AWS B1.11:2000

An American National Standard

Guide for the Visual Inspection of Welds

Key Words—Visual inspection, visual examination,

surface conditions, instruments, equipment, records, discontinuities, nondestructive examination

AWS B1.11:2000

An American National Standard

Approved by American National Standards Institute

January 7, 2000

Guide for the Visual Examination of Welds

Supersedes ANSI/AWS B1.11-88

Prepared by AWS Committee on Methods of Inspection

Under the Direction of AWS Technical Activities Committee

Approved by AWS Board of Directors

Abstract

550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, Florida 33126

This guide contains information to assist in the visual examination of welds. Included are sections on prerequisites, fundamentals, surface conditions, and equipment. Sketches and full-color photographs illustrate weld discontinuities commonly found in welds.

550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, Florida 33126

Statement on Use of AWS American National Standard Standards

All standards (codes, specifications, recommended practices, methods, classifications, and guides) of the American Welding Society are voluntary consensus standards that have been developed in accordance with the rules of the Ameri- can National Standards Institute. When AWS American National Standard standards are either incorporated in, or made part of, documents that are included in federal or state laws and regulations, or the regulations of other governmental bodies, their provisions carry the full legal authority of the statute. In such cases, any changes in those AWS standards must be approved by the governmental body having statutory jurisdiction before they can become a part of those laws and regulations. In all cases, these standards carry the full legal authority of the contract or other document that invokes the AWS standards. Where this contractual relationship exists, changes in or deviations from requirements of an AWS standard must be by agreement between the contracting parties.

International Standard Book Number: 0-87171-625-9 American Welding Society, 550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126

© 2000 by American Welding Society. All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

AWS standards are developed through a consensus standards development process that brings together volunteers repre- senting varied viewpoints and interests to achieve consensus. While AWS administers the process and establishes rules to promote fairness in the development of consensus, it does not independently test, evaluate, or verify the accuracy of any information or the soundness of any judgments contained in its standards.

AWS disclaims liability for any injury to persons or to property, or other damages of any nature whatsoever, whether spe- cial, indirect, consequential or compensatory, directly or indirectly resulting from the publication, use of, or reliance on this standard. AWS also makes no guaranty or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein.

In issuing and making this standard available, AWS is not undertaking to render professional or other services for or on behalf of any person or entity. Nor is AWS undertaking to perform any duty owned by any person or entity to someone else. Anyone using these documents should rely on his or her own independent judgment or, as appropriate, seek the advice of a competent professional in determining the exercise of reasonable care in any given circumstances.

This standard may be superseded by the issuance of new editions. Users should ensure that they have the latest edition.

Publication of this standard does not authorize infringement of any patent. AWS disclaims liability for the infringement of any patent resulting from the use or reliance on this standard.

Finally, AWS does not monitor, police, or enforce compliance with this standard, nor does it have the power to do so.

Official interpretations of any of the technical requirements of this standard may be obtained by sending a request, in writ- ing, to the Managing Director Technical Services, American Welding Society, 550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126 (see Annex C). With regard to technical inquiries made concerning AWS standards, oral opinions on AWS standards may be rendered. However, such opinions represent only the personal opinions of the particular individuals giving them. These individuals do not speak on behalf of AWS, nor do these oral opinions constitute official or unofficial opinions or interpre- tations of AWS. In addition, oral opinions are informal and should not be used as a substitute for an official interpretation.

This standard is subject to revision at any time by the AWS B1 Committee on Methods of Inspection. It must be reviewed every 5 years and if not revised, it must be either reapproved or withdrawn. Comments (recommendations, additions, or deletions) and any pertinent data that may be of use in improving this standard are requested and should be addressed to AWS Headquarters. Such comments will receive careful consideration by the AWS B1 Committee on Methods of Inspec- tion and the author of the comments will be informed of the Committee’s response to the comments. Guests are invited to attend all meetings of the AWS B1 Committee on Methods of Inspection to express their comments verbally. Procedures for appeal of an adverse decision concerning all such comments are provided in the Rules of Operation of the Technical Activities Committee. A copy of these Rules can be obtained from the American Welding Society, 550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126.

Photocopy Rights

ii

Authorization to photocopy items for internal, personal, or educational classroom use only, or the internal, personal, or educational classroom use only of specific clients, is granted by the American Welding Society (AWS) provided that the appropriate fee is paid to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, Tel: 978-750-8400; online: https://www.copyright.com.

Personnel

AWS Committee on Methods of Inspection

P. A. Grimm, Chair Modern Welding Company, Incorporated

1. D. McGuire, 1st Vice Chair National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors

   1. D. Levert, 2nd Vice Chair Loral Vought Systems

      1. P. Connor, Secretary American Welding Society

         *W. Borges, P.E. Consultant

         *C. R. Brashears Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

         R. Brosilow Welding Design and Fabrication

         W. A. Bruce Edison Welding Institute

         *E. L. Criscuolo Consultant

         *P. E. Deeds, Jr. Consolidated Edison Company of New York

         *C. J. Hellier Hellier Associates

         1. L. Holdren Welding Consultants, Incorporated

            *D. L. Isenhour Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company

            *L. Laime Consultant

            *W. C. Minton Consultant

            1. W. Overy Pacific Gas and Electric Company

               *M. N. Pfeiffer Consultant

               *A. G. Portz Consultant

               *S. J. Walmsley S. J. Walmsley and Associates

            2. Zerkle Hobart Brothers Company

*Advisor

iii

Foreword

(This Foreword is not a part of AWS B1.11:2000, Guide for the Visual Examination of Welds, but is included for in- formation purposes only.)

Visual examination (VT), as used in this guide, is a nondestructive method whereby a weldment, the related base metal, and particular phases of welding may be evaluated in accordance with applicable requirements. All visual examination methods require the use of eyesight to evaluate the conditions which are present; hence, the term visual examination.

The use of gauges and other tools is supplemental to the main method, and these are treated only as adjuncts to visual examination of weldments.

The Guide for the Visual Examination of Welds has been prepared by the AWS Committee on Methods of Inspection to serve as a simple tutorial source of basic information concerning visual examination of welds. It is not the intent of this document to present the only approved methods for conducting visual examination. Some typical standards are listed in this document. It is intended that the material presented be useful to engineers, designers, educators, inspectors, and other welding personnel who need knowledge about basic visual examination attributes, which would be essential, or desirable, for a particular process. Included in this guide are fundamental prerequisites for performing visual examination, steps in performing visual examination at various stages of welding, and also typical examples of visual examination, discontinu- ities and conditions, equipment supplements and aids, records, and other reference sources which may be helpful. Termi- nology used throughout this guide has been established in AWS A3.0, Standard Welding Terms and Definitions.

This guide is intended as an instructive reference. The codes or specifications applicable to any particular weldment always take precedence over the generalized material contained herein, should any conflict arise between the two. The text has been written in general terms and does not include all the conditions applicable to a specific instance. Examples given are general and are used only for the purpose of illustration.

This material can be used as a training text for inspectors. Although the information generally relates to the arc weld- ing processes, most of it applies to weldments fabricated by other fusion welding processes, for which these methods may be required.

For the examination of resistance welded assemblies, refer to AWS C1.1, Recommended Practices for Resistance Welding, AWS C1.3, Recommended Practices for Resistance Welding Coated Low Carbon Steels, and AWS D8.7, Recom- mended Practices for Automotive Weld Quality—Resistance Spot Welding, published by the American Welding Society.

For the examination of brazed assemblies, refer to the Brazing Handbook, also published by the American Welding Society.

For those who need more detailed information than this guide provides, bibliographies or complete books on the sub- jects covered in each chapter may be found in good technical libraries. The many specifications and codes that are listed, and have been used as illustrative examples, may also be consulted for more detailed information.

Basic information on other nondestructive examination methods is contained in AWS B1.10, Guide for Nondestructive Examination of Welds, and in the AWS book, Welding Inspection.

Comments and inquiries concerning this standard are welcome. They should be sent to the Secretary, B1 Committee on Methods of Inspection, American Welding Society, 550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126.

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Table of Contents

Page No.

Personnel iii

Foreword v

List of Figures vii

1. General 1

   1. Application 1

   2. Scope 1

   3. Safety and Health 1

   4. References 1

2. Prerequisites 2

   1. General 2

   2. Visual Acuity 2

   3. Equipment 2

   4. Experience and Training 2

   5. Procedures 2

   6. Certification Programs 2

   7. Safety 2

3. Fundamentals of Visual Examination 2

   1. General 2

   2. Prior to Welding 3

   3. During Welding 3

   4. After Welding 4

4. Weld Surface Conditions 4

   1. General 4

   2. Porosity 4

   3. Incomplete Fusion 6

   4. Incomplete Joint Penetration 6

   5. Undercut 8

   6. Underfill 8

   7. Overlap 11

   8. Lamination 11

   9. Seams and Laps 12

   10. Cracks 12

   11. Slag Inclusions 15

   12. Excessive Reinforcement 16

   13. Convexity and Concavity 16

   14. Arc Strikes 16

   15. Spatter 16

   16. Melt-Through 16

   17. Weld Size 17

   18. Surface Oxidation. 17

5. Examination Equipment 17

   1. Introduction 17

   2. Calibration and Handling of Examination Equipment 18

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      Page No.

   3. Linear Measuring Devices 19

   4. Temperature Measuring Devices 19

   5. Weld Gauges 21

   6. Fiberscopes and Borescopes 24

   7. Ferrite Gauges 24

   8. Light Source 24

   9. Ammeters 27

6. Records 27

Annex A—List of Standards Commonly Used in the Welding Industry 29

Annex B—Supplementary Reading Material 31

Annex C—Guidelines for Preparation of Technical Inquiries for AWS Technical Committees 33

AWS Document List 35

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List of Figures

Figure Page No.

1. Scattered Porosity 5

2. Surface Appearance of Piping Porosity 5

3. Aligned Porosity with Crack 6

4. Elongated Porosity 6

5. Various Locations of Incomplete Fusion 7

6. Incomplete Fusion 7

7. Incomplete Fusion at the Groove Face 7

8. Incomplete Fusion Between Weld Beads 8

9. Incomplete Fusion Between the Weld and Base Metal 8

10. Incomplete Joint Penetration 8

11. Incomplete Joint Penetration with Consumable Insert 9

12. Incomplete Joint Penetration 9

13. Examples of Undercut 9

14. Undercut at Fillet Weld Toe 10

15. Underfill 10

16. Underfill Using Flux Cored Arc Welding in Steel 10

17. Overlap 11

18. Overlap 11

19. Laminations 11

20. Types of Cracks 12

21. Longitudinal vs. Transverse Cracks 13

22. Longitudinal Crack and Linear Porosity 13

23. Transverse Cracks 14

24. Throat Crack 14

25. Crater Crack 15

26. Longitudinal Cracks Propagating from Crater Crack 15

27. Toe Cracks 15

28. Toe Cracks 16

29. Underbead Cracks 16

30. Slag Inclusion 17

31. Weld Reinforcement 17

32. Convex Fillet Weld 18

33. Convexity 18

34. Concave Fillet Weld 19

35. Spatter 19

36. Melt-Through 20

37. Surface Oxidation (Sugaring) in a Stainless Steel Gas Tungsten Arc Weld 21

38. Temperature-Sensitive Crayon 21

39. Surface Contact Thermometer 22

40. Pyrometer 22

41. Evaluating a Convex Fillet Weld 23

42. Evaluating a Concave Fillet Weld 23

43. A Multipurpose Gauge 24

44. A Taper Gauge 25

45. Hi-Lo Mismatch Gauge 25

46. A Fiberscope in Use 26

47. Ferrite Indicator (Ferritescope) 26

48. Tong Test Ammeter 27

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AWS B1.11:2000

Guide for the

Visual Examination of Welds

1. General

   1. Application. Information contained in this guide ap- plies to the general duties and responsibilities of visual inspectors of weldments and is useful to them in carrying out their duties and responsibilities defined in particular codes or specifications. This document is primarily in- tended for those who are responsible for the final accep- tance of weldments. However all welders, supervisors, technicians, and engineers who are required to routinely inspect work performed by them or under their authority will benefit from the use of this document. This docu- ment will provide general guidelines for the visual exam- ination of weldments.

      The inspector should be knowledgeable concerning each of the principles and methods of examination re- quired on a particular weldment. It is the responsibility of those charged with the administration and supervision of inspection to make certain that the principles and methods set forth are properly understood and uniformly applied. This responsibility also includes the qualifica- tion and certification of inspectors, where such certifica- tion is required by codes, specifications, or civil laws. AWS QC1, Standard for AWS Certification of Welding Inspectors, indicates the importance AWS assigns to visual examination.

      Contract documents should specify the requirements for visual examination. In the absence of such require- ments, the manufacturer should be requested to establish, in writing, the extent and the methods of examination to be required.

      Acceptance standards should be clearly understood by both the manufacturer and the buyer before any welding is started. This is not only to make more effective use of the examination methods but to prevent disagreement over whether a weldment is satisfactory and in accor- dance with the contract specifications.

      
      

   2. Scope. This guide includes an outline of the funda- mental prerequisites for personnel performing visual ex- amination of welds. Such prerequisites include physical limitations or capabilities, as well as technical knowl- edge, training, experience, judgment, and certification.

      This guide essentially provides an introduction to vi- sual examination of welding. These examinations fall into three categories based on the time they are performed, as follows: (1) prior to welding, (2) during welding, and (3) after welding. An extensive treatment is provided on weld surface conditions, including reference to frequently used terminologies associated with preferred and non- preferred conditions. Visual examination may be per- formed by different people or organizations. Personnel performing welding examination include welders, weld- ing supervisors, the contractor’s welding inspector, the purchaser’s examiner, or the regulatory inspector. For the purpose of simplicity, these individuals referred to as visual inspectors in the remainder of this standard in that they perform visual inspection. Fabrication documents, contract specifications, and regulatory agencies may specify who performs final inspections.

      Also provided is a review of visual examination equipment aids routinely used, such as gauges and light- ing equipment. Formal documentation of visual exami- nation results is contained in Section 6, Records. Finally, the guide suggests additional reading or references, that may provide more detailed requirements for specific visual examination applications.

   3. Safety and Health. This technical document does not address all welding and health hazards. Pertinent infor- mation can be found in ANSI Z49.1, Safety in Welding, Cutting, and Allied Processes, and other safety-related documents including federal, state, and local regulations.

   4. References. The following documents are cited in this document. Copies may be obtained from the American Welding Society.

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