Spot welding is a representative process in automotive welding and the application of intelligent systems is accelerating. In particular, in the case of welding electrode management, the timing of electrode wear and dressing was determined by continuous spot welding evaluation, however there is concerned that errors in welding equipment or processes may work in a complex manner. In this study, a dynamic resistance waveform sensing and image measurement system that greatly affects the nugget formation, which is important to the quality of spot welding, was fabricated and used. Based on the experimental data of the galvanized steel sheet, an electrode life prediction algorithm for electrode wear was derived through CNN(Convolutional Neural Network) model of machine learning training.

Boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode has an extremely wide potential window in aqueous and non-aqueous electrolytes, very low and stable background current and high resistance to surface fouling due to weak adsorption. These features endow the BDD electrode with potentially wide electrochemical applications, in such areas as wastewater treatment, electrosynthesis and electrochemical sensors. In this study, the characteristics of the BDD electrode were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and evaluated by accelerated life test. The effects of manufacturing conditions on the BDD electrode were determined and remedies for negative effects were noted in order to improve the electrode lifetime in wastewater treatment. The lifetime of the BDD electrode was influenced by manufacturing conditions, such as surface roughness, seeding method and rate of introduction of gases into the reaction chamber. The results of this study showed that BDD electrodes manufactured using sanding media of different sizes resulted in the most effective electrode lifetime when the particle size of alumina used was from 75~106 μm (#150). Ultrasonic treatment was found to be more effective than polishing treatment in the test of seeding processes. In addition to this, BDD electrodes manufactured by introducing gases at different rates resulted in the most effective electrode lifetime when the introduced gas had a composition of hydrogen gas 94.5 vol.% carbon source gas 1.6 vol.% and boron source gas 3.9 vol.%.

The lifetime of the electrode is one of the most important factors on the stability of the electrode. Since the lifetime of the DSA (Dimensionally stable anode) electrode is long, an accelerated lifetime test is required to reduce the test time. Beacuse there is no basis or standard method for accelerated lifetime testing, many researchers use different methods. Therefore, there is a need for basis and methods for accelerated lifetime testing that other researchers can follow. We designed a reactor system for accelerated lifetime testing and planned specific methods. Reactor system was circulating batch reactor. Reactor volume and cooling water tank were 12.5 L and 100 L, respectively. Electrode size was 2 cm x 3 cm (real electrolysis area, 5 cm2). In order to maintain the harsh conditions, accelerated lifetime test was carried out in a high current density (0.6 A/cm2) and low electrolyte concentration (NaCl, 0.068 mol/L). Maintaining a constant temperature was an important operation parameter for exact accelerated lifetime test. As the accelerated lifetime test progressed, the active component of electrode surface was consumed and desorption occurred. At the point of 5 V rise, corrosion of the surface of the base material(titanium) also started.