What this module covers
Materials and Design carries at least 5% of the Part C questions under AWS B5.1:2025 Table 8.1. That is a small slice, but this module does a second job: it teaches you the layout of AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025, which every other module depends on.
Part C is open book. The exam is 55 questions (50 scored and 5 unscored pretest items) in 135 minutes at a Prometric center. The code is on screen as a PDF, but word search is disabled, and AWS says some PDF navigation features may be disabled, so bookmarks may not be available. The D1.1 endorsement description (Rev. 10.14.2025) also permits a bound printed copy. Either way, you win on this exam by knowing where things are, not by remembering numbers.
By the end you will be able to:
- name the clause for any topic in under ten seconds,
- tell the Engineer's, Contractor's and Inspector's jobs apart,
- find the design rules for a connection, and the base metal and filler metal rules for a WPS.
We cite clauses, parts and tables by number only. Keep your own copy open while you read.
Navigating the on-screen code by clause number
The clause map
Learn this list cold. It is the single most useful thing in the course.
| Clause | What lives there | Ask yourself |
|---|---|---|
| 1 General Requirements | Scope, limitations, who is responsible for what | "Who has to do this?" |
| 2 Normative References | Other standards D1.1 calls up | "Which outside document applies?" |
| 3 Terms and Definitions | Code meanings of words | "What does this word mean here?" |
| 4 Design of Welded Connections | Effective areas, weld sizes for design, connection details | "Is this connection designed right?" |
| 5 Prequalification of WPSs | The conditions that let a WPS skip testing | "Can this WPS be used without a PQR?" |
| 6 Qualification | Testing WPSs, welders, operators, tack welders, CVN | "What test, what range?" |
| 7 Fabrication | Shop and field work: preparation, preheat, consumables, workmanship, repairs | "Was the work done right?" |
| 8 Inspection | Inspector duties, acceptance criteria, NDT procedures | "Is the weld acceptable?" |
| 9 Stud Welding | Studs, start to finish | "Is it a stud?" |
| 10 Tubular Structures | Tubular design, qualification and inspection | "Is it a tube or pipe member?" |
| 11 Strengthening and Repairing Existing Structures | Work on structures already in service | "Is it an existing structure?" |
| Annexes | Normative (binding) and informative (guidance), plus sample forms | "Is there a form, guideline or method for this?" |
Use the table of contents as your index
With no word search, the table of contents is your index. If bookmarks are available on your screen, use them the same way, but AWS says navigation may be disabled, so do not depend on them. Practice going from a clause, to its parts, to its subclauses in your own copy by clause number. Speed here saves minutes per question.
A good habit: before you read the question options, say the clause number out loud in your head. Then go there.
Read a clause in three passes
- Scope sentence. The first subclause tells you what the clause or part applies to, and often what it does not.
- The rule. Find the subclause that answers the question.
- The exceptions. Look for "unless", "except", "when specified in the contract documents" and notes under tables. Many exam questions hinge on the exception.
Look it up drill
| Question type | Where to go | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Who is responsible for X | Clause 1 | Engineer, Contractor or Inspector, and whether the contract documents can change it |
| What does a term mean | Clause 3 | The code definition, not your shop usage |
| Is the job tubular | Clause 10 first | Whether Clause 10 adds to or replaces the general rule |
| Is it a stud | Clause 9 | Stud welding has its own qualification and inspection |
| Is it an existing building | Clause 11 | Base metal evaluation and repair rules |
What the exam tests here. Many questions are really "which clause?" questions in disguise. If you can name the clause, you are halfway done.
Where design and connection rules sit
Clause 4 is for the designer, but the inspector reads it too
Clause 4 covers how welded connections are designed: the effective area of groove, fillet, plug and slot welds, the effective throat, minimum and maximum sizes the design may call for, and details such as lap joints, transitions in thickness and width, and fillet weld terminations. It separates rules common to all connections from added rules for cyclically loaded (fatigue) connections.
As an inspector you rarely design anything. You read Clause 4 to check that what the drawings show, and what the welder made, is consistent with the code, and to understand terms like effective length and effective throat that appear in acceptance questions later.
Statically or cyclically loaded
The Engineer states in the contract documents whether a connection is statically or cyclically loaded. That one choice changes which design rules, which acceptance criteria and sometimes which workmanship rules apply. When a question mentions fatigue, repeated loading, cranes or bridges, think "cyclically loaded" and look for the cyclic part or column.
Tubular connections
Do not look for tubular design rules in Clause 4. Clause 10 holds them, along with tubular prequalification, qualification and inspection additions.
| If the question asks about... | Go to... |
|---|---|
| Effective throat or effective area of a weld | Clause 4, the common requirements |
| A fatigue detail or stress range category | Clause 4, the cyclically loaded requirements |
| A T, Y or K tubular connection | Clause 10 |
| Who decides static vs cyclic | Clause 1 and the contract documents |
Base metals and filler metals in the code
Base metals
D1.1 applies to carbon and low-alloy structural steels within the limits its scope sets. Clause 5 lists the base metals that may be used with prequalified WPSs, grouped so that steels with similar strength and weldability are treated together. A steel that is not in that list is not automatically forbidden, but a WPS for it must be qualified by test under Clause 6.
For existing structures, Clause 11 asks for the base metal to be evaluated before welding, because old steel may not match a current specification.
Filler metals
Clause 5 also holds a filler metal matching table. It pairs each base metal group with the filler metal classifications that match its strength. When you check a WPS against that table, you are checking strength: will the weld metal hold up about as well as the steel around it? Clause 4 says when the design calls for matching filler and when undermatching is allowed.
Clause 7 then controls how filler metals are handled in the shop: storage, drying and exposure limits, especially for low-hydrogen electrodes. Module 5 covers that.
Worked navigation (invented example)
A question says: "Steel X (invented) is joined to steel Y (invented). Which filler metal group is matched?" Your path:
- Clause 5.
- Find the base metal table and locate both steels. Note their groups.
- When groups differ, read the table notes. The code tells you how to pick filler for a mixed joint.
- Read across to the filler metal matching table.
What the exam tests here. Knowing that base metal and filler metal lists live with prequalification (Clause 5), handling lives in fabrication (Clause 7), and the strength logic lives in design (Clause 4).
Check yourself
The questions below are in the practice set at the bottom of this page. Each one gives a situation and asks where D1.1 settles it, so open your own copy to its contents, decide, and only then read the explanation. They cover who holds a responsibility, the tubular connection requirements, filler metal matching, the criteria for judging indications found by MT, and whether an in-house WPS form meets the code.
Where to look in your own books
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 1: scope, limitations, responsibilities of the Engineer, Contractor and Inspector
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 3: terms and definitions
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 4: design of welded connections, common and cyclically loaded requirements
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 5: base metal list and filler metal matching table for prequalified WPSs
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 10: tubular structures
- AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2025 Clause 11: strengthening and repairing existing structures
- AWS B5.1:2025 Table 8.1: Code Applications subjects and minimum weights
- AWS D1.1 endorsement description (Rev. 10.14.2025): exam format and code reference policy