CVEN 446
Structural Steel Design
Module 15
Design of Welds
April 20, 2015
Weldment Strength
The design strength of a welded joint or weldment is
controlled by either the strength of the weld metal:
FWAW
or the base material:
FBM ABM
Both strengths are a function of the weld type and
the orientation of the weld. AISC-14 Table J2.5
defines the resistance factor for the base metal and
weld metal for various types welds and loading
conditions.
Weld Design Strength
AISC-14 Table J2.5
defines the resistance
factors and nominal
strengths for the base metal
and weld metal for various
types welds and loading
conditions.
The orientation of the
applied stress with respect
to the longitudinal weld
axis determines whether
the weld is subject to
tension, compression, or
shear.
Weld Design Strength
The continuation of Table
J2.5 provides the design
parameters for fillet welds
as well as plug and slot
welds.
Note that fillet welds are
designed only for shear.
Weld Strength
The weld area, whose definition differs for the different weld
types is given as the effective throat times the weld length or:
Aw = te Lw
where
te = effective throat of the weld
= shortest distance from the root of the joint to the face of
the weld
and
Lw = weld length
Matching Weld Metal
Matching weld metal means that the electrode strength (both
yield and tensile strength) is similar to the strength of the base
metal.
Weld Terminology
Root - the innermost portion of the weld or the origin of the
weld. The first pass of a multi-pass weld begins in the root
of the weld.
Face - is the outer most portion of the weld. The final passes
of a multi-pass weld form the weld face.
Weld Face
Weld Root
Complete Penetration Groove Weld
Fillet Weld Design Strength
The effective area is defined as the length of the weld times
the effective thickness which is equal to the shortest distance
between the root and weld face:
Theorectical
Weld Throat
Theorectical
Weld Face
Weld Root
b
a
a
a ab
Equal Legs: t e 0.707a Unequal Legs: t e
2 a b2
2
Fillet Weld Design Strength
Failure of a fillet weld is assumed to always occur by shear
on the throat. This failure occurs regardless of the
orientation of the longitudinal axis of the weld with respect to
the applied load.
Fillet Weld Design Strength
When the SAW process is used in conjunction with fillet welds,
the AISC-LRFD specifications allow a slightly greater effective
throat.
This is because the SAW welding process involves greater heat
input resulting in a deeper penetration of the weld metal at the
weld root. However, increased penetration only occurs during
the first (or root) pass. Consequently, the effective throat is
given as:
te = a for a 3/8"
and
te = 0.707 a + 0.11for a > 3/8"
Design of Fillet Welds
For design purposes, it is often convenient to express the design
strength of a fillet weld per inch of length:
kw = Fwte
For a given factored design load, the required weld length can than
be determined by:
Pu Pu
Lreq
k w 0.75(0.60) FEXX 0.707a
where Pu is the factored design load.
Maximum Fillet Weld Size
In general, there is no absolute maximum fillet weld
size. However, for large fillet welds (greater than
1/2"), a large amount of heat is put into the
connection.
This can lead to distortion and weld cracking if
precautions are not taken, such as preheating the base
metal in the vicinity of the weld.
Preheat allows for more even cooling and a reduction
in the formation of residual or restraint stresses.
Maximum Fillet Weld Size
Another consideration for the maximum weld size is the fact that
only so much weld metal can be deposited during a single pass of
the electrode.
For manual welding (SMAW and SAW), the maximum size of a
fillet weld that can be deposited during a single pass is 5/16".
A cost factor for welds is the number of passes that must be made
to build up the required weld size, a. After each pass, the welding
process must be stopped and the completed pass cleaned.
For automatic SAW, the maximum weld size is 3/8".
Maximum Fillet Weld Size
When welding along edges of connected parts, as is the case
with fillet welded lap joints, the edge of the plate must not be
consumed in the weld so that the correct weld size can be
determined.
1/16"
t a
amax = t for t < 1/4"
amax = t - 1/16" for t $1/4"
Minimum Fillet Weld Size
The minimum weld size is based on the quenching
effect of thick plates on small welds.
If the weld metal cools too quickly due to the large flow
of heat into the thick base plate, the weld may become
brittle (low fracture toughness).
This weld size limitation is not based on strength
considerations. Smaller weld size can be used with
preheating.
Minimum Fillet Weld Size
Based on the thickness of the thicker part being joined,
the minimum fillet weld size, amin, is given in AISC-14
Table J2.4:
Minimum Fillet Weld Length
A minimum fillet weld length is specified as:
Lmin = 4a
This restriction is to ensure that the weld obtains the proper weld
profile and throat. Fillet welds generally taper at their ends,
reducing the effective thickness of the weld to zero.
Minimum Fillet Weld Length
When only longitudinal welds are used for the connection of
plates and bars, their length may not be less than the distance
between them.
Note the limitations for the reduction factor, U, for fillet welded
connections
Design of C-J-P Groove Welds
The design of complete-joint-penetration (C-J-P) groove
welds is relatively simple since the effective area of the
weld, Aw, is equal to the full cross sectional area of the
base metal.
For C-J-P groove welds subject to tension (as in a butt
splice), the strength of the weld metal need only match
the strength of the base metal strength. The strength of
the connection is controlled by gross section yielding of
the base plate. No explicit design of the weld is required.
If plates of different areas are joined, the design strength
of the splice is controlled by the plate with the smaller
cross sectional area.
Design of P-J-P Groove Welds
Similar to a C-J-P groove weld, the effective area of a
partial-joint-penetration groove weld is equal to the
effective throat times the length of the weld.
However, the effective throat of the partial penetration
weld is less than either of the plate thicknesses being
jointed.
D D
45° < 60E 60E
te = D - 1/8" te = D
Design of P-J-P Groove Welds Subject to Tension
Partial-joint-penetration groove welds subject to tension
normal to the effective area must be designed for both
weld metal and base material strength. The weld metal
strength is taken as
FWAW = 0.80 (0.60) FEXX Aw
and the base material strength as
FBM ABM = 0.9 Fy Aw
which assumes only the area of the plate adjacent to the
weld yields.
Design of P-J-P Groove Welds Subject to Compression
When a partial penetration groove weld is subject to
compression normal to the effective weld area or either
tension or compression parallel to the axis of the weld,
only the strength of the base material needs to be
checked:
FBM ABM = 0.9 Fy Aw
Design of P-J-P Groove Welds Subject to Shear
For partial penetration groove welds subject to shear, both weld
metal and base material strength must be checked as:
FWAW = 0.75 (0.60) FEXX Aw
and
Rn = 0.75 Fu Anv
where Anv is the net area subject to shear which is the effective area
of the weld and
Rn = 0.9 (0.60) Fy Agt
where Agt is the gross area of the plate subject to shear.
Weld Procedure Qualification
In order for fabricators to weld structural joints, they must
qualify their welding procedures.
This involves welding up a C-J-P groove weld test plate
and destructively testing it for strength and quality.
The parameters of the welding procedure include:
! Electrode strength and type
! Base metal strength
! Weld Process (SAW for example)
! Heat Input (current, travel speed, etc.)
Prequalified Welded Joints
The American Welding Society (AWS) Document D1.1provides
provisions for welded joints that are prequalified.
This means that the fabricator can use these joints with a
prequalified procedure and not have to do any additional testing
to insure weld joint strength and soundness.
Limits on joint geometries, such as root openings, angles, and
clearance are given and are based on a long history of successful
use and performance of these joints.
Use of prequalified joints still requires the application of sound
engineering judgement.
Prequalified Welded Joints
AISC-14 provides a
series of tables that
replicates the AWS
prequalifed welded joints
(pp. 8-36 to 8-64).
