Numerical simulation of residual stresses in a weld seam : An application of the Finite Element Method

Sammanfattning: Articulated haulers are fundamental equipment to transport material. The load carrying structure on a hauler consists mainly of welded frames. During welding of the frames high residual stress will be introduced. These stresses may have a significant impact on the fatigue life of the frames. This is the reason for having good knowledge of the weld residual stresses. The finite element method was used to calculate the residual stress distributions in a butt weld and a T-join weld. Simulation of the welding process with thermal and mechanical analysis was prepared by means of welding GUI implemented in LS-PrePost. The welding simulation is a computer intensive operation with high CPU time. That is why it is important to investigate which process factors that have the largest impact on welding simulation results. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the correlation between designed models in FEA software with published results of weld residual stress measurements and conclude which parameters should be mainly taken into consideration.