CTOD estimates of surface cracked wide plates in bending—III. The wide plate with overmatched welded joint

Abstract

Applied crack tip opening displacement (CTOD) of the surface cracked wide plate having an overmatched welded joint in bending was estimated by using the Level-3 CTOD methods. Two crack locations, in the weld metal and along the fusion line, were considered. Three dimensional elastic-plastic finite element analyses were also carried out and the estimated value of applied CTOD was compared with the finite element results. The correlations between the local strain in the weld metal and the gross section straining in the parent plate, and their influences on the CTOD estimates by the Level-3 CTOD method, were discussed.