Welded

Welded Joints
Joints in
in Bending
Bending
 Overview
• Stressing of welded joints:
– Bending analysis of welds
– Stress Concentration
– Fatigue of welded joints
 Bending Analysis of Welds

• Bending analysis of welded structures

follows on closely from analysis of
torsional loading:
– breaking the applied loads down into direct
(primary) loads (tension and/or shear loads)
and (secondary) bending moment
– analysing the primary stresses due to the
direct loads as force/area
– analysing the secondary stresses due to the
bending moment, unit second moment of area Iu
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing

• For a cantilever with fillet welds

along its top and bottom faces:
F

l
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing
• Replace applied load F with V and M:

V M
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing

V F
τ '= =
A A

A = 2 × 0.707 hl = 1.414hl
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing

• The moment M produces bending stresses

σ in the welds
• It is usual to assume that this stress acts
normal to the throat area
• True depth of the weld is usually small
compared to other dimensions
• By treating the welds as lines we can use
the unit second moment of area for
bending
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing

• In this case: 0.707h b

A = 1.414hb
d
b
x=
2
d
y=
2 bd 2
Iu =
2
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing
• Unit 2nd moment of area about horizontal
axis is: bd 2
Iu =
2
• Second moment of area is:

I = 0.707 hI u

• Normal stress (at a distance y from the

neutral axis) is: Ty
σ=
I
Stressing of welds in combined
bending/shearing
If there is no shear loading:
• Assume that the maximum shear stress in
the weld is equal to the nominal tensile
(or compressive) stress we have
calculated based on the throat area
• Assess the strength of the weld by
comparing this nominal shear stress with
the allowable shear stress in the material.
 Combining the shear and
bending stresses
• Shigley et al use vectorial combination of
stresses
• A better approach is to use Mohr’s circle (for 2
or 3 dimensional stresses)

2θ

σ
+τ
 Example
• Estimate the safety factor in the
bracket if the maximum allowable
stress is 120 MPa
120 6
F = 7.5 kN

120 6 6

60
 Example
• Use the relationships from row 5 of
the table in appendix A

A = 0.707h( b + 2d )
b
x=
2
d2
y= 120
b + 2d
3
2d
Iu = − 2d 2 y + ( b + 2d ) y 2 60
3
 Example: Primary Stress
• The primary stress is F/A (as always!)

A = 0.707h( b + 2d )
= 0.707 × 6 × 10 −3 ( 0.06 + 2 × 0.12 ) 120
−3 F = 7.5 kN
= 1.273 × 10 m 2

V 7.5 ×103
τ '= = 120
A 1.273 × 10 −3
= 5.89 MPa
 Example: Secondary Stress
• The vertical centroid distance is:
d2 0.12 2
y= = = 48 mm
b + 2d 0.06 + 2(0.12)

• The unit second moment of area is:

2d 3
Iu = − 2d 2 y + ( b + 2d ) y 2
3

− 2(0.12) 2 × 48 ×10 −3 + (0.06 + 2(0.12))( 48 ×10 −3 )

2(0.12) 3 2
=
3
= 460.8 ×10 −6 m 3
 Example: Secondary Stress
• The maximal secondary stress occurs
furthest from the neutral axis
(maximum y, AKA c = 72 mm)

I = 0.707 hI u = 0.707 × 6 × 10 −3 × 460.8 ×10 −6

= 1.954 ×10 −6 m 4

My 7.5 ×103 × 72 ×10 −3

σ= = 120
I XX 1.954 ×10 −6 72
= 33.16 MPa
 Example: total stress
• Combine the primary and secondary
stresses using Mohr’s circle:

(0, 5.89)

34.175 MPa
2θ = 19.6°

(33.16, 5.89)

+τ
 Example: Secondary Stress
• The maximal stress is 34.175 MPa, 9.8° off the
horizontal and acting on the toe of the vertical
weld

• This represents a safety factor (under static

loading of a ductile material) of

120
n= = 3.5
34.175
 Stress Concentrations

• For elastic materials F

nominal stress is t

F b
σ nom =
bt
• Saint-Venant’s Principle
says this is so beyond a
characteristic length (b)
from a stress raiser
F
 Stress Concentrations
• Maximum stresses may
be much larger than F
the nominal
t
• Stress concentration
factor is: b

σ m ax
K=
σ nom

F
 Stress Concentration
• Stress concentration
factors are found
empirically (look for
them in tables)
• Stress
concentrations are
geometry and
surface finish
stress concentration in a flat bar of
dependent. reducing section – note the blend radii
 Stress Concentration
• In ductile materials
stress concentrations
are usually ignored due
to material flow
• Stress concentrations
must be accounted for
in designs involving:
– brittle materials (which
are very sensitive)
– Fatigue loading
– Impact loading

Photoelastic and FEA determination of stress

concentrations in the flat bar of reducing section
Stress concentrations in welds
• Stress concentration is 1.2 on a
reinforced butt weld
• Reduces to 1 if weld is “dressed”
Stress concentrations in welds
• Stress concentration at the end of a
parallel fillet weld is 2.7
Stress concentrations in welds

• Fatigue Stress concentration factors (Kfs ) for

weld and parent metal:

• Reinforced butt weld 1.2

• Toe of transverse fillet 1.5
• End of parallel fillet 2.7
• T weld with sharp corners 2.0
 Fatigue Loading
• Many materials Fatigue limit is shown
exhibit a fatigue limit; on the S-N (endurance)
below this limit diagram
fatigue failure is
unlikely.
• For steel the fatigue
limit is around 50% of

Failure stress σ
the UTS for static
loading
• For aluminium it’s
poorly defined but Fatigue limit
around 25% of UTS
Number of cycles
to failure
 Welding & Fatigue Resources

• http://www.roymech.co.uk/Useful_Tables/Fatigu
– Tables of stress concentration factors + design guide

• http://www.gowelding.com/
– all manner of information
• Shigley, J.E., Mischke, C.R., Budynas, R.G. 2004.
Mechanical Engineering Design (7th international
edition), McGraw Hill.
• Gere, J.M. and Timoshenko, S.P., 1997. Mechanics
of Materials (4th edition), PWS Publishing,
Boston.