Static and fatigue performance of overlap welded thin plates

Abstract

Thin-plate overlap welding is an important connection method for the automobile chassis structure. The fatigue performance of the chassis structural components depends mostly on the welded joints. A detailed understanding of its performance plays an important guiding role in the design of the chassis structure. This study was aimed at investigating the performance of thin-plate overlap welded structures using the static tensile test and fatigue test. The general rule of the influence of base metal thickness on the static strength and fatigue performance of welded joints was also summarized. The failure mode of the welded joint and the crack propagation mechanism were discussed in terms of fracture morphology. The findings might lay a foundation for the anti-fatigue design and lightweight design of the chassis welded structures.