JIT Journal of Innovation and Technology e-ISSN: 2721-8562.
p-ISSN: 2721-8570 Vol.
No.
April 2025.
Page: 41Ae 47 The Effect of Welding Current on the Mechanical Properties of AISI 1040 Steel and AISI 1020 Steel in Bimetal Welding Using the Shielded Metal Arc Welding Method with AWS E 7016 Electrodes Aditya Angga Wijaya1.
Tarkono1.
Irza Sukmana 1.
Rizal Nazarrudin1,* Department of Mechanical Engineering.
Faculty of Engineering.
University of Lampung.
Jl.
Prof.
Dr.
Soemnantri Brodjonegoro No.
Gedong Meneng.
Bandar Lampung, 35145.
Indonesia *Corresponding Author: rizalnazar@eng.
Article history Received: Sept, 6 2025 Revised: Sept, 20 2025 Accepted: Oct, 21 2025 DOI:10.
31629/jit.
Abstract This article discusses bimetal welding between AISI 1040 steel and AISI 1020 steel using the Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) method with AWS E 7016 electrodes.
The purpose of the study was to evaluate the quality of the welded joint, including the mechanical properties and microstructure of the bimetal welding results.
The use of high-strength AISI 1040 steel and AISI 1020 steel with malleable properties aims to produce a joint that optimizes the characteristics of each material.
The welding process was carried out with varying current parameters to determine its effect on the welding results.
Testing included tensile testing, hardness testing, impact testing, and microstructure analysis.
The results showed that variations in welding parameters affected the mechanical properties of the joint and the distribution of microstructures in the weld zone, heat-affected zone (HAZ), and base metal.
The optimal welded joint was obtained by setting certain current parameters that produced maximum tensile strength and even hardness distribution.
This study contributes to the development of bimetal welding technology, especially for applications that require a combination of mechanical properties of two types of steel.
Keywords: Bimetal Welding.
AISI 1040 Steel.
AISI 1020 Steel.
SMAW.
AWS E 7016 Electrode.
Introduction Welding is a joining technique that involves melting a base metal and a filler metal, with or without pressure, and with or without additional metal, to produce a continuous joint.
Bimetallic welding is the process of joining two different types of metal.
Welding dissimilar materials has distinct characteristics, requiring several welding techniques.
Examples include selecting the right electrode, adjusting the appropriate electrical current, and selecting the materials to be joined.
Bimetallic welding is more complex than welding similar materials.
Therefore, bimetallic welding is rarely used in the industrial world.
Bimetallic welding is often used in the shipping industry.
In the shipping industry, bimetallic welding is used to join materials to be placed on ship hulls.
The disadvantage of bimetallic welding is the large voltage spikes caused by changes in the microstructure in the weld area, which can reduce the material's strength and lead to residual stresses that can lead to defects and cracks during the welding process.
A 2020 This open access article is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license.
A A Wijaya et al.
Journal of Innovation and Technology.
October 2025.
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DOI:10.
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The research that will be conducted is the process of joining two different or dissimilar materials using the SMAW or Shielded Metal Arc Welding method and LB52U electrodes and using varying currents on the welding machine.
The currents that will be used in this study use 2 currents, namely 60 amperes and 80 amperes with an electrode thickness of 26 mm.
It is hoped that the results of this study can help increase understanding of the strength produced by welding, one of which is influenced by the welding current.
Therefore, the results of this study can determine the appropriate welding current to obtain maximum results in welding weld area include welding defects in the form of cracks .
SMAW, or Shielded Metal Arc Welding, is one of the most commonly used welding methods.
This process involves forming an electric arc between a shielded electrode and the base metal to be joined as shown in Figure 1.
During the welding process, the electric arc generates heat high enough to melt the base metal and the electrode tip simultaneously.
At the same time, the flux coating the electrode melts and forms a protective layer around the weld The flux on the electrode serves several important functions in the SMAW welding process.
One of these is protecting the weld point from atmospheric contamination such as oxygen and nitrogen, which can cause defects in the weld.
The flux also helps regulate the flow of molten metal and form slag, thereby helping to improve weld The use of flux on the electrode also allows welding to be performed in a variety of conditions, including outdoors or exposed to wind.
Furthermore, the flux also helps provide additional strength to the weld joint.
Therefore.
SMAW welding is a powerful and versatile technique for joining metals, with the flux protecting and helping to produce strong, high-quality welds .
Literature Review 1 Welding Welding involves joining two or more metal materials using heat energy .
Therefore, welding is a vital method in the manufacturing and construction industries, as it allows for highstrength joining of materials.
This process can be performed using various techniques and using various heat energy sources, such as electric arcs, gas, or lasers, depending on the specific needs of Therefore, understanding of the welding process and the materials used is crucial to achieving high-quality and safe welding results .
The welding process has advantages and The advantages of this welding process include affordable costs, faster processing, the possibility of varying shapes, permanent joints, and greater strength of the weld.
However, the disadvantage of welding is that the joints are permanent, meaning the welded steel cannot be Therefore, this welding method is less suitable for dismantled products .
In bimetal welding, the electrode selection, current usage, and connection type must be precise, as they determine the quality of the welding process To select the right electrode for bimetal welding, first consider the material type and then determine the type of electrode to be used, as this depends on the material thickness .
Bimetal welding is a process of joining two metals with different properties.
A common problem in bimetal welding is the weld area, which is susceptible to failure.
Common failures in the Figure 1.
SMAW Welding 2 AISI 1040 Carbon Steel AISI 1040 carbon steel is a medium-carbon steel with a carbon content of less than 0.
In its applications.
AISI 1040 carbon steel is typically used in gears, bearings, and shafts.
Based on its application, this steel must have wear resistance, often defined as resistance to dimensional erosion of the material due to friction .
Table 1 below is a table of the elements of AISI 1040 carbon steel.
Table 1.
Elements of AISI 1040 Carbon Steel Elemental Composition (%) Carbon 42 Ae 0.
Iron 51 Ae 98.
Manganese 6 Ae 0.
Phosphorus Sulfur A A Wijaya et al.
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3 AISI 1020 Carbon Steel Tensile test specimens AISI 1020 steel is classified as a low-carbon steel with a carbon content of 0.
AISI 1020
steel is characterized by low hardness, easy forming, and high ductility.
Due to its easy forming properties and high ductility.
AISI 1020 steel is widely used in various applications.
Some common applications include the manufacture of gears, shafts, steel plates, and components in power plants such as superheated steam pipes and boiler systems at certain temperatures.
The ductility and formability characteristics of AISI 1020 steel make it a popular choice in the manufacturing industry, especially where high strength is not a top priority and the forming process is an important factor in the design and production of these components .
Table 2 below is the chemical composition of AISI 1020 steel.
Figure 3.
Tensile test specimens Impact test specimens Figure 4.
Impact test specimens Table 2.
Elements of AISI 1020 Carbon Steel Elemental Composition (%) Carbon 20 Ae 0.
Silicon 15 Ae 0.
Manganese 50 Ae 0.
Molybdenum 20 Ae 0.
Phosphorus Static tensile testing Material and Methods The materials used in this research were bimetallic welding of AISI 1040 and AISI 1020 steel, with varying currents of 60A and 80A.
The equipment used in this research includes:
Sample preparation equipment Welding equipment Tensile testing machine Impact testing machine Figure 5.
Tensile testing 1 Research Procedure Impact testing equipment Sample Preparation Results of bimetallic welding of AISI 1020 and AISI 1040 steel with varying welding currents.
Figure 6.
Impact testing machine Figure 2.
Welding Results .
60A, .
80A A A Wijaya et al.
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Results and Discussions 2 Tensile Testing 1 Penetrant Testing Specimen Based on the penetrant test, weld defects in AISI 1020 and AISI 1040 steel were identified.
In the tensile test specimen, weld defects were found in the 80-ampere weld.
These defects included undercut defects, which were of high Figure 7 shows the results of the penetrant test on the tensile test specimen.
L60A 1
L60A 2
L60A 3
Rata-rata L80A 1
L80A 2
L80A 3
Rata-rata Table 3.
Tensile Testing Data Ultimate Tensile Yield Young Strength(E.
Strength Modulus Mpa (E.
MPa (E).
GPa
380,15
284,04
60,51
394,78
263,11
63,18
328,72
276,93
67,50
367,88
274,70
63,73
482,14
349,15
77,97
357,07
252,90
73,39
414,04
303,19
63,49
417,75
301,75
71,62
Elongation (%) 19,12 10,92 3,66 11,23 19,36 6,73 22,66 16,24 Figure 7.
Penetrant Test Results for Tensile Test Specimens .
60A, .
80A Next are the penetrant test results for the impact test specimens, which had more weld defects than the tensile test specimens.
The defects found in these specimens were: At a welding current of 60 amps, underfill and undercut defects were present, both of which were of high intensity, as seen in the numerous Furthermore, at a welding current of 80 amps, underfill defects were present, which were also of high intensity.
Figure 8 shows the results test of the impact test specimens.
Figure 9.
Tensile Testing Results Graph As seen in the correlation between the results of table 3 and figure 9, the highest tensile strength was obtained with a welding current variation of 80 amperes on specimen L80A 1.
The average ultimate tensile strength was 747 MPa, which is higher than the tensile strength obtained with a current variation of 60 amperes, which was only 367.
881 MPa.
In the tensile test with a current variation of 60 amperes (L60A), the tensile strength value was lower than that of the 80 amperes.
This indicates the influence of current strength on the welding of AISI 1020 and AISI 1040 steel for tensile testing.
This test is consistent with the results of (Yusuf & Mahadi, 2.
, which stated that the higher the welding current used, the greater the average The following are fracture images for 60 and 80 amperes of current.
Figure 8.
Penetrant Test Results for Impact Test Specimens .
60A, .
80A A A Wijaya et al.
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specimen 1 was 164 joules, for specimen 2 it was 165 joules, and for specimen 3 it was 107 joules.
The average impact energy for these three specimens was 145.
33 joules.
The following is a fracture result from an impact test using a current of Figure 10.
Tensile test fracture results Figure 10 shown the fracture results of tensile test specimens subjected to 60 and 80 amperes of Based on the fracture images above, in the 60-ampere current variation, specimen L60A 1 experienced ductile fracture, characterized by plastic deformation and surface necking at the The fracture in specimen L60A 1 occurred in the base material area of the 1020 material, due to 1020 steel having a lower carbon content than 1040 steel.
Furthermore, specimen L60A 2 fractured in the HAZ, and L60A 3 fractured in the weld joint area due to a welding defect.
For the 80-ampere current variation, ductile fracture occurred for specimens L80A 1 and L80A 3, while for specimen L80A 2, the fracture occurred in the weld area due to weld defects.
The tensile strength value for specimen L80A 2 is lower than that of specimens L80A 1 and L80A 3.
Figure 11.
Fracture results from a 60A impact test Figure 11 shown the results of the impact test where specimen 1, subjected to shock loading, exhibited ductility, and fracture occurred in the notch area, without breaking.
Specimen 2 exhibited similar properties to specimen 1, exhibiting ductility under shock loading and fracture only in the notch area.
Specimen 3, similar to specimens 1 and 2, exhibited ductility and fracture only in the notch area.
All three specimens experienced significant plastic deformation, as evidenced by their tapered fractures.
Using a current of 80 amperes, the data above yielded a value of 89 joules for specimen 1.
91 joules for specimen 2, and 99 joules for specimen 3.
The average impact energy for these three specimens was 93 joules.
2 Impact Testing Impact tests conducted on AISI 1020 and AISI 1040 steel yielded the values shown in Table 4.
Current Variation Table 4.
Impact Test Results Specimen Impact Average Impact Energy (Joul.
Value (Joul.
(J/mm.
Average (J/mm.
Figure 12.
Fracture results from the 80A impact test In the Figure 12, ductile fracture occurs for specimen 1, where the material undergoes plastic deformation, resulting in a fibrous or rough fracture Then for specimen 2, a brittle fracture occurred where the fracture results had differences on the surface, for specimen 2, this looked flatter for the fracture results, but still occurred in the notch area.
Meanwhile, for specimen 3, the same as The data in Table 4 shows that a current of 60 amperes has a higher value than a current of 80 At 60-ampere current, the value for A A Wijaya et al.
Journal of Innovation and Technology.
October 2025.
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DOI:10.
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specimen 2, the fracture that occurred was brittle and occurred in the area.
From the data above, it can be concluded that the use of different welding currents can affect the results of the impact test The higher the welding current, the lower the resulting value, while the lower the welding current, the resulting value will be higher .
, .
This is proven at a current of 60 amperes, the value obtained tends to be greater than the value at a current of 80 amperes, this is because the current of 60 amperes is the right point to use for the AWS A5 E 7016 type electrode with an electrode diameter 6 mm, while for the current of 80 amperes, the value is smaller because at this current of 80 amperes is the maximum current point of the type of electrode used in this study.
Pengelasan SMAW,Ay vol.
xx, no.
x, 2023.
Agustriyana.
AuPengaruh Pengelasan GTAW Pada Logam Bimetal Plat Baja Karbon Rendah Dan Stainless Steel Terhadap Sifat Mekanik Sambungan Las,Ay vol.
20, no.
2, pp.
167Ae180, 2019.
Mustafid.
Sholikul.
Hartono.
Priagung.
Robbi.
AuAnalisis Pengaruh Hasil Pengelasan Bimetal Baja S45C dan Stainless Steels 304 Terhadap Kekuatan Tarik dan Struktur Mikro,Ay Jurnal Sains dan Teknologi Teknik Mesin Unisma, vol.
6, no.
02, pp.
25Ae30, [Onlin.
Available:
https://jim.
id/index.
php/jts/article/view/70 .
Khoirofik et al.
AuAnalisa Teknis Pengelasan Dissimilar Material antara AA6063 dan AA5083 Ditinjau dari Aspek Mekanik Analysis of Dissimilar Metal Welding Between AA6063 and AA5083 Viewed From Mechanicanal and Metallurgical Aspects In Shipbuilding,Ay 2015.
Conclusion The defects found in bimetallic welding using AISI 1020 and AISI 1040 steel include splatter, underfill, and undercut defects.
Each test specimen exhibited these three types of defects, and almost all of the amperage variations used were present.
Furthermore, to determine the joint strength of the bimetallic weld, tensile and impact testing were In the tensile test with a current variation of 60 amperes, the average ultimate strength value obtained was 367,881 MPa, while for the 80 amperes current variation, the average ultimate strength value was 417,447 MPa.
This value proves that the use of 80 amperes has a higher strength compared to the use of 60 amperes.
Then for the impact test itself in welding with a current variation of 60 amperes, the average impact energy absorbed was 145.
33 joules and the average impact price was 1.
13 J/mm2.
Furthermore, in the 80 amperes current variation, the average impact energy absorbed was 93 joules and the average impact price was 0.
71 J/mm2.
In the case of impact testing, large values occurred in the 60 amperes current variation, the cause of this was the influence of defects in the welding which allowed the test material to experience a decrease in strength during .
Adi Nugroho.
AuPengaruh Variasi Kuat Arus Pengelasan Terhadap Kekuatan Tarik dan Kekerasan Sambungan Las Plate Carbon Steel ASTM 36,Ay Jurnal Rekayasa Sistem Industri, vol.
2, pp.
134Ae142, 2018.
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