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Stresses in repair welding of high-strength steels Part 2: Heat Control and Stress Optimization
(2023)
In welding of high-strength steels, e.g., for foundations and erection structures of wind energy plants, unacceptable defects can occasionally be found in the weld area, which should be removed by thermal gouging and subsequent re-welding. High shrinkage restraint of repair welds may lead to crack formation and component failure, particularly in interaction with degraded microstructures and mechanical properties due to repair cycles. This study aims for elaboration of recommendations for repair concepts appropriate to the stresses and materials involved to avoid cold cracking, damage and expensive reworking. In part 1 [1] of this study systematic investigations of influences of shrinkage restraint on residual stresses and cold cracking risk during repair welding of two high-strength steels S500MLO for offshore application and S960QL for mobile crane structures were focussed. In this part 2, the microstructure and residual stresses due to gouging and influences of heat control parameters in repair welding are analysed. A clear reduction in residual stress after gouging can be observed, especially for the specimens with restrained transverse shrinkage. Gouging to a depth of approx. 2/3 of the seam height does not lead to a complete relaxation of the observed reaction forces. Particularly for the higher strength steel S960QL, there are pronounced areas influenced by the gouging process in which a degradation of the microstructure and properties should be assumed. Overall, the repair welds show a significant increase in the width of the weld and HAZ compared to the original weld, especially in the case of S960QL/G89. The repair welds show higher welding-induced stresses than the original welds, especially in the areas of the HAZ and the base metal close to the weld seam. This behaviour can be attributed overall to increased restraint conditions due to the remaining root weld or shorter gouge grooves. In good agreement with earlier investigations, the residual stresses transverse to the weld can be significantly reduced by upwardly limited working or interpass temperatures and the reaction stresses resulting from high restraint conditions can be effectively counteracted. The influence of the heat input on the stress formation is low compared to the interpass temperature for both test materials.
The sustainable and resource-efficient production of wind energy plants requires the use of modern high-strength fine-grain structural steels. This applies to both foundation and erection structures, like mobile or ship cranes. During the assembly of steel structures, unacceptable defects can occasionally be found in the weld area. In most cases, the economical solution would be local thermal gouging of the affected areas and re-welding. Due to the high shrinkage restraint of the joint groove in the overall structure, the superposition of global and local welding-induced stresses may lead to crack formation and component failure, particularly in interaction with the degradation of the microstructure and mechanical properties of high-strength steels during the repair process. However, manufacturers hardly have any information about these issues and there is a lack of recommendations and guidelines to take these safety-relevant aspects into account in adequate repair concepts. The aim of this research is to derive recommendations for repair concepts appropriate to the stresses and materials involved providing a basis for standards and guidelines to avoid cold cracking, damage and expensive reworking especially for high-strength steels. Part 1 of this study involves systematic investigations of influences of shrinkage restraint during repair welding of two high-strength steels S500MLO for offshore application and S960QL for mobile crane structures. The quantification of the shrinkage restraint of repair weld joints was achieved by means of experimental and numerical restraint intensity analysis. In welding experiments with self-restrained slot specimens, restraint intensity and introduction of hydrogen via the welding arc using anti spatter spray were varied systematically to analyse the effect on welding result, residual stresses, and cold cracking. It could be shown that increasing restraint intensities result in significantly higher transverse residual stress levels. In the case of hydrogen introduction S500MLO showed no cold cracking independent of the restraint conditions. However, S960QL was found to be considerably cold cracking sensitive if hydrogen is introduced. With increasing restraint intensity length and number of cold cracks increases significantly. Part 2 [1] of this study is focussed on microstructure and residual stresses due to gouging and stress optimization via adequate heat control parameters in repair welding.
Commercial high-strength fller metals for wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) are already available. However, widespread industrial use is currently limited due to a lack of quantitative knowledge and guidelines regarding welding stresses and component safety during manufacture and operation for WAAM structures. In a joint research project, the process- and material-related as well as design infuences associated with residual stress formation and the risk of cold cracking are being investigated. For this purpose, reference specimens are welded fully automated with defned dimensions and systematic variation of heat control using a special, high-strength WAAM fller metal (yield strength>790 MPa). Heat control is varied by means of heat input (200–650 kJ/m) and interlayer temperature (100–300 °C). The ∆t8/5 cooling times correspond with the recommendations of fller metal producers (approx. 5–20 s). For this purpose, additional thermo-physical forming simulations using a dilatometer allowed the complex heat cycles to be reproduced and the resulting ultimate tensile strength of the weld metal to be determined. Welding parameters and AM geometry are correlated with the resulting microstructure, hardness, and residual stress state. High heat input leads to a lower tensile stress in the component and may cause unfavorable microstructure and mechanical properties. However, a sufciently low interlayer temperature is likely to be suitable for obtaining adequate properties at a reduced tensile stress level when welding with high heat input. The component design afects heat dissipation conditions and the intensity of restraint during welding and has a signifcant infuence on the residual stress. These complex interactions are analyzed within this investigation. The aim is to provide easily applicable processing recommendations and standard specifcations for an economical, appropriate, and crack-safe WAAM of high-strength steels.
Influence of the WAAM process on residual stresses in high-strength steels (IIW-Doc. II-A-408-2022)
(2022)
High-strength fine-grain structeural steels have great potential for weight optimization of many modern engineering structures. Efficient manufacturing can be achieved here above all by Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM). First commercial high-strength welding consumables for WAAM are already available. However, due to a lack of knowledge and guidelines for the industry regarding welding residual stresses and component safety in manufacturing and operation, their application is still severely limited. Residual stresses play a crucial role here, as the sensitive microstructure of high-strength steels carries a high risk of cold cracking. For this reason, process- and material-related influences, as well as the design aspects on residual stress formation and the risk of cold cracking, are being investigated in a recent project (FOSTA-P1380/IGF21162BG). This high strength of the WAAM welding consumables is adjusted via a martensitic phase transformation. The volume expansion associated with martensite formation has a significant influence on residual stress evolution. However, this has not yet been investigated in relation to the processing of high-strength steels by WAAM. The aim of this work is to establish a WAAM cold crack test and easy-to-apply processing recommendations that will allow economical, expedient, and crack-resistant fabrication of high-strength steels, especially for SME. This paper focuses on the analysis of the effects of welding heat control and design of WAAM components on cooling conditions, microstructure, mechanical-technological properties and residual stresses. For this purpose, geometrically defined specimens (hollow cuboids) are welded fully automatically with a special, high-strength WAAM solid wire (yield strength >790 MPa). The heat control and specimen dimensions are varied within a statistical experimental design. The weld heat control is adjusted in such a way that the t8/5 cooling times are ensured within the recommended processing range (approx. 5–20 s). For this purpose, additional thermo-physical forming simulations using a dilatometer allowed the complex heat cycles to be reproduced and the resulting ultimate tensile strength of the weld metal to be determined. The WAAM welding of complex geometries with varying welding heat control and geometric factors or wall thicknesses not only has an effect on the cooling conditions, cooling times and microstructure, but also has a significant influence on the structural restraint conditions during welding. Hence, the welding experiments show significant effects of specimen scaling and heat input on the welding residual stresses, which may be detrimental regarding component properties and crack-critical tensile residual stresses. These complex interactions are analyzed within this investigation.
The new alloying concept of multi-element systems with defined entropy (HEA—high-entropy alloy; MEA—medium-entropy alloy) is gaining increasing importance in materials research. Significantly improved properties or combinations of properties are shown by some HEA/MEA systems. Thus, primarily the production and resulting microstructures of HEA, as well as its properties, have been investigated so far. Furthermore, processing is a main issue in transferring HEA systems from the laboratory to real components. Since welding is the most important joining process for metals, it is crucial to investigate the influence of welding to guarantee component integrity. Welding leads to residual stresses, which significantly affect the component integrity. Hence, the focus of this study is the residual stress formation and distribution in a CoCrFeMnNi HEA and ternary CoCrNi MEA using two different welding processes: tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding and solid-state friction stir welding (FSW). As a pathway for the application of HEA in this investigation, for the first time, residual stress analyses in realistic near-component specimens were performed. The residual stresses were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) on the surfaces of top and root weld side. The results were correlated with the local welding microstructures. The results show that both FSW and TIG generate significant tensile residual stresses on the weld surfaces in, and transverse to, the welding direction. In the case of FSW of the CoCrFeMnNi HEA, the longitudinal residual stresses are in the range of the yield strength of approx. 260 MPa in the weld zone.
The new alloying concept of multi-element systems with defined entropy (HEA - High Entropy Alloy or MEA - Medium Entropy Alloy) is gaining increasing importance in materials research. Significantly improved properties or combinations of properties are shown by some HEA/MEA-systems, which have the potential to substitute conventional alloys such steels and are therefore promising for a wide range of applications, e.g., overcome of the trade-off between high strength and ductility. Thus, primarily the production and resulting microstructures of HEA as well as properties have been investigated so far. Furthermore, processing is a main issue to transfer HEA systems from the laboratory to real components, e.g., for highly stressed components. Since welding is the most important joining process for metals, it is crucial to investigate the influence of welding processing on these material properties to guarantee component integrity. Welding leads to residual stresses, which significantly affect the component integrity. Only a very few studies on the effect of welding on residual stresses in HEA and MEA weld joints are available so far. Hence, the focus of this study is the residual stress formation and distribution in a CoCrFeMnNi HEA and ternary CoCrNi MEA using two different welding processes: Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding and soldi-state Friction Stir Welding (FSW). As a pathway for application of HEA in this investigation for the first time residual stress analyses in realistic near-component specimens were performed. The residual stresses were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) on the surfaces of top and root weld side. The results were correlated with the local welding microstructures. The results show that both FSW and TIG generate significant tensile residual stresses on the weld surfaces in and transverse to the welding direction. In the case of FSW of the CoCrFeMnNi HEA, the longitudinal residual stresses are in the range of the yield strength of approx. 300 MPa in the weld zone.
Determination of residual stress evolution during repair welding of high-strength steel components
(2022)
During the assembly of steel structures, unacceptable weld defects may be found. An economical solution is local thermal gouging of the affected areas and re-welding. Due to high shrinkage restraints of repair weld and sur- rounding structure, high global and local welding stresses superimpose, and may lead to cracking and component failure, especially in connection with the degraded microstructure and mechanical properties of high-strength steels during the repair process. Component-related investigations of high-strength steels (FOSTA P1311/ IGF20162N) focus on welding residual stress evolution during local thermal gouging and rewelding. In this study, repair welding of S500MLO (EN 10225) is carried out using in-situ digital image correlation (DIC) and ex- situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) to analyse strains and stresses. Self-restrained slit specimen geometries were identified representing defined rigidity conditions of repair welds of real components, which were quantified using the restraint intensity concept. The specimens were rewelded with constant welding heat control and parameters. Weld specimens exhibited significantly increased transverse residual stresses with higher transverse restraint intensities, in the weld metal, and in the heat affected zone. Transverse stresses along the weld seam decrease at the weld seam ends leading to different stress state during gouging and welding. XRD analysis of the longitudinal and transverse local residual stresses after cooling to RT showed a good comparability with global DIC analyses.
The new alloying concept of multi-element systems with defined entropy (HEA - High Entropy Alloy or MEA - Medium Entropy Alloy) is gaining increasing importance in materials research. Significantly improved properties or combinations of properties are shown by some HEA/MEA-systems. Thus, primarily the production and resulting microstructures of HEA as well as properties have been investigated so far. Furthermore, processing is a main issue to transfer HEA systems from the laboratory to real components. Since welding is the most important joining process for metals, it is crucial to investigate the influence of welding to guarantee component integrity. Welding leads to residual stresses, which significantly affect the component integrity. Hence, the focus of this study is the residual stress formation and distribution in a CoCrFeMnNi HEA and ternary CoCrNi MEA using two different welding processes: Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding and soldi-state Friction Stir Welding (FSW). As a pathway for application of HEA in this investigation for the first-time residual stress analyses in realistic near-component specimens were performed. The residual stresses were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) on the surfaces of top and root weld side. The results were correlated with the local welding microstructures. The results show that both FSW and TIG generate significant tensile residual stresses on the weld surfaces in and transverse to the welding direction. In the case of FSW of the CoCrFeMnNi HEA, the longitudinal residual stresses are in the range of the yield strength of approx. 300 MPa in the weld zone.
Creep-resistant steels such as the 13CrMoV9-10 used in pressure vessel construction, with wall thicknesses of 250 mm and above, are most commonly submerged arc welded (SAW). The characteristic high heat input during the SAW-process introduces very high, localized residual stresses, which can lead to stress relief cracking (SRC) if the mandatory post weld heat treatment (PWHT) of the welding joint is performed improperly. Current PWHT parameters, such as heating rate and holding time at a specific holding temperature are mostly based on both empirically experience and conventional free shrinking welding experiments to characterize the SRC-susceptibility of the weld. These cannot adequately depict the higher residual stresses caused by the structurally induced stiffness of the surrounding construction and its constraint on the thermal shrinkage of the weld. Nor do they consider the resulting metallurgic effects such as the growth of precipitates during the PWHT and the resulting differences in hardness of the grain boundaries or the premature aging via a dissimilar precipitation behavior. The effect of the heating rate of the PWHT on the SRC susceptibility has to date not been adequately studied either.
This study discusses the development of a repeatable, precise and time efficient methodology to study the effects of different stress levels and heating rates on the SRC susceptibility of the coarse grain heat affected zone (CGHAZ). For that purpose, samples were thermically treated to simulate a CGHAZ and subsequently exposed to representative levels of stress during PWHTs with defined parameters. The recorded stress and heating rate dependent strains were mathematically analyzed via curve tracing/ calculus to identify interdependent effects. This procedure facilitates the measurement of material characteristics such as carbide growth on grain boundaries at the µm-scale via an integrated value over the entire sample volume. The first and second derivate show a slight, precipitate dependent, increase in hardness of the sample, depending on the heating rate and applied stress. Additionally, the formation and growth of special carbides is well known to have a volumetric effect, which together with the material characterization and this new methodology is believed to generate an improved assessment of the SRC susceptibility of SAW microstructures of creep-resistant CrMoV steels. The main advantage of the suggested methodology is the material independence. It thus provides, a comparative value between welds under ideal conditions in the lab and real-world scenarios by including an idealized, simulated component rigidity.
The present work seeks to extend the level of understanding of the stress field evolution during direct laser deposition (DLD) of a 3.2 mm thick multilayer wall of Ti-6Al-4V alloy by theoretical and experimental studies. The process conditions were close to the conditions used to produce large-sized structures by the DLD method, resulting in specimens having the same thermal history. A simulation procedure based on the implicit finite element method was developed for the theoretical study of the stress field evolution. The accuracy of the simulation was significantly improved by using experimentally obtained temperature-dependent mechanical properties of the DLD-processed Ti-6Al4V alloy. The residual stress field in the buildup was experimentally measured by neutron diffraction. The stress-free lattice parameter, which is decisive for the measured stresses, was determined using both a plane stress approach and a force-momentum balance. The influence of the inhomogeneity of the residual stress field on the accuracy of the experimental measurement and the validation of the simulation procedure are analyzed and discussed. Based on the numerical results it was found that the non-uniformity of the through-thickness stress distribution reaches a maximum in the central cross-section, while at the buildup ends the stresses are distributed almost uniformly. The components of the principal stresses are tensile at the buildup ends near the substrate. Furthermore, the calculated equivalent plastic strain reaches 5.9% near the buildup end, where the deposited layers are completed, while the plastic strain is practically equal to the experimentally measured ductility of the DLD-processed alloy, which is 6.2%. The experimentally measured residual stresses obtained by the force-momentum balance and the plane stress approach differ slightly from each other.
WAAM process influences on local microstructure and residual stresses in high-strength steels
(2021)
High-strength fine-grain structural steels have great potential for weight optimization of many modern engineering structures. Efficient manufacturing can be achieved here above all by Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM). First commercial high-strength welding consumables for WAAM are already available. Due to a lack of knowledge and guidelines for the industry regarding welding residual stresses and component safety in manufacturing and operation, their application is still severely limited. Residual stresses play a crucial role here, as the special microstructure of high-strength steels is sensitive to cold cracking.
For this reason, process- and material-related influences, as well as the design effects on residual stress formation, are being investigated in a project funded by the AiF (FOSTA P1380/IGF 21162 BG). This study focuses on determining the interactions between heat control during WAAM process, resulting hardness, microstructure, and residual stresses, analyzed by X-ray diffraction. Welding experiments using geometrically similar AM specimens show that, with regard to the heat input, the energy per unit length in particular leads to significantly affected cooling times and microstructures and causes pronounced localized effects in terms of residual stresses in the upper weld beads.
WAAM process influences on local microstructure and residual stresses in high-strength steels
(2021)
High-strength fine-grain structural steels have great potential for weight optimization of many modern engineering structures. Efficient manufacturing can be achieved here above all by Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM). First commercial high-strength welding consumables for WAAM are already available. Due to a lack of knowledge and guidelines for the industry regarding welding residual stresses and component safety in manufacturing and operation, their application is still severely limited. Residual stresses play a crucial role here, as the special microstructure of high-strength steels is sensitive to cold cracking.
For this reason, process- and material-related influences, as well as the design effects on residual stress formation, are being investigated in a project funded by the AiF (FOSTA P1380/IGF 21162 BG). This study focuses on determining the interactions between heat control during WAAM process, resulting hardness, microstructure, and residual stresses, analyzed by X-ray diffraction. Welding experiments using geometrically similar AM specimens show that, with regard to the heat input, the energy per unit length in particular leads to significantly affected cooling times and microstructures and causes pronounced localized effects in terms of residual stresses in the upper weld beads.
High-strength fine-grained structural steels have great potential for weight-optimized, efficient structures in many modern steel applications. Further advances in efficiency can be achieved through additive manufacturing and bionic design. Commercial high-strength filler materials for wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) are already provided by the consumable producers. Today, application would be strictly limited due to absence of quantitative findings or any guidelines for the industry regarding welding-related stresses and component safety during manufacturing and service. Hence, process- and material-related influences and design-related restraint conditions associated with formation of residual stresses and cold cracking risk are investigated. The aim is the accessibility of special WAAM self-restraining cold cracking tests and easy applicable processing recommendations, enabling an economical, fit-for-purpose and crack-safe WAAM of high-strength steels. This first study focuses on determination of interactions between WAAM process parameters, resulting layer geometry, microstructure and residual stresses, analyzed via X-ray diffraction. Defined reference specimens are automated welded using a special WAAM solid wire (yield strength >820 MPa). Geometric properties can be specifically adjusted by wire feed and welding speed, but cannot be varied arbitrarily, since a high heat input causes local overheating, inadmissible changes of microstructure and mechanical properties, defects and comparable high tensile residual stresses.
High-strength fine-grained structural steels have great potential for weight-optimized, efficient structures in many modern steel applications. Further advances in efficiency can be achieved through additive manufacturing and bionic design. Commercial high-strength filler materials for wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) are already provided by the consumable producers. Today, application would be strictly limited due to absence of quantitative findings or any guidelines for the industry regarding welding-related stresses and component safety during manufacturing and service. Hence, process- and material-related influences and design-related restraint conditions associated with formation of residual stresses and cold cracking risk are investigated. The aim is the accessibility of special WAAM self-restraining cold cracking tests and easy applicable processing recommendations, enabling an economical, fit-for-purpose and crack-safe WAAM of high-strength steels. This first study focuses on determination of interactions between WAAM process parameters, resulting layer geometry, microstructure and residual stresses, analyzed via X-ray diffraction. Defined reference specimens are automated welded using a special WAAM solid wire (yield strength >820 MPa). Geometric properties can be specifically adjusted by wire feed and welding speed, but cannot be varied arbitrarily, since a high heat input causes local overheating, inadmissible changes of microstructure and mechanical properties, defects and comparable high tensile residual stresses.
The sustainable and resource-efficient production of wind energy plants requires the use of modern high-strength fine-grain structural steels. This applies to both foundation and erection structures. During the assembly of steel structures, unacceptable defects can occasionally be found in the weld area. In most cases, the economical solution would be local thermal gouging of the affected areas and re-welding. Due to the high shrinkage restraint of the joint groove in the overall structure, the superposition of global and local welding-induced stresses may lead to crack formation and component failure, particularly in interaction with the degradation of the microstructure and mechanical properties of high-strength steels during the repair process [1]. Corresponding standards hardly provide any information on adequate repair concepts, and there is no uniform scientific data on which to base such concepts.
In this study, several relevant findings are discussed based on examples of structural engineering focusing on mechanical-technological properties and residual stresses, e.g. [1]. Further experimental and numerical work as conducted by [2] and weld tests under defined restraint conditions in special weld test-setups [3] show that an optimization of the welding-induced stresses of high-strength structural steels is achievable by means of an adapted heat control. The present research involves systematic investigations of influences of shrinkage restraint, the number of repair cycles and heat control during repair welding of a recently available high-strength offshore steel S500MLO (EN 10225-1). A quantification of the shrinkage restraint of repair weld joints is achievable by means of restraint intensity concept [4], analogous to previous studies [5]. Using structural mechanics calculations, geometries of self-restrained specimens are identified representing different defined rigidity conditions of repair welds considering actual high-strength steel components. Welding experiments with DIC analyses (digital image correlation) of the occurring strains during welding and XRD analyses (X-ray diffraction) of the resulting residual stresses after welding and cooling show increasing transient loads and significantly elevated residual stress profiles in the weld area with increasing restraint intensity. Especially in the heat affected zone, tensile residual stresses of up to 80 % of the nominal yield strength occur when welding under increased restraint conditions. In relation to the presented existing results, this indicates that a safe repair welding is primarily achievable by means of appropriate repair concepts and heat control taking into account the high welding stresses and special microstructures of high-strength steels. Finally, the aim of this research is to derive recommendations for repair concepts appropriate to the stresses and materials involved providing a basis for standards and guidelines, especially for SMEs, in order to avoid damage and, in most cases, expensive reworking and to improve the full utilization of the potential of high-strength steels.
The sustainable and resource-efficient production of offshore wind turbines requires the use of modern high-strength fine-grained structural steels (Martin and Schroeter, 2005). This applies to wind turbines in terms of increasing turbine sizes as well as to maintenance and installation vessels and equipment (Ummenhofer et al., 2013). Without the demanded high load-bearing capacities and boom lengths, the economic realization of these goals would be inconceivable. During the assembly of high-strength steel structures, unacceptable defects can occasionally be found in the weld area, although the welding process was executed in accordance with the specifications. In most cases, the economical solution would be local thermal gouging of the affected areas and re-welding. Corresponding standards hardly provide any information on adequate repair concepts, and there is no uniform scientific data on which to base such concepts. This applies particularly to the consideration and optimization of welding-induced stresses due to the high shrinkage hindrance of the gouging grooves and degradation of the adjacent microstructures by gouging and re-welding. The result, especially in the case of high-strength steel grades, are frequently recurring imperfections as well as a missing consideration of the additionally induced welding stresses in the design of the structure. In this context, at BAM component-relevant investigations focused on welding residual stress evolution and microstructural degradation during repair of weld joints due to local thermal gouging and re-welding are carried out within the scope of a FOSTA project (P1311, IGF 20162N).
In this study, several relevant findings are discussed based on examples of structural engineering focusing on mechanical-technological properties and residual stresses, for instance found by (Schasse, 2017). Also experimental and numerical work as conducted by (Wongpanya, 2008) and weld tests under defined shrinkage restraint in special weld test-setups for research projects, e. g. FOSTA-P922 (Kannengiesser and Schroepfer, 2015) and P1011 (Kannengiesser and Schroepfer, 2017) have shown that an optimization of the welding-induced stresses of high-strength structural steels is specifically achievable by means of adapted heat control concepts (Schroepfer, 2017). The present research involves systematic investigations of influences of shrinkage restraint, the number of repair cycles and heat control during repair welding of the relatively new developed offshore-relevant high-strength steel S500MLO (EN 10225-1). For the quantification of the shrinkage restraint of weld joints, the concept of restraint intensity established by (Satho et al., 1973) was applied analogous to recent research, e. g. (Schwenk et al., 2008). By means of structural mechanics calculations, geometries of self-strained specimens were identified, that represent different defined rigidity conditions of repair welds of real components, cf. Fig. 1. It could be shown that with increasing weld joint restraint intensity significantly higher residual stresses in the weld metal and heat affected zone up to 80 % of the nominal yield strength occur, cf. Fig. 2. In relation to existing results, it has been shown that a safe repair of such welds can only be achieved by means of appropriate repair concepts and heat control taking the high welding stresses and special microstructures of high-strength steels into account.
Finally, the aim of this research is to derive recommendations for repair concepts appropriate to the stresses and materials involved providing a basis for standards and guidelines, especially for SMEs, in order to avoid damage and, in most cases, expensive reworking and to improve the full utilization of the potential of high-strength steels.
This article is an outcome of a workshop on Fatigue of Additive Manufactured Metallic Components jointly organized by the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) Berlin, Germany and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Boulder, CO, U.S.A. The aim of the workshop was a comprehensive discussion of the specific aspects of additively manufactured (AM) components in regard to failure under cyclic loading. Undoubtedly, a better understanding and the further development of approaches for damage tolerant component design of AM parts are among the most significant challenges currently facing the use of these new technologies.
This article presents a thorough overview of the workshop discussions. It aims to provide a review of the parameters affecting the damage tolerance of AM parts with special emphasis on the process parameters intrinsic to the AM technologies, the resulting defects and residual stresses. Based on these aspects, concepts for damage tolerant component design for AM are reviewed and critically discussed.
Modern arc processes, such as the modified spray arc (Mod. SA), have been developed for gas metal arc welding of high-strength structural steels with which even narrow weld seams can be welded. High-strength joints are subjected to increasingly stringent requirements in terms of welding processing and the resulting component performance. In the present work, this challenge is to be met by clarifying the influences on hydrogen-assisted cracking (HAC) in a high-strength structural steel S960QL. Adapted samples analogous to the self-restraint TEKKEN test are used and analyzed with respect to crack formation, microstructure, diffusible hydrogen concentration and residual stresses. The variation of the seam opening angle of the test seams is between 30° and 60°. To prevent HAC, the effectiveness of a dehydrogenation heat treatment (DHT) from the welding heat is investigated.
As a result, the weld metals produced at reduced weld opening angle show slightly higher hydrogen concentrations on average. In addition, increased micro- as well as macro-crack formation can be observed on these weld metal samples. On all samples without DHT, cracks in the root notch occur due to HAC, which can be prevented by DHT immediately after welding.
The supply and processing of materials for highly stressed components are usually cost-intensive. Efforts to achieve cost and resource efficiency lead to more complex structures and contours. Additive manufacturing steps for component repair and production offer significant economic advantages. Machining needs to be coordinated with additive manufacturing steps in a complementary way to produce functional surfaces suitable for the demands. Regarding inhomogeneity and anisotropy of the microstructure and properties as well as production-related stresses, a great deal of knowledge is still required for efficient use by small- and medium-size enterprises, especially for the interactions of subsequent machining of these difficult-to-machine materials. Therefore, investigations on these influences and interactions were carried out using a highly innovative cost-intensive NiCrMo alloy (IN725). These alloys are applied for claddings as well as for additive component manufacturing and repair welding using gas metal arc welding processes. For the welded specimens, the adequate solidification morphology, microstructure and property profile were investigated. The machinability in terms of finishing milling of the welded surfaces and comparative analyses for ultrasonic-assisted milling processes was examined focussing on surface integrity. It was shown that appropriate cutting parameters and superimposed oscillating of the milling tool in the direction of the tool rotation significantly reduce the mechanical loads for tool and workpiece surface. This contributes to ensure a high surface integrity, especially when cutting has to be carried out without cooling lubricants.
For higher operational temperatures and pressures required in petrochemical plants, the modified 13CrMoV9-10 steel was developed providing high resistance against creep and compressed hydrogen. Extreme care during the welding procedure is necessary for this steel, attributed to low toughness, high strength in as-welded state, and increased susceptibility to stress relief cracking (SRC) during post-weld heat treatment (PWHT). Previous research of SRC in creep-resistant steels discussed mainly thermal and metallurgical factors. Few previous findings addressed the influences of welding procedure on crack formation during PWHT considering real-life manufacturing conditions. These investigations focus on effects of welding heat control on stresses during welding and subsequent PWHT operations close to realistic restraint and heat dissipation conditions using a special 3D testing facility, which was presented in parts I and II of this contribution. Part III addresses investigations on residual stress evolution affecting crack formation and discusses the transferability of results from large-scale testing to laboratory-scale. Experiments with test set-ups at different scales under diverse rigidity conditions and an assessment of the residual stresses of the weld-specimens using X-ray (surface near) and neutron diffraction analysis (bulk) were performed. This study aims to provide a way of investigating the SRC behaviour considering component-specific residual stresses via small-scale testing concepts instead of expensive weld mock-ups.
Laser based powder bed fusion additive manufacturing offers the flexibility to incorporate standard and userdefined scan strategies in a layer or in between the layers for the customized fabrication of metallic components. In the present study, four different scan strategies and their impact on the development of microstructure, texture, and residual stresses in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing of a nickel-based superalloy Inconel 718 was investigated. Light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy combined with electron backscatter diffraction, and neutron diffraction were used as the characterization tools. Strong textures with epitaxially grown columnar grains were observed along the build direction for the two individual scan strategies. Patterns depicting the respective scan strategies were visible in the build plane, which dictated the microstructure development in the other planes. An alternating strategy combining the individual strategies in the successive layers and a 67◦ rotational strategy weakened the texture by forming finer microstructural features. Von Mises equivalent stress plots revealed lower stress values and gradients, which translates as lower distortions for the alternating and rotational strategies. Overall results confirmed the scope for manipulating the microstructure, texture, and residual stresses during laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing by effectively controlling the scan strategies.
Efficiency and flexibility are currently a major concern in the design of modern power plants and chemical processing facilities. The high requirements for economic profitability and in particular climate change neutrality are driving this development. Consequently, plant equipment and chemical reactor components are designed for higher operating pressure and temperature. Creep-resistant CrMo steels had been used as constructional materials for decades but came to operational limitations, for example the resistance against so-called high-temperature hydrogen attack in petrochemical reactors. For that purpose, 20 years ago V-modified CrMo steels had been developed for use in the petrochemical industry due to their very good creep-strength and hydrogen pressure resistance at elevated temperatures enabling long service life of the respective components. For example, the 13CrMoV9-10 steel is applicable for process temperatures of up to 482 °C and hydrogen pressures of up to 34.5 MPa.
Due to the large dimensions and wall thickness of the reactors (wall thickness up to 475 mm) and the special alloy concept, reliable weld manufacturing of the components is extremely challenging. First, low toughness and high strength of the weld joint in the as-welded condition are critical regarding weld cracking. High welding residual stresses are the result of the highly restrained shrinkage of the component welds. For this purpose, the entire component must be subjected to Post-Weld Heat Treatment (PWHT) after completion of the welding operation. The aim is to increase the toughness of the weld joints as well as to reduce the welding induced residual stresses. Before and during PWHT, extreme caution is required to prevent cracking. Unfortunately, V-modified CrMo steels possess an increased susceptibility to cracking during stress relaxation the so-called stress relief cracking (SRC).
Available literature studies have largely focused on thermal and metallurgical factors. However, little attention has been paid on the influence of the welding procedure on crack formation during PWHT considering actual manufacturing conditions. For that reason, we investigated in our previous studies (part I and II), the influence of heat control on the mechanical properties by simulating actual manufacturing conditions prevailing during the construction of petrochemical reactors using a special 3D- acting testing facility. The focus of part I was put on the influence of the welding heat control on mechanical stresses and the effect on cracking during PWHT. Part II was mainly dedicated to the metallurgical causes of SRC during PWHT and the interaction with the occurring mechanical stresses. It could be shown that not only high welding-induced stresses due to increased weld heat input cause higher susceptibility for SRC formation. It was further intensified by an altered precipitation behaviour in presence of mechanical stresses that are caused by the component related restraint. The present part III shows how residual stresses, which are present in such welded components and significantly influence the crack formation, can be transferred to the laboratory scale. As a result, the effect on the residual stresses on the SRC behaviour can be evaluated on simplified small-scale specimens instead of expensive mock-ups. For this purpose, experiments with test set-ups at different scales and under different rigidity conditions were designed and carried out.
Modified TEKKEN test for studying hydrogen-assisted cracking in high-strength structural steels
(2020)
In the present work, the complex interactions of the influences of material, welding process and seam configuration and the restraint of shrinkage on the residual stresses and the influence of diffusible hydrogen on hydrogen-assisted cracking (HAC) in the high-strength steel S960QL were investigated. For this purpose, self-restraint specimens were selected using the TEKKEN test with correspondingly adapted seam opening angles and a restraint intensity of approx. RFy = 17 kN/(mm·mm). The variation of the seam opening angle of the test seams was between 30° and 60°. Due to the comparatively high restraint of shrinkage in the transverse direction of the weld, high tensile residual stresses in the weld metal were expected for both weld seam configurations. In addition, a dehydrogenation heat treatment (DHT) for HAC prevention under restraint of shrinkage was verified. In order to keep distortion and heat input as low as possible, the seam geometries were manufactured from the solid material by means of electric discharge machining (EDM). Both, solid wire and metal cored wire were used. In addition, hydrogen was added to the shielding gas in solid wire welding to increase diffusible hydrogen concentration. Moreover, welding residual stresses at the weld seam surface, which were measured by using mobile X-ray diffraction, were taken into account to evaluate the HAC behavior. DHT was carried out at 250 °C for 4 h in an external furnace.
Effect of Inter-Layer Dwell Time on Distortion and Residual Stresses of Laser Metal Deposited Wall
(2019)
The laser metal deposition is an advanced manufacturing technology enabling the production of large-sized parts and partially or completely elimination of machining and welding. The process is characterised by non-uniform local heating of the buildup leading to a stress distribution, which may exceed the yield strength of the material and leads to loss of dimensional accuracy. The interlayer dwell time has a strong influence on the temperature field. The effect of the interlayer dwell time on the distortion and the stress distribution during laser metal deposition of a single-pass wall on the edge of 2 mm thick plate was studied experimentally and numerically. The deposited material was IN625 and the substrate material was AISI 316. A decrease of the residual displacement, due to a uniform shrinkage after the deposition of the last layer and a lower level of the residual compressive longitudinal plastic strain, has been observed in the studies without dwell time. The peak increment of the free edge displacement corresponds to the first layer and hence the subsequent layers will be deposited on the already plastically deformed buildup. The tensile residual longitudinal stress near the top of the buildup and transverse stress near the edges of the buildup is higher than yield strength in the studies with dwell time.
The presentation provides a discussion and damage tolerant assessment of metallic AM components. In the focus are problems of the determination of representative material data, the effect of material defects and residual stresses. Starting with the actual state-of-the-art in the field, options and possibilities of a damage tolerant design for AM are discussed.
High-strength steels are increasingly applied in modern steel constructions to meet today’s lightweight requirements. Welding of these steels demands a profound knowledge of the interactions between the welding process, cooling conditions, heat input, and the resulting metallurgical occurrences in the weld and its vicinity. Additionally, welding stresses may be detrimental for the safety and performance of high-strength steel component welds during fabrication and service, especially due to the high yield ratio. For a development of strategies to adjust welding heat control, all these effects should be considered, to reach a complete exploitation of the high-strength steel potential. In recent researches at BAM, multilayer GMAW experiments were performed with high-strength steels, in which cooling conditions and resulting microstructure were analyzed for varied heat control parameters. The application of a unique 3d-operating testing facility and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed the analysis of local stresses in the weld while welding and cooling under component relevant shrinkage restraints. As a result, correlations between material behavior, welding, and cooling condition and the arising multi-axial stresses and forces were found. Based on this study, statements for the development of adapted heat control concepts were derived, which are presented by means of specific analysis examples.
The increased application of higher-strength steels and filler materials necessitates a more profound understanding of the interactions between the welding process, the heat input, the cooling conditions and the resulting metallurgical processes in the weid and its surroundings. Strategies, which help to improve the strength properties and life-time of welded stmctures to such an extent that the utilisation of higher-strength materials can be justified and their lightweight construction potential can thus be exploited to the füll, can only be derived from the interaction between all the influencing factors. Examples of a few investigations on welded joints between higher-strength fine-grained structural steels with regard to the interactions between the main variables influencing the cold cracking are presented in this article.
Today, an expanding application of high-strength steels in modern welded constructions can be observed. The economical use of these steel grades largely depends on the strength and reliability of the weldments. Therefore, the special microstructure and mechanical properties of these grades have to be taken into account by keener working ranges regarding the welding parameters.
However, performance and safety of welded components are strongly affected by the stresses occurring during and after welding fabrication locally in the weld seam and globally in the whole component, especially if the shrinkage and distortion due to welding are restrained. Some extensive studies describe the optimization of the welding stresses and the metallurgical effects regarding an adapted welding heat control. Lower working temperatures revealed to be particularly effective to reduce the local and global welding-induced residual stresses of the complete weld significantly. However, decreased interpass temperatures cause concurrently higher stresses during welding fabrication. This work shows strategies to reduce these in-process stresses.
With help of multi-axial welding stress analyses in component-related weld tests, using a special 2-MN-testing facility, differences in stress build-up are described in detail for root welds, filler layers and subsequent cooling to ambient temperature.
Submerged arc welded (SAW) components of creep-resistant low-alloyed Cr-Mo-V steels are used for thick-walled heavy petrochemical reactors (wall-thickness up to 475 mm) as well as employed in construction of modern high-efficient fossil fired power plants. These large components are accompanied by significant restraints during welding fabrication, especially at positions of different thicknesses like welding of nozzles. As a result, residual stresses occur, playing a domi-nant role concerning so-called stress relief cracking (SRC) typically during post weld heat treat-ment (PWHT). Besides specific metallurgical factors (like secondary hardening due to re-precipitation), high tensile residual stresses are a considerable influence factor on SRC. For the assessment of SRC susceptibility of certain materials mostly mechanical tests are applied which are isolated from the welding process. Conclusions regarding the influence of mechanical factors are rare so far. The present research follows an approach to reproduce loads, which occur during welding of real thick-walled components scaled to laboratory conditions by using tests designed on different measures. A large-scale slit specimen giving a high restraint in 3 dimensions by high stiffness was compared to a medium-scale multi-pass welding U-profile specimen showing a high degree of restraint in longitudinal direction and a small-scale TIG-re-melted specimen. The small-scale specimens were additionally subjected to mechanical bending to induce loads that are found during fabrication on the real-scale in heavy components. Results show for all three cases compa-rable high tensile residual stresses up to yield strength with high gradients in the weld metal and the heat affected zone. Those high tensile stresses can be significant for cracking during further PWHT.
High-strength steels are increasingly applied in modern steel constructions to meet today’s lightweight requirements. Welding of these steels demands a profound knowledge of the interactions between the welding process, cooling conditions, heat input and the resulting metallurgical occurrences in the weld and its vicinity. Additionally, welding stresses may be detrimental for the safety and performance of high-strength steel component welds during fabrication and service, especially due to the high yield ratio. For a development of strategies to adjust welding heat control, all these effects should be considered, to reach a complete exploitation of the high-strength steel potential. In recent researches at BAM, multilayer GMAW experiments were performed with high-strength steels, in which cooling conditions and resulting microstructure were analysed for varied heat control parameters. The application of a unique 3d-operating testing facility and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed the analysis of local stresses in the weld while welding and cooling under component relevant shrinkage restraints. As a result, correlations between material behaviour, welding and cooling condition and the arising multi-axial stresses and forces were found. Based on this study, statements for the development of adapted heat control concepts were derived, which are presented by means of specific analysis examples.
High-strength steels are increasingly applied in modern steel constructions to meet today’s lightweight requirements. Welding of these steels demands a profound knowledge of the interactions between the welding process, cooling conditions, heat input and the resulting metallurgical occurrences in the weld and its vicinity. Additionally, welding stresses may be detrimental for the safety and performance of high-strength steel component welds during fabrication and service, especially due to the high yield ratio. For a development of strategies to adjust welding heat control, all these effects should be considered, to reach a complete exploitation of the high-strength steel potential. In recent researches at BAM, multilayer GMAW experiments were performed with high-strength steels, in which cooling conditions and resulting microstructure were analysed for varied heat control parameters. The application of a unique 3d-operating testing facility and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed the analysis of local stresses in the weld while welding and cooling under component relevant shrinkage restraints. As a result, correlations between material behaviour, welding and cooling condition and the arising multi-axial stresses and forces were found. Based on this study, statements for the development of adapted heat control concepts were derived, which are presented by means of specific analysis examples.
Cyclic fatigue behavior of glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin at ambient and elevated temperatures
(2018)
The fatigue behavior of ±45° glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin under cyclic mechanical and constant thermal loading is investigated in this study. Tests at three different temperature levels in the range 296 K to 343 K have been performed in order to create S-N curves for each temperature level. The specimen damage is measured in-situ using optical grayscale analysis. The characteristic damage state (CDS) is evaluated for each specimen. It is shown that the point of CDS is suitable as a failure criterion to compare the resulting S-N curves. With micromechanical formulations, the temperature-dependent matrix effort is calculated for each stress-temperature level. In terms of matrix effort, the longest fatigue life is reached at high temperatures, while, in terms of stress, the lowest fatigue life is reached at the highest temperatures.
Cyclic fatigue behavior of glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin at ambient and elevated temperatures
(2018)
The fatigue behavior of ±45° glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin under cyclic mechanical and constant thermal loading is investigated in this study. Tests at three different temperature levels in the range 296 K to 343 K have been performed in order to create S-N curves for each temperature level. The specimen damage is measured in-situ using optical grayscale analysis. The characteristic damage state (CDS) is evaluated for each specimen. It is shown that the point of CDS is suitable as a failure criterion to compare the resulting S-N curves. With micromechanical formulations, the temperature-dependent matrix effort is calculated for each stress-temperature level. In terms of matrix effort, the longest fatigue life is reached at high temperatures, while, in terms of stress, the lowest fatigue life is reached at the highest temperatures.
In an increasing number of modern steel applications, high-strength structural steel grades are demanded to meet specifications regarding a high load-bearing capacity and a low operating weight. Lightweight design rules enhance the safety requirements, especially for welded joints. Besides a higher cracking risk for high-strength steel welds, the formation of tensile residual stresses might lead to fracture due to overloading or premature failure if not adequately considered. In this study, a stress-strain analysis was conducted at component-related structures from S960QL using digital image correlation while preheating, welding and cooling adjacent to the weld seam. X-ray diffraction analysis of the local residual stresses in the weld seam showed a good comparability with global analyses using either a DIC system or a special testing facility, which allowed in situ measurements of welding loads. By analysing two different seam geometries, it could be shown that lower multi-axial stresses arise if a narrower weld groove is used. Comparative analyses revealed a direct correlation of the local residual stresses in the weld with transverse shrinkage restraint, whereas the residual stress level in the HAZ is significantly affected by the bending restraint of the weld construction and the occurring bending stresses, respectively.
Presentation of the work of division 9.4 with focus on the Key aspects of component welding applying higher-strength fine-grained structural steels. The increased application of higher-strength steels and filler materials necessitates a more profound understanding of the interactions between the welding process, the heat input, the cooling conditions and the resulting metallurgical processes in the weld and its surroundings. Strategies, which help to improve the strength properties and life-time of welded structures to such an extent that the utilisation of higher-strength materials can be justified and their lightweight construction potential can thus be exploited to the full, can only be derived from the interaction between all the influencing factors. Examples of a few investigations on welded joints between higher-strength fine-grained structural steels with regard to the interactions between the main variables influencing the cold cracking are presented.
The increased application of higher-strength steels and filler materials necessitates a more profound understanding of the interactions between the welding process, the heat input, the cooling conditions and the resulting metallurgical processes in the weid and its surroundings. Strategies, which help to improve the strength properties and life-time of welded stmctures to such an extent that the utilisation of higher-strength materials can be justified and their lightweight construction potential can thus be exploited to the füll, can only be derived from the interaction between all the influencing factors. Examples of a few investigations on welded joints between higher-strength fine-grained structural steels with regard to the interactions between the main variables influencing the cold cracking are presented in this article.
Today an expanding application of high-strength steels in modern welded constructions can be observed. The economical use of these steel grades largely depends on the strength and reliability of the weldments. Therefore the special microstructure and mechanical properties of these grades have to be taken into account by keener working ranges regarding the welding parameters. However, performance and safety of welded components are strongly affected by the stresses occurring during and after welding fabrication locally in the weld seam and globally in the whole component, especially if the shrinkage and distortion due to welding are restrained. Some extensive studies describe the optimization of the welding stresses and the metallurgical effects regarding an adapted welding heat control. In particular lower working temperatures revealed to be effective to significantly reduce the local and global welding induced residual stresses of the completed weld. However, decreased interpass temperatures cause concurrently higher stresses during welding fabrication. This work shows some strategies to reduce these in-process stresses. With help of multi-axial welding stress analyses in component-related weld tests using a special 2-MN-testing facility differences in stress build-up are described in detail for root welds, filler layers and subsequent cooling to ambient temperature.
In an increasing number of modern steel applications high-strength steel grades are demanded to meet specifications regarding a high load bearing capacity and a low operating weight. Lightweight design rules enhance the safety requirements, especially for welded joints. Besides a higher cracking risk for HSLA steel welds, the formation of tensile residual stresses might lead to fracture due to overloading or premature failure if not adequately considered. In codes and standards, therefore, residual stress on the amount of the yield strength are expected, disregarding the circumstance that generally the residual stresses are much lower in HSLA steel welds. Oftentimes this leads to an underestimation of the proof strength in high-strength welded components and economical disadvantages using HSLA steels. In this study, a stress-strain analysis was conducted at component related structures from S960QL using digital image correlation while preheating welding and cooling adjacent to the weld seam. X-ray diffraction analysis of the local residual stresses in the weld seam showed a good comparability with the global analyses. The comparison of two different seam geometries revealed significantly lower multi-axial stresses if a narrower weld groove is used.
Optimization of welding loads with narrow groove and application of modified spray arc process
(2017)
Current efforts for lightweight design result in a growing application of high-strength fine-grained structural steel in modern constructions, e.g. mobile cranes, with yield strength from 960 MPa. The design of welded structures and welding processes becomes more challenging with increasing material strength and elastic ratios. High residual stresses are able to diminish lifetime, load capacity and component safety and should be avoided. Recent analyses have shown strong influences of heat control and restraint of the weld due to arising reaction stresses, superimposing with local residual welding stresses. Modern inverter technologies allowed the development of numerous modified spray arc processes driven by power source manufacturers, which provide virtually similar features and several benefits, enabling welding of narrower seams with reduced weld volumes and total heat inputs. This research focuses on welding loads due to modified weld seams. The global reaction forces and moments and their superposition with local residual stresses in welded components due to external shrinkage restraints were investigated using a special testing facility and XRD. The restraint intensity, weld seam geometry and welding process were varied for statistical evaluations of resulting welding loads. When welding under restraint, a reduction of the weld seam volume causes significantly lower reaction stress levels.
Today an expanding application of high-strength steels in modern welded constructions can be observed. The economical use of these steel grades largely depends on the strength and reliability of the weldments. Therefore the special microstructure and mechanical properties of these grades have to be taken into account by keener working ranges regarding the welding parameters. However, performance and safety of welded components are strongly affected by the stresses occurring during and after welding fabrication locally in the weld seam and globally in the whole component, especially if the shrinkage and distortion due to welding are restrained. Some extensive studies describe the optimization of the welding stresses and the metallurgical effects regarding an adapted welding heat control. In particular lower working temperatures revealed to be effective to significantly reduce the local and global welding induced residual stresses of the completed weld. However, decreased interpass temperatures cause concurrently higher stresses during welding fabrication. This work shows some strategies to reduce these in-process stresses. With help of multi-axial welding stress analyses in component-related weld tests using a special 2-MN-testing facility differences in stress build-up are described in detail for root welds, filler layers and subsequent cooling to ambient temperature.
In an increasing number of modern steel applications high-strength steel grades are demanded to meet specifications regarding a high load bearing capacity and a low operating weight. Lightweight design rules enhance the safety requirements, especially for welded joints. Besides a higher cracking risk for HSLA steel welds, the formation of tensile residual stresses might lead to fracture due to overloading or premature failure if not adequately considered. In codes and standards, therefore, residual stress on the amount of the yield strength are expected, disregarding the circumstance that generally the residual stresses are much lower in HSLA steel welds. Oftentimes this leads to an underestimation of the proof strength in high-strength welded components and economical disadvantages using HSLA steels. In this study, a stress-strain analysis was conducted at component related structures from S960QL using digital image correlation while preheating welding and cooling adjacent to the weld seam. X-ray diffraction analysis of the local residual stresses in the weld seam showed a good comparability with the global analyses. The comparison of two different seam geometries revealed significantly lower multi-axial stresses if a narrower weld groove is used.
Additive Manufacturing (AM) by Selective Laser Melting (SLM) offers ample scope for producing geometrically complex parts in comparison to the traditional subtractive manufacturing strategies. Developing during the manufacturing process, residual stresses may limit the application of SLM parts by reducing the load bearing capacity as well as induce unwanted distortion depending on the boundary conditions specified in manufacturing.
The present study aims to evaluate the bulk residual stresses in SLM parts by using neutron diffraction measurements performed at E3 line -BER II neutron reactor- of Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie (HZB) Berlin. Together with microstructure characterization and distortion measurements, it is possible to describe the stress state throughout the whole sample. The sample was measured in as-build condition (on a build plate) and after releasing from the build plate. The used material is the nickel based superalloy 718. This alloy is widely used in aerospace and chemical industries due to its superior corrosion and heat resistant properties.
Obtained results indicated different residual stress states for each of the transversal, longitudinal and normal component. The normal and transversal component exhibits a rather compressive behavior while the longitudinal was tensile in the center part of the sample and became compressive towards the tip. As expected, the absolute values of all stress components decreased after releasing the sample from the building plate. A surface scan utilizing a coordinate-measuring machine (CMM) allowed us to present top surface distortion before and after releasing. The top surface showed a distortion around ±80µm after releasing. Microstructure evolution in the scanning-building cross-section is largely dominated by columnar grains. In addition, many small random orientated grains are prominent in the regions of a laser overlap during SLM.
In summary, for the sample of superalloy 718 manufactured by SLM, a small distortion occurred when removing the sample from the build plate whereby the residual stress state decreases. Moreover, the observed columnar grains in the building direction could give a reason for the lowest stress values in that normal direction. However, the most important parameter controlling the residual stresses is the temperature gradient. Hence, future investigations are planned for a different scan strategy to distribute the laser impact in a more homogenous manner.
Additive manufacturing (AM) by selective laser melting (SLM) offers ample scope for producing geometrically complex parts as compared to the traditional subtractive manufacturing strategies. However, the residual stresses which develop during the process can limit the application of SLM parts because they can reduce the load bearing capacity as well as induce unwanted distortion depending on the boundary conditions specified in manufacturing. This study aims at the characterization of residual stresses in SLM parts by using different measurement techniques. The material used is the nickel based super Alloy 718. Microstructure as well as surface and bulk residual stresses were characterised. For residual stress analysis X-ray, synchrotron and neutron diffraction were applied. The results show different residual stress states dependent on the penetration depth in the sample offered by the different measurement techniques. Samples of Alloy 718 manufactured by SLM process can show high tensile residual stresses in the surface as high as the yield strength of the wrought alloy. Residual stresses in the bulk show considerably lower stress values.
High-strength steels with yield strengths ≥ 690 MPa are becoming increasingly significant for modern steel constructions. Both quenched and tempered (QT) high-strength steels and steels produced by the thermo-mechanically controlled process (TMCP) are currently available. TMCP-steels are usually provided with a typical mill scale. Apart from the manufacturing process these steels differ also in their chemical composition. The influence of these differences are investigated here with focus on the residual stresses formed during TIG welding. Bead on plate welds have shown characteristic residual stress distributions depending on the type of steel as well as on the heat input and preheat temperature. The following work demonstrates that the fluid flow, induced by the elements present in the mill scale, leads to a deeper penetration of the material. This can also lead to increased residual stresses in the surface of the weld and the HAZ. Furthermore, higher heat input and preheat temperature can induce higher tensile residual stresses − which are evident in the present study.
This article provides an impression on potentials in applying nowadays welding simulation tools in construction design. This is carried out exemplary on plate girders from two structural steel grades. The calculated residual stresses are compared with measurements by sectioning method. It has been repeatedly stated that present Eurocode models fail to approximate the residual stresses. Especially for high strength steel (HSS) only limited information is available on realistic occurring residual stresses in typical I-girders. The investigations are aimed to give further guidance on these values. A few proposals on advanced models are discussed.
Present trends to lightweight design lead to an expanding relevance of high-strength fine-grained structural steels especially in mobile crane constructions. With growing material strength, the challenge for welding fabrication increases, since high loading capacities and safety requirements have to be accomplished. The utilisation of the high strength potential often requires complex constructions associated with high restraint conditions while welding. Increased residual stresses may occur due to superimposing reaction and restraint stresses, which have to be quantified and evaluated to ensure the safety and integrity of high-strength steel constructions. Particularly, the scope of residual stresses has to be taken into account for different effects in the HAZ, notches, weld and base metal. Commonly, conservative assumptions of residual stresses lead to distinct underestimations of the load bearing capacity particularly for welded high-strength steel constructions. This study concludes results of recent works of the researchers regarding the complex interaction among heat control, material and restraint intensity on the residual stress state in welded components. These analyses are extended by further experiments. Based on the obtained major effects, an approach for a welding residual stress assessment regarding component design according to prevailing standards for crane construction, an important application for high-strength steels, is presented.
Current efforts for lightweight design result in a growing application of high-strength fine-grained structural steel in modern steel constructions, e.g. mobile cranes, with yield strength from 960 MPa. The design of welded structures and the welding process become more challenging with increasing material strength due to higher elastic ratios. The formation of high residual stresses, which are able to diminish lifetime, load capacity and component safety, has to be avoided. Recent numerical and experimental analyses have shown a strong influence of the heat control and the rigidity of the weld on the welding stresses. Global reaction stresses due to an external shrinkage restraint superimpose with local residual stresses in the weld seam. Modern inverter technologies allowed the development of numerous modified spray arc processes driven by the power source manufactures with almost equal characteristics. They provide several well-known technical and economic benefits, like the possibility of welding narrower seam configurations. As a result a smaller weld volume, total heat input and, therefore, reduced welding stresses are achievable. This research focuses on the welding loads due to modified weld seams. The global reaction forces in welded components due to an external shrinkage restraint were investigated in a special in-house developed testing facility. Additionally, the superposition of the local residual stresses, global stresses and bending moments were analysed with the help of X-ray diffraction. The intensity of the restraint, the weld seam configuration and the weld process (transitional arc and modified spray arc) were varied for a statistical evaluation of the resulting welding loads. It was observed that under restraint a smaller weld seam volume affects reduced reaction stresses.
Current efforts for lightweight design result in a growing application of high-strength fine-grained structural steel in modern steel constructions, e.g. mobile cranes, with yield strength from 960 MPa. The design of welded structures and the welding process become more challenging with increasing material strength due to higher elastic ratios. The formation of high residual stresses, which are able to diminish lifetime, load capacity and component safety, has to be avoided. Recent numerical and experimental analyses have shown a strong influence of the heat control and the rigidity of the weld on the welding stresses. Global reaction stresses due to an external shrinkage restraint superimpose with local residual stresses in the weld seam. Modern inverter technologies allowed the development of numerous modified spray arc processes driven by the power source manufactures with almost equal characteristics. They provide several well-known technical and economic benefits, like the possibility of welding narrower seam configurations. As a result a smaller weld volume, total heat input and, therefore, reduced welding stresses are achievable. This research focuses on the welding loads due to modified weld seams. The global reaction forces in welded components due to an external shrinkage restraint were investigated in a special in-house developed testing facility. Additionally, the superposition of the local residual stresses, global stresses and bending moments were analysed with the help of X-ray diffraction. The intensity of the restraint, the weld seam configuration and the weld process (transitional arc and modified spray arc) were varied for a statistical evaluation of the resulting welding loads. It was observed that under restraint a smaller weld seam volume affects reduced reaction stresses.
This article addresses the imperfections in high-strength steel I-shape sections caused by weld assembly. Load influencing imperfections are assumed mainly as deviations from the ideal shape (e.g. bending distortion) and longitudinal residual stresses. The quality of a numerically aided design of components exposed to either compression and/or bending is significantly dependent on those parameters. In this scope, major gaps in knowledge are still present. Eurocode (EC) is providing robust simplified models that date back to the 1960's and 70's. As a result, the ultimate limit state (ULS) is approached on a quite conservative basis. The investigations are presented in this article are aimed to give further guidance on these values in component-like specimens in the context of Eurocode.