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Welded Connections
Dr. S. RAVIRAJ
Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering
Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering, Mysore 06
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Welding is the process to unite various pieces of metal by creating a strong
metallurgical bond. Bond is achieved by heat or pressure or both. Welding is
the most efficient and direct way of connecting the metal pieces. Over many
decades, different welding techniques have been developed to join metals.
Arc welding is used in most of the structural welding operations. Here, electric
energy which is used as the heat source is produced by electric arc. The base
metal and welding rod (or electrode) are heated to fusion temperature by the
electric arc. The typical arc welding equipments and accessories are shown in
Fig. 2. The welding rod is connected to one terminal of the current source and
the object to be welded is connected to the other terminal. The temperature in
the region of welding ranges from 3300o C to 5500o C.
2. Welded joints are more rigid than bolted joints. Hence the material at
various sections are utilized more efficiently to resist stresses than that of
less rigid connections.
3. Welding does not require driving of holes. This reduces the cost incurred for
drilling. Hence, while computing the tensile strength of members, the net
area remains the same as the gross area.
4. Welded joints are well suited for liquid and gas containing structures.
5. Welding offers the possibilities of fabricating new sections like castellated
beams or creating complex joints in tubular truss.
5.0TYPES OF WELDS
There are four types of welds. They are:
1. Fillet welds
2. Groove welds
3. Slot welds, and
4. Plug welds
Of these welds, fillet is used to a large extent. Groove welds are used to a
lesser extent. However, slot and plug welds are rarely used.
5.1Fillet Welds
Fillet welds (Fig. 4A) are widely used due to their economy, ease of fabrication,
and adoptability at site. They are approximately triangular in cross section (Fig.
4). These welds require less precision in fitting up two sections, due to the
overlapping of pieces. They are adopted in field as well as in shop welding. It
does not require any edge preparation and hence cheaper than groove welds.
Fillet welds are assumed to fail in shear. They can be present on one side
(single) or on both sides (double) of a member as shown in Table1 and Fig. 5.
Table 1 Single and double fillet welds
SINGLE
DOUBLE
FILLET
Some of the commonly used groove welds in butt joints are shown in Fig. 7.
Bevel angle
3 mm
60O
6 mm
45O
9 mm
30O
Weld metal is more expensive than the base metal. Hence, the choice between
single or double penetration depends on the availability of access on both
sides, the thickness of plate to be welded, the type of welding equipment
available and the position of weld.
When the plate thickness is more than 12 mm, the groove can be either
double-bevel or double-V type. When the plate thickness is more than 40 mm,
the groove can be either double - U or double - J type. For plates between 12
to 40 mm, the groove can be wither single-J and single-U type.
Groove welds are chosen in situations where the members need to transmit
the full load of the members they join. Hence, the strength of welds should be
more than or equal to the strength of the members they join. To ensure this,
full penetration groove welds are used more frequently.
6.0WELDING POSITON
The welding positions can be of four types, which are:
Flat
- On the floor
Overhead
Vertical
- On the wall
Butt joints are used to join the ends of flat plates of nearly equal thickness. A
typical butt joint is shown in Fig. 10. This joint avoids eccentric transfer of force
at the connection. It is preferable to have full penetration of welds at the butt
joints so that the joint is fully efficient. The size of connection is quite small and
hence is very economical. It is aesthetical to look at. Face reinforcement (weld
beyond the surface) is normally provided in Butt joints. This increases the
efficiency of the joint and ensures that depth of weld is at least equal to the
thickness of the plate.
Lap joints are easy to fit and join any two members. A typical lap joint is shown
in Fig. 11. It is the most commonly used joint. It does not require any special
preparation. Lap joints utilize fillet welds. They are well suited for shop and
field welding. Lap joints can accommodate minor errors in fabrication and
minor adjustment in length. The main advantage of lap joints is that it can join
plates with different thicknesses without any difficulty (Fig. 12). The main
disadvantage of this joint is that it introduces eccentric transfer of loads at the
connection.
7.3 T Joints
Corner joints are seen in the built - up rectangular box sections. A typical
corner joint is shown in Fig. 14. They are commonly seen at places which are
subjected to high torsional moments.
Edge joints are generally not used in structural applications. They are used to
keep two or more plates in position in a given plane. A typical edge joint is
shown in Fig. 15.
Weld symbol is only a part of the information regarding the welding operation
to be performed at a joint. As indicated in Table 3, whenever a weld symbol
consists of both vertical and inclined legs, the vertical is always drawn towards
the left side of the inclined line.
Apart from this there are also supplementary welding symbols to represent
Supplementary symbols
Finish symbols
Reference Line
The reference line is always drawn horizontally. It is mandatory and forms the
foundation of a welding symbol. All information with respect to the welding
process is to be indicated around this line.
Arrow
The arrow line is present at one end of the reference line. It simply connects
one end of the reference line to the joint or area to be welded. The direction of
the arrow has no bearing on the significance of the reference line. Some of the
possible types of arrows used in the welding symbol are shown in Fig. 17.
Tail
The tail is shown on the other end (away from arrow end) of the reference line.
It is not mandatory. The tail is used to specify a certain welding process. It is
used only when necessary. It is used to mention some special characteristic of
the weld like type of electrode, some type of reference or specification,
welding or cutting process, procedures or other supplementary information. If
additional information is not needed, then the tail will be omitted. The
representation of tai with additional information is shown in Fig. 18.
Meaning
Meaning
Meaning
Bevel edge
Symbol
Meaning
The symbol indicates that one edge of a joint is to be beveled. The arrow
should points towards the member to be beveled. Hence, the arrow should
show a definite break so that the member to be beveled can be clearly
identified.
Fig. 22 Bevel edge
There are some supplementary weld symbols used in addition to the basic
weld symbols which are indicated in section 8.1. These include Finish and
contour symbols, All round weld, and Field or site weld which are shown in
Table 4.
Table 4 Supplementary weld symbols
The all round symbol (Table 4) indicates that the welds are continued all
around the joint. A typical all round weld and its representation is shown in Fig.
24.
The symbol used for field or site weld is a flag (Table 4). It points toward the
tail of welding symbol. If no symbol is present, it indicates the weld as shop
weld. A typical representation of field or site weld is shown in Fig. 25.
This occurs when the surfaces have not been cleaned properly, and are coated
with oxides, mill scales, and other foreign materials. Insufficient current
supplied by the welding equipment or high rate (speed) of welding can also
lead to incomplete fusion.
2. Incomplete penetration
Incomplete penetration can be due to improper grooves or unsuitable groove
design made for the welding process. This can also be a result of the usage of
large size electrodes, insufficient welding current, and excessive welding rates.
3. Porosity
Improper welding techniques will result in air voids being entrapped in the
molten metal during the cooling process resulting in porosity. Some of the
common reasons are excessively high current, longer arc length, poor welding
procedures, and careless use of back-strips.
4. Undercutting
In case of groove welds, grooves are made at the edges of the base metal to
accommodate the welding process. If the grooves are not completely filled
with weld, it results in undercutting of the base metal (i.e., the thickness of the
base metal will be less in that region). This may lead to places of stress
concentrations during the process of force transfer and can be dangerous.
Hence to eliminate undercutting, it is mandatory to have face reinforcement
(welding over the surface of base metal) in all groove joints.
5. Inclusion of slag
Slag is formed from the coating of the electrodes which are used to shield the
molten material from oxides during the cooling process. The slag is generally
removed after the weld cools by either wire brushing or by gentle tapping. If
the process of cooling is done rapidly, the slag gets trapped inside the weld.
This weakens the weld strength and is not desirable. When the required weld
thickness is large, it is made by several passes. In such cases, the slag should be
removed after the completion of each pass. If this is not done properly, it also
results in the inclusion of slag.
5. Cracks
Cracks are the most serious weld defects since it reduces the weld strength
directly. This results mostly due the relative differences in internal stresses in
the weld. The direction of the weld can be either along the longitudinal or
transverse direction of weld. They can be seen on the surface or present inside
the weld. They can be avoided by using good quality electrodes, adopting
uniform rate of welding and ensuring slower cooling periods.
6. Lamellar tearing
This is the formation of cracks beneath the weld. The high temperature during
welding causes large relative strains in the base metal due to localised stresses
and results in tearing of the base metal. This can be prevented by choosing
proper welding techniques and adopting uniform rate of welding.
a) Transverse shrinkage
b) Longitudinal shrinkage
c) Angular change
d) Rotational distortion
f) Buckling distortion
IS 816 : 1969 Code of practice for the use of metal arc welding for general
construction in mild steel
IS 9595 : 1996 Metal arc welding of carbon and carbon manganese steels
>2a
a = weld
size
>2a
Fig. 27 Details of end returns of weld
In lap joints the minimum lap should be not less than four times the thickness
of the thinner part joined. Single end fillet should be used only when lapped
parts are restrained from openings. When end of an element is connected only
by parallel longitudinal fillet welds, the length of the weld along either edge
should be not less than the transverse spacing between longitudinal welds.
10.5.2.3 The size of fillet welds shall not be less than 3 mm. The minimum size
of the first run or of a single run fillet weld shall be as given in Table 5, to avoid
the risk of cracking in the absence of preheating.
Table 5 Minimum weld size
Thickness of Thicker Part
Over, mm
Minimum Size
mm
--
10
10
20
20
32
32
50
10.5.2.4 The size of butt weld shall be specified by the effective throat
thickness.
The effective throat thickness te (Fig. 31) of a fillet weld shall not be less than 3
mm and shall generally not exceed 0.7t, and 1.0t under special circumstances,
where t is the thickness of the thinner plate of elements being welded.
10.5.3.2 For the purpose of stress calculation in fillet welds joining faces
inclined to each other, the effective throat thickness shall be taken as K times
the fillet size, where K is a constant, depending upon the angle between fusion
faces, as given in Table 6.
Constant K
600 900
0.70
910 1000
0.65
0.60
107 113
0.55
1140 1200
0.50
101 106
times the weld size, but it should not be less than four times the size of the
weld.
10.5.4.2 The effective length of butt weld shall be taken as the length of the
continuous full size weld, but it should not be less than four times the size of
the weld.
10.5.5.2 The clear spacing between the effective lengths of intermittent fillet
weld shall not exceed 12 and 16 times the thickness of thinner plate joined, for
compression and tension joint respectively, and in no case be more than 200
mm.
10.5.5.3 The intermittent butt weld shall have an effective length of not less
than four times the weld size and the longitudinal space between the effective
length of welds shall not more than 16 times the thickness of the thinner part
joined, except as otherwise specified. The intermittent welds shall not be used
in positions subject to dynamic, repetitive and alternate stresses.
where
fu = smaller of the ultimate stress of the weld and the parent metal
mw = 1.25 = partial safety factor
10.5.7.1.2 Butt welds Butt welds shall be treated as parent metal with a
thickness equal to the throat thickness, and the stresses shall not exceed those
permitted in the parent metal.
10.5.7.2 Site Welds The design strength in shear and tension for site welds
made during erection of structural members shall be calculated as per 10.5.7.1
but using a partial safety factor mw of 1.5.
10.5.8.1 Where a fillet weld is applied to the square edge of a part, the
specified size of the weld should generally be at least 1.5 mm less than the
edge thickness in order to avoid washing down of the exposed arris (Fig. 33).
1.5 mm
a
10.5.8.2 Where the fillet weld is applied to the rounded toe of a rolled section,
the specified size of the weld should generally not exceed 3/4 of the thickness
of the section at the toe (Fig. 34).
1/4 t
t
10.5.8.3 Where the size specified for a fillet weld is such that the parent metal
will not project beyond the weld, no melting of the outer cover or covers shall
be allowed to occur to such an extent as to reduce the throat thickness (Fig.
35)
Fig. 35 Full size fillet weld applied to the edge of a plate or section
10.5.8.4
members subject to dynamic loading, the fillet weld shall be of full size, that is,
with its leg length equal to the thickness of the plate or section, with the
limitations enumerated in 10.5.8.3.
10.5.8.5 End fillet weld normal to the direction of force shall be of unequal
size with a throat thickness not less than 0.5t where t is the thickness of the
part as shown in Fig. 36. The difference in thickness of the welds shall be
negotiated at a uniform slope.
P
tt lw
where
fa = calculated normal stress due to axial force in N/mm2
q = shear stress in N/mm2
P = force transmitted (axial force N or the shear force Q)
tt = effective throat thickness of weld in mm
lw= effective length of weld in mm
f e = f a + 3q 2
<
fu
3 mw
where
fa = normal stresses, compression or tension, due to axial force or bending
moment (10.5.9), and
q = shear stress due to shear force or tension (10.5.9)
10.5.10.2.2 Combined bearing, bending and shear - Where bearing stress, fbr is
combined with bending (tensile or compressive) and shear stresses under the
fe =
f b + f br + f b f br + 3q 2
where
fe = equivalent stress
fb = calculated stress due to bending in N/mm2
fbr =calculated stress due to bearing in N/mm2, and
q = shear stress in N/mm2
a) Pure couple at
centroid
Fig. 37 Location of Pure couple and In-plane shear with respect to centroid
B rack et
10.11.2.2 Alternative Analysis The design force per unit length in a fillet
weld/bolt group may alternatively be determined by considering the fillet weld
group as an extension of the connected member and distributing the design
forces among the welds of the fillet weld group so as to satisfy equilibrium
between the fillet weld group and the elements of the connected member.
Single V is an incomplete penetration welding. Hence the throat thickness is 5/8th of the
thickness of thinner plate.
te = 5/8 t = (5/8) x 8 = 5 mm
Effective length of weld Lw = width of plate = 200 mm.
Strength of weld, P = L x tt x fy / mw
Cl. 6.2
Effective throat thickness is 8mm which is the thickness of the thinner plate.
te = 8 mm
Strength of weld, P = L x tt x fy / mw
Cl. 6.2
2. Find the size and length of the fillet weld for the lap joint to transmit a factored load of 120 kN as
shown in Fig. 41. Assume site welds, Fe 410 grade steel and E41 electrode. Assume width of
plate as 75 mm and thickness as 8 mm.
Solution
Minimum size of weld for 8 mm thick section = 3 mm (Table 5, Cl. 10.5.2.3)
Maximum size of weld = 8 1.5 = 6.5 mm (Cl. 10.5.8.1)
Choose the size of weld, a = 6 mm
Effective throat thickness = te = 0.70 a = 4.2 mm
Strength of 6 mm weld / mm length = 4.2 x 410 / (3 x 1.5)
Cl. 10.5.7.1.1
= 662.7 N/mm
Assuming only two longitudinal welds along the sides
Required length of weld = 120 x 103 /662.7 = 181 mm
Length to be provided on each side = 181/2 = 90.5 mm
> 75 mm (width of plate)
Hence, provide 90.5 mm weld on each side with an end return of 2x 6 = 12 mm
Overall length of the weld provided = 2 x (90.5 + 2 x 6) = 205 mm
3. Two plates are connected to form a fillet joint using 6mm weld. Welding is provided on three
sides with a lap of 300mm as shown in Fig.42. Find the strength of the joint. If welding is
provided on all four sides (Fig. 44), determine the strength of the joint. Also find the percentage
increase in the strength. Use Fe 410 steel with yield stress 250 MPa. Assume shop welding.
Solution
Case (i) : Welding on three sides (Fig. 42)
Lw = 300 + 200 + 300 = 800 mm
Design strength of fillet weld joint, P1 = 0.7a fwd Lw / mw
Cl. 10.5.7.1.1
Cl. 10.5.7.1.1
4. Determine the size of the weld required for the bracket connection shown in Fig. 44. Assume
shop welding.
Solution
Eccentricity, e
= 100 + 75 = 175 mm
5. Determine the load, V that can be applied on the bracket shown in Fig. 45. Use 6 mm field fillet
welding.
Solution
Shear stress due to direct force, q = V / (2 x 200 x 1)
= 0.0025 V N/mm2
Moment on weld, M = 200 V N-mm
Considering unit thickness of weld at root,
Moment of inertia Iz = 2 (1x 2003) / 12 = 1.33 x 106 mm4
Hence,
fa = 0.015 V
V = 42487 N = 42.5 kN
13.0 References
1. Subramanian, N., Design of steel structures, Oxford university press, New
Delhi, 2009.
2. Bhavikatti, S.S., Design of steel structures, I.K.I. Publishing house, New
Delhi, 2010.
3. IS 800 2007, Code of practice for General construction in steel, Bureau of
Indian Standards, New Delhi, 2007.