Weld Fatigue

magnus.gustafsson@edrmedeso.com
Weld Fatigue - Overview

• Weld Fatigue
• Target application: Mechanical
• Description: Post processing tool based on IIW recommendations to
evaluate weld fatigue according to Nominal, Hot-Spot and Effective Notch
method. Linearized stress method is also included. Shell and solid models
are supported. Load cases from single step, load case combination or load
case scanning. Cumulative damage from several load cases can be
calculated. S-N curves from IIW and DNV GL RP-C203 are included.

• The version of the App and the supported versions of ANSYS are the ones
indicated on the App Store.
ACT App Store

• https://appstore.ansys.com/shop/ACTApps_act%20apps
• Great place to get started
− A library of helpful extensions available to any ANSYS customer
− New apps added regularly
− Applications made available in either binary format (.wbex file) or binary
plus scripted format (Python and XML files)
− Scripted extensions are great examples
− Documentation and training materials available on the ANSYS Customer
Portal:
https://support.ansys.com/AnsysCustomerPortal/en_us/Downloads/ACT
+Resources
Information

• Please pay attention to paragraph 9 of the CLICKWRAP SOFTWARE

LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR ACS EXTENSIONS regarding TECHNICAL
ENHANCEMENTS AND CUSTOMER SUPPORT (TECS): “TECS is not
included with the Program(s)”

• To report any issue or provide feedback related to this app please

contact:
magnus.gustafsson@edrmedeso.com
 Binary App Installation (1)
Installing from the ACT Start Page:
1. From the project page, select the
“ACT Start Page” option
2. Click on “Extension Manager”
3. Press “+” symbol in the top right corner
4. It will open a file dialog to select the
appropriate “*.wbex” binary file
5. The extension is installed

Loading the extension:

1. From the Extension Manager,
click on your extension and choose
‘Load Extension’
2. The extension is loaded
Notes:
• The extension to be installed will be stored in the following location:
%AppData%\Ansys\[version]\ACT\extensions (Example for [version]: v180)
• The installation will create a folder in this location, in addition to the .wbex file
 Binary App Installation (2)

Installing from the Extensions menu:

1. From the Extensions menu, select the “Install
Extension…” option
2. It will open a file dialog to select the appropriate
“*.wbex” binary file
3. Click “Open” to install the extension

Loading the extension:

1. From the Extension Manager,
click on your extension and choose ‘Load Extension’
2. The extension is loaded

Notes:
• The extension to be installed will be stored in the following location:
%AppData%\Ansys\[version]\ACT\extensions (Example for [version]: v180)
• The installation will create a folder in this location, in addition to the .wbex file
 Binary App Installation (3)
• Once the binary extension is installed at default location, one can move the *.wbex and the folder to any
other location
– Default path: %AppData%\Ansys\v180\ACT\extensions
– New path: Any location on your machine, shared drive etc.
• All users interested in using the extension need to include that path in their Workbench Options
1. In the “Tools” menu, select the “Options…”
2. Select “Extensions” in the pop up panel
3. Add the path under “Additional Extensions Folders”

3
2
Define additional folders in which ACT
will search for extensions in order to
expose them in the Extension Manager
1
Notes:
• During the scan of the available extensions, the folders will be analyzed according to the following order:
1. The application data folder(e.g. %AppData%\Ansys\[version]\ACT\extensions)
2. The additional folders defined in the “Additional Extension Folders” property
3. The installation folder
4. The “extensions” folder part of the current Workbench project (if the project was previously saved with
the extension)
• If an extension is available in more than one of these locations, the 1st one according to the scan order is used
Weld Fatigue

• Background
– Weld fatigue evaluation usually requires a lot of manual work in
order to extract weld fatigue stresses in a correct local coordinate
system and evaluate the life or damage according to S-N curves.
• Solution
– The Weld Fatigue app can create results for life, damage, safety
factor and stress range along all the weld sections in the model.
– Nominal, Hot-Spot and Effective Notch method are supported
based on the IIW recommendations.
– Linearized stress method for solids.
– Results are plotted on the geometry and listed in a csv text file.
– The cumulative damage for multiple load cases can be calculated.
Weld Fatigue

• News in V180.2
– Linearized Stress method for solids (using PRSECT) [6]
– User defined S-N curves can be defined in the preference file
– IIW S-N curves (Nominal, Hot-Spot and Effective Notch) [1]
– DNV GL S-N curves (Tab. 2-1, 2-2 & 2-3 and High strength Steel
Eq. 2.4.6) [5]
Weld Fatigue Usage
• Build the FE-model as normal [2].
Linearized Stress Method must be used on a
solid model. [6]
Nominal Method can be used for base
material as well as for different weld joints
(Structural Details Table 3.1 [1])
Hot-Spot Method can be used for fillet and
butt welds (Structural Details Table 3.3 [1])
Effective Notch method must be used on a
solid model with the weld and notch
modelled, usually in a sub model. Method Shell Solid
(Fig. 2.19 & Table 2.4 [1])
Linearized n/a OK
Cumulative Damage can be used to sum the
damage from several load cases for a Nominal OK OK
selected group of weld results and also Hot-Spot OK OK
calculate the safety factor in stress and life. Effective Notch n/a OK
Help button opens up this documentation.
Weld Fatigue Properties, Linearized Stress
• Top face
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Edges, Faces or Nodes of solids (By using a sub set of the face nodes the
evaluation time is greatly reduced. Avoid large face selections)
• Bottom face
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Edges, Faces or Nodes on the “Bottom” side. For each “Top face” node a path
is created to the closest “Bottom face” node and the linearized stress is evaluated.
• Stress Options
Stress Type: Linearized Stress of type [Absolute Principal/Maximum Principal/Middle Principal /Minimum Principal/Stress
Intensity/Equivalent]
Stress Item: [Membrane/Bending/Membrane+Bending/Peak/Total]
Result Side: Selects the result side from the path results to display [Top/Bottom]
Corner Nodes Only: [Yes,No] To speed up evaluation corner nodes are used by default.
Note: “Absolute Principal” is “max(abs(S1), abs(S2), abs(S3))”
Note: You may “Duplicate” a Linearized Stress object to quickly display a different stress or results item or use a different S-N curve
or FAT-factor (no evaluation time needed).
Note: The output from the path evaluation is saved in a text file for each result object ”linearizedStress_XXX.lis” in the solution
folder:
...
***** POST1 LINEARIZED STRESS LISTING *****
INSIDE NODE = 4748 OUTSIDE NODE = 9880

** MEMBRANE PLUS BENDING ** I=INSIDE C=CENTER O=OUTSIDE

S1 S2 S3 SINT SEQV
I 164.6 34.26 -1.138 165.8 151.2
O 66.98 8.061 -16.26 83.24 74.14
Weld Fatigue Properties, Nominal, Hot Spot & Eff Notch
• Base Material Face (Nominal Method)
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Edges or Faces of shells or solids. (Evaluation limited to the surface of the part)
Shell face: [Top/Middle/Bottom] Used only for shell bodies
• Hot Spot Section
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Edges along the weld hot-spot (weld toe).
• Reference Face
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Faces connected to the hot-spot edges. The hot-spot stress is calculated from
node results on this face.
Shell face: [Top/Middle/Bottom] Used only for shell bodies
• Hot Spot Method
Weld Stress: [Normal/Principal] Stress type to use. Default = Normal
Extrapolation: [Linear/Quadratic] Extrapolation method. Default = Linear
Material thickness: Thickness, t, used to calculate the hot-spot extrapolation points, X.
Default t = 0.0 mm. Must be greater than zero!
a: First extrapolation point coefficient. Xa = a*t. Default a = 0.4
b: Second extrapolation point coefficient. Xb = b*t. Default b = 1.0 (If “Quadratic” b = 0.9)
c: Third extrapolation point coefficient. Xc = c*t. Default c = 1.4 (Used only for “Quadratic”)
Offset: Hot-spot edge offset on reference face normal to edge tangent. Default = 0.0 mm
• Effective Notch Face
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Cylindrical notch faces of solid bodies.
Weld Fatigue Properties, Common
• S-N curve
FAT Class: List of available S-N curves (from “weldFatiguePref.py”, see page 32). Use “User
defined” to edit S-N curve properties manually (otherwise the properties are in read only mode).
FAT: Weld fatigue class. Stress range at Nfat cycles.
Default S-N curve for Nominal, Hot-Spot and Effective Notch method are plotted on next page.
FAT factor: Scale factor for FAT value. E.g. to apply a thickness or temperature modification factor
Nfat: Number of cycles for defining FAT. (IIW: Default = 2e6 cycles.)
Nc: Break point between slope m1 and m2. (IIW: Default = 10e6 cycles.)
Slope m1: S-N curve slope for N < Nc. (IIW: Default = 5 for Nominal, 3 for Hot-Spot and Eff. Notch)
Slope m2: S-N curve slope for N > Nc. (IIW: Default = 22)
• Load case definition
Load Type: [Zero Based/Fully Reversed/Load Combination/Load Scanning]
Default = “Fully Reversed” See following slide for description.
First time: List of time steps in the analysis. Default = 1.000
Last time: List of time steps. Visible for Load Combination and Scanning. Default = 2.000
Load scale factor: Fatigue stress scale factor. Can be used for sensitivity analysis. Default = 1.0
Cycles per block: Number of cycles used to calculate damage and safety factors. Default = 1
• Fatigue Result
Result Item: [Life [N]/log10(Life) [N]/Damage per block [-]/Safety factor life [#blocks]/
Stress range/Safety factor stress [-]/Life Quality/Stress max/Stress min/First time/Last time/
Path pos] Result to display on the model. Default = “Life [N]”.
Definitions shown in S-N curve on next page.
• Definition
By: Default = “Time” (Cannot be changed)
Display Time: Time step selected from “First Time” in Load case definition (Read only).
Default S-N Curves and Result Items

S-N curve Result Items

Life [N]: N(DS)
10000 log10(Life) [N]: log10(N(DS))
Damage per block [-]: Nb/N(DS)
Nominal
Safety factor life [#blocks]: N(DS)/Nb
m1 = 5 Stress range: DS
m1 = 3 Hot-Spot
Safety factor stress: DS(Nb)/DS
1 1 Effective notch
1000
Stress range [MPa]

DS(Nb)

DS
225
160 m2 = 22
100
1
FAT 90

10
1.E+00 1.E+01 1.E+02 1.E+03 1.E+04 N(DS)
1.E+05 1.E+06 1.E+07 1.E+08 1.E+09 1.E+10
Life [N] 2E6 Nc Ncut-off, Maximum calculated life
Nb, Cycles per block (Default 1.E+10)
Load Case Definition

• Zero Based
− Calculates a pulsating stress range (R = 0) by scaling
load step “First time” with “Load scale factor” Load step defines range

• Fully Reversed
− Calculates an alternating stress range (R = -1) by
scaling load step “First time” with “Load scale factor” Load step defines amplitude

• Load Combination
DS
− Calculates the stress range between step “First time”
and “Last time” and scale with “Load scale factor” T1 T2
• Load Scanning
− Calculates the maximum stress range between step DS

“First time” and “Last time” and scale with “Load

T1 T2
scale factor”. The identified critical time steps are
available as results.
Note: The three first methods are similar to ANSYS Fatigue Tool.
Load Scanning is not available for Linearized Stress Fatigue.
Nominal Method
• Calculates the maximum principal stress range on the surface of the model.
For base material this is similar to the ANSYS Fatigue Tool except that you also have the option for
load case scanning over multiple load cases (Same as in the app: “Fatigue Scanning”) and can
define the S-N curve direct in the result object and not in Engineering Data.
• For weld joints the user must read the stress at the correct location according to the weld class
and not at the weld location and also to find correct FAT value. (Structural Details Table 3.1 [1]).
It is recommended to use Hot-Spot and/or Effective Notch method for weld evaluation.

DS = 102 MPa
FAT = 50 MPa (Table 3.1, No 721 [1])
Life N = 2e6*(50/102)^3 = 2.35e5

Note: Verification in model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz” [2]

Nominal Method, Load Scanning
• Load scanning performs all possible load case combinations from the selected
range of time steps in order to find the true maximum principal stress range.
• The number of combinations increase fast with number of load steps, which is why
this feature should be used with care to avoid long evaluation times.
• For Hot-Spot and Effective Notch method the stress orientation is constant
(perpendicular to the weld) for all steps so min and max stress are found direct
from the individual load steps.
Possible load combinations
50
45
40
35
Combinations

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Load steps
Hot-Spot Method
• Calculates the maximum stress range at the weld hot-spot (weld toe) by extrapolation of the normal stress
perpendicular to the hot-spot edge from the reference surface. The principal stress can also be used. If the
angle between the principal stress and extrapolation normal is greater than 60 degrees the normal stress is
automatically used. The linear and quadratic method can be used and the extrapolation points, a, b & c, can
be edited based on weld code and model thickness, t.
• The mesh must be fine enough to allow one or two elements between the hot-spot and the first
extrapolation point as well as between the two (or three) extrapolation points.
The app will use a polynomial interpolation to calculate the stress at the extrapolation points, hence the
mesh does not need to be a perfect mapped mesh with nodes at the extrapolation points.
• Different weld types and corresponding FAT values are found in Table 3.3 [1].

Xa = a*t Xb = b*t

Extrapolation normal, X

Note: Verification in model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz” [2]

Hot-Spot Method, Extrapolation comparison
• In [1] recommendations are made for mesh size, L, and extrapolation options for type A and B geometry.
An additional reference model with mesh size L=2mm, “Extra Fine”, is included in the comparison.
• For Type A the three models gives the same Hot-Spot stress but for Type B the coarse result differ and will
give un-conservative results.

Type A, Fine (a) Type A, Coarse (b) Extrapolation comparison

a=0.4t, b=1.0t a=0.5t, b=1.5t 800
L= 4mm, t=10mm L=10mm, t=10mm 700
600

Stress [MPa]
500
400
300
200
100
0
Type A Type B
Type B, Fine (c) Type B, Coarse (d)
Fine Coarse Extra Fine
a=4 mm, b=8mm, c=12mm a=5mm, b=15mm
L=4mm L=10mm

Note: Verification in model “HotSpot_V180.2.wbpz” [3]

Hot-Spot Method, Life Quality
• The result “Life quality” is an empirical factor of the ratio between the calculated life and the “true life”.
The quality is based on the distance, d, between the closest node to each extrapolation point.
Optimal quality is 1.0. If the same node is found for all extrapolation points the quality is set to 0.0.
Quality = 1 - (da/Xa)^2 - (db/(Xb-Xa))^2 - (dc/(Xc-Xb))^2 (Linear extrapolation uses a and b only)
• The singularity at the Hot-Spot influence the stress at the first extrapolation point. A coarse mesh will
usually result in a higher Hot-Spot stress and lower predicted life.

Stress vs. Element size L

800
SX L=1mm

750 SX L=2mm
Xa SX L=3mm
Xb 700
SX L=4mm
da

Stress [MPa]
Xc
SX L=5mm
db 650
dc
600

550

500
X 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
X [mm]
 Hot-Spot Method, Life Quality cont.
• A parameter study of the element size, life and quality for a short segment of a tetrahedron mesh shows the
following two graphs for linear and quadratic extrapolation [3].
• For increasing element size the variation of life and quality increases but the trend is that the result “Life
quality” follows the calculated life. For thickness 10 mm the recommended element size is 2 mm in order to
have two elements before the first extrapolation point.

Life quality (Linear) Life quality (Quadratic)

110% 115%
105% 110%

100% 105%
100%
95% Life min rel. Life min rel.
95%
90% Life max rel. Life max rel.
90%
85% Life avg. lin. Life avg. lin.
85%
80% Quality min 80% Quality min
75% Quality max 75% Quality max
70% 70%
1 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 5 6
Element size [mm] Element size [mm]

Thickness, t=10 mm, a=0.4, b=1.0 Thickness, t=10 mm, a=0.4, b=0.9, c=1.4

Note: Verification in model “HotSpot_V180.2.wbpz” [3]

Effective Notch Method
• Calculates the tangential stress range in the effective notch (cylindrical fillet).
Fillet radius R = 1 mm is valid for thickness  5 mm [1]. For thinner parts R = 0.05 mm may be used but
other recommendations may exist. The app will not check the notch radius.
• The mesh must be fine enough to allow at least four second order elements for a 90 degree segment, e.g.
element length 0.4 mm. Use inflation layers to get good element quality.
• Note: You may use the Nominal Method to obtain the maximum principal stress range if the fillet is not a
perfect cylinder, e.g. a torus, or if you do not want to use the tangential stress.
Material R = 1 mm R = 0.05 mm
Steel FAT 225 FAT 630
Aluminium alloys FAT 71 FAT 180
Magnesium FAT 28 FAT 71

Tangential direction
Effective Notch Method, Life Quality
• The expected life is highly sensitive to the stress range. A stress convergence study shows that 2nd order brick
elements requires 24 elements/360 degrees and first order elements requires 40 elements/360 degrees.
• The result “Life quality” is the ratio between the calculated life and the “true” life as a function of normal angle
difference, phi, over the element. A coarse mesh over predicts the life so dividing the calculated life with the
quality is a rough estimate of the “true” life.
• Second order tetrahedron elements tends to give higher stress compared to brick elements for the same mesh
resolution and are therefore conservative. First order tetrahedron elements must never be used.
• Using inflation layers on a tetrahedron mesh improves the result and is recommended practice.
Note: The Nominal method uses the same definition for “Life quality” for solid models.
Relative Life Brick Life quality
600% 400%
Brick 2nd Q rooth
Brick 2nd order
Brick 2nd Q toe 350%
500%
Brick 1st Q rooth
Brick 1st order
Brick 1st Q toe 300%
400%
250%

300% 200%

150%
200%

100%

100%
50%

0% 0%
8 16 24 32 40 0 10 20 30 40
#elements/360 degrees Phi [deg]

Note: Verification in model “EffNotch_V180.2.wbpz” [4]

Linearized Stress Method
• Calculates the linearized stress through the thickness of a solid using the “PRSECT” command [6].
• Many codes uses ”Linearized Stress” to evaluate fatigue. With the ”Linearized Stress” feature you don’t have to
define a path to do this evaluation. Instead you may plot the results along edges, faces or node groups and
perform the fatigue calculation direct.
• Note: When using “Load Combination” the order of “First time”, T1, and “Last time”, T2, influence the sign of
“Maximum Principal” and “Minimum Principal”. Load combination is always done by “LCT1 – LCT2”. Using the
“Linearized Absolute Principal Stress” will always use the absolute maximum.
(You may also switch and use T2 for “First time” and T1 for “Last time”.)

Linearized (Edge) Linearized (Face) Linearized (Nodes)

Linearized Stress Method vs. Nominal Method
• The “Linearized Maximum Principal Stress” based on “Membrane+Bending” (“Structural Stress”)
corresponds to the stress in a shell model using the “Nominal Stress Fatigue”.

Nominal (Shell model) Linearized (Solid model)

Note: Verification in model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz” [2]

Linearized Stress Method vs. Hot-Spot Method
• The Linearized Stress at the edge of a weld toe (Hot-Spot) is very similar to the results using the
“Hot-Spot Method” but without the need of a very detailed mesh along the “Hot-Spot”.
With a coarse mesh local effects may be missed resulting in an un-conservative result!

Hot-Spot Linearized Linearized coarse

Life_min = 240900 Life_min = 217500 Life_min = 342000

Note: Verification in model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz” [2]

Comparison of methods
• The four methods shows similar result where Hot-Spot Life Comparison

method has 9% higher life, Effective Notch method has 2.50E+05

17% lower life and Linearized has 7% lower life compared 2.00E+05
to the Nominal method respectively.

Life [Cycles]
Solid 2nd

•
1.50E+05

For a shell model (2nd order) the Hot-Spot method life is Shell 2nd
Shell 1st
1.00E+05
only 3 % lower compared to Nominal.
•
5.00E+04
The Hot-Spot result is very sensitive to the mesh method,
0.00E+00
size and quality at the hot spot , e.g. solid vs. shell, contact Nominal Hot-Spot Effectiv Notch Linearized

vs. multi-body, with or without weld elements. In this

example the Hot-Spot life could differ as much as 50%
compared to the Nominal life.

Nominal Hot-Spot Effective Notch Linearized

Cumulative Damage
• Grouping result objects of the same type with the same geometry scoping but different load cases together
with a “Cumulative Damage” object will sum the damage from the grouped objects and calculate the total
damage and results. You may have several “Cumulative results” in the same group.

Note: Do not group different results of the same load case, e.g.
Life, Damage and Stress range, since this will sum the damage for
each one!
Note: Verification in model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz” [2]
Cumulative Damage
• Geometry
Scoping Method: [Geometry Selection/Named Selection]
Geometry: Edges or Faces from grouped result objects.
• Load Group Properties
Load Group Properties: [Apply/Cancel] Click to load Geometry , Load case and S-N
Curve from grouped objects.
Total #Cycles: Total number of cycles from grouped objects (Read Only)
• S-N curve
FAT Class: Fatigue S-N curve. (Read Only)
FAT: Weld fatigue class stress. (Read Only)
FAT factor: Scale factor for FAT value (Read Only)
Nfat: Number of cycles for defining FAT (Read Only)
Nc: Break point between slope m1 and m2. (Read Only)
Slope m1: S-N curve slope for N < Nc. (Read Only)
Slope m2: S-N curve slope for N > Nc. (Read Only)
• Fatigue Result
Result Item: [Cumulative Damage [-]/Safety factor life [#blocks]/Equivalent Stress
range/Safety factor stress [-],Life quality [-]]
Definitions shown in S-N curve on next page.
• Definition
By: Default = “Time”
Display Time: Time step to use for deformed shape. Does not influence result.
• Results
Minimum: Minimum value from display
Maximum: Maximum value from display
Cumulative Damage, Result Items

Result Items
S-N curve
Cumulative Damage [-]: Nb/N(DSeqv)
10000 Safety factor life [#blocks]: N(DSeqv)/Nb
Equivalent Stress range: DSeqv
Safety factor stress [-]: DS(Nb)/DSeqv

1000
Stress range [MPa]

DS(Nb)

DSeqv
100

LC01 LC02 LC03

10
1.E+00 1.E+01 1.E+02 1.E+03 1.E+04 1.E+05 1.E+06 1.E+07 1.E+08 1.E+09 1.E+10
Nb, Total #cycles N(DSeqv)
Life [N]
Weld Fatigue Result listing
• In the solution folder, a result summary csv text file for each result object is created with the same name as the result object
(and an Id number). See example below.
• The text file can be used in e.g. Excel and also with the free app “CSV-Plot”.

Node Id: Node numbers from result object

Life: Number of cycles, N, until damage = 1.0 for calculated stress range, DS. Cut off limit N = 1010
log10(Life): Log10(Life)
Damage per block: Damage for calculated stress range, DS, repeated Nb times (Nb: cycles per block). Nb/N(DS)
Safety factor life: Number of blocks to get damage = 1.0. N(DS)/Nb
Stress range [MPa]: Calculated stress range, DS, at node Id
Safety factor stress: Factor to scale stress range, DS, to get damage = 1.0 for one block of cycles. DS(Nb)/DS. Cut off limit 100
Life quality: Relative Life based on mesh curvature (Nominal, Effective Notch). 1.0 optimal quality
Relative measure of node distance from Hot-Spot extrapolation point. 1.0 exact node locations
Stress max Maximum principal stress (Nominal) or maximum normal stress (Hot-Spot, Effective Notch)
Stress min Minimum principal stress (Nominal) or minimum normal stress (Hot-Spot, Effective Notch)
First time First and last load step used in stress range calculation. For Load Scanning this can be different than the
Last time ”First time” and ”Last time” in Load case definition. See figure on slide ”Load Case Definition”
Edge Id Hot-Spot edge Id number. Sort table on Edge Id and Path pos to do graphs in Excel
Path pos [mm] Hot-Spot path position

Note: The csv file name will not change if the result is renamed. Clear and evaluate to re create the csv file.
Weld Fatigue Default Preference
• In the extension folder, e.g.
~\AppData\Roaming\Ansys\v180\ACT\extensions\WeldFatigue_V180.2\

there is a preference file that defines the default

properties for Hot-Spot method, S-N Curve and load
case when adding a new results to the model tree.
This can be used to define settings for a specific design
code.
• Custom S-N curves can be added to the app using the
new API found below “# FAT Class Dictionary”.
Curves for IIW and DNV are included and shown in the
following pages [1], [5].
One additional feature when defining a S-N curve in the
preference file is the possibility to include a second
break point, N0, and a corresponding slope, m0. This is
used for IIW and DNV to “limit” a curve at low N.
IIW S-N curves, Nominal & Hot-Spot Method (Steel)

IIW S-N curves Nominal & Hot-Spot Method (Steel)

1000
FAT160 steel

FAT125 steel

FAT112 steel

FAT100 steel

FAT90 steel
Stress range [MPa]

FAT80 steel

100 FAT71 steel

FAT63 steel

FAT56 steel

FAT50 steel

FAT45 steel

FAT40 steel

FAT36 steel
10
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08
#Cycles
IIW S-N curves, Nominal & Hot-Spot Method (Alu.)

IIW S-N curves Nominal & Hot-Spot Method (Aluminium)

1000
FAT71 aluminium

FAT50 aluminium

FAT45 aluminium

FAT40 aluminium

FAT36 aluminium
Stress range [MPa]

FAT32 aluminium

100 FAT28 aluminium

FAT25 aluminium

FAT22 aluminium

FAT18 aluminium

FAT16 aluminium

FAT14 aluminium

FAT12 aluminium
10
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08
#Cycles
IIW S-N curves, Effective Notch

IIW S-N curves Effective Notch Method

1000
FAT225 R1 steel

FAT71 R1 aluminium

FAT28 R1 magnesium

FAT630 R0.05 steel

Stress range [MPa]

FAT180 R0.05 aluminium

FAT71 R0.05 magnesium

100

10
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08
#Cycles
DNV Table 2-1 S-N curves in air

DNV Table 2-1 S-N curves in air

1000 B1
B2
C
C1
C2
Stress range [MPa]

D
E
100
F
F1
F3
G
W1
W2
W3
10
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08 T
#Cycles Steel
DNV Table 2-2 S-N curves in seawater (cathodic)

DNV Table 2-2 S-N curves in seawater with cathodic protection

1000
B1
B2
C
C1
C2
Strress range [MPa]

D
E
100 F
F1
F3
G
W1
W2
W3

10 T
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08
#Cycles
DNV Table 2-3 S-N curves in seawater for free corrosion

DNV Table 2-3 S-N curves in seawater for free corrosion

1000
B1
B2
C
C1
C2
Stress range [MPa]

D
E
100 F
F1
F3
G
W1
W2
W3
10 T
1.0E+04 1.0E+05 1.0E+06 1.0E+07 1.0E+08
#Cycles
Validity of the fatigue results

• The nominal stress range should be within the limits of the elastic properties of the
material. The IIW recommendations are not applicable to: [1]
1. low cycle fatigue (strain based fatigue) where
nominal stress range Dsnom > 1.5fy or max stress snom > fy
hot spot stress range DsHS > 2fy or max stress sHS > fy
2. corrosive conditions
3. elevated temperature operation in the creep range
• Use the results “Stress range” and “Stress max/min” to verify that condition one is
fulfilled. Also verify the fatigue resistance of the parent material.
Note: All IIW or DNV GL S-N curves are limited by the parent material (FAT160 & B1)
• It is the user’s responsibility to ensure that the FE-model, chosen fatigue method,
input values and results obtained by this application is suitable for his/her intended
purpose, e.g. to evaluate according to a specific design code or to apply fatigue
modification factors due to misalignment etc.
Known issues and limitations

• The “First time” and “Last time” can’t be changed from the default values until the
analysis has been solved in order to find all available time steps.
• Cumulative damage result will not change status to “Need update” if another
group member is edited and updated. You must manual click on the “Load Group
Properties” field to load any changes in the Cumulative Damage result and
evaluate the result again.
• Cumulative damage result may fail to evaluate or show zero value if it is solved at
the same time as the other group members. Use “Clear Generated Data” on the
Cumulative damage result and “Evaluate All Results” again to see the correct
results.
References

• [1] Recommendations for Fatigue Design of Welded Joints and Components,

Second Edition. A.F. Hobbacher. International Institute of Welding (IIW)
• [2] Demo model “WeldFatigue_V180.2.wbpz”
• [3] Demo model “HotSpot_V180.2.wbpz”
• [4] Demo model “EffNotch_V180.2.wbpz”
• [5] RP-C203: Fatigue design of offshore steel structures
DNVGL-RP-0005:2014-06
• [6] ANSYS Help Viewer R18
The demo models are included in the installation
package. These projects are used to demonstrate
and verify the features of the app.
THANK YOU!
Magnus Gustafsson
magnus.gustafsson@edrmedeso.com