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Module 7

WELDING DISTORTION AND RESIDUAL STRESSES

Table of. Contents
Introduction •.•....•.•.••...•..•.••.•....... _.• • . . • • . • • . . • •. . • • . . • . • • • • . .• 1 , 3

>

.~

Expansion and Contraction . . • . . . . • • . . • . • . • • • . . • . . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . • • . • . • . . . • • • . • • . . . Stress. ,. Transverse Contraction (Shrinkage). Angular Distortion ...•.•.•......•..•..•.••• Longitudinal Expansion and Contraction (Shrinkage) .•.......•.•...•••.•.•....••. Applying Principles to Practice . . . • • • • • • • . . . • . . • . . • . . . . . . . • . • . . • • . . . . . . . . . •• 1. Multi;.Pass Welds. . • . . . . • . . • • • . • . . . . . . . . . • . . • • . . . . . . • • • • • . • . . • . •• 2. Joint Design, Preparation and Fit-Up •....••......•........•......••.. 3. Rate of Welding. . . . • . . . . . . . . .. • . . . . . . .. . . . . . . • • • • . . . . . . • • • . . . . . .. 4. Uniformity of Heat Input •.......•.•...•..........•...........•.•... Conclusions .......................••.•.•...•.........•............•..•.........
III •• -• ., •• 'II " It_ ,. ••••

3 4
6 6 6 6

7
7 8

Mechanical Control of Distortion .......•••.•••.•...•....•.•..............•.......••

Control by Welding Procedure. . • • . . . • . • • • . . . • • • . • • • . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . • • • . . . • . . • • • . . 9 Seam Welds . • • . . ., . . • • • . . • .. . . . . • . . . . . • . • • . . • • • •. . . . • . . • . . . . • • • . . . • • • • " 9 Non-Continuous Fillet Welds .••••••••••....••..••...•.••••...•••• ~.••.•••.•• 12 Combination of Plating and Stiffeners ~ .....•.•.....•......•.....•...•......•.•. 12 Built-Up Structures - Neutral Axis ••• ~.................••..........••.....•. 13 Complicated Weldments - Accurate Assembly ...•................ ; •. . •• • . . . •. . . • 15 Peening. • . . . . . . . . . .. . ......•.••.•.•.••..•..•....................••..... 16 Shrinkage Allowances .........••• : •••............................................ 16 . Butt Welds·Transverse Shrinkage ... , ............•.............. , , 17 Butt Welds-Longitudinal Shrinkage ..................•.. ', ,... 17 Fillet Welds·Transverse Shrinkage of a T Joint With Two Continuous Welds ...• 18 Angular Distortion . . . • • . . • . • • • . . • • . . • • • . • . • • • • . • . . . . . . • • . . . . . . • . • , . • • • • •. 1 9 Summarized Distortion Prevention Precautions , ••................ " . . . . • . . . . . . • . • . .. ,9

Elimination of Distortion • • • . • . . • . . • . . . • . . . . • . . • • • . • • . . . . • . . • . . . . . .'. . . . .' . . . . . . . . . . 2 Residual Welding Stresses .. : •....•••••....•.••.•...................•............• How Stresses May be Created and Prevented '.' . . . . . . . . . . . . . StresSes in Thick Welds . • . . • • • . • • . • . • . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • • . . . . . • . . . . . Peening •... , .. -•... ' ........••..•.•.....•................................. Summary on Stresses ...•......••...•••.....•.•••..•..........••...•......•....••

23 24 26 27 27

WELDING DISTORTiON AND RESIDUAL STRESSES The establishment and control of a proper welding procedure is highly important if sound economical welding is to be obtained. It is perhaps the most important function of the welding engineer or supervisor and will call upon all his knowledge and experience. Since it is often impossible to establish a satisfactory procedure for an unsatisfactory design, this and the following lessons are of equal interest to the' designer since he must hare with the supervisor the responsibility for the end product. The development of a welding procedure should start with the understanding that the heat of welding will produce expansion, contraction and stresses and consequently its major objects will be to: 1. Maintain dimensions be controlling distortion; 2. Reduce internal residual welding stresses. Obviously, welding procedure will involve welding method or process, base material, joint design and preparation, filler metal, current values, welding technique, heat treatment, etc., but even more important it has to do with the pattern of heat input to the job, as determined by the sequence of assembly and sequence of welding. The effect of each of these factors must be comprehended and the procedure planned accordingly first of all to minimize distortion and stresses. The procedure once planned, and if necessary, checked and altered by trial, should be clearly laid out and definitely and purposefully followed. Contraction wilf produce either distortion or stress, or both. Distortipn, if excessive, may exceed dimensional tolerances, and stress, if excessive, may produce cracking.· Both, in their extreme, must be avoided. They can be best avoided by knowing the fundamentals involved and using these principles plus common sense and experience in actual practise.
I

Expansion and Contraction The expansion and contraction movements of heated metal may vary simply illustrated by considering the movements of a free metal bar as shown at A in Fig.1. Heat applied at any point on the bar causes it to lengthen; when the heat is removed the bar cools and contracts to its original length. Actually heated metal expands volumetrically - that is , in all directions - the amount of expansion in any direction being proportional to the dimensions. Therefore, in the case of this metal bar there is an increase in both diameter and length. Only the increase in length is shown in the example because, the length being considerably greater than the diameter, the increase in diameter is negligible compared with the increase in length.

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

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= &u quite resimcl • = &pall~;DfI Iree

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leng,1t

due to flxpansion

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Fig., 1
Behaviour of Metal Bar When Heated and Cooled Under Different Conditions.

cold ofter beating.

Healed portion, Upset due to resisted expans;.:m wnen hot. .

At high temperatures metal becomes plastic and may be compared to a piece of rubber in behaviour, that is, compression in one direction causes expansion in other directions. Therefore, in the case of the above mentioned bar, if lengthwise movement is prevented, expansion in other directions results. This is shown at B, by an increase in diameter of the heated portion, because this part has to absorb the volume of metal which was represented by the longitudinal expansion, as. shown at A. The prevented expansion produces just the same effect as if the bar were allowed to expand longitudinally and then the ends placed between the jaws of a vise and compressed to its original length. upsetting (Le., swelling of the heated part) is known as permanent deformation, that is, it will not disappear when the bar cools. Therefore, when the bar is cold it will be shorter by an amount equal to the expansion which would have taken place if the bar had been free.

The

In the above examples we have considered (a) free expansion and contraction and (b) restricted expansion and free contraction. Now let us consider what happens when expansion and contraction are both resisted, that is, when the ends of the bar are gripped, as shown in Fig. 2, so that they will not allow either expansion or contraction to take place.
cted
porlion

=~==-= 1
J.
Fixed length
Controdion ~"eteh <:Ineoaling moy cou s " fo'llIre .

. Fig. 2
Behaviour of Metal Bar When Heated and Cooled Under Conditions in Which Expansion and Contraction are prevented.

Welding Distortion and Residual Stresses

A = Expansion prevented: upsetting when hot.

causes

B = Upsetting remains on cooling and bar stretches. When heat is applied the bar will upset since it cannot expand lengthwise, Fig. 2A. When it is cooled the upset portion will remain and since the bar is still rigidly held, it must stretch to the extent that is has been shortened by. upsetting. If the metal is not sufficiently ductile and able to take this stretch, it Will crack and fail. The action is just the same as if the bar had been allowed to contract fully and then were rigidly gripped and pulled back to its original length. Inevitably it must stretch and perhaps break in doing so.

Stress
The above brings us to the point of considering the effect of expansion and contraction. Free expansion and contraction does not disturb the metal but when either of these. movements is resisted externally, the metal is stressed (refer to Figs. 1 and 2). Stress is a measure of the intensity of the resistance of the metal to either compression or stretching. For example, when a piece of metal is compressed, a compressive stress is set up; on the other hand, stretching sets up a tensile stress. When a piece of metal has cooled out under restraint, that is, when contraction has been prevented and the metal' stretches but does not fail, it will have a residual (tensile) stress set up within it. If it fails, of course, no resisting stress remains. Most metals are able to withstand an almost unlimited amount of compression. At high temperatures the compression stress may cause the softened metal to flow or deform (as in Figs. lB and 2A) but failure is unlikely even under considerable loads. On the other. hand they have only a very limited ability to stretch, and if the tensile stress to which they are subjected is too great, failure may occur, as shown in Fig. 2B. The points which now should are proportional to the dimensions contraction cause deformation and up sufficient stress to cause failure the stretch. be quite clear are: (a) expansion and contraction of the heated areas; (b) restrained expansion and stresses in metal, (c) restrained contraction may set if the metal is not ductile enough to accommodate

Transverse Contraction (Shrinkage). Angular Distortion

Consider a V. groove joint as shown in Fig. 3A, which is unrestricted, i.e., free to move as required by weld contraction. After welding, this joint will tend to assume the shape shown in B, the angular distortion being caused by the non-uniform contraction of weld metal due to the greater width of the top of the weld compared with the root of the V. If the weld meta! could be deposited to form a more uniform section between the edges. as shown at C and D, there would (in theory) be no angular deformation, only uniform contraction across the joint. Likewise it will be appreciated that in fillet welds the distortion resulting from contraction will be as in F and G for a joint set up as in E, Fig. 3. Another example of transverse contraction or shrinkage is shown in Fig. 4A. If two plates being butt-welded together are not too heavy or held together, and are thus free to move.. they will be drawn closer together by the contraction of the weld metal. The amount of drawing, to a certain extent, depends upon the speed of welding. As a rule the greater the speed, the less the amount. The speed at which the plates will not

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

.c

® Distoman

Angula,

=*to
.

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Fig. 3
Distortion of Butt and Fillet Joints due to Weld Metal Contraction

draw together can be found. The drawing may also be satisfactorily prevented by keeping a wedge X between the plates. 12 to 18 inches ahead of the welding (see Fig.4B) or by separating the plates and making allowance for the contraction (see Fig. 4C). A. spacing of approximately ~ in. per linear toot of weld. is found to be satisfactory for usual thicknesses. The exact amount. however, varies with different jobs and conditions.

A. Trans.,,,n,, contraction

of th" weld beed

B. Weld start"d with wedge in place

C. PNt"poc;r>g of plates

Fig. 4
Contraction of two butt-welded plates

Longitudinal Expansion and Contraction (Shrinkage) When we consider movements along the joint the effect of expansion and contraction of the joint edges becomes important because these movements are resisted by the comparatively cool metal surrounding the weld point. Under this restraint considerable stress is set up in the metal.
4

Welding Distortion and ResidU4l Stresses

This is illustrated diagrammatically in the sketches composing Fig. 5. With reference to A of Fig. 5, if we assume that a portion of one edge has been rapidly heated, the result is the production of an effect similar to that described in conjunction with Fig. lB. In this case the expansion of the heated zone is prevented by the comparatively cool metal; the result is that the increased volume of metal in the heated zone is absorbed by a slight thickening or upsetting of the plate edge. Then, when cooling contraction takes place, the edge shortens, producing the shape shown in Fig. 5B. This is exactly what is happening to any joint edges or surface during welding, and the magnitude of the cooling effect depends upon the size of the heated zone in relation to the size of the plate.

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A
B

Angular
Di.JfOrlioll

Fig. 5
A and B show how heating and cooling cause distortion of plate edge. C shows how contraction causes plates to take the shape shown by dotted lines .

If the edges are restrained this effort to contract will, instead of causing distortion, set up stresses between the heated area (the weld) and the plate. This will happen if the parts being joined are massive and rigid or if rigidly clamped or rigidly tacked. The effect of both the transverse and longitudinal contraction (shrinkage) of a butt joint where the plate is not rigid is shown .in Fig. 5C. The important point which should be very clearly understood from the foregoing, is that local heating always produces 5

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

~~

contraction during cooling of the base metal, which with the additional contraction of the weld :metal, cause concave bending, i.e., shortening of the weld side of the joint both transversely and longitudinally.

Applying Principles to Pradice

The foregoing principles may be advantageously fo~owing ways. 1. Multi-Pass Welds In the examples just quoted, we have assumed that the required volume of weld metal is deposited in one pass. In practice, however, it is often necessary to complete the deposition in several passes. Generally speaking, multi-pass welding increases the angular distortion, i.e., a large number of small passes causes more distortion than a few large passes, the first pass forms a hinge point about which the contraction of subsequent passes takes place. Lateral shrinkage will also be greater because each pass will increase the number of upset areas along the plate edge. Therefore, the greater the number of passes the greater the distortion tendency. In some cases, however, distortion in the longitudinal direction is a problem. The smaller the cross-section of a bead the less contraction force it can exert against the rigidity of the plates and the more it will stretch. In these cases, therefore, the number of passes should be increased rather than decreased. This apparently paradoxical relationship is a function of. the thickness of the plate and its natural resistance to distortion. There· is inherent rigidity against the longitudinal bending or shortening of a plate, providing the plate is thick enough. Light gauge sheets have little rigidity in this direction and, therefore, will buckle easily. Unless the two plates to be welded are restrained, there is virtually no lateral rigidity, since each of the two plates is free to move with relation to the other, so lateral distortion is more common.
2. Joint Design, Preparation and Fit-up

applied to make welded joints in the

It has already been noted in reference to Fig. 3 that the more symmetrical the weld section and the more balanced the transverse contraction movements, the less will be the angular distortion. J oint design should, therefore, be as symmetrical as possible about the longitudinal centre line. Joint D of Fig. 3 is preferable from this viewpoint to B. Similarly a U groove preparation is better than a V groove. Since the weld metal shrinkage is proportional to the amount of weld metal, it follows that the smaller the weld the better. It is therefore the duty of the designer to call for welds no greater than are required as determined by his strength calculations, and for the operator to make welds no greater than shown by the drawings. A large fillet will give more angular distortion than a smaller fillet and a wide V groove more than a narrow groove since the contraction at the top will be greater (see Fig. 3). Therefore V grooves should be designed for a minimum bevel, consistent with accessibility, and should be carefully prepared to see that this bevel is not exceeded.
3. Rate of Welding

The distortion of a joint will be affected by the rate of welding. As the arc travels along the joint the heat fans out in all directions from the weld point, as indicated in Fig. 6. Any heat which travels ahead of the weld point will distort the free joint edges and must, therefore, be kept to a minimum. The slower the rate of travel, the more time 6

• .... !,

Welding Distortion andRe8idual Stresses

there is for the heat to spread ahead of the weld point, as shown in A of Fig. 6, the faster the travel the less heat spread will be at and ahead of the weld point as shown in B.

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a Fast Travel

Fig. 6 4. Uniformity of Heat Input Expansion and contraction of the metal in the heated zone is further complicated by the fact that the heat input to the joint is not uniform. but, as shown in Fig. 6 is in the form of a concentrated zone (the weld point) which travels along the joint as the weld progresses; At the weld point the heated joint edge is expanding and upsetting (as previously described) and the weld metal is deposited in the fully expanded condition. Behind the weld point the jOint edges and weld metal are cooling and contracting. In front of the weld point the joint edges are relatively cold and not yet subjected to expansion. Obviously a better effect could be secured if the heat could be applied to the joint uniformly and simultaneously throughout the whole length. Although this is not 1005r. possible, the welding procedures described later are intended to approach as near as possible to this ideal.

Conclusions
The lessons to be learned from the foregoing considerations 1. Joints should be designed to require groove is preferable to a V groove. 2. Joints should be uniform single v. a mimimum amount are ~ of weld metal, e.g., a U to a

about the centre

axis, e.g., a double V is preferable indicate to be necessary.

3. Joint size should not be greater than stress calculations 4. Only the required amount

of weld metal should be deposited.

5. The fewer the number

of passes the less will be the angular

and lateral

distortion.

6. The rate of welding should be as fast as possible. 7. The heat input to the joint should be distributed 7 as uniformly as possible.

oj

Fundtzmentals a/Welding Technology

Having discussed those factors which are fundamental

in making welded joints,

we will now describe the various procedures which may be adopted in order to minimize any undesirable or detrimental effects of expansion and contraction. Mechanical Control of Distortion
Distortion may be partially or fully controlled by mechanical means, either by':
(1) Pre-bending or setting. (2) Rigid clamping or fixing.

(3) The counter action of equal and opposed welds, or similar weldments clamped or tacked together. (4) Sub-assembly. As wiH be noted from Fig. 7. pre-bending or pre-setting can be applied to reducing (or eliminating) angular distortion of both butt and fillet welds.

o Fig. 7
Presetting of Joint Members to Allow for Contraction of Weld Metal

Alternatively. weldments may be rigidly clamped to heavy slabs or bases during the period of welding; also they may be mounted in rigid fixtures or assembled and rigidly tacked for welding. Strongbacks and temporary stiffeners may be used to align and rigidly maintaln edges and joints. - Heavy slabs and fixtures will not only hold assemblies rigidly but will withdraw the heat of welding from the weldments, thus further reducing distortion. A similar effect can be obtained by immersing assemblies in water, or by spraying. However, none of the methods of restraint can be expected to fully retain alignment. Some springing and distortion will usually follow release from such superimposed control. Further, the greater the restraint against contraction the greater will be the residual stresses induced and the more the likelihood that cracking will result as in Fig. 2B. HI':1vy woldments of heavy plate may in themselves offer great rigidity and restraint to welds, Fig. 8 shows cover plates welded to H sections .. The fillet welds will have a tendency to shorten due to their longitudinal contraction, This contraction will cause bending and a shortening of the sections. If they are tacked or clamped together as shown, this bending 8

tendency in each will be counteracted by the other. The procedure should be to 'start welding in short increments outwardfrom the centre, alternating from one section to the other so that equal and opposite welds are made alternatively and thus counter-balance each other, It is understandable that distortion will be increased in large assemblies where the welds are long. It therefore follows that if the job is broken down into a number of smaller weldments or sub-assemblies, the distortion in each will, be less and can more easily be controlled and corrected. If necessary each' sub-assembly-can be straightened or machined before final fitting and welding. Therefore final fabrication from sub-assemblies is to be recommended and the designer should bear this requisite in mind. Sub-assemblies further make for easier and more efficient handling and reduce the accumulation of additive residual stresses.

'Temporary

Taci:

Fig. 8
Eliminating Distortion by Balancing Weld Contractions of Two Similar Weldments Clamped or Tacked Back to Back

Control by Welding Procedure

Experience has shown that control of distortion and a reduction of welded-in stresses can be obtained by carefully planning the welding procedure.

Seam Welds
The simplest form of distortion control is exemplified by the well-known method for welding a longitudinal seam of starting the weld some distance in from the end of the joint and making a short weld first, as shown in Fig. 9. In this way the first weld pre-sets the joint edges and prevents the dosing in of the joint as the main weld proceeds (compare Fig.4A). " It has already been mentioned that distortion control involves applying the proper pattern of heat distribution. We have seen how this principle may be applied by welding equal and opposite welds (sec Fig. 8). Also it has been noted that it would be desirable to apply heat uniformly and simultaneously throughout the entire length of a joint. As this is obviously not possible in arc welding, 1 ho next best thing is to weld at spaced intervals along the joint. Fig. 10 shows several sequences which apply this principle. A simple back-stepping method is shown at A. This consists of starttng a weld a short distance from the end of a

9
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Fundamentals

of Welding Technology

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-

First Weld

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Fig. 9

t-- Main

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Simple Welding Sequence

seam - the distance being the length of bead deposited by one electrode. The next weld is then started a similar distance from the first weld and is fused into the previous starting point. and so on, until the joint is completed. On long joints the welder works outwards from a central point as shown at Band C. This is an important principle to follow. Still more elaborate variations of this procedure are the "staggered" or "wandering" sequence shown at D and E. These procedures consist of leaving spaces between each weld bead, progressing along the seam in this manner and then completing the .unwelded spaces.

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. Seam \Velding Tech niqUf'S. Note: Long Arrows Indicate Genf"ral Dirr-ctinn of Welding.
C Assumes Two \Vt'jrtl'l"!I Employed.

This procedure may be used for Loth butt ami Tee joints, but in the latter case {he welds may be staggered on both sides of the joint as shown in Fig, 11. 10

Welding Distortion and ResiduaZ Stresses

Back-step and skip weld procedures Isequencesl may also be used for multi-pass welds. as shown in Fig. 12. , With large areas of plating, the butts (i.e., the joints between ends of plates) should be welded' before the seams (Le., the joints between the long sides of plates). The gap should be set to allow for contraction by adjusting the free plate before welding. The welding of seams should never be carried up to, or beyond, an unwelded butt. as the rigidity of the butt would then be too great. The seam should be terminated 12 to 15 inches short of the butt. The butt is then welded, after which the welding of the seam may be continued. This is illustrated in Fig. 13.

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72 in. to 75 in.

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Fig. 11
Intermittent Fillet Welds

Fig. 13
Sequence for Seams & Butts

G.neI'(JI Direction of Welding

Fig. 12
Skip Procedure for Multi-Pass Welds

The welding should progress or order of the in Fig. 14. In this way it for the maximum period. of welds.

start at a central point and proceed outwards, keeping the welding more or less symmetrical about the centre, as shown is possible to arrange for each joint to have Freedom of movement Dark lines indicate completed welds and numbers indicate order"

11

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/lundam(mtals

0/ Welding

Technology

The sequence in which welds are carried out should be studied from the viewpoint of avoiding complete restraint which will inevitably introduce residual stresses in joints. This is exemplified by the recommended sequence shown for the assembly in Fig. 15.

Non-Continuous

·Fillet Welds

The main advantage of intermittent welding is that the heat input to the joint is considerably less and thereby distortion and stress are reduced. . It. will, of course; be essential to make sure that a non-continuous weld will give the required joint strength. Quite often the minimum practicable size of :fillet provides more strength than that required by design calculations; in such cases non-continuous welds may very well be used. On the other hand, if a complete joint seal is required, non-continuous welding cannot be adopted. Another advantage is that the heat is more uniformly distributed than it would be in the case of a continuous weld. Moreover, the longitudinal. weld shrinkage and, .therefore, overall distortion, is only a small fraction of that produced by continuous welding. It has, in fact, been found that the reduction in these factors is far greater than would appear to be represented by the proportion of intermittent to continuous weld.

Combination

of Plating and Stiffeners

Where plating and stiffeners are combined - as in ship bulkhead work - the butt and seam welds in plating should be welded before the stiffeners. The attachment of stiffeners should follow closely, but must never proceed beyond an unwelded plate butt or seam, otherwise the stiffeners will restrain the movem.ent of the plate joints. Similarly, joints in stiffeners should be welded before the stiffener is attached to the plating. A simplified example of the weld sequence for an application' of this type is shown in Fig. 15.

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Y

1 J
2

Sooms

f
3

f L
J

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f
4

f
3

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Suggested Sequence for Plate Welding'

12

Welding Distortion and Residual Btre83e8

First step Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth -

weld transverse

fillets; this allows plate A to shrink without

re-

straint.
weld butts in plate A; plate is free to move. " butts in stiffener may now be welded while it is free to move. stiffener may now be welded to plate. brackets may be welded to vertical plate; bracket plate is free to move along stiffener. bracket may now be welded to stiffener. Fig. 15
An Example of Welding Sequence in a Structure Combining Plating and Stiffeners

Built-up Structures noted

Neutral Axis

The advantage of equal and opposite welding about a centre line has already been. in Fig. 3, B and D and Fig. 8. Such a centre line is called the 'neutral axis' and is usually defined as the line on which there will be neither tension nor compression when the piece is flexed or bent. In the case of a piece of plate the neutral axis coincides with the centre plane" of the plate (see A, Fig. 16); similarly, in the case of an I beam or channel the neutral axis coincides with the centre of the web, See B and E. In the case of a Tee or angle section member, arranged as shown at C and D, the neutral axis is not in the centre of the depth, but is near the flange. A clear understanding of the position and function of the neutral axis is necessary if the effects of welding either a plate or section, or a complete weldment are to be visualized. As previously mentioned, the simple deposition of a bead of weld metal on the surface of a plate ~n cause that plate to bend with concavity on the welded side. This is simply due to the fact that the contraction of the weld metal exercises a shrinkage force which is offset from the neutral axis of the plate. If, on the other hand, beads were deposited simultaneouslyon opposite sides of the plate, the contractions of the two welds would be balanced about the neutral axis and there would be no bending. " This balancing of welds about the neutral axis of a built-up section or structure is a most important fundamental point in reducing distortion. A further example is shown in Fig. 17 where various welds are arranged around the neutral axis of a built-up section, the sequence in which the welds should be made being indicated by numbers.

13

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

H. A..

= N.u""r

Axis

Fig. 16
Neutral Axis of Various Sections

Emphasis so far has been laid on the importance of welding equally about the neutral axis in order to maintain alignment. This assumes that the structure is true to begin with. In some cases this may not be so and welding unequally about the axis may be used as a means of straightening.

Fig. 17
Balancing the Sequences of Welds About the Neutral Axis of a Section

A case in point is the construction of a beam from plate sections where the web plate has a curvature as received from the mill. This might be as much as % inch in 5 feet The following procedure may then be used to produce a straight beam. (See Fig. 18). 14

Welding Distortion and Residual StreSses

'/'-"~

Fig. 18
Operations in Welding a Built-up I Beam with Curved Web

The flange plate fl is laid down on a slab and the web plate is set up vertically on it as in A. The flange is then pulled up to the web plate and strongly tacked as in B. The welding of this flange and the web is then carried on until the web is not only straightened but slightly bent in the opposite direction as shown in C. The second flange f~ is now fitted to the web and tacked securely as in D. The welding is then completed, preferably using two welders on opposite sides of the web and working in the same direction. With such a sequence the beam should be reasonably straight on completion. Welding the first flange to the web before the second flange has been tacked to the latter results in a considerable bending effect due to the shortening of the weld inasmuch as the beam-Is not strong or stable without the second flange. If in doing such welding the beam is slightly 'over bent', the welding on the second flange, when completed, ought. to be just sufficient to pull the beam back to the straight position, since due to greater rigidity the shrinkage effect will not be as great as under the conditions in which the first flange was welded. Complicated Weldments-Accurate

As~embly

In the case of complicated assemblies, the accuracy of preparing the various components requires careful consideration in order to enable dimensional tolerances to be kept to a minimum. An accumulation of tolerances· over a number of components may create costly post welding difficulties. Obviously the more generous the tolerances the greater will be the fit-up gaps and an excessive amount of weld metal will be necessitated, resulting in greater distortion than would otherwise be involved. To avoid this, it may be desirable to machine components to size in order to obtain close tolerances and increase the accuracy of the final weldment. It is also often possible to arrange the assembly of components in such a way that cumulative tolerances can be controlled and prevented from adversely affecting the final accuracy of the structure, (See Fig. 19) Where accurate location points are essential, the assembly arrangement of the structure should provide for some allowance in case the various sub-assembly allowances do not work out to the degree of accuracy expected. For example, in the case of built-up I beams, the accumulated longitudinal contraction of the flange to web welds and the transverse contraction of the stiffener welds, will result in appreciable shortening of the beam, and it is usual to leave the flange and web plates overlength so that they may be finished to size after welding.

15

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

Similarly, for machine structures such as bedplates, engine frames, etc., those points which must be located t.o close tolerances, should be fixed only by the last weld which affects their location. With tolerance of -I- or - 1/16 inch on plates X and Y. assembly A would necessitate a tolerance of or - 1/8 inch, whereas the accuracy of B could be + or -. 1/32 inch.

+ 1/32 in.

'I.

itt.

Fig. 19
Arranging Components to Ensure
Finished Accuracy

. Peening
Reference has been made to peening as a method of controlling distortion. It does so by stretching the metal and promoting plastic flow. However, if peening is carried to excess, additional stresses can be set up and the metal made hard and brittle. Peening is best carried out by a series of relatively light blows covering the surface of t.he weld as quickly and uniformly as possible. A round nosed tool with a diameter of 3 '16 inch or thereabouts used at an air pressure not in excess of 90 p.s.i. is desirable. Since the effective depth of peening is usually not more than 1.- 8 inch, shallow thin welds of approximately this thickness lend themselves best to satisfactory peening. Each layer should be peened as it is deposited. . The operation of peening even when carried out carefully and with experience is bound to harden and flake the metal if distortion is to be appreciably reduced. This detrimental effect is eliminated however, by the heat effect of subsequent layers of weld metal, Therefore since the last pass of weld is not subject to re-heating. it is not advisable to peen this layer.

Shrinkage Allowances
It has already been noted that contraction or shrinkage depends on restraint and a number of other factors. It is difficult for any formula or table of allowances to take 'care of all such variation!': and any such information must be used with discretion and only as a basis for guidance. Actual measurements taken from similar or somewhat similar applications cue far better employed. However the following formulae taken from an article on "Shrinkage Distortion in Welding" appearing in the June 1950 issue ·of the WeJding Research Supplement of the JowTlal of the American Welding Society (see Bibliography NO.1) will prove of value.

16

Welding Distortion. and·Re.cridual StTe.<me.~

Butt Welds -

Transverse Shrinkage

s
where
.J

0.18

~'I<

+ O.05d

·1

'1
. ')
"1 ~ '1

S Transverse shrinkage in inches, Avr ..- Cross sectional area cif welding in square inches, t .,~. hickness of plate in inches, T d "';' Root opening. the free distance in inches between plate edges. The formula is really applicable only for plate between III inch and one inch in thickness. For thinner plate buckling may be a more important factor. For heavier plate a value of 0.20 should be substituted for 0.18. Figures 21 and 22 give shrinkage allowances from another source for butt joints in a graphical fonn for ready reference. Figure 21 is for the usual 60° bevel preparation and Fig. 22 includes greater angles of bevel, which naturally produce greater shrinkage.

.~ i

":i

'1

·'"--1

"'1
.'"

i
Butt Welds Longitudinal Shrinkage
X

····I

'I

I i

j 1

,-

Aw
A,.

0.025

where S ~. Longitudinal shrinkage in inches, per inch AU" .:: Cross-sectional area of welding in square inches, AI: .=.- Cross-sectional area of restraining plates in square inches . . Fig. 20 illustrates these terms.

Fig. 20 Due' to restraint this formula loses in accuracy if the cross-sectional area of the plates is greater than 20 times that of the weld. In such cases the chart shown in Fig. 23 may be used. It should be observed that in the curves in Fig. 23 the shrinkage, which attains high values for small resisting sections. frills extremely rapidly as the section increases. The shrinkage tends to become constant when the resisting section exceeds a

17

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

certain value. The form these curves take need not surprise us. In fact, the resistance to shrinkage offered by the resisting section increases very rapidly because the effect of shrinkage is a maximum in a relatively narrow band symmetrical with respect to the axis of the weld. Outside this band, only rather low temperatures are reached during welding and the metal offers a rapidly increasing resistance to the shrinkage arising from the hot parts. The resisting section, once it has exceeded slightly the section corresponding to the hot parts of the assembly. exerts essentially its maximum resistance. Further increase in resisting section has scarcely any effect on shrinkage. The following observation makes this phenomenon more significant. When the cross-sectional area of the- weld is increased. the highly heated transverse portion, which is acted upon by shrinkage, is larger, and the resisting section necessary completely to prevent the effects o( shrinkage also is larger. This is what the curves show. The dotted curve in ~ig. 23 shows the resisting section at which shrinkage becomes practically constant.

Fillet Welds-Transverse

Shrinkage of a T Joint with Two. Continuous Welds

Shrinkage

(S) ="

tm ck nessopae fit

leg of fillet

. x 0.04 inches

For a double lap joint the multiplying factor should be 0.06 inches. For plates 3/8 inch and under. buckling may be greater than shrinkage. It has already been observed that joint design is a factor influencing and others that should be noted are: Preheating; because it provides more uniform heating and cooling. Peening. because it stretches the weld metal. The shrinkage due to submerged ~.'~ that of manual welding.
~.U

shrinkage

arc welding will usually be found to be about

,.----,-------r---,-----,
~

01$,--------------Q.l0

.£ .5
,
.. i

oro

.~
I

,
Fig. 21
Transverse Shrinkage of Single & Double Vee Welds

(1'''5

I----"=""~r__-+_

Fig. 22
Proportion of Transverse Weld Shrinkages Produced by Various Types of Butt Joint Preparations of shrinkage

Any degree of restraint may be expected to reduce the amount such restraint may be applied in any of the following ways:
(a)

and

Clamping.

(c) Little or no root opening, (d) Coollng between passes. 18

(b) Rigid tacking,

WeIding

Distortion

and Rc..<ridu.al tres.~e.~ S

Jo'ig.23
.... '"
-

.~
.0

1\
i\ \

" 0, \ \ ,\l'\
[\\ ~1~'\
\
\

\\

Each curve represents the vartatlon of unit longitudinal shrinkage as a function of the transverse cross-sectional area of the welded assembly for a given cross section. (The shrinkage tends to become stabili7..ed when the sectional area of the assembly exceeds a certain value, which is indicated by the dotted Ilne.) This chart has been adapted from Guyot4

11.",- TAANSVI!IIn ""LO C:ROSS· SEC:TI(t1f-tQ.IM.

.!

\ 1\ \\1\1\'" ~«o r-, i'-.. ........ ...... --..._ ,,~~ ..._, i\\~\!'\ ~v~ ......... ...._ r- "~ r" \[\
~ ~ ~ ~~
~~

\ \1\\'~·~Po --,
,"0.

--::

J44

!\
e-~

~r--....""""-j \ .,~i.,"'"'-r-~ i f--... r.~~-... ~

1\
"

"_t-LI

.L..

~....

J
2..1 4 , • 7 •

TAA><5veRX

C:AO~·~C'ftOHM.

-...

9' 10 II tZ I.,) OF "~ATE.S ~OI>I~II-~Q.'".

ft

Angular Distortion
Unrestrained angular distortion ali shown iJ1 Band F 0 f Fig. 3 may amount to 10° or more but may be held very close to zero by presetting. bending, clamping, tacking and peening or by the use of a technique of alternately welding on either side of a joint.

Summarized

Distortion Prevention Precautions

Summarizing the foregoing notes it will be seen that control may be exercised either by mechanical means or by organization of the welding procedure. Mechanical control may be applied by: (a) Presetting.
(b)

The use of temporary stiffeners, clamps, heavy baseplates, strongbacks, special jigs and fixtures, back to back clamping or tacking,

(c) Artificial cooling. Control by organization of welding procedure involves: (a) Accurate preparation of the joint and close fit-up tolerances,

(b) The use of back-stepping

or skip techniques,
19

Fundamentals of Welding Technology.

~ .~,..
"

(c) Welding outwards from a centra) point, (d) Balancing welds on either side of a centre line or central point or around the neutral axis of a section,
(e) Welding

butts before fillets, welding (for fillets)

t

(f) Using non-continuous

(g) Arranging the weld sequence so that each joint has the maximum of freedom for the longest period, (h) Dividing a weldment into sub-assemblies. In addition to the above procedures, which are aimed at reducing distortion, the following points should have attention since they are particularly concerned with the production of an accurate weldment: (a) Applying the welding so as to counteract plate edge curvature of errors if any,

(b) Arrange components so as to avoid accumulation ances on plate width,

due to toler-

(c) Where a high degree of overall. accuracy is required, accurately in order to reduce fit-up tolerances,

prepare components a

(d) Arrange the sequence of welding so that location points necessitating high degree of accuracy are assembled and welded last, (e) Allow for weld metal shrinkage,
(f)

-Arrange for some latitude in assembly dimensions so that a weldment can be machined to size if shrinkage and other allowances do not work out as expected

Elimination of Distortion
Although the foregoing suggestions for minimizing distortion constitute a counsel of perfection it should be appreciated that, despite the observance of all reasonable precautions, some distortion may occur. ·Any such distortion will however be less than it would have been had no precautions been taken and is usually readily rectified mechanically, e.g., by using presses, bulldozers, jacks, etc. Another way of correcting distortion is to use the contraction shrinkage method which makes use of the principle of resisted expansion and subsequent contraction on cooling. For example, a piece of Tee section bent as shown at A~ Fig. 24 could be straightened by heating and cooling the area XYZ. The basic principle which has already been studied is that the expansion of the metal in the heated zone is resisted by the cool surrounding metal. It therefore upsets and remains so on cooling resulting in a reduction in the distance XY, thus straightening the member as shown at B. For the successful application of this principle both heating and ccoling should be as rapid as possible and the dimensions of the heated area should be at a maximum where most contraction is desired. In the examples shown at A, C and D in Fig. 24 the tri-

20

·,

:1

Welding

Distortion and Be..id1llll Stre88e8 r

angular area fulfills this condition, although large built-up I beams have been straightened by successively heating and cooling small round or rectangular areas along the convex side of the beam as shown at E. This principle can be applied also to the correction of distortionor buckling on plates or a combination of plating and stiffeners.

.z

Fig. 24
Eliminating Distortion by Heating and Cooling

21

Fundamentals ofWeldt"ng Technology

The following four examples illustrate lion of buckling and distortion.

the application

of local heating for the elimfna-.

HeM"

Spols shoilld he as ""enl, $poeed and symmetrical as possible. and in seqllence .ho_ hr nllma.rs. More ot less spots mar .be requi...a.

Fig. 25.
Application of Heat in Local Spots, Evenly Spaced and Symmetrical. Omit 6-9 at first trial

~----------------------~/~
Diagonal brae;' OerO}$· these corners will auist adion of c:onlrar:fion
on& .t,.fehing.

.'"

Fig. 26
Distorted Top Bar of Rectangular Tanks. Apply heat to the corners of the flange

.. " .. "
II

..

.. • ....
Fig. 27
Another ExaJllple-of Distorted Flange of a Large Rectangular Tank. Local application of heat as shown
- Bulged

""
"

.. . • "

.. ,.

•
at

.. .. ..
"

.."
"

..

Fig. 28
Panels of a Rectangular Tank. Apply heat to spots in the middle of the Panels

22

Welding Distortion and Residual Stresses

The first example (Fig. 25) shows a simple cylindrical vessel' with 'a flat welded end or bottom plate which may be in allY thickness of plate usually encountered In what is called the light or medium tank work field. 'fhe weld is a comer weld inside and out round the periphery of the cylinder, which producelS contractional stresses round the periphery of the flat end plate, thus 'causing a bulge in.the centre. This condition can easily be corrected by application of heat in local spots as shown. To achieve the best result, the spots should be evenly spaced and symmetrical over the bottom. It must be noted that it is possible to overdo the application of local heat and undo much of the good which may have been done. Overheating can produce buckles as bad as those it is desired to eliminate. Therefore, in the first place, spots 1 to 5 should be tried; spots 6,7,8 and 9 being tried if the :first prove inadequate. The heat should be applied in the fOn:n of spots. about 2 inches in diameter and the plate brought to 11 cherry red colour. Care should be taken not to overheat or the effect can be nullified. , The heat, of course, is applied by means of an oxy-acetylene flame. In this connection a word or two about nozzle ~ may be helpful. A nozzle or tip for approximately 9 cubic feet per hour gas flow in a standard torch is the best for use for anything up to 5/8 inches thick plate. For thiCker plates, a nozale for approximately 23 cubic feet per hour gas flow in a heavy duty welding torch Sh9uld be used. Considerable trouble can be experienced with rectangular tanks and Fig. 26 shows diagrammatically the top welded bar on such a tank, indicating how the welding contractions have pulled it out of square. A simple way of correcting this is to apply heat to the corners of the flange as shown by the. arrows, bringing the area heated evenly a few inches round the comers of the flange on the outside at the extremities of the long diagonal and round the inside of the fl~E! at the extremities of the short diagonal. Correction can be assisted byinserting a prop. with a jack at one end, across the short diagonal and applying pressure to stretch. Alternatively, bro-s attached to either end of the long diagonal can be used with a turn buckle to draw in the tank in this direction. In some cases it may be necessary to torch cut the flallge at each end of the long diagonal and Possibly remove a triangular section to permit th.@ necessary movement. Further assistance can be given in stretching the material by peen.ing the metal adjacent to the welds down each corner of the tank. Care should be taken not to' cause excessive indentations on the plate surface. Another example (Fig. 27) of a large rectangular tank shows how the heavy type flange or curb can be distorted by the weld which joins it to the top of the tank body. Again the .eure is comparativelysimple;' it consists of the local application of heat to the spots indicated by the arrows, and the heat in this Case is applied across the face of the flange in a V shape, the wider part of the V being on the full side which is being shrunk. This is particularly necessary·if the flange is a heavy one. Large rectangular tanks with heavy stiffeners can bulge appreciably in the panels made by positioning of the stiffeners; this bulging can be eliminated by heat applied to spots in the middle of the panels as described previously. The sketch (Fig. 28) indicates the manner in which this can be done, and a tank in a comparatively bad state can be brought into good shape, with almost complete flatness in the panels. Welding Stresses It has already been noted throughout this lesson that the heat from welding and the shrinkage of the weld metal sets up expansion and contraction which, if restrained, result in the creation of stress in the weld area. Stresses remaining in the metal when it has cooled are known as residual stresses in order to distinguish them from any stresses which may be created by the loading of the finished structure.
Rttsidual

23

, ." "

-:

Fundamentals o/Welding Technology

-i

It may help students to understand the practical meaning and effect of stresses if they are regarded as internal compression or tensile forces in the metal. For example, a tensile stress develops across a butt weld when the weld is unable to contract normally. Usually these residual stresses are static and balanced. Le., one stress is balanced ~y another and no movement results once this balance is attained. To complete the picture of the stress situation it is also necessary to point out that due to the heat and work of rolling, some residual stresses may be present in plates and sections before any welding (or other work) is attempted. Normally these stresses are also in equilibrium; for example, each flange of an I beam probably incorporates residual rolling stresses but they are balanced by the equal and opposite stresses in the other flange. However, when the balance of residual stresses is disturbed distortion may occur. As additional example it may be mentioned that the application of heat to one flange of an I beam may cause distortion solely because the residual stresses in that flange are reduced; i.e., the balance of stresses is upset.

an

This is one reason why distortion sometimes occurs in a welded structure despite the use of every normal precaution. How Stresses May be Created and Prevented The student will already be aware that if expansiori and contraction are allowed to take place freely, little or noi internal or residual stress is created. On the other hand if these movements, especially contraction, are resisted, such stresses are setup. Almost invariably some stress is set up from welding. Completely free expansion and contraction is seldom if ever possible. Even if the parts being joined are readily free to move, longitUdinal expansion of the welding edge is resisted by the cool metal surrounding the weld joint. Similarly, longitudinal contraction of the weld metal is resisted by the joint edges. The transverse effects are, however, of greater magnitude and therefore more serious, particularly with regard to the contraction of weld metal. For example, jf a weld.is made between two rigidly fixed members contraction is impossible and a highly stressed condition results. The stress may in fact be sufficient to cause cracking in the weld area due to the inability of the weld or parent metals to stretch to the extent demanded by the contraction. From: this we can learn that complete rigidity in the assembly of components for welding should be avoided. One of the two parts to be joined must remain free to move in order to allow transverse contraction of the weld if stresses are to be kept to a minimum. The sketch at the left in' Fig. 29 shows what happens when two heavy plates are welded together under restrained conditions. As the weld cools, it shrinks, but, since the plates are tightly butted, they cannot move relative to each other. Tensile stresses are, thus, developed in the weld. If these stresses exceed the tensile strength of the deposited weld, they will cause a crack in the weld. If the crack goes unnoticed, is covered by subsequent passes and gets through inspection without detection, it can act as a propagation source for fatigue failure in service. When welding heavy plate, it is good practice to space the members slightly before welding. In a joint where one member is resting- on the other. as in Fig. 29, this can be accomplished by placing soft wires between the members. As the weld shrinks, the wires will be flattened, and the residual transverse stresses substantiallyreduced. Soft steel wire of 3132" diameter or less, depending upon the volume of weld metal and consequent shrinkage, is usually used, although copper wire maybe employed. In the latter case, care must be taken to keep the copper wire far enough away from the weld so that it does not melt and contaminate the weld metal.

24

Welding Distortion and Re:ridual Stresses

raj

Id

'n fat tit..... is n e spGCIt hetw_1I mltmhers, altd tensile forces deyelop in 'he welds as .theY ,h,inli:. 8y satting ,10.. tap lIt_mber down on soft. wires fbI, movement i$ made pouib'", and ,n. snrinko'ge Icrc.$ oro, dissipa'ed as ,Hy. fiatten tit. wi,.s rcl.

Fig. 29·. It has been already noted that distortion may be reducedby fixing components either by tacking, clamping, or by assembling in jigs. Complete rigidity in this respect is however contrary to the .above mentioned principle of minimizing stresses. Therefore unless weld metal can be permitted to contract freely, e.g., as in a preset joint, a balance must be found between the extremes of free movement and complete rigidity so that both distortion andstresses may be kept to a minimum. Accurate edge preparation and [otnt fit-up has considerable influence on the production of stress-free joints. A variable and unnecessarily wide joint causes considerable heat concentrations at the wide places, thus creating excessive. locked-up that is, residual stresses in the assembly. Another preparation fault is excessive nose width. particularly if accompanied by a tight fitting joint. Not only is complete fusion of the joint difficult (if not impossible) to achieve but shrinkage of the deposited metal will be prevented. The result will be .high shrinkage stresses which are very likely to cause cracking in service if indeed the weld does not crack before it is completed. . Rigid alignment and complete restraint of joints by strongbacks, clamps and such devices should be avoided. Fig. 30 shows several methods commonly used to align joints. In A the joint is made rigid and the method is entirely incorrect. In Band C the joint is free to contract and the methods are suitable while D is correct if the jack is removed after tacking and before final welding.
Wedg.. .

~;mAt\~~~

With arrangement shown at A-Joint edges are not free to contract. Band C-Joint edges can contract freely. D-Jack must be removed after tacking.

Fig. 30

25

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

It naturally follows that in structures combining rivetting and welding the latter should never be done after the rlvettlng which will make the weldment rigid. Welding should always precede rivetting. Where welding must be done in close proximity to an already rivetted joint a number of rivets should be removed to ensure that the weld C9ntraction will not be restrained. It can be generally assumed that residual stresses have no influence on the ultimate strength of a given member, if the material is in the ductile stateand works under static or impact loading. The same may be said of fatigue loading if no notches are present. However, every effort should be made to control residual stresses especially under the following conditions:

1. Useof brittle and notch sensitive steels;

2. Low temperatures; Abrupt change of section in design; Undercutting and nicking.

3.
4.

Stresses in Thick Welds

High residual stresses, with the possibility of stress crackingvare most likely to occur when welding thick material due to the increased cooling effect of the mass of metal which, with the greater carbon content usually associated with thick material, increases the brittleness of the weld. In order to overcome these undesirable features. it may be advisable to preheat, particularly in cold weather. Moreover, the weld should always be allowed to cool as slowly as possible and where the welding conditions or atmospheric temperature tend to promote rapid cooling, posthcating may also be desirable, Stresses caused by restraint of weld contraction due to the weight of heavy parts may be avoided by mounting the component'; on rol1ers in order to provide easy movement. Another problem is the possibility of excessive stresses being set up in the initial bead or beads of a multi-pass weld or in a partially completed weld before it has gained its complete strength to resist. The remedy is to build up as rapidly as possible a mass of weld metal, which will withstand the local contraction stresses. This can be done by adopting the block or cascade method of welding which entails the rapid building up of short weld lengths to the complete, or nearly complete section of the joint. In this way ample weld strength to deal with the stresses is assured by the time these stresses begin to act in full, due to contraction. The order of depositing the sections may follow the back-step procedure or a skip or wandering procedure may be used, but each section is built up continuously once started so that a relatively large amount of heat is put into the plate adjacent to each section and there is consequently no risk of chilling due to a rapid fall in temperature. Such a procedure may be particularly necessary with thick alloy steels containing hardenable elements. The contour of the block or cascade technique is as shown in Fig. 12 illustrating the skip procedure. This can be achieved by overlap of beads or by making each bead slightly shorter than the previous bead. Tapered in this way each block can be subsequently joined quite easily to succeeding ones. A thick bead with concentrated heat can .be readily deposited vertically and this is

26

Welding Distorium and Residual Stresses

another technique of accomplishing the same result as in block welding . .Any convex bead will resist cracking better than one of fiat or concave contour and can therefore be used to advantage when rigidity may produce cracking.

Peening
Peening has already been reviewed as a means of reducing distortion. It may also be used to prevent cracking in regions of very high restraint. Heat treatment, aging and mechanical stretching are recognized as other means of stress relieving, thereby reducing the chances of cracking:

Summary on Stresses Summarizing the foregoing notes on stresses, their cause, prevention following are the main points to be borne in mind: . 1. and relief, the

Stresses may, be the result of heating and rolling plates and sections during manufacture or they may result from welding heat or heat purposely applied for straightening or bending purposes.

2. Stresses result from resisted expansion and contraction.

3.
"~I

Avoid complete rigidity clamps or rigid tacking.

of assembly. Do not use immovable

strong-backs

or

4.

Avoid rigidity due to rivetting before welding.

5. Carefully and accurately prepare and fit up joints. 6. Avoid rigid joints.

7. Use extra precautions such as preheating, postheating

material and particularly

and block welding on thick on low alloy and notch sensitive steels.

8. Avoid welding at low temperature. 9. Avoid abrupt

welding. 10. 11. 12. 13. Avoid small stringer beads. Allow welds to cool slowly. Peen or heat treat if necessary. Weld vertically up to build a thick weld section and induce more heat for slower cooling. changes of sections in design, or nicking and undercutting in

27

Fundamentals of Welding Technology

Bibliography
1. Shrinkage Distortion in Welding,
by W. Spraragen and W. G. Ettinger, The Welding Journal .•June 1950, pp.

292~2948.

2.

A review of the literature from January 1, 1944 to July 1, 1949, (foreign literature from January 1941). This report is prepared under the aU8pices Of the Structural Steel Oommittee of the Engineering FoundationWelding Research: Council, by W. Bpraragen and W. G. Ettinger, ibid., J'IIly 1950, pp.
323~335s. in Arc Welding,
of

Shrinkage

Distortion

in Welding,

3. The Control of Distortion

by R. G. Braithwaite,

Transactions

the In..';titute of Welding, April

1950, pp.

64~70.
4. 5. 6. Discussion of the Control of Distortion, by R. G. Braithwaite, August 1950, pp. 128~130.

tu«,

Aspects of Welding Distortion in Shipbuilding, by D. M. Kerr, ibid., October 1950, pp. 157~162.

The Presidential
Controlling ·179:

Control of Distortion,

Address by Mr. Robert Jenkins, ibid., December 1952, pp. 151·

Digest, (Oanadian Machinery Welding Bureau). May 1957, pp. 1~108. New'S; April

160, and The Welding

7.

Welding Shrinkage

and Distortion,
and Manufact1Jring

by A. ShumO'lJsky, Canadian

1952, p.

8.

Distortion

Control in Structural

Fabrfcation, 1952, pp.

by Gordon Cape and Llewellyn Jehu~ The Welding Journal) November 1000-1016, and The Welding Dige..<;t {OWB} , December 1956, pp.I-9s.

9. Understanding
10.

Weld Distortion
Welding

and Shrinkage,
Engineer) Journal. Digest September July

by George W. Gardner,

1959, pp. 40~42.

Measures, .

Types and Causes of Distortion

by

in Welded Steel and Corrective

Orner W. Blodqett, The.Welding

The Welding

1960, pp. 692-697.

r

11. Shrinkage Control in Welding,

by Orner W. Blodgett, (OWB) August

1961, pp. 1~6s.

12. 13.

Control of Welding Distortion,

by E. H. Lee .•Engineering Digest .•March

1960, pp. 51~54.

_.,

~'

':

Welding Stress and Distortion,

Welding Research Abroad (Japan and U .s.ER.) November 1962, pp. 2~44 and October 1961, pp,

75-96.

28

.J

GUIDES AND EXERCISES MODULE 7

WELDING DISTORTION AND RESIDUAL STRESSES

,*?~
;~

l:!"

WELDING DISTORTION AND

RESIDUAL STRESSES MODULE 7

Guides & Exercises

To obtain maximum benefit from this module we suggest that you follow this guide and complete the exercises as indicated. It is important that you work through the text methodicafly, studying each section thoroughly before moving on. The exercises are designed to give you an indication of whether you have learned the material and can move on or whether you need to go back and study the section again. . Do the exercises honestry. They will not help you unless you take them seriously. If you get a question wrong go back through the text until you understand where you have gone wrong and know the correct answer. The length of time required to complete the module will vary from student to student. Find your own pace. Do not rush. Remember you are trying to teach yourself something, not win a race. Some people like to underllne sections when they read a text. We suggest that you use caution if you do this. What you think is important first time you read it may be different after reading it three times. We suggest you read a section three times thoroughly before highlighting anything. The last exercise is designed to give you an indication of whether you are ready to take the WIC closed-book exams. The exercise questions are of a similar standard to the official exams. Do not take the exam until- you feel you are ready and you may wish to study several Modules before taking the exams on each. The details of the examination procedures are on a separate sheet. If you have any difficulties with this Module do not hesitate to ask for help. You may find you learn more by attending some of the seminars and you should also contact your local WIC Chapter to see if they can be of assistance. Remember, if you fail the examination you can all/vays by again later.

G2

MODULE 7

Guide 1 Carefully read pages 1 to 6 and answer the following questions: 1. Describe or sketch what happens when a bar is gripped at both ends so that neither expansion nor contraction is allowed to take place. and heat is applied. A fillet weld is placed as per the sketch.

2.

Draw a sketch to denote how angular distortion would affect component.

3.

Trueor False?
Weld metal shrinkage is not proportional to the amount of weld metal.

Check your answers for accuracy. If any of your answers are wrong re-study the guide subject matter until you understand it.

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MODULE 7

Guide 2
Carefu~ly read pages 7 to 12 and answer the following questions:

1.

Distortion may be partially or fully controlled by mechanical correct statements) "

means by: (select the

(a) "Rigid clamping or fIXing (b) Pre-bending or setting

(c) Pre-weld heat treatment (d) Post-weld heat treatment (e) Sub-assembly

2.

In ~

welding what is the Simplest form of distortion control?

3.

Trueor False?
Where plating and stiffeners are combined as in ship bulkhead work. the butt and seam welds in plating should be welded before the stiffeners.

Check your answers for accuracy. If any of your answers are wrong re-study the guide " subject matter until you understand it.

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MODULE 7
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Guide 3 Carefully read pages 13 to 20 and answer the following questions: 1. Show the position of the neutral axis in the following sections:

2.

What is the following formula applied to?

S=0.18A\!+0.05d

3.

What is the following formula applied to?

S = Pm. x 0.025
ftp

Check your answers for accuracy. If any of your answers are wrong re-study the guide subject matter umit you understand it.

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MODULE 7

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Guide ..

Careft.!lIyread pages 21 to 21 and answer the following questions: 1. Which contraction effects in the weld metal are of the greater magnitude and, therefore, are more serious?
a) b)

Longitudinal Transverse

. 2.

Is rigid alignment and complete joint restraint by strong backs, clamps and similar devices a recommended practice? Is the following a true statement? Any convex bead wiIJ resist cracking better than one which is flat or has a concave contour.

3.

Check your answers for accuracy •. If any of your answers are wrong re-study the guide subject matter until you understand it.

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MODULE 7 ANSWERS

Guide 1

1. (a) Causes upsetting (b) Upsetting remains on cooling and bar stretches or:

Contraction stretch on cooling may cause failure

2.

"3.

False

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MODULE 7

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ANSWERS continued

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GuIde .2

1. (a) (b) (e) 2. Start the weld some distance in from the end of the joint. making a short weld 3. True
first.

Guide 3

1. N.A. = Neutral Axis

N.A", . ./

(b)
i

(c)

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2. Transverse shrinkage - butt welds 3. longitudinal shrinkage - butt welds

Guide 4

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3. Yes

1. (b) transverse 2. No

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MODULE 7
TEST

This test is designed examination.

to determine

wh~ther

you are ready

to attempt

the formal

Complete the ANSWER SHEET and compare the resulls with the TEST KEY. If you have a pass marK less than 70010 are advised to re-study the material. you

1.

Which of the following statements is correct ?

(a)

~a

Expansion

and contraction

are proportional

to the dime"nsions of the heated

(d) Heating an area of plate will cause stretching as it cools (e) When the metal is heated, it expands. but it does not shrink back size when it cools

(b) When a bar is heated under restraint. it stress refieves itself as it cools (c) Slow cooling of a heated area will provide the greatest amount of shrinkage

to its original

2.
.",.

To reduce the amount of angular distortion you should: (a) (b) (c) increase the travel speed reduce the angle of the preparation preheat the metal all of the above none of the above

Cd)
(e)

3.

When a structural member has been bent sharply. it can be straightened

by:

(b) (c)

(a) heating a V shaped section of the web undemeath the bent area of the flange heating the inside comer of an angle, channel, Ibeam or T bar heating a V shaped area at the point of the greatest bend, with the top of the V
at the point of greatest bend heating all along the edge of the section heating all along the edge opposite 10 the one which is bent

(d) (e)

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MODULE 7 TEST continued

4.

Of the
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

many mechanical means of controlling distortion, which of the following, will have the least residual stress?

rigid clamping
subassembly of the sections heaY}' strongbacks. welded on both sides of the joint simUarweldments clamped back to back presetthe plates about 5 degrees away from the ,face of the, weld

5.

Decreasing the number of weld beads in a specifIC weld will: (a) result in annealing the weld area (b) give a finer grain structure (c) reduce the transverse shrinkage Cd) increase the transverse shrinkage (e)' possibly crack the root pass

6.

The neutral axis is: (a) the line on which there will be neither tension or compression when the piece is flexed or bent (b) the center line of a weld bead halfway between the root pass and the face pass (e) the outside center line of the web of a channel {d} the inside comer line of an unequal legged steel angle (e) the dimensional halfway point of a welded assembly

7.'

When expansion and contraction (a) (b) (e) (d) (e)

are prevented,

heating and COOling will cause:

no residual stresses failure due to lamellar tearing no permanent deformation or failure failure, when metal is highly ductile failure'when the metal is not sufficiently ductile

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MODULE 7

TEST continued
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8.

When heated, unrestrained metal will exp~nd! (a) transversely {across the weld) (b) volumetrical1y(in ,alldirections) (c) until it upsets (d) longitudinally (lengthwise) (e) most,. acJ'OS$ width of the weld the

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9.

Which of the following statements about peening is INCORRECT? (a) 1t should not be used on the last pass (b) It puts the surface of the weld in compression . (c) It should not be used on root passes (d) It can be used to form.the surface contour of the weld to the inspector's satisfaction (e)' It should be stopped before the weld surface starts to flake

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10.

To avoid longitudinal warping of (b) (c) (d) (e)

a plate when it is being cut to width, you would:

(a) cool the outer edge with an air blast cut both edges at the same time dog the plate down to the cutting table prebend the plate away from the cut slow down the cutting speed

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Canadian Welding Bureau

Answer Sheet - Module 7
Complete the "Answer Sheet" and compare the results with the "Test Key". If you have a pass mark less than 70%, you are advised to re-study the material. Please circle only ONE letter corresponding to the answer you think is most correct.

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1
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QUESTION

ANSWERS

,I

a a a a
a a

b b b b b
b

c
c

d d d d d d d d d d
wish to retest yourself.

e e e e e e e e e e

I
r

2
3 4 5 6

c c
c

",'!
c.,::,.:l

i
[
I

c c
c

7 8
9
, ,

a
a a

b b
b

c c
yOU

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T he answer key below is provided for your use in the event that

QUESTION

ANSWERS

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

a a a a a a a a a
a

b b b
b

d
d d d

e e e e e e e e e e

c
c c c

b b
b

d d
d

c
c c c c
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b b b

d
d

Canadian Welding Bureau

Test Key - Module 7 Compare your answer sheet to this key_ QUESTrON ANSWERS

1 2 3

Q
a a

b b b b b b b

c
c

e
e

Q
c

<.V
d d d d d d

4 5
6 7 8
9

W
a a a

Q
c
c
C

"w
e
e

Q
e
e

_CP2
b

c c

_@
d

10

CW

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