Computational-experimental model of fatigue growth of the welded joint crack

Abstract

Abstract Welded joints are commonly used in various industries, and in many cases, they contain an initial crack, which could lead to huge damage. For this reason, it is essential to have a model to predict fatigue evolution of the welded joint crack. This paper is dedicated to the method of constructing the computational-experimental model of the fatigue growth of the welded joint crack. The described method is based on a numerical calculation using finite element modelling and Paris-Erdogan equation of the crack growth. Besides, the fatigue experiments of the test sample with a welded joint were conducted and the model of crack growth was constructed with the use of the obtained experimental data.