The arc is struck beneath the flux between the bare electrode and the workpiece, which melts a small
amount of the flux. Although a non-conductor when cold, the flux becomes highly conductive when
molten (about 1300°C) providing a current path to sustain the arc between the continuously fed metal
electrode and the workpiece. The heat generated by the arc melts the end of the electrode, the flux,
and part of the base metal at the weld seam. The arc transfers the molten metal from the tip of the
melting electrode to the workpiece, where it becomes the deposited metal. As the molten flux
combines with the molten metal, certain chemical reactions occur that remove some impurities and/or
adjust the chemical composition of the weld metal.