ARTICLE IN PRESS

International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151 www.elsevier.com/locate/ijpvp

Residual stresses in welded structures

R.H. Leggatt
TWI, Granta Park, Great Abington, Cambridge, UK

Abstract The nature of residual stresses in welded structures is discussed in terms of their magnitude, directionality, spatial distribution, range and variability. The effects of the following factors on the residual stresses are considered: material properties, material manufacture, structural geometry, fabrication procedure, welding procedure, post-weld treatments and service conditions. Examples are given of residual stress distributions in plate butt welds, circumferential butt welds and weld cladding. These illustrate the different magnitudes and distributions of residual stress that can be found in different joint geometries, and demonstrate the effects of the mechanical, thermal and metallurgical properties of the constituent materials and the sensitivity of residual stresses to pass sequence and to the restraints applied during welding. Further examples for the common case of circumferential butt welds in pipes and pressure vessels are used to illustrate the extent of residual stresses as a function of distance from the weld and the effects of post-weld heat treatment. Measurements or analytical predictions of residual stresses are often subject to signicant scatter or variability. This scatter may be due to systematic factors such as variability in measurement location or material properties, or to experimental error in measured data, erroneous assumptions in analytical modelling or unknown factors such as pre-existing residual stresses, inadequately documented welding or fabrication procedures or unrecorded local repairs. Improved prediction and reduction of uncertainty of residual stresses will require better recording of the whole manufacturing and service history of the welded structure and its component materials and better understanding and analysis of the many processes that may affect the residual stresses. r 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Keywords: Residual stress; Welding; Post-weld heat treatment

1. Introduction The principal factors that determine what residual stresses are present in a welded structure are as follows:

 

  

Residual stresses present in the parts being joined before welding, resulting from the processes used to manufacture the component materials, and fabrication operations prior to welding. The material properties of the weld and parent materials, including composition, microstructure, thermal properties and mechanical properties. The geometry of the parts being joined. The restraints applied to the parts being welded by the application of external xtures such as welding jigs or local alignment xtures, or by their attachment by
E-mail address: rick.leggatt@ntlworld.com

welding or tacking to other component parts of the structure. The welding procedure, including the weld preparation, the welding conditions and the pass sequence in multipass welds. Residual stresses generated or relaxed by manufacturing operations after welding or by thermal or mechanical loading during service life.

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of how the above factors affect the magnitude, directionality and distribution of residual stresses in welded joints and structures. 2. Residual stresses before welding Within the fusion zone, the heat-affected zone (HAZ) and the adjacent parent material where the thermal

0308-0161/$ - see front matter r 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd. doi:10.1016/j.ijpvp.2007.10.004

ARTICLE IN PRESS
R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151 145

softening and thermal strains caused by the heat ow from the weld are sufcient to cause yielding during welding, the residual stress eld will be dominated by the weld-induced residual stresses. At greater distances from the weld, the residual stresses after welding will be a function of the superimposition of the weld-induced residual stresses and any pre-existing residual stresses in the parts being joined. This superimposition may be in the linear elastic or nonlinear elastic plastic or creep range, depending on combined magnitude of the residual stresses and the mechanical properties of the parent material. Residual stresses before welding may be caused by thermal or mechanical processes during materials manufacture or fabrication operations. Material- or productmanufacturing operations that cause signicant residual stresses include casting, forging, rolling, heat treatments, quenching, straightening and carburisation. Signicant pre-welding fabrication processes include ame, plasma or laser cutting, bending, machining, jigging and correction of misalignment. In many material-manufacturing or fabrication operations, there is a rebalancing of the residual stresses during or after the application of the process, and the magnitude of the nal residual stresses is often less than half the yield strength of the material. Some operations, such as heat treatment with slow cooling, may relax the stresses caused by previous operations. But processes such as machining or rapid quenching which cause localised yielding at the surface may leave yield magnitude stresses near the surface, possibly with enhanced yield strength due to work hardening. The possibility of pre-existing residual stresses should always be considered when the residual stresses in welded structures are being evaluated. In programmes to measure residual stresses in welded components, it is advisable to measure the residual stresses in regions not affected by welding, or in piece parts before welding, in order to determine the magnitude of pre-existing residual stresses. 3. Magnitude of residual stresses in welds The simple assumption is often made that the magnitude of the maximum tensile residual stress in a weld in the aswelded condition is equal to the yield strength of the weld or parent material [1]. This is a reasonable assumption in many but not all materials. Tensile residual stresses are generated at welds due to the thermal contraction of the weld metal and the adjacent heated parent during cooling
Table 1 Contraction strain and yield strain in various materials (To 20 1C) Material Type 316 CMn Ti6Al4V PEI a (1Cl) 18 10 12 106 7.3 106 56 106
6

after welding. These tensile residual stresses will be of approximately yield magnitude if two conditions are met, namely that

 

there is restraint against the free thermal contraction of the heated material. The thermal contraction strain from the softening temperature to ambient or pre-heat temperature is greater than the yield strain of the material.

The rst condition is a function of the geometry and stiffness of the parts being joined, which will be discussed in a subsequent section of this paper. The second condition is a function of the material properties, which will be discussed in the next section. 4. Material properties Yield magnitude residual stresses may occur if the thermal strain during cooling after welding is greater than the yield strain, that is if aT s T o XsY =E , (1) where a is the coefcient of thermal expansion; Ts the softening temperature, dened here as the temperature at which the yield strength drops to 10% of its value at ambient temperature; To the ambient or uniform pre-heat temperature; E the Youngs modulus; sY the yield strength at ambient or pre-heat temperature. Typical values of the relevant material properties for Type 316 austenitic stainless steel, carbon manganese steel, a titanium alloy and a high strength polymer, polyetherimide (PEI), are given in Table 1. Yield magnitude residual stresses are likely to occur where the contraction strain in the penultimate column is greater than the yield strain in the last column. This is the case in all austenitic stainless steels, as for example in type 316, where the thermal strain is more than ten times greater than yield strain, and residual stress up to the 1.0% proof stress can occur. In CMn steels the thermal contraction strain is about ve times greater than the yield strain, and yield magnitude residual stresses usually result. However, because of the high yield strength and low Youngs modulus in Ti6Al4V, the contraction strain is not sufcient to generate yield magnitude residual stresses. There is an even greater discrepancy in high strength polymers. Fig. 1 shows the variation of longitudinal residual stresses across the weld in hot-plate welded

Ts (1C) 1050 X650 875 219

sY (MPa) 300 350 950 90

E (MPa) 193,000 207,000 106,000 3000

a(TsTo) (%) 1.85 X0.76 0.62 1.11

eY sY/E (%) 0.16 0.17 0.89 3.00

ARTICLE IN PRESS
146 R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151

Fig. 1. Residual stresses in hot-plate welded high strength polymers [2].

Fig. 3. Predicted through-thickness distribution of residual stresses in low alloy steel clad with austenitic stainless steel. Calculated with (T.P.) and without (N.T.P.) transformation plasticity [4].

Fig. 2. Effect of phase change on accumulation of stresses during cooling [3].

samples of three different polymers [2]. The maximum stress in the PEI was 15 MPa, about one-sixth of the yield strength. The longitudinal residual stress decreases with distance from the weld, proportionately to the peak temperature reached during welding. Another material property that may affect the residual stresses in welded joints is phase change, particularly where this occurs at low temperatures during cooling after welding. Fig. 2 shows the accumulation of stresses during cooling in restrained tensile specimens subject to simulated HAZ thermal cycles [3]. Tests were made with samples of type 316 austenitic stainless steel and two low alloy ferritic steels, 2.25Cr1Mo and 9Cr1Mo. The type 316 austenitic stainless steel has no phase changes, and the stress accumulates steadily as the material cools under restraint from 1300 1C to room temperature. The stress at any temperature is approximately equal to the yield strength at that temperature. The low alloy steels have phase changes between 600 and 400 1C in the 2.25Cr1Mo, and between 500 and 300 1C in the 9Cr1Mo. The temperatures at which the phase change starts and ends are sensitive to the rate of cooling, which is fast in the HAZ, giving phase changes at relatively low temperatures. During the phase change, the crystal lattice expands, and the accumulated stresses are relaxed to a small negative value. After the phase change is complete, the stresses

increase rapidly, reaching a value approaching the yield strength of the 2.25Cr1Mo steel at room temperature, but only reaching a low value in the 9Cr1Mo. If a general preheat is applied, for example at about 200 1C as shown by the dotted line in Fig. 2, then there is no further accumulation of stress in the weld after the temperatures in the weldment equalise at the pre-heat temperature, and the nal residual stress is given by the intercept with the dotted line. Fig. 3 shows the predicted through thickness distribution of residual stresses in A508 Cl.3 low alloy steel clad with 316 stainless steel [4]. High-tensile residual stresses are predicted in the cladding and in the parent metal adjacent to the HAZ, due to the shrinkage of the heated region, resisted by the stiffness of the 100 mm thick parent metal. However, compressive residual stresses are predicted to occur in the HAZ, due to the effect of low temperature phase change during cooling. The predictions illustrate the effect of transformation plasticity, which causes a loss of strength during transformation. Very large compressive stresses (600 MPa) are predicted in the HAZ if transformation plasticity is ignored. If transformation plasticity is included, then lower compressive stresses are predicted. 5. Restraint The restraint at a welded joint may be described as the resistance to the free thermal expansion and contraction of the heated material. It sounds like a simple concept, but in fact is complex: it varies with direction and position in the weld and it changes continuously during the fabrication of a welded component or structure. It is affected by a wide

ARTICLE IN PRESS
R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151 147

range of factors, including the geometry of the parts being joined, the use of fabrication aids such as tacks, cleats and jigs, the pass sequence for multipass welds and the welding sequence for structures with more than one weld. The effects of internal and external restraints on the residual stresses acting in different directions in a welded joint is discussed below with reference to results from measurement or modelling of residual stresses for various weld geometries and procedures. Fig. 4 shows the convention used in this paper for describing the directions relative to a straight weld in a at plate. Fig. 5 shows the through-wall distribution of longitudinal, transverse and through-thickness residual stresses measured on the centre line of the weld in a multi-pass butt weld in a 60-mm-thick steel plate with no external restraint [5]. It can be seen in Fig. 5 that the residual stresses in the three orthogonal directions are completely different. This is caused by the different restraints acting in the three directions. Longitudinal shrinkage of the weld is strongly resisted by the parts being joined, so high tensile residual stresses are generated throughout the thickness of the weld. The transverse shrinkage of the nal weld passes on the upper surface of the plate is resisted by the passes deposited previously, so tensile residual stresses are generated near

the upper face, balanced by compression at mid-thickness and tension at the lower surface. In this case, the mean transverse stress through the thickness is tensile. This is usually the case in butt-welded plates where the length and width are of the same order. There is reduced transverse shrinkage at the ends of the welds, causing mean transverse compressive stresses at the ends of the weld and mean tensile stresses at mid-length. The through-thickness residual stresses were entirely compressive. Each pass is free to shrink in the through-thickness direction when it is deposited, so no residual stresses are generated in that direction initially. However, when the central region is compressed in the transverse direction by the shrinkage of the near-surface passes, compressive stresses in the through-thickness direction are generated. Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate the effects of restraint on transverse residual stresses in multipass welds in 50 mm thick type 316L stainless steel [6]. If bending restraint is applied to resist the angular distortion at the weld caused by the transverse shrinkage of successive weld passes, then a net bending stress can be generated at the weld. Results from two welds are shown in Fig. 6. With low bending restraint and a balanced pass sequence which gave low nal angular distortion, the through wall distribution of transverse stresses was balanced, with compressive stresses at mid-depth in equilibrium with tensile stresses near the surfaces. In a more highly restrained plate with an unbalanced welding sequence, the compressive zone was nearer the lower face, and the tensile stresses were increased at the top face and decreased at the lower face, giving a net bending stress through the thickness. When in-plane or membrane restraint is applied to resist the mean transverse shrinkage at the weld, then net membrane stresses are generated across the weld. Distributions of transverse residual stresses are shown in Fig. 7 for

Fig. 4. Nomenclature for directions relative to weld. sx longitudinal; sy transverse; sz through-thickness.

Fig. 5. Residual stresses in multipass butt weld in thick steel plate [5].

Fig. 6. Effect of bending restraint on transverse residual stresses in multipass butt weld in austenitic stainless-steel plate [6].

ARTICLE IN PRESS
148 R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151

three levels of membrane restraint. As the restraint increases, the tensile stresses generated by the transverse shrinkage of the near-surface passes also increases, and are

Fig. 7. Effect of membrane restraint on transverse residual stresses in multi-pass butt weld in austenitic stainless-steel plate [6].

resisted by tensile stresses transmitted through the plates to the restraints, so the compressive stresses at mid-depth are reduced and become tensile under high restraint. Where the membrane restraint is very high, for example at the ends of a full depth repair, the transverse residual stresses are tensile and approaching yield magnitude over the full thickness of the plate. Fig. 8 shows the variation of the net transverse bending stress generated by multipass butt welds in 50 mm thicktype 316L stainless-steel plate as a function of the bending restraint coefcient for a single-sided weld and two doublesided welds with different pass sequences [6]. These results were obtained by computer modelling of the deposition of the weld passes, with experimental validation at two levels of restraint. The bending restraint coefcient is a measure of the rotational stiffness of the plates at the joint, and is dened as the bending stress at the weld divided by the relative rotation of the plate edges in radians and by the plate thickness. In a single-sided weld, angular distortion builds up continuously as successive weld passes are deposited, causing high bending stresses across the weld, which increase as the restraint increases. Two different pass sequences were considered for a double-sided weld with a 1 2 3 : 3 preparation depth ratio. The typical pass sequence

Fig. 8. Bending stress at multipass welds in 50 mm austenitic stainless steel as a function of bending restraint coefcient, weld preparation and pass sequence [6].

ARTICLE IN PRESS
R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151 149

consists of half lling the 2 3 preparation with passes 16, then lling the 1 preparation with passes 713 and nally 3 lling the remainder of the 2 preparation with passes 1420. 3 This sequence gives low angular distortion and low bending stress at low levels of bending restraint, but it gives signicant angular distortion and high bending stresses at high levels of restraint. Lower bending stresses were obtained using the balanced welding sequence, in which passes 110 were deposited in the 2 3 preparation, passes 1117 in the 1 preparation and nally passes 1820 3 in the 2 preparation. The number of passes in the nal 3 block was just sufcient to counteract the angular distortion and negative bending stress resulting from the previous passes, without going too far and building up large distortion and bending stress with the opposite sign. 6. Circumferential welds in pipes For circumferential welds, it is convenient to describe the stress directions in terms of the component coordinates, i.e. in terms of the circumferential, axial and radial directions (corresponding to longitudinal, transverse and through thickness directions at butt welds in at plate). Circumferential butt welds in cylindrical components such as pipes or pressure vessels are subject to bending restraint across the weld due to the curvature of the parts being joined. In addition, they are subject to interaction between the

circumferential membrane stresses and axial bending stresses, which are both functions of the radial displacement of the pipe wall. Fig. 9 shows the variation of hoop (circumferential) and axial residual stresses with distance from the centre of a circumferential butt weld in a 16 mm thick, 600 mm OD (outside diameter) API-XL-X65 pipe [7]. Three sets of results are given: the surface residual stresses measured by the hole drilling method (symbols), the linear components (i.e. the sum of the net membrane and bending components of the through-wall stress distributions) measured by removal of strain gauged blocks (dashed lines), and the linear components obtained from the theory of the elastic behaviour of thin cylinders as a function of the circumferential shrinkage force and angular distortion at the weld (solid lines). The measured and theoretical values of the linear components were in good agreement in the elastic region beyond about 25 mm from the weld centreline. The effect of the circumferential yielding and shrinkage of the weld is represented in the theory as an external circumferential shrinkage force acting on the weld centre line, and hence the tensile hoop stresses in the plastically deformed zone at the weld are not included in the theoretical distribution. It has been shown [8] that the half width of the plastic zone at a weld in steel is equal to w/2 +O(122(q/v)/sy), where w is the width of the weld, q/v is the heat input of the largest

Fig. 9. Variation of hoop and axial residual stresses with distance from the centreline of a circumferential butt weld in a 16 mm 600 mm steel pipe [7].

ARTICLE IN PRESS
150 R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151

weld bead and sy is the yield strength of the parent metal. With w 16 mm, q 1000 J/mm and sy 510 MPa, the half width of the plastic zone containing tensile hoop stresses is predicted to be 23.5 mm, which agrees well with the experimental results. Outside the plastically deformed zone, the hoop stresses varied in accordance with thin cylinder theory and tended to a uniform bending stress of 760 MPa (tensile outside) at about 175 mm from the weld. This uniform bending stress was not caused by the weld: it was a pre-existing residual stress resulting from the manufacture of the pipe. The axial bending stresses were approximately zero at the weld, due to the opposing effects of the angular distortion at the weld, which causes tension at the outside surface, and the circumferential shrinkage of the weld, which causes tension inside. Outside the weld, the axial bending stresses increased to a peak value of about 7150 MPa at 50 mm from the weld, before decreasing to a negligible value at about 175 mm from the weld. This distance corresponds to the half wave length of the exponential harmonic function associated with axisymmetric bending in a thin-walled cylinder, which is equal to 2.5ORt, where R radius 300 mm and t thickness 16 mm, giving a half wave length 173 mm. These results show that residual stresses may be present at a considerable distance from the weld, and do not always decay rapidly within one or two plate thicknesses, as is sometimes claimed. 7. Changes in residual stresses after welding There is a wide range of factors that may modify the residual stresses after welding, either during subsequent stages of manufacture, or during the service life of the welded structure. These factors should be considered when the state of residual stress in a welded joint is being assessed. Manufacturing operations that may signicantly modify the as-welded residual stresses include:

Fig. 10. Through-wall variation of residual stresses at a circumferential butt weld in a pipe [9], (a) as-welded, (b) after PWHT.

Operations and processes during service life that may further modify the residual stresses include:

     

Normal or exceptional service loads, causing plastic straining, particularly in areas of stress concentration or high residual stress. Creep at operating temperatures within the creep range. Irradiation. Contact stresses. In-service repairs. Loss of material due to corrosion.

Fig. 10 shows the effect of PWHT on the through-wall distribution of residual stresses on the centre-line of a circumferential butt weld in a 22 mm thick, 219 mm OD C-Mn steel pipe [9]. The hoop, axial and radial residual stresses were all reduced signicantly after PWHT (Fig. 10b) compared with their magnitudes after welding (Fig. 10a). The through-wall distributions are similar in shape before and after heat treatment, though the reduction in residual stress is not proportional. 8. Variability and scatter Measurements or analytical predictions of residual stresses are often subject to signicant scatter or variability. This may be caused by real variations in the residual stresses, or to the limitations of the measurement or modelling methods. The residual stresses may have been affected by operations other than welding occurring during material manufacture, fabrication or service life. There may be no record of some of these operations, even for components with demanding quality control requirements. The residual stresses may be sensitive to small changes in the joint geometry, welding conditions, inter-pass time, ambient environment, bead lay-up, material composition and mechanical properties, within the permitted ranges for these parameters. They may also vary rapidly with position relative to the fusion boundary, such that measurements are very sensitive to location and sampling volume.

        

Local weld repairs of defects found during NDE. Release of temporary xtures. Subsequent welding operations, including t-up and welding of other structural components or attachments, and weld cladding. Surface treatments, including peening and case hardening. Machining operations, which may cause redistribution of residual stresses due to material removal, and surface stresses on the machined faces. Distortion correction by plastic deformation or ame straightening. Mechanical loading, such as proof testing or vibration during transportation. Thermal treatments, including post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) applied in a furnace or by local heating. Mechanical treatments such as vibrational stress relief or auto-frettage.

ARTICLE IN PRESS
R.H. Leggatt / International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping 85 (2008) 144151 151

Numerical modelling of the heat ow and evolution of stresses during welding can be used to obtain a detailed twoor three-dimensional distribution of the residual stresses at a welded joint. Numerical modelling eliminates some of the errors and uncertainties associated with experimental measurements, but may introduce other errors due to limitations in the input data or modelling assumptions. The effects of operations other than welding may be ignored. The best approach for reliable determination of residual stresses is by a combination of measurements and modelling. Distributions of residual stresses obtained by different methods should be compared; any discrepancies should be investigated and improved measurement and modelling methods should be applied until consistent results are obtained. 9. Concluding remarks In this paper, the author has used a number of examples to illustrate the main factors controlling the residual stresses due to welding. The inuence of material properties including the coefcient of thermal expansion, the yield strength and phase change has been discussed. It has been shown that the residual stresses in the three orthogonal directions relative to the weld are systematically different due to the different restraints acting in these directions. The inuence of the inherent restraint due to the geometry of the parts being joined and the applied restraint due to welding jigs or the surrounding structure have been explored. It should be remembered that the residual stresses in a welded structure are the product of its entire history, from the moment that its constituent materials were manufac-

tured and through all subsequent manufacturing operations and service conditions. Welding is just one stage in this long process, in which many operations may not be fully recorded or fully understood. Until such time as computer-integrated manufacturing and operation becomes a reality, embracing recording and analysis of the whole history of the structure and its component materials, the determination of residual stresses in real welded structures will remain an inexact science. References
[1] BS7910. Guide to methods for assessing the acceptability of aws in metallic structures. British Standards Institution, July 2005. [2] Leggatt RH, Tavakoli SM. Measurement of residual stresses in welded thermoplastics. Plast, Rubber Compos Process Appl 1997;26(5):2229. [3] Jones W, Alberry PJ. A model for stress accumulation in steels during welding. In: Residual stresses in welded construction and their effects, proceedings of the international conference, London, 1517 November 1977. [4] Dubois P, et al. Numerical simulation of a welding operation: calculation of residual stresses and hydrogen diffusion. In: Fifth international conference on pressure vessel technology, California, 1984. [5] Zdhanov IM, Gonchar AK. Determining the residual stresses at a depth in metal. Autom Weld 1978;31(9):224. [6] Leggatt RH. Residual stresses and distortion in multipass butt welded joints in type 316 stainless steel. Residual Stresses Sci Technol 1986;2: 9971004. [7] Leggatt RH. Residual stresses at girth welds in pipes. In: Welding in energy related projects. Oxford: Pergamon; 1984. p. 42940. [8] Leggatt RH. Welding residual stresses. In: Proceedings of the fth international conference on residual stresses, Linkoping, Sweden, 1618 June 1997. [9] Josephson BL. Stress redistribution during annealing of a multi-pass butt-welded pipe. ASME, J Pressure Vessel Technol 1983;105(2): 16570.