Residual Stress Simulation for Integrity Assessment (RESIA)

Residual stresses play a crucial role in manufacturing, maintenance and service safety of welded components, in particular in components and structures where joining/welding of thick sections are involved, and where the fracture resistance are of crucial importance for the safety and integrity of the system. On the basis of existing knowledge and expertise on modelling of thermally induced deformation and residual stress formation in welding processes (so far mainly applied for aluminium structures), stee l microstructure modelling, and fracture mechanics, this project aims at developing an advanced residual stress prediction and integrity assessment modelling methodology for welded steel components. The project team consists of four complementary groups o f skilled and experienced scientists that join their efforts in order to realize a new modelling platform on which next generation industrially applicable modelling tools will be based. The most central R&D challenges in the project are: • to develop con stitutive equations tailored for residual stress prediction and finite element implementation capturing the main micro-structural effects going on in high strength steels • to establish a reliable method by which the parameters in these constitutive equa tions can be experimentally identified and determined • to develop an improved structural integrity assessment for welded steel components and structures, which are to be based on quantitative modelling of the involved thermally induced deformation/stres ses and associated changes in the materials microstructure and mechanical properties.