Welding Engineering: An Introduction, written by David H. Phillips, provides a description of the welding engineering field, introducing this subject to new engineering students. The 290-page book is unique in its objective to answer the following question: What is welding engineering? This is probably the first book to attempt to answer that. The first chapter also provides a high-level summary of the curriculum for a welding engineering major. Overall, the book presents a view of welding engineering and introduces individuals without any knowledge of welding to the subject. It consists of two major sections — welding processes and other subjects an engineer must understand to be a successful welding engineer — including structural design, metallurgy, weld quality, and heat transfer. Chapter 1 begins by addressing the subjects studied, but it ends without providing the reader an answer to the following question: Where and how will these skills be used in industry? A list of industries would have benefited the reader by providing a few examples describing jobs where welding engineers are employed. A description of the role welding engineers play in various industries would be a positive addition. Chapters 2–6 are approximately half the book and explain welding processes typically used by industry. Some of the processes are described in adequate detail and others are barely mentioned. A more even presentation of the processes included would have better served the readers. The overview of the processes would have benefitted from including the American Welding Society’s (AWS) master chart of welding and joining processes. While the overview covers most of the typical processes, some important processes are not addressed in any detail or discussed at all. An example of limited discussion regarding important processes is the brazing and soldering section, which is only two pages in length; conversely, the plastics section provides much more detail. The author noted that his intent was to be brief, but the disparity between various process sections is puzzling. The second half of the book addresses varied important topics. Chapter 7, Design Considerations, is a wellwritten summary of factors to consider in preparing a welded design. The symbols discussion presents a thorough summary. However, Table 7.2 presents data relating to minimum fillet weld sizes and its inclusion is puzzling (as a novice reader might interpret the table values as the size for joining two metal sections without consideration of the design loads imposed on the joint). It is correctly identified as a “rule of thumb,” but a design calculation is required to correctly size a weld for load-carrying structures. This again raises the question of why include this level of detail for a high-level summary of the subject? Chapters 8 and 9 summarize the topics of residual stresses and basic metallurgy in a concise, well-presented manner. This reviewer was puzzled by the phase diagrams selected for inclusion. For an introductory book, the complex diagrams seemed to be better suited for a higher-level course, and the more common, simpler carbon steel diagrams would have been a more appropriate choice. The author even cited carbon steel as most important for the average reader in the opening sentence of Chapter 10. Chapters 10–12 are devoted to metallurgy explanations for carbon steels, stainless steels, and nonferrous metals. The explanations contained herein are concise summaries of the metals and provide a basic introduction for new engineering students. One section in Chapter 10 regarding hydrogen cracking seems out of place for a general metallurgy discussion, as this is a welding created defect, and would fit better in Chapter 13, Weld Quality. Chapters 13 and 14 on weld quality and codes and standards round out the introduction to achieving quality products and the codes/standards that ensure structural integrity. Chapter 15 concludes the book with an introduction to welding safety and the importance the welding industry places on a safe and healthy working environment. In summary, this book may be used by colleges, community colleges, or technical schools to introduce students to the field. For the average engineer looking for knowledge of welding processes or metallurgy, other books such as the AWS Welding Handbook, Lincoln Electric’s The Procedure Handbook of Arc Welding, or Jefferson’s Welding Encyclopedia would be better suited and offer the in-depth information necessary for practicing engineers. BOOK REVIEW 20 WELDING JOURNAL / DECEMBER 2016 WJ PHILLIP I. TEMPLE (nwcllc_ptemple@ att.net) is president of eNergy Wise Consulting, LLC, Canton, Mich. Welding Engineering: An Introduction is by David H. Phillips. ISBN 9781118766446. Publisher John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (wiley.com). Hardcover $120, Ebook $96.99. 290 pages. BY PHILLIP I. TEMPLE Understanding Welding Engineering
Welding Journal | December 2016
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