1988 (REFRINTD,2006) ADDENDUM & CORRIGENDUM SLIP NO.07 OF NOVEMBER, 2007

1.

Following shall be added as New Para No.4.2.3

4.2.3 Storage and transportation of Portions. General guidelines for storage and transportation of AT Portion, representing best practices with respect to storage of materials, are contained in Annexure-11. 2. Enclosed Annexure-11 shall be added after existing Annexure-10. General guidelines for storage and transportation of AT portion These guidelines represent Best Practices with respect to storage of materials. Stores should be dry, well ventilated and where required lightening, power and running water should be available. In all cases building construction should be in compliance with the FIRE regulations applicable to the substances being stores. Consideration shall also be given to the relevant regulations issued in this respect. The appropriate notices should be displayed where materials such as thermit portions and igniters are stored. Storage of Thermit portions Portions should be stored in a secure, non-combustible building, While it is preferable that they should be stored separately, they may be stored with other non inflammable materials, such as equipment and small tools, mould, luting sand in sealed bags etc., in which case ideally they should be segregated. The store should be dry with ventilation to prevent excess humidity of dampness and should be designated as a non smoking area with no nacked flames. Portion must not be stored in the same building as explosive or flammable items (e.g. Fuel, fuel gasses, igniters).

The sealed boxes ,must not be opened until immediately prior to use. Any spillages should be immediately swept up and the material disposed in accordance with safety data sheets. Steel shovels should not be used on concrete floors, which might create a spark. Portions should be used in rotation i.e. first in-first out. Proper notices should be displayed inside and outside the building together with the standard warning sign, which should read Metallic Powder: In case of fire DO NOT USE WATER. The Local Fire Brigade should be informed of exact location of store and nature of contents. Only dry powder extinguishers of appropriate class should be used in the proximity of Thermit powders. Storage of igniters, Tubes of igniters should be stored in a locked steel cupboard or other secure steel container no account must these be stored in the same building as the portions. Transportation of AT Portion. AT Portion should not be transported in passenger coaches. The package containing igniter should be kept in tin cases/steel containers. Manufacturer of portion shall provide a sheet containing best safety practices with every package for guidance of the user covering various aspects in safe handling, storage, transportation and disposal of thermit material.

MANUAL FOR FUSION WELDING OF RAILS BY ALUMINO-THERMIC PROCSS-1988 (REPRINTED, 2006) ADDENDUM & CORRIGENDUM SLIP NO.08 OF SEPTEMBER, 2008 1. Para 5.6 is revised as under:

5.6 TRACEABILITY OF WELDS: 5.6.1 MARKING : Each joint shall have a distinctive mark indicating month, year of welding, agency and welder/supervisor identification code number (as appearing on his competency certificate) at non-gauge face side of AT weld on head as given below:

Figure: Location of marking non-gauge face of welds

M M A Month A B

Last two digits of year B B C C C

Identification code Where, A A code number for the agency to which the welder/supervisor belongs i.e. 00 for AT portion manufacturing firms 01 for departmental welders 02-99 for welders of welding contractor. The codes shall be allotted for different Contractual agencies undertaking AT welding of rails (other than portion manufacturers) B B B - Specific person number (from 001 to 999). The specific person number will be continuous for a Zonal Railway.

In case of welders belonging to the welding contractor, this code will signify the portion manufacturing firm for which the competency certificate of welder is valid. For example, 01001 Eco would indicate a departmental welder/supervisor of East Coast Railway with specific person number 001.Simiarly, 000011 would indicate a welder/supervisor with specific person no.001 of portion manufacturer whose code is T i.e. ITC, 02001H would indicate a welder, belonging to welding contractor whose code is 02, having specific person number of 001 and having competency for welding with portion/technique of portion manufacturing firm with code H.

The Organization issuing competency certificates shall ensure that there is no duplication of the Identification Code Number. An annual list of valid competency certificates will be circulated by the organization issuing the competency certificates to the zonal railways. Zonal Railways should constantly update and maintain the list of supervisors and welders along with their identification code number. Annual list of approved AT welders of different firms and validity of competency certificates may be seen on web site www.rdso.gov.in under button activity of Metallurgical & Chemical Due. 20 MARKING Each joint shall have a distinctive mark indicating month, year of welding, agency and welder/supervisor identification code number (as appearing on his competency certificate) at non-gauge face side of AT weld on head as given below :

Figure: Location of marking on non-gauge face of welds M M A A B B Y B Y Month Last two digits of year C C C

Identification code Where, A A Code number for the agency to which the welder/supervisor belongs i.e. 00 for AT portion manufacturing firms 01 for departmental welders 02-99 for Welders of welding contractors. The codes shall be allotted for different contractual agencies undertaking AT welding of rails )other than portion manufacturers) B B B Specific person number (from 001 to 999) The specific person number will be continuous for a Zonal Railway/Firm.

C - For welders/Supervisors of Zonal Railways: First two/three initials of the Railway to which the supervisor or welder belongs or For welders/Supervisors of portion manufacturing firms and welding contractors: Code allotted for the portion manufacturing firms, for whom welders/supervisors of portion manufacturing firms and welding contractors are approved. Alphabetic code allotted to the portion manufacturing firms are given below: ITC = T, HT1=H, OTPL=O,ST1=S, RMPL=R, IFA=F, TPP(NR)=N In case of welder belonging to the welding contractors, this code will signify the portion manufacturing firm for which the competency certificate of welder is valid. The marking should be embossed on the non gauge face side of AT weld by punching after finishing of the weld in letters/digits of 6mm height located as indicated in Figure. In addition to this, alphabetic code allotted to portion manufacturing firm as per a) above e.g. T,H,N etc., and year of manufacture (last two digits of the year) shall also be embossed on the mould to appear on web collar. For example, 01001Eco would indicate a departmental welder/supervisor of East Coat Railway with specific person number 001. Similarly, 00001T would indicate a welders/ Supervisors with specific person No.001 of portion manufacturer whose code is T i.e., ITC 02001H would indicate a welder, belonging to welding contractor whose code is 02, having specific person number of 001 and having competency for welding with portion/technique of portion manufacturing firm with code H. CFor welders/Supervisors of Zonal Railways: First two/three initials of the Railway to which the supervisor or welder belongs. Or For welders/supervisors of portion manufacturing firms and welding contractors: Code allotted for the portion manufacturing firms, for whom welders/supervisors of portion manufacturing firms and welding contractors are approved. Alphabetic codes allotted to the portion manufacturing firms are given below: 1TC=T, HT1=H, OTPL-O, ST1-S, RMPL=R, 1FA-F, TPP(NR)=N In case of welders belonging to the welding contractors, this code will signify the portion manufacturing firm for which the competency certificate of welder is valid.

The marking should be embossed on the non gauge face side of AT weld by punching after finishing of the weld in letters/digits of 6mm height located as indicated in Figure. In addition to this alphabetic code allotted to portion manufacturing firm as per a) above e.g. T.H, N etc., and year of manufacture (last two digits of the year) shall also be embossed on the mould to appear on web collar. For example, 01001Eco would indicate a departmental welder/supervisor of East Coat Railway with specific person number 001. Similarly, 00001T would indicate a welder / Supervisors with specific person No.001 of portion manufacturer whose code is T i.e., ITC 02001H would indicate a welder, belonging to welding contractor whose code is 02, having specific person number of 001 and having competency for welding with portion/technique of portion manufacturing firm with code H.

5.6.2 WELD RECORDS: PWI shall maintain Thermit Weld Register as per proforma given in Annexure 5. The welded joints shall be serially numbered in a kilometer. Repair welds/additional welds done at a later date may be given continuing weld number in that kilometer/ For example, the last thermit weld number in a particular kilometer was 88 and subsequently a thermit weld has been executed, it shall be numbered 89, irrespective of its location in that kilometer. 2. Two new columns, Column No.18 Chainage of weld and Column No.19 Reference point for chainage, are added in Proforma for Thermit Weld Register, at Annexure 5.

MANUAL FOR FUSION WELDING OF RAILS BY ALUMINO-THERMIC PROCESS-1998 (REPRINTED, 2006) ADDENDUM & CORRIGENDUM SLIP NO.09 OF FEBRUARY, 2009 1. Following is added at the end of para 3.1: Further, fish bolt holes must be eliminated as far as possible before welding of rails to make the weld amenable for USFD testing for lack of fusion, in case of welding of new rails as well as repair / maintenance welding.

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.T-5/P/Vol.XIII, Date: 20-8-2009 JOINT ENGINEERING AND OPERATING CIRCULAR Sub: Traffic Block for removal of cautions due to Rail / Weld failures and cutting of rails. *** Instructions have already been issued by Engineering Department regarding carryout repair of rail fractures and weld failures including the cutting of rails under Traffic Block only. To minimize the traffic block requirements, it has also been instructed to replace hacksaw blades by Abrasive Disc Cutters on priority and with due urgency. With a view to streamline the procedure for removal of cautions due to rail / weld failures, the following further instructions are issued regarding the management of traffic blocks for immediate compliance. 1. The work of repair of rail fractures and weld failures including the cutting of rails shall be carried out under traffic block only. No deviations are permitted under any circumstances. 2. The removal of caution due to rail /weld failures will normally require two cuts an two welds after inserting the rail of suitable length (not less than 4 meters). 3. The traffic block requirement involving two cuts and two welds shall be 100 minutes where the rail cutting is done by Abrasive Disc Cutters. In case the rail cutting is done by hacksaw blades, the block requirement shall be 120 minutes. 4. When situation warrants due to more cautions on account of rail / weld failures, Abrasive Disc Cutters, from SEs/P.Way of adjacent sections shall be pooled up and deployed, to complete the work early. 5. Wherever Abrasive Disc Cutters have been deployed, traffic block of 100 minutes only shall be demanded and granted for repair of fractures involving 2 cuts and 2 welds. Divisions shall make efforts to procure and deploy abrasive rail cutters in all sections. 6. On other sections, where rail cutting is to be done by Hacksaw Blade, traffic block of 120 minutes shall be demanded and granted for repair of fractures involving 2 cuts and 2 welds. 7. In case of non-availability of continuous block of 120 minutes duration, the same may split in two parts i.e., a block of 30 minutes followed by another bock of 90 minutes duration. In case of split block f (30+90) minutes, due regard shall be given to the prevailing temperature at the time of second block, so that the gaps available at the time of welding during the second block are close to 25 mm. A close coordination between the officials of Engineering and Operating Departments should be ensured in case of split block situation. 8. Block requirement for works involving one cut and one weld shall be suitably reduced. The fundamental requirements being 70 minutes block for a single weld only, 90 minutes block for two contiguous welds, 5 minutes for a single cut by Abrasive Disc Cutters, about 20 minutes for rail cutting by hacksaw blade, etc.

9. There instructions should be quickly percolated to all the officers and inspectors of Operating and Engineering Departments in control offices as well as in the field.

Sd/- (Rakesh Saksena) Chief Operating Manager

Sd/- (Pradeep Kumar) Principal Chief Engineer.

Copy of Headquarters lr. No.W.T-5/P/Vol.XIII, dated 20.8.2009 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway Sub: Repairs to rail / weld failures and cutting of rails on running lines. *** Instructions exist vide para -15.08, Chapter XV of G&SR-2008 and also Rly. Board lr. No.98/CE-II/INSPN.5 dt.7/15.8.98 that track works leading to discontinuity in track such as causal renewal of rails, temporary / permanent repairs of rail /weld failures shall be undertaken under traffic block only. It has come to notice that the work of rail cutting prior to rail renewal is being undertaken in between the train gaps with banner flag and caution order protection without ensuring traffic block, which is an unsafe practice. At times, such situations have resulted into derailments also. It is pointed out that the work of cutting of rails is an integral part of rail renewal activity and is therefore required to be executed under clear block protection. To avoid such unsafe situation, following instructions are issued on the subject matter for strict compliance in the field with immediate effect. 1. 2. 3. Cutting of running rail on running lines should be undertaken under Traffic Block only. No deviations are permitted under any circumstances. The work of repair of rail fractures and weld failures including the cutting of running rail shall be carried out under traffic block only. To minimize the traffic block requirements, for works involving rail cutting, hacksaw blades are replaced by the Abrasive Disc Cutters, on priority and with due urgency. Gas cutting shall not be carried out on running rails. In case it is essential to resort to gas cutting due to emergency, the gas cut rail shall be treated as IMR rail and same will be removed within 24 hours at first opportunity. Till such time necessary speed restriction shall be imposed duly posting a watchman. In case of rail cutting by Abrasive Disc Cutters, traffic block of 100 minutes shall be demanded for repair of fractures involving 2 cuts and 2 welds. In case of rail cutting by Hacksaw Blades, traffic block of 120 minutes shall be demanded for repair of fractures involving 2 cuts and 2 welds. In case of non-availability of continuous block of 120 minutes duration, the same may be split in two parts, a block of 30 minutes for cutting followed by another block of 90 minutes duration for welding. Block requirement for works involving one cut and one weld shall be suitably reduced. This issues with the approval of PCE. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

4.

5. 6. 7.

8.

South Central Railway Engineering Standing Order No.59 . Sub: Anti-corrosive treatment of Rails, Welds and other P.Way fittings Reg. *** 1. The problem of corrosion and formation of pits at liner contact area on rails exists in some of the sections of this Railway. Identification of such sections was done and circulated to Divisions for taking various preventive measures. The matter of corrosion and its damaging effects had come up for serious discussions during the Sr.DENs meeting held on 13.12.07. During the above meeting it was brought out that heavy corrosion is also developing in some of the areas which are not identified earlier. Taking above situation into account, the position has been reviewed and the list of corrosion prone sections, division wise is revised as under: S.No. 1. 2. Division Vijayawada Guntur Location All routes of Vijayawada Division KCC-GNT, GNT-TEL-RAL, GNTNLPD-NDKD-MRGA, GNT-NRT, NDKD-MCLA Secunderabd MDR-KI (UP& DN), PGDP-SCHYB-LPI (UP&DN) Guntakal GDR-KHT-RU (UP & DN), RUTPTY (UP&DN_ Nanded Nil All Passenger Platform lines at -stations of all divisions All Tunnels of all Divisions All cuttings in approaches of Major towns of all Divisions.

3. 4. 5. 6. 8. 9.

2. It was further noted that the instructions on various measures to prevent corrosion are not available in one single circular. Thus, a need to issue all related instructions in a consolidated circular was felt. Therefore, various measures to control corrosion on rails and fitting have been summarized as under: 2.1 Anti-corrosive treatment of rails, welds and other P.Way Fittings (A) Frequency of lubrication of ERCs and sealing for liner contact area shall be as under: i. On corrosion prone areas ERC greasing (all 4 ERCs) and sealing of liner contact area (only inside) Once in a year ii. On other areas ERC greasing (all 4 ERCs) Once in 2 years (B) In addition to the above, on identified corrosion prone areas painting of new rails and in service rails shall be adopted as under:

a) Painting of new rails: All new rails shall be painted before laying, with one prime coat of red lead and two coats of red oxide as per instructions circulated vide letter No.W.501/1/7/Vol.VII, dated 8.4.04 b) Painting of in-service rails: Painting of in-service rails shall be carried out depending upon condition, but not earlier than once in two years on inner gauge face (web and flange) using two coats for anti-corrosive Bituminous black paint as per instructions circulated vide lr. No.W.501/1/7/Vol.VII, dt.8.4.2004. Sealing of liner contact area should be done after scrapping and painting. The activities should be planned accordingly. (C) Weld collar painting: On identified corrosion prone areas, weld collars shall be painted once a year, with two coats of anti-corrosive bituminous black paint conforming to IS 9862-1981, to a thickness of 200 Microns and on non-corrosive prone areas, once in two years. (D) Use of galvanized metal liners, galvanized plate screws and stretcher bars in points and crossing areas. a) Galvanized liners In all identified corrosion prone areas. b) Galvanized Plate screws and Stretcher bars - In all areas irrespective of corrosion Proneness. (E) Frequency of lubrication of plate screws in points and crossingsi) In corrosion prone areas ii) In other areas - Once in a year - Once in two years

This issued with the approval of PCE. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer Dt.02.1.08

Forwarded vide lr. No.501/I/7/Vol.VIII

Copy of Headquarters lr. No.W.413/GENL/RWF/XXIV, dated15.6.2009 addressed to Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway Sub: Rail / Weld failures Dent / Notch marks. *** Recently one Rail fracture had taken place at km.211/30-32 Dn. line between BTTR-SVPM and GDR-BZA section on 8.6.2009. This was reported as Weld failure. On examination of the broken pieces, a deep Dent Mark was noticed on the rail foot close to the SKV weld which was the origin for causing the Rail fracture. 2. On earlier occasion also one more Rail breakage had taken place on 5.12.2008 at km.251/5-3 up line between MCI-MMZ of KZJ-BPQ section for which the cause of failure was also due to dent / cut mark at rail foot. Such type of Dent/Notch marks on UTS rails are serious cause of concerned resulting into Rail fracture. Such Dent/cuts are caused due to mishandling of rails during unloading or laying. 3. In order to avoid such unsafe situations, it is advised to carryout thorough inspection of rails in the section and take action to identify and attend such locations. Sr.DEN/DEN of the section should be advised to take this matter seriously and take necessary remedial action. Simultaneously, staff at all levels need to be counseling regarding proper handling of rails. Action taken in this regard may be advised to undersigned. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Headquarters letter No.509/P/AT Welders & Welding, dated 29.10.2008 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Standard Register for recording rail / weld fractures reg. Ref: CTEs Inspection Notes No.35/2008 vide letter No.W.246/CTE/04/Vol.III, dt.20.10.08. *** A standard printed register for recording rail / weld fractures (for use of SSE/SE/P.Way of open line) containing 15 columns for recording various details was issued to Division earlier. CTE vide Para-7 of the above referred Inspection Notes has observed that the Register do not have columns for noting down the name of agency, name of welder etc., which are required to monitor performance of the same. It was advised to re-design the proforma of the register incorporating these details. Divisions are advised to furnish the desired revised format and the number of copies required for each division, to arrange from Hqrs. In the meanwhile, the details of welding agency and the name of welder may please be recorded in the Column No.11 (type of welder) and Column No.12 (date of welding) along with the details for the printed item in the next line. Please acknowledge the receipt of this letter, with the details asked above.

Sd/- (J.N.GUPTA) Dy.CE/Tr.II

Copy of lr.No.B/W.413/GL/Joggled Fish Plates/P.Way-II, dated 14.11.07 addressed to All ADENs & SSEs/SEs/P.Way on BZA Division. Sub: Precautions to be taken on Passenger intensive routes Joggling of AT Welds Reg. Ref: 1) CTE/SCs letter Nos. W.413/Joggling, dt.21.6.07, 10.8.07 and 13.9.7 2) This office letters of even No., dated 8.7.07 and20.9.07. *** Please refer to the letters cited under reference wherein it was advised that joggling of AT welds has to be done at the following locations as per the extent instructions and the same should be completed before 31.10.2007 without fail. 1) All AT welds in locations where the track has carried more than 50% of the stipulated GMT. All AT welds in well fracture prone locations. All AT welds on the outer rails of curves with curvature 0 and above. All AT welds on major and important bridges and their approaches on either side upto 100 Mtrs. All AT welds on Track where the height of the bank is 4 M and above.

2) 3) 4)

5)

Please ensure Joggled fish plating of all the AT welds in the above locations of your section is completed before 24.11.07 without fail and the compliance report should be submitted to this office to advise Hqrs. Office by 26.11.07. This has the approval of Sr.DEN/Co-ord/BZA.

Sd/For Sr.DEN/Co-ord/BZA Copy to: All DENs of BZA Division.

Copy of Railway Boards Lr. No.Track/21/2002/0110/A T Policy, dt.11.8.2005 addressed to PCEs of All Indian Railways. Sub: Quality control for welding of rails by SKV process. *** Board have decided that the following course of action be adopted in future welding contract. 1. Initial USFD testing should be conducted within a months time from the date of welding so that the welder with a bad workmanship can be identified and removed from the site. 2. In case of the defective weld exceeds 4% the certificate issued by RDSO should be cancelled and welder will have to go through with the process of re-certification. Till fresh certification is issued Welder should not be allowed to do any work on the track. 3. A penalty of Rs.500/- may be imposed for defective welds ranging from 2 to 4% and a penalty of Rs.1000/- of the defective weld is found more than 4%. 4. There should be a provision of joint checking with firms representative. During the course of joint checking, if the defective weld is less than 50% of what has been detected earlier by PWI/USFD, explanation should be called from the PWI/USFD for the discrepancy and suitable action be taken if the motive behind detecting the higher number of defective welds is suspected. 5. A firm may be allowed to do the welding of defective weld by wider gap technology. This will reduce the wastage of rail and population of additional SKV weld at site. 6. Railway to maintain batch wise and welder wise data of each weld at site so that any deficiency in a particular batch or portion or welder can be identified and suitable action can be taken in consultation with RDSO. Numbering of SKV weld at site should be done to co-relate a particular weld with a particular batch of portion and welder. 7. 1% sample joint testing as envisaged in the manual (Para 7.1 of Manual for Fusion Welding of Rails By Alumino Thermic Process ) shall be strictly followed by Zonal Railways. The instructions conveyed to the Railways vide this office letter of even number dated 17.2.2003 stands withdrawn. Sd/- (S.K.AGRAWAL) Executive Director Track (P) Railway Board

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.509/P/W-6/Vol.XI, dt.27.12.07 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Storage of welding portions and other materials related to rail welding. Ref: Correction slip No.7, dt.7.12.07 to Allumino Thiermit (AT) Welding Manual circulated vide Hqrs. lr. No.W.509/W-6/Vol.XI, dt.26.12.07. *** The above mentioned Correction Slip stipulates detailed instructions on careful storage and handing of AT welding portions. During inspections, it is noted that the present practice of storage and handling of welding portions and related materials requires improvement and there is a need to tighten up the machinery. As per the C.S., there has to be a separately earmarked room for storing of welding portions with proper system of storing and handling. Sr.DEN/Co-ord are requested to plan for developing such specially earmarked room at each PWI HQ to ensure that welding portions are stored / handled as per the instructions contained in the above mentioned Correction Slip. This will be another step in the direction of improvement of welding quality. An action plan for developing the facility should be submitted to the undersigned by 15.1.2008. Please acknowledge receipt.

Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.32/1/NG/PWIS/Thermit Welding, dt.18.5.07 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Competency Certificates of Welders. *** Cases have come to notice that Competency Certificate of agencies Welders carrying out the welding are not found to be available with the Railways for immediate verification. In some of the cases, long time has been taken to produce competency certificate when called for verification. Henceforth, it shall be ensured that Welders Competency Certificates (Original) shall be kept in the custody of sectional ADEN till such time Welder is working in his session. Welder shall carry attested Xerox copy of Competency Certificate for verification by inspecting Officers. List indicating name of welder and Identification Code should be available in Divisional Engineering control for cross-check and verification. A list of agencies welders working in the division along with competency certificate number and identification code should be sent to Hqrs. for record by 25.5.2007.

Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.496/TWR/W-6, dt.11.4.07 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Precautions of Consumables / Accessories required for Departmental Welding

*** It has come to notice that some of the consumables / accessories required for departmental welding are not available in sufficient quantities affecting quality of welding work. The value of these items is very negligible as compared to the overall cost of welding. However, considering the quality aspects, it is essential that these items are procured locally whenever required preferably through the petrol imprest available with AENs for welding work. This will avoid creating of inventory and wastage due to long storage period. The amount of imprest may be got enhanced considering the monthly requirement and the imprest may be designated as Petrol-cum-Consumable Imprest for Welding. A copy of the statement obtained from BZA Division is enclosed for ready reference. This statement indicates consumables / accessories, which are generally found inadequate. It is advised to take necessary action to suitably enhance the amount of imprest and issue instructions to AENs for arranging procurement of consumables / accessories from the approved RDSO suppliers as and when required. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Railway Boards letter No.Track/21/2004/0902/7, dated 08.02.08 addressed to PCEs of All Indian Railways. Sub: USFD testing of AT welds using digital AT weld testers. *** Digital Ultrasonic equipment for Aluminothermic Weld was developed by RDSO in association with trade for quite some time. These Ultrasonic Weld Testers are not only handy but also can record data being a digital equipment. Moreover, PWI/USFD can himself do the probing operation and view the signals on the monitor simultaneously. Therefore, the quality of testing improves drastically with its use. As on date, there are two RDSO approved vendors for the equipment, namely M/s.Modsonics Instrument Manufacturing Company Pvt., Ltd., Ahemdabad and M/s. Parikh Industries, Mumbai. Railway Board has now decided that al ultrasonic testing of AT welds henceforth would be carried out using RDSO approved digital ultrasonic equipment. Six months time period has been fixed for the procurement of equipment / development of requisite infrastructure. Therefore, Railways are advised to take necessary action in this regard and compliance report be sent to Board.

Sd/- (S.K.AGRAWAL) Executive Director Track (P) Railway Board.

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.507/Genl/USFD/Vol.XX/2, dated 04.03.2008 addressed to Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C. Railway. Sub: USFD testing of AT welds using digital AT weld testers. Ref: Rly. Board lr. No.Track/21/2004/0902/7, dt.8.2.08. *** Railway Board vide letter under reference, advised that all ultrasonic testing of AT welds henceforth would be carried out using RDSO approved Digital Ultrasonic equipment. Six months time period has been fixed for the procurement of equipment / development of requisite infrastructure. In view of the above, divisions are advised to make necessary arrangements for procurement of the above mentioned machine based on the requirement. The necessary RDSO specification, along with Budgetary offer received from he M/s.Electronic & Engineering Co.(I) P. Ltd., is enclosed herewith for immediate process. Sr.DEN/Co-ord are personally responsible for submission of the vetted indent as per the requirement, to this office by 20.3.2008. This is as per instruction of CTE please. Encl: As above Sd/- (B.VENKATA RAO) XEN/TRACK-1 For Chief Track Engineer.

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.509/P/Vol.XI, dt.25.07.2007 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Ref: Improvement in Welding Technology. ED/Tr/RDSOs lr. No.CT/Welding/Policy, dt.21.6.07

*** RDSO vide above referred letter (copy enclosed) have advised six welding firms to gear up for improving the welding technology by: i) ii) Introduction of Compressed Air Pre-heating along with use of 3 piece Moulds w.e.f 01.09.2007 Use of Automatic Tapping Thimbles w.e.f. 01.12.2007

It is stated that the above deadline has been fixed by the Railway Board. Divisions are therefore, advised to immediately follow the condition as mentioned at (i) above, i.e, use of Compressed Air Pre-heating arrangement along with 3-piece moulds for All AT welding tenders in which execution will come into effect from 1.9.07 onwards. These instructions should be specifically noted and implemented in the interest of improvement of AT welding quality immediately. Please acknowledge receipt of the letter. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Railway Boards letter No.Track/21/99/0910/7, dated 30.5.07 addressed to PCEs of All Indian Railways. Sub: Precautions to be taken on Passenger intensive routes. *** Board (ME) desired that following precautions should be taken on the passenger intensive routes (Prority-1) and on CC+8+2T routes (Priority-2): 1. Joggle fish plating of the thermit welds (irrespective of age) on the outer rail of the curves should be done on priority. The fist plating should be done using clamps without drilling of holes. 2. Joggle fish plating of the thermit weld on the bridges along with its approaches upto 100 m should be done. 3. Each and every weld fracture is to be analyzed by sectional Sr.DEN/DEN. It should be ascertained whether weld failure is sudden, due to some impact or it is due to an inherent defect leading to fatigue like, improper fusion or blow holes or presence of fin etc., remedial action due to be identified and taken promptly.

Sd/- (S.K.AGRAWAL) Executive Director Track (P) Railway Board.

Copy of Headquarters letter No.413/Joggling, dt._______ addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Joggled fish plating of all thermit wells on sections with traffic density less than 15 GMT.

*** As per Railway Board E.S.O. No.34/3/1 (Revision-1) dated 10.11.2004 para 5(1) for lines with traffic density less than 15 GMT normally TWR is to be planned on completion of 50% stipulated fatigue life of the rail. If it is decided to continue with old thermit welds in view of very less traffic, complete weld testing be done, once in five years, irrespective whether testing is due as per GMT criteria or not. In case such testing is not done, welds more than 15 years old should be joggled fish plated with two far end tight bolts. In this context due to the constraint in manpower for USFD testing, it is decided to joggle fishplate all thermit welds of age 15 years or more where traffic density is less than 15 GMT. Hence, it is advised to plan for the joggle fish plating of all such thermit welds on identical locations in following sections.

Division Secunderabad

Nanded

Hyderabad Guntur

Section SC-WD (DN LINE) MTMI-JPTN VKB-PRLI SNF-MLY (Bye Pass) DKJ-MUGR KRA-SYI MMR-PAU PBN-PRLI ADB-PMPT FM-DHNE NLPD-NDKD-MRGA

Divisions are advise to identify the number of welds requiring fish plating in above mentioned sections and plan for fish plating duly making necessary arrangements for procuring fish plates. Till such time fish plating is not done, weld testing may be carried out as per prescribed frequency. Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

Copy of Headquarters letter No.W.413/Joggling, dt.21.6.07 addressed to All Sr.DEN/Co-ordinations of S.C.Railway. Sub: Precautions to be taken on Passenger intensive routes. *** In regard to the above subject, a copy of the Railway Boards letter No.Track/21/99/0910/7, dt.30.5.2007 is enclosed herewith for information, wherein it has been instructed to take the followed precautions on the passenger intensity routes (priority-1) and on CC+8+2T routes (Priority-2). 1. Joggle fish plating of the thermit welds (irrespective of age) on the outer rail of the curves should be done on priority. The fish plating should be done using clamps without drilling of holes. Joggle fish plating of the thermit weld on the bridges along with its approaches upto 100 m should be done. Each and every weld fracture is to be analysed by sectional Sr.DEN/DEN. It should be ascertained whether weld failure defect leading to fatigue like, improper fusion or blow holes or presence of fin etc., remedial action due to be identified and taken promptly.

2. 3.

In this connection it is advised to follow Boards instructions as received giving priority to sharp curves (In order of sharpness in the division) and taking into account the importance of routes based on passenger traffic. The progress of the above work done should be furnished in the new PCDO proforma every month without fail so as to enable this office to compile and put up to Board.

Sd/- (S.P.SAHU) Chief Track Engineer

ENGINEERING STANDING ORDER NO..60

Sub:-Corrosion on Rail foot due to Liner Bite - Protection reg. ***** Instructions regarding protection of rail against corrosion on rail due to liner bite have been issued from time to time. On study of the problem in detail, it is noted that average rate of corrosion on rail foot is of the order of approx. 1 mm per year without application of any protective measures. In order to overcome the problem, detailed consolidated instructions on anti-corrosive treatment or rails, welds and other P.Way fittings have also been issued vide ESO No.59, indicting various protective measures to be taken on rails and other fittings. Divisions should ;meticulously adopt all the measures mentioned therein. 2. It is noted that the ate of corrosion has slowed down after taking preventive measures, like; initial painting of rails, sealing of liner contact area with grease graphite, galvanizing of liners etc. Study of rails laid in severely affected corrosion prone areas in BZA Divn. Revealed that even with protection measures, like initial panting of rails and sealing of liner contact area at one year interval, there is possibility of corrosion at liner contact area setting-in after a period of 3 to 4 years. Considering the situation as brought out above, there is likelihood of corrosion pit crossing a limit of 1 mm within a period of 4 to 5 years. It has also been noted that there is very little corrosion either on rail foot or, fittings on non-gauge face side. Also, the area in between the sleepers is comparatively free of corrosion pits. 3. In order to overcome the problem of rail failures, rising out of deep corrosion pits in liner contact area, it has been decided to carryout he operation of rail distressing involving shifting of liner contact area irrespective of any other criteria. During this process,. It shall be ensured that the exiting liner contact area is shifted away from the sleeper set by a minimum of 150mm by physically pulling the rail, using rollers and rail dollies / tensors, in the direction of Traffic in case of Double line, followed by distressing of panels using rail tensor, whenever required. This operation shall be addition to the corrosion protection measures as stipulated in ESO No.59.During this process, renewal of worn-out / crushed rubber pads, corrode ERCs and liners shall also be carried out. 4. Accordingly, the operation of shifting liner contact area and distressing, on corrosion prone areas shall be carried out a under a. At an interval of 5 years, or, before corrosion pit depth at liner contact area reaches a limit of 1.5mm, which ever is earlier. Next round of de-stressing shall again be carried out after next 5 years, or, before corrosion pit depth at liner contact area reaches a limit of 1.5mm at shifted location, whichever is earlier. c. During each process of de-stressing, it should be ensured that liner contact area is shifted away from the existing rail sea in the direction of traffic in case of Double line, by a minimum of 15mm, so that corrosion pit, if any formed at sleeper seat gets shifted away and does not aggravate further. In any case,

b.

efforts should be made to ensure that corrosion at liner contact area is not allowed to exceed a limit of 1.5mm t any point of time. d. The above operation shall be repeated at interval mentioned at (i) & (ii) above, till rail achieves full GMT, or, there is no possibility of further shifting of rails due to existence of number of pits on rail foot. When the stage stated at (iii) above ha reached, and if rail still has residual life, operation of rail interchanging (left to right and vice-versa) shall be tried, so that corrosion pits are shifted to non-gauge face side.

e.

f.

The operation of sealing of liner contact area and other corrosion protection measures shall continue to be carried out as per ESO No. 59 dt.02.10.08. During the process of de-stressing an shifting of liner contact area, renewal of wornout / crushed rubber pads and corroded ERCs & Liners shall also be carried out. Destressing warranted on any other account as stipulated in LWR Manual vide Para No.6.4.1 shall be carried out as per the site requirement.

g.

h.

5. Keeping in view corrosion of rail on both gauge face and non-gauge face at platform lines of station yards para 2.1 (b)(b) of ESO No.59 stands modified as under : In-service painting of rails: In-service painting of rails shall be carried out depending upon condition, but not earlier than one in two years. Area to be covered shall be web and top flange only. For locations other than platform lines, only gauge face side shall be painted. For platform lines of station yards, Non gauge face side will also be painted. Such painting shall consist of two coats of anti-corrosive Bituminous black paint conforming to IS 9862-1981 to a thickness of 100 microns, as per instructions circulated vide Lr. No.W.501/1/7/Vol.V, dt.8.4.04. Sealing of liner contact area should b done after scrapping and painting. The activities should be planned accordingly. 6.1 Corrosion Measurement and recording: At present there is no system of measuring and monitoring the problem of corrosion on rail foot. In order to know and monitor extent of corrosion on rail foot, particularly at liner contact area, periodical measurement of corrosion pit bother vertically and laterally (reduction in bottom flange width of rail), shall be taken using straight edge and filler gauges. Such measurements shall be recorded at a frequency of one year on every 100 sleepers by removing ERCs & liners on gauge face side. Results of such measurement shall be recorded in a register

CORROSION MEASUREMENT ON RAIL FOOT ( AT LINER CONTACT AREA) Div Section.. BetweenStations Track Structure Rail. Sleeper Density Annual GMT.

Whether Corrosion prone area ( Yes/No) Date of testing 1 Location( Sleeper KM/TP) No. 2 3 Corrosion depth on gauge face in mm Remarks with Left Right signature Vertical Lateral Vertical Lateral 4 5 6 7 8

6.2 The register should be cross checked by ADEN/DEN/Sr.DENs during their inspections and necessary action to implement corrosion control measures should be taken. 7.0 On existing rails, where corrosion pits depth is already > 3mm, operation of destressing, may result into shifting of liner contact area, which is not desirable. In such stretches, efforts shall be made to intensity corrosion control activities like; regular cleaning,. Painting and sealing of liner contact area from sleeper seat, shall also not be carried out, as such a situation is also likely to increase propensity of rail fractures through corrosion pits on rail foot In suspended conditions. Such stretches shall be kept under close watch. For all such locations, Divisions shall carry out detailed survey and submit proposals for renewals ( TRR/CTR as the case may be ) in PWP as per IRPWM para-302 (b) (ii), duly supported with relevant records and documentation. These instructions should be brought into practice with immediate effect. This issues with the approval of PCE.

( S.P. SAHU) CHIEF TRACK ENGINEER

South Central Railway Office of the DRM/Works/SC Date 25.5.2007

No.CW.506.Tra ck/Grade/Genl. All ADENs / SC Division

Sub: Performance of SKV Welders and Grading. *** A database has been developed at the Divisional office and Headquarters. CTE has given instructions to assess the performance of the welders an grading should be given to each welder working in your section. As ` A,B or C. The welders whose grade is A & B only should be utilize in the field as welders. The other welders who are graded as C should be utilized for supporting the welder and after they gain confidence, they are supposed to be upgraded. However, no welding should be done in the field who are not having valid compe6tency certificate and graded as B or C. Sample proforma is enclosed to fallow and the details available are to be update and submitted to the undersigned along with the number of weldings done by the individual during the year 2006 till date. Their performance results in terms of defective joints / failed joints shall b shown and considered for awarding gradations. The guidelines given may be follows. Marks to be awarded: For Technical knowledge For Skill in execution. For quality welding (Based on defective/failed joints) Total 35 Marks 35 Marks 30 Marks ------100 Marks -----

Grading A B C > or= 90 Marks < 90 and > or = 75 Marks < 75 Marks

CORRECTION SLIP NO.1 ENGINEERING STANDING ORDER NO.3 of 01.2.1999 Sub:-Guidelines for containing rail fractures/weld failures. **** In partial modification to the above Standing order, the following amendments are made to the para mentioned below:Existing para No.2.1. shall be read as under:= Thermit welding should preferably be done on cess. When the welding work is done on the cess full rail length should be leveled by supporting on at least ten wooden blocks on either side, if done in site, it should be done under line block of adequate duration. The rail fastenings for at least five sleepers on either side of the proposed weld shall be loosened to avoid internal contraction stress at the joint during cooling. The approximate time required for various operation for execution of SKV welding in situ under traffic block are indicated below:Sl. Process involved 52 Kg Section 60 Kg Section No Welding Time Welding Time 1. Loosening of rail fastenings, gap 15-20 minutes 15-20 minutes creation, alignment and Rail end cleaning. 2. Burner Stand setting, crucible stand 10 minutes 10 minutes setting ,mould fixing & luting 3. Pre-heating 10 minutes 12 minutes 4, Reaction time, removal of burner, 3 minutes 3 minutes tapping and removal of crucible stand 5 Mould waiting time 5 minutes 6 minutes 6. Trimming of weld 3 minutes 3 minutes 7. First train passing time 30 minutes 30 minutes 8. TOTAL 76-81 MINUTES 79-84 MNUTES Hence, f welding is done in situ, it should be done under line block of minimum 75 minutes for SKV welding process. Sd/- (G.P. Mallikharjun) Principal Chief Engineer

USFD Testing of AT Welds

ULTRASONIC TESTING OF ALUMINO-THERMIC WELDED RAIL JOINTS 1. SCOPE: Following types of testing for Alumino Thermic welds have been prescribed. These are: (a) Testing of weld head/web, which gets covered during through periodic rail testing by SRT/DRT. The frequency of testing in this case is as per para 6.8.1.1 of USFD Manual. As per this testing defects detected in weld heads are classified as IMRW and OBSW aide Annexure II. The action to be taken for such defective welds is as per para 6.4 (b) Periodic testing of complete weld by hand probing of weld head/web and bottom flange using O 2MHz, 70 2 MHz, 45 2 MHz probe ( AT weld foot scanning for half moon shaped defect) and 70 2 MHz ( 8 x 8 mm) probes. The frequency of testing in this case is as per 6.8.2.1 of USFD Manual. As per this testing defects detected in welds are classified as DFW . The action to be taken for such defective welds is as per Para 6.6 of USFD manual. (c) Besides this, welds are also tested after their execution using O 2 MHz, 70 2 MHZ, 45 2 MHz probe( AT weld foot scanning for clustered defect/ micro porosities in web foot region) and 45 2MHz ( Tandem probe scanning for lack of fusion). This test is termed as Initial Acceptance Test. As per this testing, defects detected in welds are classified as DFW . The action to be taken for such defective welds is as per Para 8.10 of USFD manual. 2. Equipment : Any RDSO approved model of ultrasonic equipment for Alumino-thermic welded rail joints as per RDSO specification No. M&C/NDT/129/2005 or its latest version along with rig for tandem testing.

3. Probes : ( i) Normal/O , 2 MHz, 18 mm Dia, Double crystal - 1 no. ( ii ) 45, 2 MHz, 20 mm Dia. Or 20mmx 20 mm square crystal size, Single crystal - 3 nos ( iii ) 70, 2 MHz, 20 mm Dia. Or 20mmx 20 mm square crystal size, Single crystal - 1 no. ( iv) 70, 2 MHz, 8 mm x 8 mm crystal size, Single crystal - 1 no 4. Cable : Co-axial cable for each probe shall be used. The length shall not be more than 2 mtrs. 5. Couplant : Soft grease shall be used as couplant. 6. Testing procedure and Classification: Sl. No. 1 Probe Calibr ation Sensitivity Defect Classification( DFW) From head 40% or more ht.From web or foot >20% ht From head 40% or more ht Type of Detected defect Locatio n Head & Web

O 2 300 MHz mm

60% FSH on 3 mm hole in head

70 S/C 300 2MHZ mm

70 S/C 300 2MHZ mm

45 S/C 500 2 MHZ mm

70 S/C 300m 2 MHZ m ( 8x8

To detect Porosity, Blow holes, Slag inclusion in Head&upto mid web of weld 60% FSH To detect lack of on 3 mm Fusion, Porosity, hole in head Blow holes, Slag inclusion, Crack in Head of AT weld 60% FSH 40% or more To detect lack of on 3 mm ht fusion, Porosity, hole in the Blow holes, Slag middle of inclusion in Flange the Flange of AT weld of AT weld 60% FSH 20% or more To detect Halfon ht moon shaped Simulated defect ay bottom notch at of weld Bottom of AT weld 60% FSH 20% or more To detect Halfon ht moon shaped Simulated defect ay bottom

Head

Foot

Foot

Foot

mm)

45/45 500 S/C 2 mm MHZ (Tande m Techni que)

notch at Bottom of AT weld 100% of 40% or more FSH and increase the Gain by 10db

of weld

To detect vertical oriented defects such as lack of fusion in rail head, web and foot region below web.

Head, Web & foot below web

7. Defect Classification, marking and action taken: Marking on both Classification sides of web DFW ++ With red paint

Action to be taken For NEW Welds: These DFW welds shall be cropped, re-welded and tested again. For Service welds: These DEW welds on detection, SE/USFD/shall impose SR 30kmph or stricter immediately. He should communicate to Sec Se about the flaw location who shall ensure the following: ( i ) protection of DFW weld by jog. Fps using min.2 tight clamps/2 far end tight bolts one on each side, after which SR can be relaxed upto 100/75 Kmph for Goods/Pass trains. ( ii ) In case protection of DFW weld has been done using jog.FPs with clamps, the DFW weld shall be replaced with in 15 days. However, protection of DFW weld has a been done using jog.FPs with 2 far end tight bolts SR shall continue till weld is replaced which should not be later than 3 months. The DFW weld with SR may be continued in track if the track is to be renewed with in 12 months.

8. Weld Testing Frequency ( SKV ) S.No Type Type of testing of Weld 1 SKV Acceptance Test First Periodic Test Further Tests based on route GMT Testing Schedule

Immediately after welding One year Routes Having Frequency GMT > 45 2 years > 30 < 45 3 years > 15 < 30 4 years 0 - 15 5 years

9. Note: ( i ) Due to unusual high weld failure or abnormal development in some sections, Chief Engineer may order testing of welds early, as per need. ( ii )The USFD testing can be dispensed with in case of those welds which are more than 15 years old and protected by joggled fish plates with far end tight bolts. ( iii ) TWR should be planned after the welds have carried 50% of the stipulated GMT of Rails.

Extracts from T-19 Manual 1994

INDIAN RAILWAY STANDARD SPECIFICATION FOR FUSION WELDING OF RAILS BY ALUMINO THERMIC PROCESS Serial No. IRS T-19-1994 EXTRACTS FOREWORD This specification is issued under the fixed serial No.T-19. This was originally adopted in 1961 and was revised in 1965 and 1984. This third revision is necessitated to include current technological improvements in the process. In this revised specification, test requirements of 90 UTS, 110 UTS and Head Hardened rails have been incorporated, acceptable percentage of porosity, tapping time and transverse breaking load requirements have been revised. 1. 1.1 INTRODUCTION The soundness of the welds produced by alumino - thermic process depends on the quality of (a) alumino-thermic mixture hereinafter referred to as the MIXTURE and (b) the technical control exercised during the preparation for and the execution of the welding by this process. The quantity of the MIXTURE required for welding one rail joint shall be called a portion. A batch shall consist of a number of portions manufactured from similarly and simultaneously treated raw materials. Portions manufactured by agencies approved by RDSO and accepted by nominated inspecting authority shall only be used. Except for welds executed for laboratory evaluation and acceptance test, all welds shall be executed under the supervision of personnel possessing valid competency certificate either from RDSO or from Thermit Portion Plant, Northern Railway, Charbagh, Lucknow. No changes in weld design, range of weld metal chemistry, its acceptance tests and the methods of welding shall be made without the consent of the approving authority. Approving Authority shall mean Director General, Research, Design & Standards Organization (Ministry of Railways), Manak Nagar, Lucknow 226011 or his representative. The numerical values may be rounded off as per IS:2. SCOPE This specification is for A.T. Welding of rails to IRS Specification T-12 and UIC Specification 860-0, Alloy Steel Rails, viz., Chrome Manganese and Chrome-Vanadium and Head Hardened rails. This Indian Railway Standard covers:-

1.2. 1.3. 1.4. 1.5.

1.6.

1.7 2. 2.1 2.2

a) Technical requirements for thermit portions and welded joints including various acceptance tests. b) Procedure for approval of Alumino-thermic portion manufacturers c) Procedure for approval of A.T. Welding Supervisors, Welders and contracting firms. d) Acceptance tests for in-situ and cess Alumino Thermic joints. 2.3 Reference Documents: This standard refers to the following Indian Standards of the Bureau of Indian Standards. These should be available at the manufacturers works for reference. (i) IS:2 Rules for rounding off numerical values (ii) (iii) (iv) IS:187 IS:9738 Cotton long cloth Polyethylene bags for general purposes

IS:2500(Pt. I) Sampling inspection tables: Part I inspection by attributes and by count of defects.

(v) IS:1500 Method for Brinnell hardness test for metallic materials. PART A Technical Requirements for Thermit Portions 3. 3.1 SUPPLY OF THE PORTIONS The portions shall be submitted for acceptance batch wise as per one of the following two provisions: a) A batch shall consist of 300 portions or part thereof manufacture on the same day from similarly and simultaneously treated raw materials. b) For the manufacturers having ISO:9000 certification, a batch may consist of 600 portions or part thereof manufactured on the same day from similarly treated raw materials and processing and mixing of all ingredients being done completely under automation by four feeder channels. (The nature and category of complete automation) and process control will be certified by the inspecting authority for permitting such batch). However, if automatic working of any of the four feeder channels gets stopped, the batch size shall revert back to 300nos. Batch numbering shall be given year-wise in six digits code, whose first two digits will indicate two digits of the year of manufacture and the balance 4 digits, the serial number of the batch. The batch number at the beginning of each year shall, therefore, commence from 0001. 3.2 Every portion shall be packed in a moisture proof bag of Polyethylene to IS:9738, Indian Standard Specification for Polyethylene bags for general Purposes Grade HM HDPE of 150 micron thickness which should be sealed so as to make it airtight. The Polyethylene bag should then be packed in a heavy duty bag made of New cloth to IS:187. The open end of the cloth bag

3.3

shall be stitched and sealed in such a manner that there is no access to the portion without damaging the bag or breaking its seal. Following particulars shall be indicated on two similar labels - One placed inside the Polyethylene bag containing the portion and the other outside with the seal on the bag:i) Batch No. ii) Portion No. iii) Date of manufacture iv) The section and grade of rail to be welded v) Welding technique vi) Insignia of the firm `The insignia of the firm and rail type should be printed on the exterior of the cloth bag as per the under-mentioned colour scheme:S.No. 1. 2. 3. Rail type 72 UTS 90 UTS 110 UTS (Chrome Manganese & Chrome - Vanadium) 110 UTS Head Hardened Colour Red Green Black

4.

Yellow

The bags containing portion shall be packed in a sturdy wooden/Heavy duty corrugated card board approved by RDSO/Metallic container. No container with the portion bags shall weigh more than 60 kg. Any bag of portion found damaged at the time of delivery shall NOT be accepted. 4. ACCEPTANCE TESTS Two portions shall be randomly selected per batch and weight of each portion shall be verified with the approved weight and recorded by the Inspector. The following tests shall be conducted for assessing the quality of portions as selected above: a) Reaction test b) Checking of weld metal dimensions of test weld with approved weld metal dimensions of that particular welding technique c) Ultrasonic test on test weld d) Mechanical and Metallurgical tests on test weld. One portion shall be utilised for conducting reaction test as per clause 4.1 and other portion shall be used for execution of test weld. The test weld shall be subjected to ultrasonic test as per Annexure - I and checked for weld metal dimensions with the approved weld metal dimensions of that particular welding technique and if found satisfactory the test joint shall be subjected to Mechanical and Metallurgical tests as per clause 4.2.

4.1 Reaction Tests 4.1.1 Reaction test shall be carried out on one of the selected portions. 4.1.2 During the course of the Alumino-thermic reaction, observations in regard to the characteristics of the reaction, i.e. whether it is quiet, normal or boiling shall be made. Reaction which is boiling, shall be rejected. The reaction and tapping shall be within 20+3 seconds. The Alumino-thermic steel shall be poured in standard mould so as to obtain a bar having diameter between 25 and 35mm. 4.1.3 A transverse section shall be cut from the middle third portion of the bar of Alumino-thermic steel obtained from reaction test as laid down in clause.4.1.2. Full chemical composition of all the elements of thermit steel shall be determined spectroscopically at two points located at the mid-radii of the cross section and shall conform to the following: Grade C% of rail 90 UTS 0.5 0.7 72 0.4 UTS 0.55 Mn% 0.80 1.30 0.80 1.20 Si% (Max.) 0.50 0.50 S% (Max.) 0.05 0.05 P% (Max.) 0.05 0.05 V%* 0.10 0.15 0.10 0.15 Mo%* 0.10 0.25 0.10 0.25 Al% 0.15 0.65 0.15 0.65 Cr% (Max.) 0.2 0.2

* Either Vanadium or Molybdenum may be used as grain refiner. 4.2 Mechanical and Metallurgical tests on test welds

4.2.1 Two new rail pieces of same section and grade, each approximately 750mm long, shall be used to make test weld joint. The welded joint shall be made as per the technique offered by the manufacturer. The rail table and sides of rail head shall be finished to the geometrical tolerances specified in Clause 18.1. 4.2.2 Hardness test Brinnell hardness test shall be carried out at the welded zone, heat affected zones and parent metal of the rails in accordance with IS:1500, Method for Brinnell Hardness test for steel. The test shall be done on the top surface of the head of the test weld with a ball of 10 mm dia and a test load of 3000 kg maintained for 10 secs. The average hardness values of different rail chemistry is given in Table 1A for reference Table - 1A Type of rail Average Hardness(BHN) 72 UTS 90 UTS UIC Cr-Mn or Cr-V Head rail rail alloy steel rail Hardened rail 229 265 311 341

The average hardness number (of two readings) determined for the weld metal (WM), heat affected zone (HAZ ) and parent metal (PM) at location shown as W H & P respectively in fig. 1 shall be as per table - 1B given below : Note: (i) For 25mm gap SKV welding & for any preheating device used. (Air-petrol/ Compressed Air Petrol/ Oxy-LPG) X = 40 mm Y = 100 mm (ii) For 50mm gap combination joint welding & for any preheating device used.

X = 60 mm Y = 120 mm (iii) For 75 mm wide gap welding & for any preheating device used X = 80 mm Y = 150 mm Table 1B S.No. 1. Hardness BHN Weld Metal (W) 72 UTS rail of all sections 229 + 20 with normal & wide gap -0 Rail Section/Chemistry 90 UTS rail of all sections 265 + 20 with normal & wide gap -0 52 kg (90 UTS) Vs 90R (72 265 + 20 UTS) -0 combination joint with 50mm gap

2. 3.

Heat affected zone(H) + 20 of actual parent metal hardness (location P) ,, ,,

4.

5.

60 kg (90 UTS) Vs 52kg 265 + 20 (90 UTS) -0 combination joints with 50mm gap 60kg H.H. rail 321 (min.)

,,

6.

UIC Cr-Mn or Cr-V alloy 311 + 20 steel rail -0

Not less than [actual parent metal hardness (Location P) -100] BHN + 20 of actual parent metal hardness (location P)

4.2.3 Transverse breaking load test 4.2.3.1 The test weld shall be supported on cylindrical or semi-cylindrical supports having a distance of one meter between them from center to center. The weld shall be at the center of the span and loaded in such a manner that the foot of the rail is in tension. The diameter of mandrel and the supports shall be between 30 to 50mm. The load shall be gradually increased (rate of loading shall not exceed 2.5t/sec.) till rupture occurs. The test weld shall withstand a minimum load and show corresponding minimum deflection as stipulated in Table-2 for different sections and types of rails. TABLE 2 S.No. Rail type Rail Section Min transverse Min deflection breaking load in mm at the in tones centre at the load in col.4 4. 5. 50 15 55 15 65 15 85 18 95 18 60 15 80 15 90 15 115 15

1. A.

B.

2. 72 UTS to IRS T-12 60R for normal gap 75R welding & wide gap 90R (75 mm) welding 52Kg 60 Kg 90 UTS to IRS T-12/ 75R UIC 860-0 or 90R equivalent for normal 52kg & wide gap(75mm) 60 kg welding

3.

C.

Alloy steel Cr-Mn or 52kg Cr-V type 110 UTS for 60kg normal gap welding

95 115

10 10

D.

Combination joint (50mm gap)

*52kg (90 UTS)/ 90R (72 UTS)

70

15 15 12

60kg (90 UTS)/ 90 52kg (90 UTS) E. Head Hardened Rails 60kg 115 to IRS T12 for normal gap welding * 90 UTS portion should be used in 52 kg / 90 R combination joints.

4.2.3.2 If the fracture does not occur through weld, a slice shall be cut transversely at the weld and etched in boiling 1:1 Hydrochloric acid for about 20 minutes to determine casting defects if any. 4.2.3.3 The fractured surface of the weld, or in case where macro-etching is done on transverse section through the joint, shall not show defects such as blow holes, porosity and inclusions etc. exceeding total permissible area of defect shown in Table-3. However, the size of any individual defect shall not exceed 2mm diameter. The defects should not be interconnected and none of these shall extend up to the outer surface of the weld. There shall not be any lack of fusion. The fractured surface shall also not show the presence of accretions or mirror like structure and shall be crystalline in appearance. TABLE 3 (Area of permissible defects) Rail section Permissible total area of defect (mm2) 19.0 23.7 28.5 33.0 38.4

60R 75R 90R 52kg 60kg

4.3 Retests 4.3.1 If the results of any of the tests referred to in clause 4.1 and 4.2 are found to be unsatisfactory, the batch will stand rejected. However, retests can be carried out at the manufacturers request. These retests shall be carried out as per para 4.1 and 4.2 on twice the original sample size. 4.3.2 If the results of all the retest samples are satisfactory, the batch represented by the sample portions shall be accepted. If any sample fails to meet the requirements of any of the tests, the batch shall be rejected. 5. REPROCESSING

In the event of a batch failing to comply with the requirements of clause 4, the manufacturer may resubmit the batch after necessary reprocessing ONCE only. The reprocessed portion shall be submitted under a separate batch number with a suffix R and shall be tested as per clause 4 above. 6. 6.1 ACCEPTANCE Acceptance shall be done batch wise. Every individual batch that satisfies the conditions prescribed in this specification shall be accepted. Each bag containing the portion shall be sealed by the manufacturer and the container shall be suitably stamped/sealed by the Inspecting Officer. The stamp/seal shall be such that it shall not be possible to open the container without breaking stamp/seal. The manufacturer shall dispatch the accepted portions to the consignee preferably within 60 days from the date of acceptance. DISPOSAL OF REJECTED PORTIONS In case the batch fails to meet the requirements of clause 4, it shall be rejected. The rejected portions shall be separately stored and a proper accountal shall be kept. The disposal of these rejected portions shall be advised to the Inspecting agency. TESTING FACILITIES The manufacturer shall, at his own expense, supply all labour, materials, consumables, rail pieces and appliances for testing, both for initial tests and retests as may be carried out in presence of the Inspecting Officer, in his own premises or at any other acceptable place in accordance with this specification. INSPECTION OF PREMISES AND RECORDS The purchaser or the Inspecting Officer shall have free access to the premises of the manufacturer at all reasonable times. They shall be at liberty to inspect all the records and the manufacture of portions at any stage.

6.2 7.

8.

9.

PART B APPROVAL OF PORTIONS MANUFACTURERS 10. 11. 11.1 The approval of Portion Manufacturer shall be given separately for each section and metallurgy of rail and for each technique of welding. For the purpose of approval, the following definitions shall apply. Portion Manufacturer shall mean the organisation manufacturing the portion. In addition, the Portion Manufacturer may execute A.T. Welding of rail joints by his technique. Approving Authority shall be Director General, Research Designs & Standards Organisation, Ministry of Railways, Manak Nagar, Lucknow 226011 or his representative.

11.2

12. 12.1

PROCEDURE FOR APPROVAL OF PORTION MANUFACTURERS The application for approval shall be submitted by the Portion Manufacturer to the Approving Authority, indicating the rail for which portion is being offered and the welding technique. Approving Authority, on receipt of such an application, shall forward necessary proformae to be filled in by the applicant. The amount to be deposited shall also be intimated. The applicant shall return the proformae, duly filled in, along with a demand draft for the prescribed amount drawn in favour of Director (Finance), Research, Designs & Standards Organisation, Manak Nagar, Lucknow 226011. If the information submitted by the applicant is prima facie found to be satisfactory, the Approving Authority shall inspect the premises of the applicant for assessment. If the assessment is satisfactory, tests and trials shall be undertaken by the Approving Authority. Tests and trials for approval of Portion Manufacturers.

12.2

12.3

12.4

12.5

12.5.1 The Portion Manufacturer shall manufacture a batch of 150 portions at his own cost. Samples shall be drawn at random by the Approving Authority and the following laboratory tests shall be carried out at the Manufacturers works premises or at a laboratory mutually agreed upon between the manufacturer and the approving authority. i) ii) a) b) c) d) Six numbers of reaction tests will be conducted as per clause 4.1 Twelve tests weld joints shall be made as per clause 4.2.2. The weld joints shall be subjected to following tests:Ultrasonic test on all the joints as per procedure laid down at Annexure-1. Brinnell Hardness test on all the joints as per clause 4.2.2. Transverse load and deflection test as per clause 4.2.3 on six randomly selected joints. Magnetic crack detection and macro examination on deep etched longitudinal sections, across the weld on the remaining six joints. This examination shall not reveal any lack of fusion or cracks. Other welding defects, e.g. porosity, inclusions etc. shall not exceed 0.5% of the weld area in longitudinal section. The size of any individual defect shall not exceed 2mm diameter. The defects should not be interconnected and none of these shall extend upto the outer surface.

12.5.2 RETEST If the results of any of the tests referred to in clause 12.5.1 fail to meet the requirements of the test, the technique shall be rejected. However, retest can be carried out at the request of the Portion Manufacturer provided not more

than 2 joints have failed in ultrasonic testing and not more than one joint has failed in each of the other tests mentioned in clause 12.5.1. For retest, same number of test specimens as mentioned for each test in clause 12.5.1 shall be welded. None of the sample joint should fail in retest. 13. 13.1 I) II) III) FATIGUE TEST Fatigue testing of thermit welding technique shall be arranged by the manufacturer at his own expense. Following principle shall be followed:For 90UTS metallurgy : Anyone section out of 52kg/60kg (when both the sections have been developed the lighter section should be selected for fatigue testing). For 72 UTS metallurgy : Any one section out of 90R/52kg (when both the section have been developed the lighter section should be selected for fatigue testing). Development of any other A.T. Welding technology such as wider gap, gas heating, Chrome Manganese/Head Hardened rails shall also be got separately fatigue tested before standardization. However, one section for one technique shall be required to be fatigue tested.

13.2 The weld samples shall be tested in a recognised laboratory/test centre for which prior approval of RDSO shall be necessary. 13.3 i) ii) iii) iv) v) 13.4 Following scheme shall be followed for fatigue testing of thermit welded rail joints:Three weld samples shall be made in presence of RDSO representatives. The weld samples shall be made with one meter long new rail pieces to have an overall length of 2.0m. The rail and joint shall be ultrasonically tested. Testing shall be done for stress ranges of tensile 20 kg/mm2 to compressive4 kg/mm2 (these are the stresses on the bottom surface of rail foot). The test frequency shall be anyone frequency between 8.33 Hz to 12 Hz. A joint shall be deemed to have passed if it withstands a minimum of 2 million cycles. The technique shall be deemed to have cleared fatigue test if all the three samples pass the above test.

Retest In case of failure of not more than one joint in the above test, retest can be carried out at the request of the portion manufacturer. For the purpose of retest, three more weld samples shall be made in presence of RDSO representative and subjected to the above test. The technique shall be deemed to have passed the fatigue test if all the three retest samples pass the test.

14 FIELD TRIALS 14.1 Subject to the results of the tests in clause 12 and 13 being satisfactory, service trials for a period of one year or till passage of 10 GMT traffic over the joint, whichever is earlier, shall be undertaken on 50 to 100 trial joints welded using the above batch of portion. For the purpose of field trials, an order shall be placed by the nominated Zonal Railway on the manufacturer for supply of portions as well as welding of trial joints. The trial joints shall be distinctly marked by painting letter T on the web of the rail beyond 300mm from the joints. During execution of trial welding at site, spoilt joints, if any, shall be cut and re-welded by the contractor at his own expense. 14.2 All the trial joints shall be ultrasonically tested soon after welding as per procedure at Annexure - 1. Upto a maximum of 2 % defective welds, shall be cut and re-welded by the manufacturer at his own expense. If more than 2 % joints are found defective, the trial shall be discontinued considering the technique to be unsatisfactory. All the defective joints shall be removed from track by the manufacturer at his own expense. 14.3 Failure of more than 2% joints during service trial will render the technique unacceptable. 15. The approving authority shall have free access to the premises of the portion manufacturer at all reasonable times. The portion manufacturer shall furnish all the technical data to the approving authority as and when call for. 16. PART C: PROCEDURE FOR APPROVAL OF A.T. WELDING SUPERVISORS AND WELDERS

16.1

For the purpose of approval, the following definitions shall apply:Welding Supervisor shall mean an individual engaged with portion manufacturer with adequate knowledge and competence for supervising and executing Alumino Thermic welding of rail joints. Welder shall mean an individual with adequate skill and competence for executing Alumino Thermic welding of rail joints at site. The approval of welding supervisors/welders for execution of Alumino Thermic welds at site shall be given separately for the following categories of welding techniques:a) b) c) Welding of 72 UTS and 90 UTS rails with standard gap. Wide gap welding. Welding of 110 UTS and Head Hardened rails.

16.2 Competency certificates for welding supervisors and welders of the zonal Railways shall be issued by the Thermit Portion Plant of Northern Railway at Lucknow. Competency certificates for welding supervisors and welders of firms shall be issued by DG (M&C) RDSO, Lucknow.

16.3 Test weld joints will be made using any rail section at the discretion of the approving authority. Welding supervisors/welders found competent shall be deemed to be fit for A.T. welding of all rail sections for the particular category as per clause 16.1. For execution of test weld joints, the welding supervisor/welder desirous of obtaining approval shall have to utilise his own welding team, rails, implements and portions procured from approved manufacturers. 16.4 The firm shall pay, in advance, charges for certification of supervisors/welders as per rates decided by RDSO for this purpose. Payment should be made through demand draft drawn in favour of Director(Finance), RDSO, Manak Nagar, Lucknow 226011. 16.5 Six test welds shall be made by the welding supervisor/welder and his team for the particular category of welding technique (as per clause 16.1) for which approval is sought. Following tests shall be carried out at the sponsoring firms works premises or at RDSO, Lucknow:a) b) Ultrasonic testing as per procedure mentioned at Annexure-1. Failure of more than one test weld will disqualify the welding supervisor/welder. The ultrasonically sound joints will be subjected to following tests:i) Brinnell hardness test on all the test welds as per clause 4.2.2. ii) Transverse load and deflection tests on any three test welds as per clause 4.2.3. iii) Magnetic crack detection and more examination of remaining three test welds longitudinally sectioned across the weld as per clause 12.5.1 (ii) (d). iv) Joint geometry as per clause 18.1

16.6 If the test results are satisfactory, a provisional competency certificate, valid for two years, shall be issued to the welding supervisor/welder on behalf of the sponsoring firm. The provisionally approved welding supervisor/welder competency shall be re-assessed by RDSO/TPP, Lucknow after two years for issue of competency certificate valid for five years. 16.6.1 For the purpose of reassessment, the welding supervisor/welder shall submit, to the approving authority, the following details duly countersigned by the concerned Assistant Engineer of Zonal Railway: a) A record of joints welded/supervised by him. b) No. of joints failed in service. 16.6.2 Based on the above details and personal interview, the approving authority will issue competency certificate. Fresh competency certificate will have to be issued whenever there is a change in the process of welding or when a person who has been earlier trained and issued with a final competency certificate has not been executing welding for a period of more than 2 years or the work done by him has been rated as unsatisfactory. 16.6.3 Renewal of competency certificate will be made based on performance or actual testing.

16.6.4 A 10 character Identification Code Number shall be used for numbering of competency certificate and identification of supervisors and welders. The first three characters shall be alphabets which would indicate the agency (Railway or Firm) to which the supervisor or welder belongs, the next digit (S or W) would denote a supervisor or welder, the next three numbers would be allotted to the particular person (specific person number), next two numbers shall denote the year of issue of the competency certificate and the last alphabet (P or F) shall indicate whether it is Provisional or Final competency certificate. For example , NR0S00190F would indicate a welding supervisor of Northern Railway with specific person number 1, the Final competency certificate having been issued in the year 1990. The specific person number will be continuous for a Zonal Railway/Firm. The Organisation issuing competency certificates shall ensure that there is no duplication of the Identification Code Number. An annual list of valid competency certificates will be circulated by the agency issuing the competency certificates to the zonal railways. Zonal Railways should constantly update and maintain the list of supervisors and welders along with their identification code. Part-D Acceptance Test of Joints welded at site 17. EXECUTION OF WELDS AT SITE 17.1 Alumino-thermic welding of rails shall be executed at site only under the direct supervision of welding supervisor and by welder, both having valid competency certificate issued by RDSO/TPP, Lucknow (see Part C) 17.2 All Alumino - thermic welding work shall be executed with the use of weld trimmer and profile grinder. Additionally, rail tensors shall be used wherever work is done on welded rails. Note: In case of welding of old rails dispensations for not using weld trimmers and profile grinder shall be obtained from Chief Engineer. 18. 18.1 ACCEPTANCE TESTS Visual examination All the welded joints shall be cleaned and examined carefully to detect any visible defect like cracks, blow holes, shrinkage , mismatch, surface finish (smooth surface finish required) etc. Any joint which shows visible defect shall be declared defective. The bottom of the joint shall be checked by feeling with fingers as well as inspected with the help of a mirror for presence of `fins` at the parting line of the mould. If fin is observed in any joint, the joint shall be declared defective. 18.2 Joint Geometry All the finished welded joints shall be checked to ensure that the joint geometry is within the following tolerances:(i) Vertical misalignment +1.0mm -0.0mm (Measured at the end of 1 m straight edge) ( Fig.18.1 (a))

(ii) iii)

Lateral misalignment Head finishing on sides

+0.5mm + 0.3mm

(Measured at the centre of 1m straight edge) (Fig.18.1 (b)) on gauge side (Measured at the centre of 10cm straight edge (Fig.18.1 (c)) (Measured at the end of 10cm straight edge (Fig.18.1 (d))

iv)

Finishing top table surface +0.4mm -0.0mm

Note: Dispensation for joint geometry, in case of old rails may be permitted by Chief Engineer. The details of geometry of each joint shall be jointly signed by the firms and Railways representative and kept as a record. Any joint found not conforming to the above stipulations shall be cut and rewelded, free of cost, by the firm. 18.3 Ultrasonic testing All the welded joints shall be ultrasonically tested by the Railways as per the procedure given at Annexure -1. This testing shall be completed as early as possible after welding but before the welding team leaves welding site. All the joints which are found to be defective shall be cut and re-welded by the firm at its own cost. Where one bad joint is required to be replaced by two new joints, the entire cost of both the joints shall be borne by the firm. Such re-welded joints shall also be tested ultrasonically and if found defective, shall again be cut and re-welded free of cost. However, the number of defective welds shall not exceed 2 % of the total number of joints welded against a particular contract. 18.4 Sample Test Joints: One out of every 100 joints welded per batch shall be selected at random by the purchaser or by the inspecting officer within one month of welding and subjected to hardness and transverse test as per clause 4.2 and the joint shall comply with the provisions laid down therein. 18.4.1 In the event of the failure of sample test joint in any of the requirements of this specification, the Railway will be at liberty to suspend further welding. However, two more randomly selected joints from the same lot of 100 joints shall be subjected to re-tests as per clause 4.2. Both the joints should clear all the tests. If the report is also not satisfactory, further welding of joints shall be suspended until the firm has examined the welding technique and satisfies the requirements of Clause 4 by welding one test joint. The clearance for re-commencement of welding shall be given by RDSO.

19. GUARANTEE 19.1 Rail Joints welded by a firm shall be guaranteed against failure for a period of two years from the date of welding the joints in track or from the date such welded joints made in cess are inserted in the track. Any such welded joint which fails within the guarantee period shall be re-welded free of cost by firm as per stipulations of clause 18.2. 19.2 In case of failure of sample test joints (refer Clause 18.3), the period of guarantee for 100 joints represented by the sample joint shall be executed for a further period of one year. In case of failure of joints or joints exhibiting signs of failure by cracking within extended period of guarantee, the joints shall be re-welded free of cost by the supplier as per stipulations of clause 18.2. 19.3 The welded joints with the extended period of guarantee shall be marked X with yellow paint on the outer side of the web of the rail near the joint in addition to the markings prescribed in Clause 20. Such marked joints shall be kept under careful observation by the purchaser. 20. MARKING

Each joint shall have a distinctive mark indicating month, year of welding, agency, welders code and weld number on web of the rail in the vicinity of the welded joint in the following manner: XX Month XX Last two digits of year XXX XXX XXX Agency Specific person number Weld No.

Details of marking should be painted at approximately 300mm from the joint on web of the rail with white paint on black background. The agency and specific person number (for welder) shall be as per clause 16.6.4. The welded joints shall be serially numbered in a kilometre. Repair welds/additional welds done at a later date may be given continuing weld number in that kilometre. For example, the last thermit weld number in a particular kilometre was 88 and subsequently a thermit weld has been executed, it shall be numbered 89, irrespective of its location in that kilometre. In addition to this, firm's initial (two letter code) and year of manufacture (last two digits of the year) shall also be embossed on the mould to appear on web collar. 21. Withdrawal of approval of portion manufacturer /welding Supervisor / Welder from approved list The approving authority can delete the name of any Portion Manufacturer/Welding Supervisor/Welder from the approved list based on complaints regarding the performance.

Recent Developments in AT Welding

Recent development in Alumino-thermic welding technology of rails Alumino-thermic welding is widely used process for in-situ welding of rails all over the world and the same is the case with Indian Railways. Presently on Indian Railways approximately 5.5 lakh AT welds are being done every year. Welding joints executed by alumino thermic process are the weakest of all the welds and therefore prone for fractures. As per the statistics issued by RDSO, about 60% fractures occurring on Indian Railway are attributed to aluminothermic joints. To reduce the total number of AT welding fractures quality of AT welding technique needs improvement. Several developments have taken place with a view to improve the quality of alumino-thermic weld such as: i) AT welding technique with three piece mould. ii) AT welding technique with compressed air petrol pre-heating. iii) AT welding technique with Oxy-LPG fuel mixture. iv) AT welding technique with 60/52 kg combination joint. v) Wide gap (75 mm) welding technique for fracture repair. AT welding techniques with three piece mould At present AT welding of rail is being carried out with two piece mould. The detailed procedure of fixing of mould and its luting has been specified in the Manual. However, sometimes due to improper fixing of mould by untrained welders, the fins are created at the bottom of welds. The presence of fins at the bottom of AT welds acts as stress raiser for initiation of half moon fatigue cracks thereby reducing the life of the welds. To avoid the presence of fins, AT welding technique for 52 kg/60 kg, 90 UTS rails with three piece moulds has been developed. It is expected that three piece moulds welding will be adopted on Indian Railways in a big way.

Three piece mould

AT welding with compressed air petrol pre-heating The compressed air petrol pre-heating technique, with preheating time of 4.0 and 4.5 minutes for 52 kg. (90 UTS) and 60 kg. (90 UTS) rails respectively, has been developed with a view to reduce preheating time and the heat affected zone. At present, the pre-heating time for SKV welding technique is 10 minutes for 52 kg. (90 UTS) rail section and 12 minutes for 60 kg (90 UTS) rail section. Therefore, compressed air-petrol pre-heating technique offers considerable reduction in preheating time and thereby saving of precious block time. The Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) in a weld is the most vulnerable zone of AT weld and most of the AT weld failures take place through HAZ only. It is always desirable to have minimum possible width of HAZ. With the use of compressed air petrol technique, HAZ is reduced considerably because of shorter preheating time, thus increasing the service life of AT welded joint. AT welding technique with Oxy-LPG fuel mixture The Oxy-LPG fuel mixture can reduce the pre-heating time to 2-3 minutes because of the intensity of heat application and also resulting in the narrower HAZ. As the pre-heating time is considerably reduced, the requirement of block for executing the welding is also reduced. However this technique not approved by RDSO for use in in-situ welding. AT welding for combination joint On every railway system, more than one rail section is used depending upon vintage of rails and type of traffic. Moreover, at times, rails of two or more cross sections are laid on the same route. Often, it is required to insert glued joints, points & crossings or SEJs of rails having different cross-section. Earlier combination fish plates were used for joining of rails having different crosssections. But, the combination fish plates result in battering, hogging of rails ends and also require periodical watch & maintenance. An ideal answer to this problem is to replace the junction of different cross section of rails with forged junction of combination rails. But, there forged rails are required to be imported from foreign countries and which naturally cost much. As an alternative, AT Welding technique for welding of 60kg (90UTS)/52 kg (90UTS) rails joints has been developed. The use of this welding technique has resulted in improved riding comfort and improved maintainability.

Combination joint

Wide Gap (75 mm) Welding Technique AT present, the fractured rail/welds have to be replaced by long rail closure. This rail piece is inserted in the track after creating a gap of about same length and welded with the existing rail on both the ends. Thus, in order to remove one defective/fractured AT weld, two AT welds are created. The whole process of replacing the fractured/defective weld with closure rail piece involves considerable amount of man power and block time as well as wastage of rails. With the development of 75mm wide gap welding technique, the defective/fractured weld can be replaced with a single 75mm wide gap AT weld thus resulting in considerable saving of man power and block time required for execution of AT welds. Wide gap weld The major procedural difference between the standard 25mm gap welding and 75mm wide gap welding arise mainly due to larger quantity of thermit steel in later. Because of increased volume, the heat content of thermit steel is greater which leads to slower solidification. Hence, temperature dependent post welding activities such as demoulding, trimming and grinding are slightly delayed. As a result, time required for execution of wide gap welding joint is slightly longer than one standard 25mm weld, but still lower than the time required for two 25mm standard weld. Advantages of wide gap welding technique are: A single defective/fractured weld/rail can be replaced on one to one basis. It will not require insertion of a 6m rail piece. Less number of traffic blocks will be required. Lesser number of weld failures due to reduced number of welds hence improved safety. Saving in requirement of joggled fishplates. Lesser number of wooden blocks will be required. Substantial saving of manpower, material and increased availability of track for running of trains.

Project for acquiring state of the art alumino-thermic welding technology With the objective of improvement in the quality of AT weld, a work to acquire state of the art technology to improve quality of Alumino thermic welds has been sanctioned by Railway Board under SRSF costing Rs. 30 crores. The objective of the project is to acquire the state of the art technique of alumino thermic welding as a complete package encompassing entire gamut of activities involved in the welding. The package would involve improvement in the consumables and equipment, training of welders and supervisors and the latest technological advances in this field from global leaders. It is expected that the following aspects of alumino thermic welding would get upgraded. Reduction in element of human error This is expected through Use of One-shot Crucible, Use of Auto Thimble, Acquiring Skills One-shot crucible Used only for one weld, the one shot crucible is made from a refractory compound agglomerated by means of synthetic resin. The thermic factor of this crucible is notably better than the conventional crucible and its use results in cleaner steel and consistent weld quality.

One shot crucible The need for accurate adjustment of crucible on its frame is eliminated. The one shot crucible comes factory packaged with the portion, crucible and automatic thimble. Various features of one shot crucible are: Light weight (14.5 Kg) Simple 4 step installation- align rail, install moulds, preheat rail and ignite Durability-the crucible is packed in an external protective sand layer. Environmentally sealed against outside elements. Moulds are available in both 2 or 3 piece type.

By having a constant and reliable crucible to produce the weld metal, quality of the weld is increased substantially mainly because of the fact that the thermal balance of the alumino-thermic reaction always remains the same. This ensures a highly uniform tapping temperature, which is one of the key quality parameter for alumino-thermic welding as for any steel production process. Auto Thimble The use of auto thimble ensures that the pouring commences at the correct temperature. It allows tapping at predetermined temperature thereby eliminating errors associated with manual tapping i.e. early or late tapping. In case of early tapping, slag may accompany weld steel. On the other hand, in case of late tapping, weld steel may loose heat which may cause inadequate fusion.

Auto thimble With use of auto thimble safety of personnel is also ensured as no person is required near the crucible thus eliminating the chances of injury.

Salient feature of AT Welding Manual

Check list during AT welding

Training Module

TRAINING MODULE The minimum qualification of the welders shall be matriculation. Subjects to be included in the training of welders and supervisors to are listed below. (i) Principle of thermit welding and its formula Need for AT welding and its advantage. Storage preservations of portions & mould Suitable storage conditi0n for portion & mould to void contact from moisture, shelf life of portion and its use after shelf life. Information on portion bag & ticket, colour scheme for portion. Thermit Portion. Different main ingredients used in manufacture of AT portion. Inspection of ails before welding. Bolt hole distance from rail end, corrosion, battering minimum length of rail, flow of metal along gauge side, wear and USFD of old rail. Pre-heating equipment Air-Petrol burner, Compressed Air Petrol blower, Oxy-LPG heating system, preheating time & pressure. Rails and their alignment. Different type of rails according to section and quality, knowledge of alignment and precautions. Thermit welding equipment and accessories List of necessary equipment such as crucible, weld trimmer, grinder, crucible stand etc. Luting Sand & Mould Quality of luting sand & test in field and its effect on the quality of joint. Condition of mould fixing of mould, use of Zircon wash. Reaction mould waiting time & chipping of weld metal. Judgment of reaction, reaction time for different gap, importance of mould waiting time, weld metal trimming with weld trimmer. Block period & train passing time: Minimum block period required, importance of riser, its breaking time, train passing time after tapping, precaution for newly welded joints. Maintenance of crucible Charging, repair, thimble charge etc., and its effectiveness with joint.

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

(viii)

(ix)

(x)

(xi)

(xii)

AT Welding defects cause & their remedial measures. Different type of defects in AT weld joints, their causes and the precautions to be taken to avoid the welding defects, geometry of the joint. Grinding & Painting Use of profile grinder, tolerance, cleaning, painting procedure, numbering, visual examination of weld profile. Latest development in AT welding Welding of HH rail, alloy steel rail, wide gap, compound joint etc., use of three piece mould & auto thimble. Safety Aspects Precaution to be taken by welder during execution, use of goggles, hand gloves & apron. Different types of gaps Knowledge of different gap, its affect on quality of AT joint.

(xiii)

(xiv)

(xv)

(xvi)

THERMIT WELDING TRAINING CENTRE, Vijayawada, South Central Railway Time table for TW-I(Initial course for welders-Duration two weeks) Ist WEEK
Days 1st Day 2nd Day Principle and advantages of A.T.Welding Ist session 9.00-11.00hrs Registration and allotment of hostel accommodation 11.0011.15hrs IInd session 11.15-13.00hrs Discussion on field problems Principle and advantages of A.T.Welding L U N C H B R E A K 13.0014.00hrs 14.00-15.30hrs Practicals Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding vertical &lateral alignment, selection of rails T E A B R E A K 15.3015.45hrs 15.45-16.30 Practicals Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding, welding gap, fixing of mould

3rd Day Thermit portion composition,identification, sealing,packing,storage&handling 4th Day Welding equipments consumables& their handling 5th Day Dos & Donts of A.T.Welding 6th Day

T E A B R E A K

Selection of rails & precautions for selection Practical demo of A.T.welding. Cutting of rails with cutting machine Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joint

Demo of AT Welding Crucible charger repair and fixing of crucible Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joint

Demo of AT Welding Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joint

Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joint

Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joint

Half day

Half day

THERMIT WELDING TRAINING CENTRE, Vijayawada, South Central Railway Time table for TW-I(Initial course for welders-Duration two weeks) IInd WEEK
Days 7th Day Ist session 9.00-11.00hrs Pre,During&post welding precautionsTrack protection and safety Precautions to be taken during welding 9th Day Lecture on A.T.Weld defects 10th Day T E A B R E A K 11.00-11.15hrs IInd session 11.15-13.00hrs Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees 13.00-14.00hrs 14.00-15.30hrs Practicals Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees 15.30-15.45hrs 15.45-16.30 Practicals Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees

8th Day Precautions to be taken during welding L U N C H B R E A K Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees Review and revision of training Half day T E A B R E A K

Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees

Lecture on A.T.Weld defects USFD TESING OF ATWELD& action to be taken Breaking load testing of AT Weld joints

Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees Execution of A.T.Weld by trainees Review and revision of training Half day

Lecture on Tests on at weld joints BHN testing of AT Weld joints

11th day 12th Day

Interview and issue of competency certificate

Interview and issue of competency certificate

THERMIT WELDING TRAINING CENTRE, Vijayawada, South Central Railway Time table for TW-II (Refresher course for welders-Duration ONE weeks)
Days 1st day 2nd Day Principle and advantages of A.T.Welding Thermit portion and other consumables composition, identification, sealing,packing,storage&handling Ist session 9.00-11.00hrs Registration and allotment of hostel accommodation 11.0011.15hrs IInd session 11.15-13.00hrs Discussion on field problems 13.0014.00hrs 14.00-15.30hrs Practicals Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding vertical &lateral alignment, selection of rails Demo of AT Welding of rail joints by using 3-piece mould and CAP preheating Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Testing of welds for ,BHN &Breaking load 15.3015.45hrs 15.45-16.30 Practicals Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding, welding gap, fixing of mould by busing mould fitted jig. Demo of AT Welding of rail joints by using 3-piece mould and CAP preheating Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Review and revision of training

3rd Day Precautions to be taken during A.T.Welding

4th day Dos & Donts of A.T.Welding 5th Day Lecture on AT Weld defects 6th Day

T E A B R E A K

Pre and post welding precautions in A.T.welding

Demo of AT Welding of rail joints by using 3-piece mould and CAP preheating Lecture on Tests on AT Weld joints and USFD TESTING

L U N C H B R E A K

T E A B R E A K

Interview and issue of Interview and issue FINAL competency of FINAL Half day competency certificate certificate THERMIT WELDING TRAINING CENTRE, Vijayawada, South Central Railway

Half day

Time table for TW-III (Course for Supervisors-Duration ONE weeks)

Days 7th day Registration and allotment of hostel accommodation 8th day Principle and advantages of A.T.Welding Thermit portion and other consumables composition, identification, sealing,packing,storage&handling Discussion on field problems Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding vertical &lateral alignment, selection of rails Demo of AT Welding of rail joints by using 3-piece mould and CAP preheating Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Testing of welds for ,BHN &Breaking load Visit of model room Demo of AT Welding, welding gap, fixing of mould by busing mould fitted jig. Demo of AT Welding of rail joints by using 3-piece mould and CAP preheating Practical demo of A.T.welding Of rail joints Review and revision of training Ist session 9.00-11.00hrs 11.0011.15hrs IInd session 11.15-13.00hrs 13.0014.00hrs 14.00-15.30hrs Practicals 15.3015.45hrs 15.45-16.30 Practicals

9th day Precautions to be taken during A.T.Welding

10th Day Lecture on AT Weld defects 11th day Dos & Donts of A.T.Welding 12th day

T E A B R E A K

Pre and post welding precautions in A.T.welding

Lecture on AT Weld defects Lecture on Tests on AT Weld joints and USFD TESTING

L U N C H B R E A K

T E A B R E A K

Written examination

Interaction with trainees and issue of FINAL competency certificate

Half day

Half day