Comparison of the use of rutile and cellulosic electrodes Knowledge Sharing From Decibel.
Comparison of the use of rutile and cellulosic electrodes Types of electrodes and their compositions Many types of manual metal arc (MMA) electrodes are available on the market. Depending on the main constituent of their flux, they are grouped into three categories: cellulosic, rutile and basic. All electrodes consist of a cored wire (typically 2.5–6mm diameter) coated by a flux. The core wire is generally made of low-quality riming steel and the fluxes contain many elements allowing refinement of the weld macrostructure. The composition of the flux impacts the electrodes’ behaviour. The main constituents of the different types of electrodes and the shielding gas created for each are described in Table 1 (Bowniszewski, 1979). Table 1 Main constituent of the three possible types of electrodes and shielding gas created by its combustion. Electrode type Main constituent Shielding gas created Rutile Titania (TiO2) Mainly CO2 Basic Calcium compounds Mainly CO2 Cellulosic ...
