DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

Revision: 0

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

Page 1 of 12

QUESTION 1
1.1

(i)
Calculate the axial stress at sections A and B for a tensile force of 120 kN, as shown in the
diagram below.
10 marks

All dimensions in mm.

Section A: 12 X 12
Section B: 8 X 8

Stress=load/area
Section A= (120000 N/144 mm2)/2=417 N/mm2 or 417 MPa
Section B=120000 N/64 mm2=1875 N/mm2 or 1875 MPa
ii)
If the material of construction has a minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa, do you
think that this design would be safe to carry the 120 kN load? Motivate your answer.
5 marks
No, it would not be safe because the minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa is significantly
less than the stress calculated to be present in section B of 1875 MPa. Yield will occur in section B
and possibly fracture due to the load applied.

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

Revision: 0

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

1.2

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

Page 2 of 12

(i)
Calculate the axial stress at sections A and B for a tensile force of 50 kN, as shown in the
diagram below.
12 marks

All dimensions in mm.

Section A: 12 X 12
Section B: 8 X 8

Stress=load/area
Section A= (50000 N/144 mm2)= 347 N/mm2 or 347 MPa
Section B=(50000 N/64 mm2)/2=390 N/mm2 or 390 MPa
ii)
If the material of construction has a minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa, do you
think that this design would be safe to carry the 50 kN load? Motivate your answer.
3 marks
Yes, it would be safe because the minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa is significantly
greater than the stress calculated to be present in sections A & B.
1.3

(i)
Calculate the axial stress at sections A and B for a tensile load of 50 kN, as shown in the
diagram below.
12 marks

All dimensions in mm.

Section A: 12 X 12
Section B: 8 X 8

50 kN
Stress=load/area
Section A= (50000 N/144 mm2)= 347 N/mm2 or 347 MPa
Section B=(50000 N/64 mm2)/2=390 N/mm2 or 390 MPa

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Revision: 0
Date of Issue: 23 May 2011
Page 3 of 12

ii)
If the material of construction has a minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa, do you
think that this design would be safe to carry the 50 kN load? Motivate your answer.
3 marks
Yes, it would not be safe because the minimum specified yield strength of 690 MPa is significantly
greater than the stress calculated to be present in sections A & B.
1.4

Find the simple shear stress in the welds, as shown in the sketch below, subjected to a
longitudinal load.
Load (P) = 3 kN
Length of weld (W) = 200 mm
Leg length of fillet welds (equal legs) = 8 mm

Stress =

10 marks

Load
Area

Area = (Throat thickness x length of weld) X 2

= (0.707 X 8 X 200) X 2
= 2262.4 mm2

Stress =

3000
2
= 1.33 N / mm
2262.4

QUESTION 2
2.1

On the stress-strain diagram shown below for mild steel, label the points A, B and C and the shaded
region marked D on the curve.
8 marks
A

Yield Stress/point

UTS

Stress

Elastic
region

Strain

C Fracture `

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

Revision: 0

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

2.2

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

Page 4 of 12

Explain the difference between a ductile and a brittle material. Support your answer by referring to a
stress-strain diagram.
5 marks
A ductile material will show considerable yielding before it fractures
There will be a substantial deformation before failure
Ductile material can absorb a lot of energy in all directions
The material will tear
A brittle material will have little yielding
There will be very little deformation before failure
The material will snap
A brittle material will be restricted to the direction in which it can absorb energy

2.3

Determine:
(i)
The hoop stress;
(ii)
The longitudinal stress

5 marks
5 marks

in the material of a cylindrical body of a pressure vessel given the following data:

(i)

Diameter of vessel:

Shell wall thickness:

Internal pressure (gauge):

Hoop Stress =
=

(ii)

Pr
t

20 X 1000
= 2000MPa
10

Longitudinal Stress =
=

2000 mm

2000
= 1000 MPa
2

1
X hoop stress
2

10 mm
20 MPa

Equation : =

Pr
t

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

(iii)

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Revision: 0
Date of Issue: 23 May 2011
Page 5 of 12

If the material of construction used has a 0.2% proof stress of 1000 MPa, would it be suitable in this
application, motivate your answer.
2 marks
No it would not as the hoop stress exceeds the proof stress of the material of construction,
therefore the vessel would plastically deform or rupture.

(iv)

If you use the material in (iii) above, what would the minimum wall thickness have to be to just
contain the pressure without any use of a factor of safety?

5 marks

Using the hoop stress equation and rearranging to solve for t, we substitute in the 0.2% proof
stress of the material of construction:
Hoop Stress =

t=

pr
t

20 X 1000
pr
=
= 20mm
Hoop stress 1000 MPa

Therefore the wall thickness required must be greater than 20 mm.

QUESTION 3

3.1

Calculate the weld throat size and the weld throat shear stress of the given fillet weld (equal leg
size) subjected to a longitudinal shear load of 10000 N. The length of the weld is 150 mm and the
weld leg size is 10 mm.
5 marks

Throat thickness = 0.707 X leg length = 0.707 X 10 = 7.1mm

Shear stress =

3.2

10000
= 9.4MPa
7.1X 150

Briefly define metal fatigue and list the stages of a fatigue failure.

5 marks

Fatigue is the failure of a component by repeated or fluctuating loading. The process of fatigue is:
Crack initiation
Crack propagation
failure of the remaining section

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

3.3

3.5

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers

SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

Page 6 of 12

How can welding distortion be prevented or restricted at the design stage. List five
methods.

3.4

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

Revision: 0

5 marks

elimination of welding
weld placement
reducing the volume of weld metal
reducing the number of runs
use of balanced welding

Explain two design strategies for improving fatigue life of structures.

5 marks

One useful strategy is to minimise cyclic stress. Stresses should be distributed evenly. Stiffening
should be used to minimise oscillating loads, particularly resonance.

The second strategy is to minimise the effect of notches on the structure. Ideally, notches
should be avoided or sharpness reduced. This means using gentle transitions where there are
shape changes. If notches have to be designed into the structure, they should not be placed at
high tensile cyclic stress locations, but placed in low stress locations, or where stress is
compression. The fabricator needs to avoid linear or angular misalignment.

Explain two design strategies for improving fatigue life of structures.

6 marks

One useful strategy is to minimise cyclic stress. Stresses should be distributed evenly. Stiffening
should be used to minimise oscillating loads, particularly resonance.

The second strategy is to minimise the effect of notches on the structure. Ideally, notches
should be avoided or sharpness reduced. This means using gentle transitions where there are
shape changes. If notches have to be designed into the structure, they should not be placed at
high tensile cyclic stress locations, but placed in low stress locations, or where stress is
compression. The fabricator needs to avoid linear or angular misalignment.

QUESTION 4
4.1

Sketch five basic weld joint types.

5 marks

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

4.2

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Revision: 0
Date of Issue: 23 May 2011
Page 7 of 12

Give one advantage and disadvantage a fillet weld has over a butt weld:

2 marks

Fillet welds:
Simple & cheap to assemble & weld-advantage
Stress concentrations at toes & root-disadvantage
Notch at root (fatigue, toughness)-disadvantage
Large fillets use a lot of weld metal & therefore are uneconomic-disadvantage
4.3

A structural beam is required to carry a point load of 180 kN and the allowable fillet size (according
to AS/NZS 1554) has been determined to be 8 mm. The strength of the fillet weld metal is 410
MPa. What length should the fillet weld be?
8 marks
Throat thickness = 0.707 X leg length = 0.707 X 8 = 5.67mm
Using throat thickness = 5.67mm and area=throat thickness X weld length (solve for length)

length=
4.4

180000 N
= 77mm
5.67mmX 410 MPa

Draw the welding symbol for the following desired weld.

3 marks

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

4.5

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Draw the weld symbol for the following desired weld.

Revision: 0
Date of Issue: 23 May 2011
Page 8 of 12

5 marks

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers
SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Revision: 0
Date of Issue: 23 May 2011
Page 9 of 12

QUESTION 5
The following questions have multiple-choice answers and are worth 2 marks each.
Only one answer is correct. Tick only one. If two boxes are ticked, no mark will be awarded.
5.1

The moment of inertia of a section is used in calculating:

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.2

Why are non-load carrying attachment welds important in a dynamically loaded structure?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.3

Accessibility for welding and inspection.

The economic factors of the welded joint.
The validity of the welder qualifications
a & b of the above.

The reason for specifying tolerances are:

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.7

the amount of weld metal increases

the transverse shrinkage decreases
the weld becomes more expensive
b & c above

When designing a joint, which of the following should be considered by the designer?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.6

Partial penetration joint, welded from one side

Full penetration joint, welded from both sides
Full penetration joint with permanent backing strip
Flush ground, full penetration joint, welded from both sides

If a V butt joint is replaced by a U butt joint:

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.5

They can increase the fatigue life of the structure.

They are normally welded on site.
They can increase the load carrying capacity.
They can decrease the life of the structure under dynamic loading.

For fatigue service conditions, which of the following joints is most suitable?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.4

Moments introduced by bending

Deflection in bending
Stress at any point in a loaded beam
b & c above

Structural safety
Fit-up of non-structural components.
Clearance for overhead cranes, rail tracks and elevators
All of the above

What does information placed below the line from the arrow refer to in terms of AS/NZS standards?
a.
b.
c.
d.

The arrow side.

The side opposite to the arrow.
It does not matter what side of the line information is placed.
None of the above

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

5.8

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers

SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Cost of material.
Loss of strength in the HAZ due to softening.
Quality acceptance levels
All of the above

10%
15%
20%
40%

5.10

Stress concentrations can be produced by:

a.
A notch.
b.
A hole.
c.
A weld.
d.
All of the above

5.11

A distortion is called permanent when it is caused by:

a.
b.
c.
d.

To save filler metal

To improve weld strength
To reduce stress concentration
To increase welding efficiency

A plug weld can be used to join together plate components which:

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.14

Elastic deformation
Plastic deformation
Static load
Dynamic load

For the same throat thickness, what is the design advantage of concave fillet weld shape compared
with other fillet weld shapes?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.13

Page 10 of 12

A 10 mm diameter all weld tensile test piece with an original gauge length of 50 mm broke in tension
with a final gauge length of 60 mm. What was the percentage elongation?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.12

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

What is a fundamental design consideration when considering using aluminium as the material of
construction for a welded structure to take advantage of a saving in weight?
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.9

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

Revision: 0

Overlap
Butt
Form a tee joint
Form a corner joint

Which cutting process does not have an influence on the material behaviour of low alloyed steel?
a.
b.
c.
d.

Oxy-fuel cutting
Water jet cutting
Arc air cutting
Oxy-LPG cutting

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

5.15

b.
c.
d.

The strength of the steel material

The carbon equivalent of the steel material
Welding heat input
Stress concentration

Heat affected zone cracking

Fatigue life
Residual stress
Yield strength

Why should joggle lap joints be avoided in pipelines and vessels?

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.20

Tension
Shear
Neutral
Compression

A fabricating procedure requires that the toes of all fillet welds have to be blended in by grinding.
This is influences:
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.19

Edges A and B would be lowered due to the expansion of the weld

metal in the weld zone
Edges A and B would be raised due to the contraction of the weld metal
In a multi pass weld, there would be little if any distortion.
Expansion and contraction would be equal in a V-groove weld as shown.

The fatigue strength of weld joints is very sensitive to:

a.
b.
c.
d.

5.18

Page 11 of 12

The top flange of a beam with a load in the centre of the span is in:
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.17

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers

SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

If the single-side V-groove weld shown below was made in multiple passes and not clamped or
restrained, typical distortion would take place in which direction?
a.

5.16

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

Revision: 0

The corrosion sensitivity is highest in gaps

The strength is not good enough
The minimum tensile property has to be fulfilled
The gaps cannot be detected by non destructive testing

Compared with steel structures, what is characteristic of aluminium alloy structures?

a.
b.
c.
d.

High strength
Weld toughness
Light and corrosion resistant
Cheap

DOC NO: 5Q&A-002-SA3

ABN 69 003 696 526

Management
System Manual

5.21

Page 12 of 12

The welding process to be used.

The rod diameter to be welded.
The chemical composition of the steel to be welded.
If the welder is certified or not.

If a pressure vessel is correctly designed applying the leak before break approach following
occurs:
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.23

IIW International Welding Specialist (IWS) Sample Questions and Answers

SA3 CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN

Date of Issue: 23 May 2011

When welding reinforcing-steel the minimum overlap length of the steel rods depends on:
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.22

QUALIFICATION & CERTIFICATION BOARD

Revision: 0

Vessel failure at the location of highest stressing

Leaking of the vessel prior to full rupture
Minor plastic deformation prior to full rupture of vessel
Large plastic deformation of the vessel without rupture

What kind of fractures happens most frequently in welded steel structures?

a.
b.
c.
d.

Fatigue fracture
Low temperature brittle fracture
Deformation fracture
Lamellar tearing