In addition to the same electric shocks, burns, and fires as manual arc welding, argon arc welding also has high-frequency electromagnetic fields, electrode radiation, arc damage, welding fumes, and toxic gases that are much stronger than manual arc welding.
The degree of harm of argon arc welding is relatively greater than that of electrode arc welding, but it is not so daunting. The infrared radiation is about 1 to 1.5 times that of ordinary electrode arc welding, and the ultraviolet radiation generated by argon arc welding arc is about It is 5-20 times that of electrode arc welding. The most important ones are high-frequency electricity and ozone.
Therefore, we must take good care of the protection during the welding process, choose the electrode material, and try to choose the low radioactive cerium tungsten. When grinding electrodes, wear masks and gloves, and wash your hands after work to minimize the harm.
The harm of high frequency electromagnetic field
1. The generation and harm of high frequency electromagnetic field
In tungsten argon arc welding and plasma arc welding, a high-frequency oscillator is often used to excite the arc starting, and some AC argon arc welding machines also use a high-frequency oscillator to stabilize the arc. The frequency of the high-frequency oscillator usually used in welding is 200-500 thousand cycles, the voltage is 2500-3500 volts, the high-frequency current intensity is 3-7 mA, and the electric field intensity is about 140-190 volts/meter. Long-term exposure of welders to high-frequency electromagnetic fields can cause autonomic dysfunction and neurasthenia. Symptoms include general malaise, dizziness, dreaminess, headache, memory loss, fatigue, loss of appetite, insomnia, and low blood pressure.
The reference health standard for high-frequency electromagnetic fields stipulates that the allowable radiation intensity for 8 hours of exposure is 20 volts/meter. According to the measurement, the high-frequency electromagnetic field intensity of all parts of the welder during manual argon tungsten arc welding exceeds the standard. Among them, the hand has the highest intensity, which exceeds the health standard by more than 5 times. If the high-frequency oscillator is only used for arc ignition, the time is short and the impact is small, but long-term exposure is also harmful, and effective protective measures must be adopted.
2. Protective measures against high-frequency electromagnetic fields
⑴The arc ignition and stabilization measures of argon arc welding try to use transistor pulse device instead of high-frequency oscillation device, or only used for arc ignition. After the arc is ignited, immediately cut off the high-frequency power supply.
(2) Reduce the oscillation frequency, change the capacitor and inductance parameters, reduce the oscillation frequency to 30 thousand cycles, and reduce the impact on the human body.
⑶ Shielded cables and wires, using thin copper braided flexible wires, sheathed outside the cable hose (including the wires in the welding torch and the wires leading to the welding machine), and grounded them.
⑷Because of the high voltage of the high-frequency oscillation circuit, there must be good and reliable insulation.
The above information is provided by welding kit manufacturers.