Lisbon's Vasco da Gama Bridge is the longest in Europe, spanning a total distance of 10.7 miles. Taking three years to complete, the bridge opened for traffic in 1998 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Vasco da Dama's discovery of the maritime route from Europe to India.
The arc temperature may be upto 20,000 K. Although TIG welding produces the highest quality welds, it is a slow and expensive process. Metal inert gas welding process (MIG) is economical with consumable electrode fed at a predetermined rate. Plasma arc welding (PAW) has made substantial progress in utilising the high heat energy of an ionised gas stream.
Temperature of the welding arc may reach 3316 deg C (6000 F) Temperature of the plasma arc may reach 33 358 deg C ( 55 000F) Melting temperatures of the metals range from 260C (500F) to more than 2760C (5000F) Furnace and refinery stacks can operate at 1093C (2000F) or more. Gases used in the welding process may be stored at temperatures as low as -268C (-452F) Treating burns.