Welding Inspection

Residual Stress and Distortion

Course Reference WIS 5
 Stresses
 Normal Stress
Stress arising from a force perpendicular to the
cross sectional area

Compression

Tension
 Stresses
 Shear Stress
Stress arising from forces which are parallel to, and lie
in the plane of the cross sectional area.

Shear Stress
 Stresses
 Hoop Stress
Stress acting circumferentially around a pipe due to
internal pressure.

Hoop Stress
 Residual Stress
 Metal contract during solidification and subsequent
cooling.
 If this contraction is prevented or inhibited
 residual stress will develop.
 The tendency to develop residual stresses increases
when the heating and cooling is localised.
 Welding is very localised heating and the presence of
liquid and solid metal in contact can be expected to
induce very high levels of residual stresses.
 Residual Stress
 Residual stresses are very difficult to measure with
any real accuracy.
 Residual stresses are self balancing internal forces
and not stresses induced whilst applying external
load
 Stresses are more concentrated at the surface of the
component.
 The removal of residual stresses is termed stress
relieving.
 Residual Stress
Residual stresses occur in welds in the following directions
 Along the weld – longitudinal residual stresses
 Across the weld – transverse residual stresses

 Through the weld – short transverse residual stresses

Longitudinal

Transverse

Short Transverse
 Distortion
Distortion is a very complex matter more than 20 factors
influence its magnitude and for this reason it is very difficult
to predict its exact amount of distortion that may occur
 Distortion
Factors which affect distortion are: material properties,
welding process, welding variables, the amount of restraint,
joint geometry and the welding procedure
 Distortion
Fit-up is very important to minimise distortion, fit-up must be
even and uniform to ensure constant shrinkage along the
joint
 Distortion
A mechanised welding process is preferable to a manual
process because its consistent operation allows for better
distortion control. The required volume of weld metal should
be deposited in the shortest time to minimise heat input
 Distortion
The shorter the welding time the less heat is transmitted in to
the material and less distortion will occur. Keep welding
times down by carefully selecting the welding process,
electrode type and size, welding current and travel speed
 Distortion
Longitudinal shrinkage/distortion
 Distortion
Transverse shrinkage/distortion
 Distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
 Distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
 Distortion
Longitudinal bowing: weld metal contraction longitudinal
 Distortion
Longitudinal shrinkage/distortion
Transverse shrinkage/distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
Longitudinal bowing: weld metal contraction longitudinal
 Distortion
Longitudinal shrinkage/distortion
Transverse shrinkage/distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
Longitudinal bowing: weld metal contraction longitudinal
 Distortion
Longitudinal shrinkage/distortion
Transverse shrinkage/distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
Longitudinal bowing: weld metal contraction longitudinal
 Distortion
Longitudinal shrinkage/distortion
Transverse shrinkage/distortion
Angular distortion: weld metal contraction transverse
Longitudinal bowing: weld metal contraction longitudinal
 Distortion

Angular Distortion Transverse Distortion

Bowing Distortion Longitudinal Distortion

 Distortion
 Distortion will occur in all welded joints if the material
are free to move i.e. not restrained
 Restrained materials result in low distortion but high
residual stress
 More than one type of distortion may occur at one time
 Highly restrained joints also have a higher crack
tendency to joints of a low restraint
 The action of residual stress in welded joints is to
cause distortion
 Distortion

Factors which affect distortion

 Material properties and condition

 Heat input

 The amount of restrain

 The amount of weld metal deposited

 Distortion
The following movements can be detected in a simple butt
weld
1.Contraction in the weld metal along the welds length
2.Bowing – due to the greater volume of weld metal at the top
of the weld
3.Peaking due to the V angle
4.Ripple (in sheet) away from the weld
5.Contraction in the weld metal transverse to the weld, angular
distortion

2 1 4
3 3

5
 Distortion
Control of distortion my be achieved in on of the
following way
The used of a different joint design
 Distortion
The volume of weld metal in a joint will affect the amount
of local expansion and contraction, hence the more weld
deposited the higher amount of distortion
Preparation angle 60o

Preparation angle 40o

Preparation angle 0o
 Distortion
Control of distortion my be achieved in on of the
following way
The used of a different joint design

Offsetting the joints to be welded – so that the

metal distorts into the required position.
 Distortion
Offsetting:
The amount of offsetting required is generally a function of
trail and error
 Distortion
Control of distortion my be achieved in on of the
following way
The used of a different joint design

Offsetting the joints to be welded – so that the

metal distorts into the required position.
The use of a balanced welding technique
 Distortion
Back-step welding technique

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Back-skip welding technique

1. 4. 2. 5. 3. 6.
 Distortion
Control of distortion my be achieved in on of the
following way
The used of a different joint design

Presetting the joints to be welded – so that the

metal distorts into the required position.
The use of a balanced welding technique
The use of clamps, jigs and fixtures.
 Distortion
Clamping and jigging:
The materials to be welded are prevented from moving by
the clamp or jig the main advantage of using a jig is that the
elements in a fabrication can be precisely located in the
position to be welded. Main disadvantage of jigging is high
restraint and high levels of residual stresses.
 Summary of Residual Stress & Distortion
1. Residual stresses are locked in elastic strain, which is
caused by local expansion and contraction in the weld
area.
2. Residual stresses should be removed from structures
after welding.
3. The amount of contraction is controlled by, the volume of
weld metal in the joint, the thickness, heat input, joint
design and the materials properties
4. Offsetting may be used to finalise the position of the joint.
5. If plates or pipes are prevented from moving by tacking,
clamping or jigging etc (restraint), then the amount of
residual stresses that remain will be higher.
 Summary of Residual Stress & Distortion
6. The movement caused by welding related stresses is
called distortion.
7. The directions of contractional stresses and distortion is
very complex, as is the amount and type of final distortion,
however we can say that there are three directions:
a. Longitudinal b. Transverse c.Short transverse
8. A high percentage of residual stresses can be removed by
heat treatments.
9. The peening of weld faces will only redistribute the
residual stress, and place the weld face in compression.
Any Questions

Section Ref 17
 Questions
QU 1. What causes residual stress in welds?

QU 2. State three directions which residual stresses form in a

weld.

QU 3. Give four methods of controlling distortion.

QU 4. Sketch two balanced welding techniques.

QU 5. State four factors which affect distortion.