Arc welding induced residual stress in butt-joints of thin plates under constraints

The purpose of this work is to assess the effect of welding fixtures on distributions and values of residual stresses during Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW). The butt-joint GTAW of AA5251 plate is investigated using a transient thermo-mechanical analysis performed by the finite element program, ABAQUS. The model considers two different welding conditions including unconstrained and perfectly constrained conditions while macro examination and residual stress measurements by implementing hole drilling techniques are utilized to evaluate the predictions. The results show that the utilizing of a welding fixture alters the temperature field within the plate being welded and the depth of the weld pool decreases by about 21% in this case. In addition, the application of a welding fixture effectively changes both distributions and maximum values of transverse and longitudinal residual stresses.