When manufacturing cylindrical or conical structures from metal plates, residual stresses originate from both welding and bending. The sequence in which these fabrication steps are carried out is essential as it can radically change the final distribution of residual stresses. To study this effect, detailed welding and bending simulations have been performed on both axial and circumferential X-welds of a 316L stainless steel cylindrical vessel. Bending after welding is shown to reduce residual stresses markedly more than bending before welding and the benefit on critical crack size is illustrated by a Fracture Mechanics analysis.

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