Weldability

The weldability, also known as joinability, of a material refers to its ability to be welded. Many metals and thermoplastics can be welded, but some are easier to weld than others (see Rheological Weldability). A material's weldability is used to determine the welding process and to compare the final weld quality to other materials.

Weldability is often hard to define quantitatively, so most standards define it qualitatively. For instance the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines weldability in ISO standard 581-1980 as: "Metallic material is considered to be susceptible to welding to an established extent with given processes and for given purposes when welding provides metal integrity by a corresponding technological process for welded parts to meet technical requirements as to their own qualities as well as to their influence on a structure they form." Other welding organizations define it similarly.

Steels

For steel there are three major failure modes by which weldability can be measured: hydrogen-induced cold cracking, lamellar tearing, and spot-weld peeling. The most prominent of these is hydrogen induced cold cracking.