Static test on failure process of tubular T-joints with initial fatigue crack

Abstract

Fatigue crack initiated in welded tubular joints due to cyclic loading may produce harmful effect on the integrity of the tubular structures. To study such effect, both fatigue and static tests on nine circular tubular T-joint specimens made of carbon steel materials were carried out. The specimens were subjected to tensile loading in both fatigue and static tests. The load-displacement relation, the crack propagation and the failure mode of the specimens are all analyzed. The deterioration of the static strength of the cracked T-joints is also investigated and evaluated through an area reduction factor. Experimental results indicate that the static strength of a tubular T-joint with a surface crack seems to decrease slightly while a through crack has relatively remarkable effect on the reduction of the static strength. Additionally, experimental results also show that the toughness of the materials and the geometry of the specimens play an important role on the failure process of cracked tubular T-joints.