Nuclear

Engineering
ELSEVIER
and Design
Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379-385

Dynamic characteristics of welded structures

Shigeru Aoki
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tokyo Metropolitan College of Technology, 1-10-40 Higashi-Ohi, Shinagawa-ku,
Tokyo 140, Japan
Received 1 June 1995; accepted 1 September 1995

Abstract

Welding is widely used for joints of many structures. In this paper, the effect of welding on dynamic characteristics
is examined based on experiment. First, dynamic characteristics of simple specimens with welding are measured. Next,
the effect of welding on random vibration and reliability for the first passage problem is examined by a theoretical
method using an analytical model with response characteristics measured from experiment. Finally, the applicability
of obtained results to actual structures is examined by an experiment using a frame model. It is concluded that the
damping ratio increases when welding is used.

1. Introduction expected to be useful for study and design of

Welding is widely used for construction of
many structures. Studies on vibration of welded
structures subjected to cyclic load have been car-
ried out (Engelhardt, 1993; Zuraski, 1993). These
studies are mainly concerned with fatigue failure.
On reliability of welded structures subjected to
external loading, studies have been carried out on
static strength (LaBoube, 1993) and analysis
based on fracture mechanics (Rahman, 1992;
Smith, 1992). Statistical evaluation of (Cheverton,
1992) and failure mechanisms for (Bush, 1992)
welding have also been presented.
In m a n y of these studies, dynamic characteris-
tics are not considered. The effect of welding on
dynamic characteristics have not been studied in
detail even for the elastic range. This problem is
welded structures subjected to ordinary dynamic
loading.
Considering the above mentioned points, the
aim of this paper is to present the effect of weld-
ing on dynamic characteristics of structures and
on response characteristics and reliability of struc-
tures subjected to random vibration. First, by an
experiment using simple specimens, dynamic char-
acteristics of specimens with welding are com-
pared with those of specimens without welding.
Next, using results obtained by the experiment,
the effect of welding on response characteristics
and reliability of structures subjected to random
vibration are examined. Finally, by an experiment
using a model of actual structures, the applica-
bility of obtained results to actual structures is
examined.

0029-5493/96/$15.00 © 1996 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved

SSDI 0029-5493(95)01115-3
380 S. Aoki / Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379-385

tional mode are estimated, f , is obtained by the

frequency sweep method. ( is obtained by the
following three methods.
¢13 (I) A logarithmic decrement C~is obtained by
the free vibration, then the formula ( = 6/
2re is used.
2 (II) The half power method, that is frequen-
;2£
I Illilll I cies f~ and f2, where the amplitude on the
resonance curve is 1/~/2 times the peak
Fig. t. Shape of specimen.
amplitude, are obtained, then the formula
(= (f2-Jl)/2f, is used.
(III) The relation 1/2( between the ratio of the
2. Estimation of dynamic characteristics by response amplitude to the input amplitude
experiment at f , is used.
In the frequency sweep method, the input am-
By an experiment using simple specimens, the plitude is fixed as 1.0 mm p p. An amplitude of
effect of welding on dynamic characteristics is 2.0 mm p p is also used when it is needed.
examined. Methods and results of the experiment
are shown. 2.2. Results of experiment
2. I. Method of experiment In Table 2, values of ( and J~ estimated by the
experiment are shown. The results of specimen B'
As specimens, the cantilever models shown in are those obtained for specimen B shaken by
Fig. 1 are used. Four types of specimen size, 2.0mm p p input amplitude. Other cases are
shown in Table 1, are selected. The specimen obtained for an input amplitude of 1.0 mm p p.
material is rolled steel for general structures (JIS In this table, (w and ~b' fnw and Jnb a r e the
SS400). The length Lf of the fixed part of the damping ratio and the natural frequency for the
shaker is 100 mm. This part is fixed by three bolts. specimen with welding and without welding re-
The length Lw from the weld line to the center of spectively. Values of (w/(b and f,w/fnb are shown
the left hole is 250 mm. The following three types in the right-hand column of the results for the
of specimen are used. specimen with welding.
(I) Specimen without welding. For the damping ratio (, variation due to the
(2) Specimen welded by manual operation. measuring method is seen. In most specimens, (w
(3) Specimen welded by the automatic CO2 gas is greater than (b; (w is about 10% greater than
shielded arc welding machine. (b. Differences due to welding methods are not
The groove shape is V type. Specimens are butt clearly seen. Comparing results for specimen B
welded. with those for specimen B', ( for specimen B' is
As dynamic characteristics, the damping ratio ( about 5% greater than that for specimen B. (w/fh
and the natural frequency fn for the first vibra- for specimen B' is less than that for specimen B.
Table 1
For the natural frequency f , , in the greatest
Size of specimen (mm) c a s e o f f l w / J n b , fnw is 4% greater than fnb" How-
ever, f~,~ is almost the same as fnb in most cases.
Specimen L B L In Table 3, the mean value and coefficient of
variation (COV) of (w/(b andfnw/f,b for the spec-
A 530 65 9
B 530 65 6
imen welded by manual operation and that welded
C 460 65 9 by the automatic CO2 gas shielded arc welding
D 460 65 6 machine are shown. In most cases, the COV of
~,,./(b is less than 10%. Therefore, variation of
 S. Aoki / Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379-385 381

Table 2
Damping ratio and natural frequency of specimen

Specimen Method

(I) (II) (III)

(( X 10 -3) (w/~'b (( X 10 2) (w/~b (( X 10 -2) (w/~b Jn(Hz) fnw/fnb

(1) A 7.01 1.68 2.03 20.8
B 7.56 5.20 0.97 15.4
B' 8.15 5.06 1.21 15.8
C 5.72 1.84 1.62 27.2
D 7.34 1.70 1.51 20.6
(2) A 8.20 1.17 2.10 1.25 2.17 1.07 21.4 1.03
B 8.88 1.17 5.06 0.97 1.07 1.10 15.8 1.03
B' 9.38 1.15 5.31 1.05 1.27 1.05 16.0 1.01
C 6.94 1.21 2.02 1.10 1.72 1.06 27.2 1.00
D 7.60 1.04 1.94 1.14 1.53 1.01 20.6 1.00
(3) A 7.50 1.07 2.14 1.27 2.12 1.04 21.0 1.01
B 9.06 1.20 5.31 1.02 1.10 1.13 16.0 1.04
B' 9.28 1.14 5.00 0.99 1.29 1.07 16.0 1.01
C 7.85 1.37 1.83 0.99 1.77 1.09 27.4 1.01
D 9.20 1.25 1.68 0.99 1.59 1.05 20.9 1.01

(w/(b due to specimen size a n d i n p u t a m p l i t u d e is The e q u a t i o n of m o t i o n with respect to the

relatively Small. However, v a r i a t i o n o f fnw/fnb is displacement of mass relative to the i n p u t p o i n t z
very small since the C O V Offnw/fn b is a b o u t 1%. is expressed as follows:

-5 2(~nZ -4- 0)2 z = --)7 (I)

3. Effect of welding on random vibration where f is the i n p u t acceleration a n d (an( = 2ZCfn) is

characteristics
It is a s s u m e d that specimens are simulated by a
single-degree-of-freedom system with ( a n d fn ob-
tained by the experiment. The effect o f welding o n
response characteristics o f specimens subjected to
r a n d o m acceleration i n p u t is examined.
the n a t u r a l circular frequency; z, which is related
to the deflection of specimens, is obtained.
I n this paper, the s t a n d a r d deviation of z is
examined when y is the s t a t i o n a r y white noise.
The ratio of the s t a n d a r d deviation ~zw for the
specimen with welding to that, azb, for the speci-
m e n w i t h o u t welding is expressed as follows:

Table 3
= VwAw) (2)
Mean value and coefficient of variation of (w/fb and J'nw/fnb
In T a b l e 4, the o b t a i n e d results are shown. The
Specimen Method
s t a n d a r d deviation is related to the m a x i m u m
(1) (II) (III) response (Tajimi, 1960). ~zw is a b o u t 7% less t h a n
Gzb.
~w/¢b ~/(b (w/(b Lw/fnb

(2) Mean 1.15 1.10 1.06 1.01 4. Effect of welding on reliability

COV 0.050 0.085 0.028 0.013
(3) Mean 1.20 1.05 1.08 1.02
COV 0.084 0.104 0.031 0.012 The effect o f welding o n reliability when the
structure is subjected to s t a t i o n a r y white noise
382 S. Aoki /Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379 385

Table 4 Table 5
Ratio of standard deviation Cr~w,/O'~b Ratio of tolerance level BDw/BDb (H ~ I )

Specimen Method Specimen Method

(l) (ll) (lID (l) (II) (lIl)

(2) A 0.885 0.856 0.924 (2) A 0.910 (I.881 0.951

B 0.885 0.969 0.913 B 0.910 0.997 0.939
B' 0.918 0.962 0.961 B' 0.927 0.961 0.971
C 0.908 0.953 0.971 C 0.908 0.953 0.971
D 0.982 0.935 0.996 D 0.982 0.935 0.996
(3) A 0.953 0.873 0.964 (3) A 0.962 0.882 0.974
B 0.861 0.932 I).888 B 0.894 0.968 0.923
B' 0.923 0.991 0.955 B' 0.933 1.000 0.965
C 0.841 0.989 0.941 C 0.850 0.998 0.95 I
D 0.880 0.992 0.963 D 0.888 1.000 0.972

excitations is examined. Some types of failure are
assumed in the study on reliability of structures
subjected to random vibration. Failure due to first
passage is one of the most important types of
failure (Crandall, 1963; Lin, 1967). In this paper,
the first passage problem is dealt with where
failure occurs at the instant when the absolute
value tz(t)[ of the response first crosses the toler-
ance level BD. In this case, the first passage prob-
ability is obtained by the following equation:
Pr(t) = 1 - e x p ( - 2 v t )
where
1
v = - - ~ o nexp
(-
27r 2o~]
The tolerance level BDb for the specimen without
welding is determined by using crzb as follows:
the specimen with welding is lower than that for
the specimen without welding for the same value
of tolerance level.
In order to examine the effect of n, the mean
value of BDw/BDb is shown in Fig. 2. When n is
less than about 2, BDw/BDb / decreases as n in-
creases. When n is greater than about 2, BDw/BDb
is about 0.935. When n is less than about 0.3,
BDw/BDb is greater than 1. Therefore, when n is
greater than about 0.3, P.. for the specimen with
welding is less than that for the specimen without
(3)
welding.
Next, the effect of welding on reliability is
(4)
examined by comparing the first passage probabil-
ity Pf,,. for the specimen with welding with that,
Pn,, for the specimen without welding for the
same value of tolerance level. Both probabilities
are obtained by the following equations:

BDb = nO-zb (5)

P~(r)=l-exp -exp - (7)
First, the effect of welding on reliability is
examined by obtaining the ratio BDw of the toler- 1-00
ance level for the specimen with welding to BDb
for the case where Pr for the specimen with weld- 0.9
ing is equal to that for the specimen without
w e l d i n g . BDw/BDb is obtained by the following "~ 0.9(
equation: rn
BDw [2 (l:af3nb(logJCnw ~>1 .'2 0.9,
BDb-- n-2 (w.f~,~.\ f,b + (6)
0920 i 2 4 5
In Table 5, the results for n = 1 are shown. BDw is n
about 5% less than BDb. This means that Pr for Fig. 2. Ratio of tolerance level. Bl) ~/BDb
 S. Aoki I Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379-385 383

Table 6
First excursion probability (n = l, r = 5)

Specimen Method
0 0
!! ] ;-
118

(1) (II) (11I)

(l) 0.619
(2) A 0.579 0.563 0.599 I
B 0.579 0.619 0.593 i

B' 0.589 0.608 0.608 I

i
C 0.581 0.601 0.608
D 0.612 0.593 0.617
(3) A 0.604 0.566 0.610 J t~,

B 0.570 0.596 0.584

B 0.591 0.619 0.604
C 0.548 0.619 0.600
D 0.570 0.619 0.608

Prw(r)= 1-exp --Tf~bexp (8) Fig. 4. Frame model.

where r = ~Onbt. In Table 6, the results for n = 1
and ~ = 5 are shown. Prw is a b o u t 5% less than
Pro. This means that Pr for the specimen with
welding is lower than that for the specimen with-
out welding for the same value o f the tolerance
level.
In order to examine the effect o f n and r, mean
values o f the first passage probability are shown
in Fig. 3. Considering the results o f Fig. 2, values
of n greater than 0.3 are selected. Prw is less than
Prb for all values o f n and r. The m a x i m u m
difference between P~w and Pa, is a b o u t 10%.
Therefore, Pr for the specimen with welding is less
than that for the specimen without welding for
the same value o f tolerance level.
80 i 2~.'--"
°=!, ::---
10 0 30 40 50
Fig. 3. First passage probability.
5. Application to actual structures
The applicability o f the results obtained in Sec-
tion 2 to actual structures is examined by experi-
ment. A frame model shown in Fig. 4 is used.
T w o columns are connected using H-steel at the
top. The c o l u m n material is rolled steel for gen-
eral structures, the same as that of the specimens
shown in Section 2. This model is fixed at the
b o t t o m o n t o the shaking table and shaken in the
horizontal direction. The input, amplitude is
0.5 m m p - p . F r o m this experiment, the d a m p i n g
ratio and natural frequency for the first vibra-
tional mode are measured by the m e t h o d shown
in Section 2. Welding is done by the automatic
CO2 gas shielded arc welding machine. Three
types o f model are used.
(a) Model without welding.
(b) Model o f which one column is welded.
(c) Model o f which two columns are welded.
The length from the weld line to the b o t t o m o f
the column is 210 mm.
Table 7 shows the results. The d a m p i n g ratio o f
the model with welding is a b o u t 10% greater than
that o f the model without welding. The d a m p i n g
ratio o f model c is greater than that o f model b,
but the difference is very small. The natural fre-
quencies o f these models are almost the same.
384 S. Aoki / Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379 385
Table 7
Damping ratio and natural frequency of frame model
Specimen Method
(l) (ll)
((xl0 3) (w/(b ((xl0 2)
(a) 7.47 1.48
(b) 8.46 1.13 1.55
(c) 8.88 1.19 1.59
Therefore, the results obtained in Section 2 are
expected to apply to actual structures.
6. Conclusions
By an experiment using simple specimens, dy-
namic characteristics of specimens with welding
are compared with those of specimens without
welding. The effect of welding on response charac-
teristics and reliability are then examined. The
obtained results are summarized as follows.
(1) The damping ratio of the specimen with
welding is almost 10% greater than that of the
specimen without welding.
(2) The natural frequency of the specimen with
welding is almost the same as that of the specimen
without welding.
(3) When the specimen is subjected to station-
ary white noise excitation, the standard deviation
of the specimen with welding is smaller than that
of the specimen without welding.
(4) When the specimen is subjected to station-
ary white noise excitation, the first passage proba-
bility for the specimen with welding is lower than
that for the specimen without welding.
(5) By an experiment using a frame model, the
damping ratio becomes greater when the column
of the model is welded. So the obtained results are
expected to apply to actual structures.
The author plans the following future investiga-
tions.
Although the range of natural frequencies of
specimens used in this paper is relatively wide,
welding is used for many structures with a wider
range of natural frequencies and excitation fre-
(Ill)
(w/(b ((xl0 2) (w/(b J~(Hz) Jn,~"~nb
2.84 22.0
1.05 3.36 1.18 22.6 1.03
1.07 3.25 1.14 22.0 1.00
quencies. The natural frequencies of some struc-
tures are lower than those of the specimens used
in this study. For such structures, the effect of
welding on dynamic characteristics of higher vi-
brational modes is also important.
In this paper, specimens with one weld are
adopted. In some structures there are more welds.
In such a case, the effect of the positions of welds
to significant depending on mode shapes.
The author intends to investigate the effect of
welding on dynamic characteristics of higher vi-
brational modes, and the effect of some welds and
positions of welds on dynamic characteristics.
Acknowledgements
The author wishes to thank Professor S.
Fukuda, and Professor Y. Amano of Tokyo
Metropolitan College of Technology for his kind-
ness in allowing use of the automatic acid carbon
welding machine. He also wishes to thank Mr. A.
Yuta, Managing Director of Emic Corp., for his
aid with preparing the shaker. He thanks Mr. K.
Saito of Hitachi Building System Service Co., Ltd.
and Mr. M. Kosugi of Fuji Electric Co., Ltd., and
the former students of Tokyo Metropolitan Col-
lege of Technology for their help in the experi-
ment.
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 S. Aoki / Nuclear Engineering and Design 160 (1996) 379-385 385

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