In~J Fatigu~lO No 3 (1988) pp 193-198

Analytical fatigue evaluation of

externally welded box girders
M A b o - H a r n d , M. E1 H a d d a d and H.. A b d e l R a u o f

An analytical method is presented for evaluating the fatigue strength and life of externally
welded box girders used in crane and bridge structures. In this method, fracture
mechanics techniques are used to study the effect of lack of weld penetration by
treating this defect as a real crack. Crack initiation and propagation models are employed
to study the effect of internal weld defects. The proposed method is illustrated by
evaluating the fatigue strength and life of an externally welded box girder of a gantry
crane.
Key words: fatigue; analytical evaluation; externally welded box girders; fracture
mechanics

Notation K' elastic stress intensity concentration

factor
Kt theoretical stress concentration
initial crack size factor
final crack size L crack size measured from edge of
C weld cavity radius notch
G ctifical weld cavity radius L0 material constant
da/dN fatigue crack growth rate R cyclic stress ratio
E modulus of elasticity S nominal normal stress
stress intensity back surface and S. nominal stress amplitude
geometry correction factors 6 local normal stress
F ! stress intensity correction factor ~ local shear stress
F~(L/I,~,F~r,(L/IY/) back boundary correction factors g local strain
K stress intensity factor q nominal shear stress

Introduction
Box girders used in crane and bridge structures are usually
fabricated such that the flange-to-web corner connection is
either welded from both the interior and exterior sides, Fig.
l(b), or is welded from the external side only using a complete
penetration weld, Fig. 1(c). These two kinds of joint present
some fabrication difficulties, such as welding and painting
inside the closed box girder and the necessary edge prepara-
tion. Furthermore, the stress conditions at the corner connec-
tion usually require a minimum size of weld, the box girder
design being governed by more severe stress requirements
at other stress concentration locations, such as stiffener and
diaphragm positions. Consequently, an alternative joint with
only an external fillet welding, Fig. l(d), is sometimes
employed.
The main problem with this joint is its fatigue assess-
ment. No international design code gives clear design recom-
mendations for this kind of assembly. For example, British
Standard BS 54001 suggests that specialist advice is sought
if this joint method is to be rated higher than the most
severe classification available. The European Convention for
Construction of Steel Work ECCS 2 permits the use of this
kind of ioint under two conditions: (1) very good fit must
be achieved betwen flange and web plates, and (2) weld
preparation at the web edge must be undertaken such that
the root face is adequate for the achievement of regular
penetration (in the case of a manual weld) and provides
resistance to breaking out at the back of the root.
In this paper, the fatigue characteristics of the alternative
joint are investigated using fracture mechanics techniques.
Crack propagation that results from a lack of penetration
and/or internal defects is investigated. The results are then
used to estimate the fatigue strength and fatigue life of the
alternative joint design.
Failure m o d e s
Most fatigue cracks in welded joints initiate at areas of local
stress concentration, such as weld toes or weld defects. 3-s
Weld defects in the form of porosity, gas cavity, or lack
of penetration may be introduced during the welding process
or as a result of design limitations. The external fillet weld
at the box girder corner introduces an internal lack of pene-
tration at the flange-to-web joint, see Fig. 2(a). This lack
of penetration acts as a real crack which may grow under
fatigue loads. The rate of propagation of this crack deter-
mines the fatigue life of the ioint. In this section, fracture

0142-1123/88/030193-06 $3.00 © 1988 Butterworth & Co (Publishers) ktd

Int J Fatigue July 1988 193

.-
a b
c d
Fig. 1. Box girder and corner details: (a) box girder, (b) exterior
and interior welds, (c) complete penetration (exterior), (d) exterior
fillet weld
mechanics techniques are applied to estimate the crack
growth rates and hence predict the fatigue life of the pro-
posed joint. To establish such an analysis, it is necessary
to define the stress state at the box girder comer connection,
and then identify the different displacement modes associated
with possible crack propagation directions. The comer joint
is subjected to the following stresses:
• shear stresses due to the shear force and twisting
moment, Fig. 3;
• normal stresses due to the axial force and bending
moment.
Shear stresses due to the shear force and twisting
moment produce longitudinal shear stresses parallel to the
axis of the box girder. These stresses make the two crack
surfaces slide over each other in a direction parallel to the
longitudinal axis of the weld. Hence, these stresses cause
the crack to propagate in tearing mode III through the
weld metal, see Figs 2 and 3(b)
Furthermore, the box girder section rotates due to
torsion and suffers local bending due to wheel load distribu-
tion (Fig. 3), both of which cause the comer weld to be
] " I --
7-
j j / ~ . ~ /
Fig. 2 Deformation modes ofcomer weld: (a) corner detail, (b) tearing mode III, (c) opening mode I
194
a
Fig. 3 Straining actions on corner weld: (a) longitudinal weld shear,
(b) longitudinal weld bending
subjected to longitudinal bending about the weld axis. The
normal stresses due to this bending make the two crack
surfaces move normal to each other in opposite directions.
Hence, these stresses cause the crack to propagate in opening
mode I through the weld metal, see Figs 2 and 3(b).
Normal stresses due to the axial load and bending mo-
ment may cause fatigue cracks to grow radially from internal
or external defects in planes normal to the box girder axis.
The surfaces of such cracks are displaced normal to each
other in opposite directions and will therefore propagate
in mode I, as shown in Fig. 4. In the next section, fracture
mechanics techniques are employed to predict the fatigue
crack propagation rates of the corner weld in various
directions. To simplify the analysis, the effect of each
deformation mode is treated separately, although in practice
these modes act in combination. The effect of interaction
between different modes will be evaluated using mixed mode
criteria, 13 as illustrated in the design example presented at
the end of this paper.
Fatigue analysis
Crack propagation from lack of penetration
The lack of penetration defect acts as a real crack and it
may grow in deformation mode I or III. To determine if
such crack will grow or not, solutions for the stress intensity
factors corresponding to both deformation modes should
be obtained.
Mode I
The stress intensity factor is given in Reference 6 as
AKI = AS~FI(L/W) (1)
where F,(L/W) = 1.122 - 1.4(L/W) + 7.33(L/W) 2 -
13.1(L/W)3 + 14(L/IIY)4; /~S is the nominal stress range
at w d d root, L is the length of lack of penetration and
is taken conservatively as the web thickness, W is the total
width of the crack p a t h , and. FI(L/W) represents the
geometry correction factor which accounts for the effect
~"~ ~ ~ ~ ~.~
:,~-- -- --
/ ~ . j
c
Int J Fatigue July 1988
 kL
..- ~ , %0~-
~ C
s S*'
a
Fig. 4 (a) Spherical void with circumferential crack at its equator. (b) Hemispherical surface pit with circumferential crack at its semi-equator
of boundaries on the local stress distribution at crack tip
(weld root). The value of F~(L/W) is estimated to be 1.5,
which corresponds to a value of L/W equals to one-half. 6
Substituting these values into Equation (1), the value of
the stress intensity factor AKI can be readily computed.
The threshold stress intensity factor for the material
of the box girder can be found, v If the applied stress intensity
factor is less than the threshold value of the material, it
can be concluded that the lack of penetration defect will
not propagate under the effect of longitudinal bending of
the weld due to the torsion of the box girder.
Mode III
The stress intensity factor due to mode III is given by
A K I I [ ---- Aqx/~-~Fm( L/ W)
where F u l ( L / W ) = 1 + 2 (L/W); fiq is the nominal shear
stress range at crack location, and L, W and Fm(L/W) are
defined as before. The value of Fm(L/W ) is estimated as
2 for this case. n Substituting these values into Equation
(2) gives the value of the stress intensity factor AKm. The
threshold stress intensity factor for the material correspond-
ing to mode III can also be found. 7 If this value is larger
than the computed value above, it can be concluded that
the lack of penetration defect will not propagate when it
is subjected to cyclic shear.
Crack propagation from internal defects
Incomplete weld penetration causes expansion of trapped
air during the welding process, which results in the formation
of gas cavities. 5 Fatigue cracks may initiate and propagate
from these cavities when axial bending stresses are applied.
Non-destructive techniques can be used to determine
the geometries of these cavities. However, reliable flaw detec-
tion can only be achieved for relatively large flaws. For
example, when a 90% crack detection probability is required,
only flaws larger than 6.3 m m for ultrasonic inspection and
7.8 mm for radiographi c inspection would be found. 4 Gas
cavities of some initial:size should therefore be assumed
when estimating the fatigue life of the proposed joint. The
assumed size of a gas cavity should not exceed 0.25 times
the weld throat size3 I f a weld size o f 6 mm is used, a
gas cavity of 1.5 m m may be assumed.
CracR initiation strossos
Consider an internal cavity of elliptical or circular cross
Int J Fatigue July 1988
b
section inside the weld which is subjected to axial nominal
stresses as shown in Fig. 4. Fatigue resistance is determined
by the behaviour of the metal in this highly stressed region
where fatigue cracks initiate and then propagate until final
fracture occurs. An analysis similar to the one employed
for notched components will be carried out here to predict
the threshold stresses required for crack initiation. The analy-
sis takes into consideration the shape and size of the cavity,
the effect of mean stress and the cyclic properties of the
material. First, fatigue analysis is applied to predict whether
the applied normal stress will initiate fatigue cracks at the
edge of the internal cavity. The local stress-strain response
at the crack initiation region adjacent to the cavity may
be expressed in terms of the applied nominal stresses as
follows:
(~)
/c,s = ~ 6 - ~ (3)
where Kt is the theoretical stress concentration factor of
the internal cavity, S is the applied nominal stress, ~ is
the local stress, and 8 is the local strain. The local response
can be obtained from the simultaneous solution of Equation
(3), a cyclic stress-strain and cyclic loop curves. The cyclic
deformation curves employed here are those for A36 steel. 3
The K t value used was taken to be equal to 3 as suggested
in References 5 and 8 for internal weld cavities. Fig. 5 shows
the local stress-strain calculation based on Equation (3).
From this curve, the maximum and minimum stresses,
the associated stress range, and the stress ratio can be found.
The stress range should be compared with the fatigue limit
of the material to check if cracks will initiate at a specific
flaw. The fatigue limit of the material can be estimated from
[A~01. = [ a ~ 0 ] R = - i 1 - eu
where [A~e] R is the fatigue limit stress range at stress ratio
R, (y= is the mean stress, c~u is the ultimate stress of the
material and [A~e]R=_ ~ is the fatigue limit stress range at
a stress ratio equal to --1, and can be estimated as being
two-thirds of the ultimate stress. From this equation, the
fatigue limit corresponding to the stress ratio R can be found.
If this value is smaller than the applied stress range, crack
initiation will occur.
Threshold crack propagation stresses
Cracks thus formed at the edge o f the internal cavity will
advance first through the highly Stressed region close to
195
 B 4.0

~ 4.01-i ~ ~ ~ 5.0

in curve Kt = 3 K : KLoc'-ffZ-
f3.0
-g -~ 2.0
~ "~... :~ $~--~
~;
. _ ~ ~ .....
1.0
~.0-
I I
I 2
o # L/C
1.0_fl
// R=fmni /Gmxa Fig. 6 Stress intensity factor solution
X [ ~ ~
= c)/L (8)
0 I ~ I ~ ~
~ 0 . 0 ~ 0 . 0 ~ ~006 0.008 A lower bound of the exact solution for threshold stress
~ Strain, ~ given by Equation (5) may be derived by substituting the
upper bound estimates of K' given by Equation (8) into
Equation (5) as follows:

a S , h = AKt~ ~ /x//'~(L + Lo) (9)

Fig. 5 Local stress-strain simulation
the cavity, and then continue through the weld metal until
final fracture occurs when the initial diameter of the cavity
is larger than a certain value. However, below this value,
cracks may only initiate and propagate to a certain size and
then become nonpropagadng. 9 To estimate the minimum
threshold stress required for crack propagation until failure,
consider a circumferential crack of length L at the equator
of the internal cavity as shown in Fig. 4(a). The threshold
stress range ASt~ is
AS, h = AKta/IC ~/n(L + Lo) (5)
where AK,~ is the threshold stress intensity factor of the
material, and L 0 is the material constant which accounts
for the crack growth of very small cracks. This constant
can be expressed as a function of AK, h and A~, as follows: 9
L° = ~ ~, A ~ ] (6)
The effect of mean stress is taken into accotmt when estimat-
ing AK~ as follows: 7
AKt~ = [AK~R=o (1 - 0.85R) (7)
where [AK~] 0 is the threshold stress intensity factor
corresponding to a stress ratio of zero which varies with
This equation has a maximum value of ASp at a crack length
equal to Cx/~0. The maximum value of ASth corresponding
to complete failure is
ASp = a,0/(1 + , / - ~ 0 ) (10)
It should be noted that Equation (10) is only valid for
cavity sizes below a critical size C= which can be obtained
by equating the stress required for initiation to that required
for complete crack propagation. This gives
C0r = (K, - 1)~L0 (11)
Fatifuo lifo prodiction
In the previous section it was shown that cracks initiated
from internal cavities of a size greater than C= will propagate
until final fracture under a nominal normal stress range of
ASp. The number of cycles spent in fatigue crack propagation
can be estimated from the following fatigue crack growth
rate law: 3
da/dN = A ( A K - AKth) 2 (12)
where da/dN is the crack growth rate per cycle, ~t is the
material constant 3 x 10-9, AK is the applied stress intensity
range, and AK~h is the threshold st~ss intensity factor, in
ksix/~ units. The following expression for the stress intensity
factor can be used: •

the material used. AK = ASo = rASo,.,/ 03)

Solutions for the elastic stress concentration factor K'
given in Equation (5) which account for the effect of cavity
geometry are obtained on the basis of solutions given in
References 6 and 10. The results are shown in Fig. 6. It
should be emphasized that as the crack size L reaches zero,
values of K' reach the theoretical stress concentration factor
K~ of the uncracked cavity, which is approximately equal
to 3. On the other hand, as the crack size increases and
progresses beyond the zone of influence of the cavity, K t
may be approximated by equating the concentration of a
crack of length L emanating from a cavity of radius C
to that of a crack of length (L + C), k
where Ug and F are the geometry correction factors which
account for the effect of cavity geometry and back surface,
respectively, l°'a~ and a i~s the effective crack size, which is
equal to an edge crack of length L plus the cavity radius
C. Solutions for Fg, F and F ' are shown in Fig. 7. The
value of F ' remains constant at 0.7 over a wide range of
crack width ratios.
The following expression for the effective stress range
AS~ will be used to account for the effect of mean stress: lz
ASerf = 2(SmaxSa) ½ = ~ AS (14)

196 Int J Fatigue July 1988

where S ~ and S~ are the maximum stress and stress ampli-
tude, respectivdy. Integrating Equation (12) gives
1o,
N~, = ~ I da/(F'ASaf ~ - AKtO~ (15)
~a i
Noting that F', AS~ and AKIn arc const~ts, the ~tegral
gives
1 )
= x + l
+ z
16,
where k = - ~K~h and ~ = 2 ( S m ~ ~ ~ P ' .
Example of an application
In this section, the above analysis will be employed to evalu-
ate the fatigue strength and life of an externally welded
box girder of a gantry crane beam. Typical values of the
normal and shear stresses at critical sections are:
• Normal stress: Sm~ = 83.7 MPa, S,a~ --- 11.6 MPa
• Shear stress: q=~ = 17.8 MPa, q ~ = 6.4 MPa
• Maximum longitudinal normal stress due to section
rotation at weld root = 10 MPa.
• The box girder is fabricated from mild steel (grade
37) with an ultimate strength of 370 MPa and a web
thickness of 8 ram. The procedure for evaluating the
fatigue strength and life for this example is as follows.
Crack propagation from lack of penetration
Mode I
Substituting values of L = 8 mm, AS = 10 MPa and
F(L/W) = 1.5 into Equation (1), the value of the stress
intensity factor AK~ is computed to be 2.37 MPa x ~ " For
steel 37, this value is much less than its threshold value
AKin, which is equal to 5.17 MPax/-~. Thus, the lack of
penetration defect will not propagate under the separate effect
of longitudinal bending of the weld due to torsion of the
box girder.
Mode III
Substituting values of L = 8 mm, Aq = 11.4 MPa and
F(L/If/) = 2 into Equation (2), AKI~ is computed to be
3.3 MPa ff-~. This value is less than the threshold value
of the box girder material which is 3.62 MPa ~
Consequently, the lack of penetration defect will not
propagate under the separate effect of applied shear stresses.
Mixed mode
Using the above results, the mixed mode criteria given in
Reference 13 may be used to find the effect of combining
both modes as follows:
Ratio for mode I: AKI/AK~t h --- 2.37/5.17 = 0.46
Ratio for mode III: AKm/AK~th = 3.3/5.17 = 0.64
As is shown in Fig. 10,13 the point corresponding to the
above values lies below the failure envelope for mixed mode
I and III loading. It can therefore be concluded that the
lack of penetration defect will also not propagate under mixed
mode action.
Int J Fatigue J u l y 1988
, .2
~ I.C
.e
~ 0.8
._
_[
"~ 0 . 6
g
K=FgF ~
~
N 0.4
0.2
I I I I I
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
a/W
Fig. 7 Intensity factor solutions
Crack initiation
Based on the above analysis, the local hysteresis loop at
the cavity location can be obtained as shown in Fig. 5.
For a nominal stress range of 72.1 MPa, the associated local
stress range is 189 MPa, g m = 122.5 MPa with a stress
ratio of 0.13. Substituting ~u = 370 MPa and A% = 2 %/3
into Equation (4), the fatigue limit for steel 37 is estimated
to be 174 MPa. Crack initiation will therefore occur because
the applied local stress range is higher than the fatigue limit
of the material.
Crack propagation
The critical size Ccr is estimated from Equation (11) to be
1.0 ram. Since this value is higher than the assumed cavity
radius of 0.75 ram, it follows that a higher threshold stress
than that required for crack initiation is required to cause
complete failure. To check if an applied nominal normal
stress of 72.1 MPa is enough to cause complete failure, Equa-
tion (10) is plotted in Fig. 8. As Fig. 8 shows, crack initiation
from a cavity of diameter equal to 1.5 mm will propagate
until final fracture. This figure also shows that as the cavity
size decreases below 1.2 mm, the crack will not propagate
to failure under the same stress range of 72.1 MPa.
The fatigue crack propagation life of the comer joint
may be estimated using Equation (16). The solution to Equa-
tion (16) is given in Fig. 9, which shows that the number
of cycles required to propagate a crack from an initial size
of 0.75 mm to a final size of 6 m m is 13.7 million. Fig.
9 can be used to plan maintenance programmes for the box
girder by estimating the residual life of the corner weld
corresponding to a specific internal defect. It may be noted
that this figure can also be applied to surface cavities in
the form of corrosion pits, as shown in Fig. 4.
Summary and conclusions
An analytical method for evaluating the fatigue strength and
life of externally welded box girders is presented. In this
197
 1.4 1.4

A 1.2 X Experirr~ntalresults

~
O ~ Prediction
~ Cosestudy
#_ i.c

~0.e
=~ 1.0

~
.~
0.6

~0.4 0.8
..~

0.~
2Ccr
0 ~ ~ L ~Ho.
<3 6
0.1 1.0 t0
Cavity diamefer,2C(mm)
Fig. 8 Threshold stresses

6.0 0.4
I i ]
I
-~
~ 4.0
5.0

I Smo,
/ 0.2

~ 3.0
~a 0 ~ ~ I ~
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
g AKI/AKTth
~ 2.o Fig. 10 Failure envelopes for mixed mode I and III loading (Reference
13)
with known initial cracks,' ASTM STP 833 (American Society
1.0 for Testing and Materials, 1984) pp 193-217
5. Van der Zerden, A. M., Robins, D. B. and Topper, T.
I-I. 'Fatigue life prediction for weldments with internal cavities"
0 I II t I I I
0 2 4
6 8 10 12 14 ASTM STP 515 (American Society for Testing and Materials,
Numberof cycles,N (millions) 1972) pp 268-284
Fig. 9 Predicted fatigue crack growth 6. Tada, H. et al The Stress Analysis of Crack Handbook (Del
Research Corporation, Hellertown, PA, USA, 1973)
method, fracture mechanics techniques are used to study
the effect of lack of weld penetration. Furthermore, crack 7. Rolfe, S. T. and Barsom, J. M. Fracture and Fatigue
Control in Structures - Application of Fracture Mechanics
initiation and propagation models are employed to study (Prentice-Hall, NJ, USA, 1977)
the effect of internal weld defects. The proposed method
8. Peterson, R. E, Stress Concentration Factors (John Wiley
can also be used to plan maintenance programmes for exter- & Sons, New York, 1974)
nally welded box girders used in crane and bridge structures.
9. El Haddad, M. H., Topper, T. H. and Smith, K. N.
In order for the method presented to be general, further "Prediction of non-propagating cracks' Engng Fracture Mech
work is needed in the following areas: 11 No 3 (1979) pp 573-584
i) The accuracy of the method should be checked experi- 10. Topper, T. H. and El Haddad, i . H. 'Fatigue strength
mentally by conducting fatigue tests on reduced scale prediction of notches based on fracture mechanics' Proceed-
models of the comer detail. ings of the International Conference on Fatigue Threshold,
2) A three-dimensional analysis of the stress state around Stockholm (1981 ) pp 777-798
the corner joint would give more accurate results. 11. Rooke, D. P. and Cartwright, D, J. Compendium of Stress
3) Inelastic analysis should-be used w~hen local yielding, Intensity Factors (Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London,
1976)
due to stress concentrations and/or higher service loads,
may occur. 12. Smith, K. N., El I-laddad, i . H. and Martin, 3. F. "Fatigue
life and crack propagation analyses of welded components
containing residual stresses" J Test and Evaluation 5 No 4
References (1977) pp 327-332
1. Anon 'Code of Practice of Fatigue" BS5400: Part 10 (British
Standards Institution, 1979) 13. Pook, L. P. "Mixed mode threshold behaviour of mild steel"
Proceedings of the International Conference on Fatigue
2. Anon "Recommendations for the fatigue design of structures" Threshold, Stockholm (1981) pp 1007-1032
Committee TC6 Fatigue (European Convention for Construc-
tional Steelwork, 1983)
Authors
3. El I-laddad, M. H., Topper, T. H. and Smith, I. F. C.
"Fatigue life prediction of welded components based on Mr Abo-Hamd and Mr E1 Haddad are with the Structural
fracture mechanics" J Test and Evaluation 8 No 6 (1980) Engineering Department, Cairo University, Egypt, and Mr
pp 301-307
Abdel Rauof is with the Materials Testing Department,
4. Sahli, A. and Albrecht, P. "Fatigue life of welded stiffeners Zagazig University, Egypt.

198 Int J Fatigue July i988