SFA-5.10/SFA-5.10M: Specification for Bare Aluminum and Aluminum Alloy Welding Electrodes and Rods

Bare aluminum and aluminum alloy electrodes and rods produced to this specification are for use with gas-shielded processes such as GMAW, GTAW, PAW, and OFW. As with the other bare filler metals, the letters “ER” in the designation indicate that the wire can be used either as an electrode or as welding rod. Filler metals become electrodes with the GMAW process; welding rods with GTAW, PAW, and OFW. The remaining numerical portion of the classification is based on the Aluminum Association’s [8] alloy designation identifying the alloy type rather than tensile strength and usability. In general, aluminum and aluminum-base alloys are grouped as P-Nos. 21, 22, 23, and 25 in QW/QB-422 of Section IX. The welding materials are grouped as F-Nos. 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 in QW-432.

Typically, ER1100 (F-No. 21) filler metal can be used to weld UNS A91100 and UNS A93003 (P-No. 21) base metals listed in ASME Material Specifications SB-209, SB-221, and SB-241. Both UNS A95052 and UNS A95652 are in the same Material Specifications, but are grouped as P-No. 22. These two aluminum alloys are commonly welded with ER5654 (F-No. 22).

One of the most commonly welded aluminum alloys is UNS A96061 (Type 6061), which is grouped as P-No. 23 in QW/QB422, It is typically welded with ER4043 (F-No. 23), although other fillers are suitable. Type 6061 is listed in ASME Material Specifications SB-209, SB-210, SB-211, SB-221, SB-234, SB-241, SB-247, and SB-308.

UNS A95083 base metal is grouped as P-No 25; it is listed in ASME Material Specifications SB-209, SB-221, SB-241, and SB247. ER5183 (F-No. 22) is typically used to join this material. The welding rods R-A356.0, R206.0, R-C355.0, R357.0, and R- A357.0, grouped as F-No. 24 in QW-432 are designed for repair or fabrication of castings of comparable chemical composition. Finally, ER2319 is the only filler metal listed as F-No. 25 in QW/QB-422 ER 2319 are intended for welding aluminum alloy 2219 that is not assigned a P-Number. Many of the filler metals listed in this specification can be used on multiple aluminum and aluminum alloys. Guides for the selection and use of aluminum and aluminum alloy filler metals are in numerous publications, including those available from the AWS and ASTM.