NCA-3855.5 Utilization of Unqualified Source Material

[sixxerxxre]

Concerning NCA-3855.5 Utilization of Unqualified Source Material is written : “a Material Organization may accept certification of the requirements of the material specification which must be performed during
the melting, heat analysis, and heat treatment of the material, and may use or furnish unqualified source
material, provided the requirements of NCA-3855.5(a)(1) through (4) below are met:
(1) No welding with filler metal has been performed on the unqualified source material.
(2) The Material Organization performs or subcontracts a product analysis to verify the chemical composition
of each piece of unqualified source material.
(3) The Material Organization performs or subcontracts all other requirements of the material specification
on each piece of unqualified source material… “

does it mean that the elaboration process can be “ qualified “ by a product analysis performed on each piece of unqualified source material ?
I mean : if one requirement applying to the material specification is a re-melting process during elaboration, is a product analysis performed ( of course with other mechanical requirements… ) able to qualify an electrical furnace process followed by continuous casting as a steel produced by vacuum re-melting followed by ingots production ?

 

[metengr]

What is the fourth item?

 

[sixxerxxre]

" (4) The provisions of (a)(1) through (a)(3) above
are performed in accordance with the Material Organization’s
Quality System Program.
(b) The provisions of (a)(1) through (a)(3) above
may be performed by the Certificate Holder in accordance
with his Quality Assurance Program. "
(3) is not complete, but doesn't bring more informations

 

[metengr]

NCA -3855.5 of ASME Section III is very similar to other ASME Code book sections (I and VIII) in dealing with material which has not been certified or has lost traceability. The organization, which must either have a Quality program or is an ASME Section III certificate holder follows the requirements for establishing material which meets the subject material certification. In cases, where melting practice is unique to the material specification, this can prove to be problematic. Otherwise, you go through and perform chemical analysis down to establishing mechanical properties to certify either unknown or material with lost traceability to a particular material specification.

 

[EdStainless]

If as in your example re-melting is a requirement then you cannot use unqualified source material, because there is no way to verify this after the fact.
It might be possible to argue that doing a full inclusion rating would be equivalent to verifying the melt method, but if I was on the the other end I would not accept this.
Even if you could, you would be doing chem, mechanical, micro and inclusion rating, and any required NDT on each piece. I guess if you only have a couple of ingots/ billets it wouldn't be that great of a burden.
The bottom line (4) is what does your QA program require? Many system actually prohibit this.

If you go this route make sure that you write a detailed procedure and get the AI to sign off on it before you touch anything. Otherwise you will waste a lot of effort.

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Plymouth Tube

 

[sixxerxxre]

thank you so much for the time you took.
i agree one hundred per cent with what you wrote. but i have now an other question ! if the ANI signs without asking to do any " full inclusion rating ", any " micro and inclusion rating " does it mean He is able to make miracle ?
you know also that in the continuous casting process, in the axis there will be always more inclusions than in the area where will be taken tensile specimen.
studs have also a sensitive mission, to close components in a reliable way.