A quick question for the TIG welders out there: Is it acceptable to use 2% ceriated tungsten for AC TIG applications? There is much conflicting information on this. Half of the sources I have looked at say that ceriated is good for AC, and the other half say that it is not.
I use 1.5% lanthanated for EVERTHING (AC and DC), and I don't anticipate ever needing anything else, but since I teach TIG welding and occasionally do a bit of consulting, I feel that I should really know. Thanks much!
Ceriated, like Lanthanated, is a AC/DC tungsten. Lanthanated is a better general use tungsten, since it takes more heat than most other tungstens.
Ceriated has ONE ability that sets it apart from other tungstens. It can initiate an arc at lower amperages than any other tungsten, so for very low amperage TIG applications, it can be a better choice, on AC or DC. However at high amperages it can deteriorate faster than Lanthanated.
Thanks for the reply!
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