Effect of residual stress redistribution and weld reinforcement geometry on fatigue crack growth of butt welded joints

• Published in: International journal of fatigue 2020-10, Vol.139, p.105780-19, Article 105780
• Main Authors: Shahani, Amir Reza, Shakeri, Iman, Rans, Calvin David
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aluminum base alloys; Base metal; Butt joints; Butt welding; Crack propagation; Fatigue crack growth; Fatigue failure; Fracture mechanics; Heat treating; Materials fatigue; Post-weld heat treatment; Residual stress; Residual stress redistribution; Stress intensity factor; Stress intensity factors; Weld reinforcement geometry; Welded joint; Welded joints
• ISSN: 0142-1123; 1879-3452
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfatigue.2020.105780

•Redistribution of residual stress during crack growth in butt welded joint was studied.•The effect of heat treatment and weld geometry on fatigue crack growth was studied.•Residual stress increases due to removal of the weld reinforcements.•Considering residual stress redistribution, a correlation between results was achieved. Redistribution of residual stress during crack growth in butt welded joint of Al5083-H111 was studied. Furthermore, the effect of post weld heat treatment and removing the weld reinforcements on fatigue crack growth rate was investigated. Three dimensional simulations of welding process and fatigue crack growth were conducted. It was shown that removing the weld reinforcements causes an increase in the residual stress. A correlation between the fatigue crack growth rate data of welded joints can be obtained with that of the parent metal by considering the weld geometry and redistribution of residual stresses in calculation of stress intensity factor.