Fatigue crack propagation behavior of fillet welded joint subjected to bending

Abstract

Fatigue tests have been carried out on three types of non load-carrying fillet welded joint subjected plate bending, such as single-side fillet welded joint, T-shaped fillet welded joint and cruciform fillet welded joint. Fatigue failure mode of each type of welded joint has been demonstrated. The test results show that fatigue crack forms flat semi-ellipse during crack propagation and propagates to about 80% of plate thickness before failure. The fatigue strength and life recorded under bending test have been assessed and compared with the previous test results. Moreover, the fatigue strength for bending is evaluated by using one-millimeter stress method.