Residual stress relief of welded joints in pipework using ice plugs

Abstract

Summary This paper describes a residual stress relief method for butt welded joints in pipework made using ice plugs. Named by the authors the Twin Ice Plug (TIP) method, it is basically as follows. Two ice plugs are formed inside the pipework and isolate a section including a welded joint. The internal pressure of the isolated section increases as the ice plugs grow, imparting tensile strain to the pipe wall of the section. When the pressure reaches the target level, it is released, and the residual stress decreases. The paper describes details of this process, measurement of the internal pressure outside the pipework, control of the internal pressure, and the effect of residual stress relief. The internal pressure of the isolated section is estimated by the strain measured by strain‐gauges affixed to the outside surface of the section. Section pressure control is exercised by control of refrigerant (liquid nitrogen) supply and pipe wall heating. The maximum internal pressure attained by this method is 4...