Experimental study on the shear performance of quasi-NPR steel bolted rock joints

Quasi-NPR(negative Poisson’s ratio)steel is a new type of super bolt material with high strength,high ductility,and a micro-negative Poisson’s effect.This material overcomes the contrasting characteristics of the high strength and high ductility of steel and it has significant energy-absorbing characteristics,which is of high value in deep rock and soil support engineering.However,research on the shear resistance of quasi-NPR steel has not been carried out.To study the shear performance of quasi-NPR steel bolted rock joints,indoor shear tests of bolted rock joints under different normal stress conditions were carried out.Q235 steel and#45 steel,two representative ordinary bolt steels,were set up as a control group for comparative tests to compare and analyze the shear strength,deformation and instability mode,shear energy absorption characteristics,and bolting contribution of different types of bolts.The results show that the jointed rock masses without bolt reinforcement undergo brittle failure under shear load,while the bolted jointed rock masses show obvious ductile failure characteristics.The shear deformation ca-pacity of quasi-NPR steel is more than 3.5 times that of Q235 steel and#45 steel.No fracture occurs in the quasi-NPR steel during large shear deformation and it can provide stable shear resistance.However,the other two types of control bolts become fractured under the same conditions.Quasi-NPR steel has significant energy-absorbing characteristics under shear load and has obvious advantages in terms of absorbing the energy released by shear deformation of jointed rock masses as compared with ordinary steel.In particular,the shear force plays a major role in resisting the shear deformation of Q235 steel and#45 steel,therefore,fracture failure occurs under small bolt deformation.However,the axial force of quasi-NPR steel can be fully exerted when resisting joint shear deformation;the steel itself does not break when large shear deformation occurs,and the supporting effect of the jointed rock mass is effectively guaranteed.

Numerical Optimization by Finite Element Method of Stainless Steel/Glass-Epoxy Composite Bolted Joint under Tension and Compression

The aim of this study was to optimize the geometry and the design of metallic/composite single bolted joints subjected to tension-compression loading. For this purpose, it was necessary to evaluate the stress state in each component of the bolted join. The multi-material assembly was based on the principle of double lap bolted joint. It was composed of a symmetrical balanced woven glass-epoxy composite material plate fastened to two stainless sheets using a stainless pre-stressed bolt. In order to optimize the design and the geometry of the assembly, ten configurations were proposed and studied: a classical simple bolted joint, two joints with an insert (a BigHeadR insert and a stair one) embedded in the composite, two “waved” solutions, three symmetrical configurations composed of a succession of metallic and composites layers, without a sleeve, with one and with two sleeves, and two non-symmetrical constituted of metallic and composites layers associated with a stair-insert (one with a sleeve and one without). A tridimensional Finite Element Method (FEM) was used to model each configuration mentioned above. The FE models taked into account the different materials, the effects of contact between the different sheets of the assembly and the pre-stress in the bolt. The stress state was analyzed in the composite part. The concept of stress concentration factor was used in order to evaluate the stress increase in the highly stressed regions and to compare the ten configurations studied. For this purpose, three stress concentration factors were defined: one for a monotonic loading in tension, another for a monotonic loading in compression, and the third for a tension-compression cyclic loading. The results of the FEM computations showed that the use of alternative metallic and composite layers associated with two sleeves gived low values of stress concentration factors, smaller than 1.4. In this case, there was no contact between the bolt and the composite part and the most stressed region was not the vicinity of the hole but the end of the longest layers of the metallic inserts.

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy study on the corrosion of the weld zone of 3Cr steel welded joints in CO_2 environments

The welded joints of 3Cr pipeline steel were fabricated with commercial welding wire using the gas tungsten arc welding （GTAW） technique. Potentiodynamic polarization curves, linear polarization resistance （LPR）, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS）, scan- ning electron microscopy （SEM）, and energy-dispersive spectrometry （EDS） were used to investigate the corrosion resistance and the growth of a corrosion film on the weld zone （WZ）. The changes in electrochemical characteristics of the film were obtained through fitting of the EIS data. The results showed that the average corrosion rate of the WZ in CO2 environments first increased, then fluctuated, and finally de- creased gradually. The formation of the film on the WZ was divided into three stages： dynamic adsorption, incomplete-coverage layer forma- tion, and integral layer formation.

Surface grain refinement mechanism of SMA490BW steel cross joints by ultrasonic impact treatment

Ultrasonic impact treatment(UIT) is a postweld technique for improving the fatigue strength of welded joints. This technique makes use of ultrasonic vibration to impact and plastically deform a weld toe and can achieve surface grain refinement of the weld toe,which is considered as the main reason for the improvement of fatigue strength. In this paper,the microstructure of the surface of a treated weld toe was observed by metallographic microscopy and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). The results show that UIT could produce severe plastic deformation on the surface layer of the weld toe and the maximum depth of plastic deformation extended to approximately 260 μm beneath the treated surface. Repeated processing could exacerbate the plastic deformation on the surface layer,resulting in finer grains. We can conclude that the surface grain refinement mechanism of SMA490 BW welded joints is related to the high density of dislocation tangles and dislocation walls.

Effects of laser heat treatment on the fracture morphologies of X80 pipeline steel welded joints by stress corrosion

The surfaces of X80 pipeline steel welded joints were processed with a CO2 laser, and the effects of laser heat treatment （LHT） on H2S stress corrosion in the National Association of Corrosion Engineers （NACE） solution were analyzed by a slow strain rate test. The fracture morphologies and chemical components of corrosive products before and after LHT were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy, respectively, and the mechanism of LHT on stress corrosion cracking was discussed. Results showed that the fracture for welded joints was brittle in its original state, while it was transformed to a ductile fracture after LHT. The tendencies of hydrogen-induced corrosion were reduced, and the stress corrosion sensitivity index decreased from 35.2% to 25.3%, indicating that the stress corrosion resistance of X80 pipeline steel welded joints has been improved by LHT.

Multiaxial Fatigue Analyses of Stress Joints for Deepwater Steel Catenary Risers

In the present study, the dynamic and fatigue characteristics of two types of stress joints are investigated under ocean environmental condition. Connected with the riser and the platform, stress joint at the vessel hang-off position should be one of the main critical design challenges for a steel catenary riser （SCR） in deepwater. When the riser is under a high pressure and deepwater working condition, the stress state for the joint is more complex, and the fatigue damage is easy to occur at this position. Stress joint discussed in this paper includes two types： Tapered Stress Joint （TSJ） and Sleeved Stress Joint （SSJ）, and multiaxial fatigue analysis results are given for comparison. Global dynamic analysis for an SCR is performed first, and then the local boundary conditions obtained from the previous analysis are applied to the stress joint FE model for the later dynamic and multiaxial fatigue analysis. Results indicate that the stress level is far lower than the yield limit of material and the damage induced by fatigue needs more attention. Besides, the damage character of the two types of stress joints differs： for TSJ, the place where the stress joint connects with the riser is easy to occur fatigue damage; for SSJ, the most probable position is at the place where the end of the inner sleeve pipe contacts with the riser body. Compared with SSJ, TSJ shows a higher stress level but better fatigue performance, and it will have a higher material cost. In consideration of various factors, designers should choose the most suitable type and also geometric parameters.

Seismic performance of steel reinforced ultra high-strength concrete composite frame joints

To investigate the seismic performance of a composite frame comprised of steel reinforced ultra high-strength concrete （SRUHSC） columns and steel reinforced concrete （SRC） beams, six interior frame joint specimens were designed and tested under low cyclically lateral load. The effects of the axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio were studied on the characteristics of the frame joint performance including crack pattern, failure mode, ductility, energy dissipation capacity, strength degradation and rigidity degradation. It was found that all joint specimens behaved in a ductile manner with flexural-shear failure in the joint core region while plastic hinges appeared at the beam ends. The ductility and energy absorption capacity of joints increased as the axial load ratio decreased and the volumetric stirIup ratio increased. The displacement ductility coefficient and equivalent damping coefficient of the joints fell between the corresponding coefficients of the steel reinforced concrete （SRC） frame joint and RC frame joint. The axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio have less influence on the strength degradation and more influence on the stiffness degradation. The stiffness of the joint degrades more significantly for a low volumetric stirrup ratio and high axial load ratio. The characteristics obtained from the SRUHSC composite frame joint specimens with better seismic performance may be a useful reference in future engineering applications.

Experimental Study on Seismic Performance of SRUHSC⁃RC Frame Exterior Joints with Cyclic Loads

SRUHSC⁃RC(Steel Reinforced Ultra High Strength Concrete⁃Reinforced Concrete)structures are used extensively in super high⁃rise buildings.However,it has obvious brittleness.Wrapping structural steel inside is a good way to alleviate the brittleness problem.The purpose of this study is to investigate seismic behavior of SRUHSC⁃RC exterior joints on the basis of experimental results of eleven specimens under the reversed cyclic loading.The relationship among the force⁃displacement curve,ductility,energy dissipation property,strength degradation,stiffness degradation,the strains of steel bone and stirrup at the core area of the joint were analyzed based on the test results.It is shown that axial compression ratio and stirrup volumetric ratio have significant effects on the shear behavior of SRUHSC⁃RC frame exterior joints.The general requirement on the axial⁃load level and the amount of confinement stirrup for the joints in the design is suggested.

Investigation on Electron Beam Welded Copper to AISI 316 Stainless Steel Joints

Joints of copper and stainless steels are used in a er ospace applications. Production of these joints by fusion welding faces many dif ficulties. This may be due to the differences in their physical, metallurgical a nd mechanical properties. Electron Beam Welding (EBW) process has been found to be especially well suited in this area. Selection of the appropriate welding par ameters needs thorough investigations. These parameters include: preheat tempera ture (℃), welding current (I w), focusing current (I F), welding spee d (V), height between the gun and workpiece surface (H), scan width (S w) and shift distance (S). The present work aims firstly, setting the pr oper welding conditions to get sound joint between commercially pure copper (C10 200) and AISI 316 stainless steel plates 8 mm thickness. Secondly, investigate t he effect of Electron Beam (EB) shift, single-sided and double-sided welds on the mechanical, metallurgical and chemical properties of the weld bead. Due to t he high difference in thermal conductivity between copper and stainless steel, E lectron Beam (EB) was shifted towards copper with different values. These values were ranged from 0.3 to 0.9 mm in welding without preheating of copper plate an d from 0.1 to 0.4 mm with preheating. Number of joints were welded using variabl e EBW parameters in view to obtain the sound weld bead. These parameters are as follows: gradual reduction I w=51 to 49 mA, I F=845 mA, V=8 mm/sec , H=130 mm, S w=500 μm and S=0.4 mm. The investigation has shown t hat, the copper (C10200) plate must be preheated to get sound welded joint with AISI 316 stainless steel using the EBW process. The tensile fracture in all wel ded samples occurred in copper plate away from the weld bead. This reflects that the weld bead tensile strength is greater than the copper strength. The EB shif t has slight effect on hardness distribution through weld bead. The hardness val ue (H v) reduces in gradual manner from stainless steel hardness to copper one. The EB shift distance has no significant effect on the impact toughness.

Flexural Capacity Formula of Diaphragm-Through Joints of Concrete-Filled Square Steel Tubular Columns

Finite element analysis and parametric studies were performed to investigate the flexural capacity of the panel zone of diaphragm-through joints between concretefilled square steel tubular columns and H-shaped steel beams.Through the comparisons of failure modes,load–displacement curves,and bearing capacity,it was found that the flexural capacity of the panel zone of diaphragmthrough joints was determined by the tensile action and influence of the web of H-shaped steel beams,and the axial load should be taken into account.The steel tube and the diaphragm were the major parts of the joint that resisted the bending moment.The contribution of in-filled concrete had little influence on the flexural capacity of the panel zone of the joint and could be neglected.According to the results of these numerical studies,a formula that considered the influence of the web of H-shaped steel beams and the axial load was developed based on the yield lines in the diaphragm and the steel tube.The results of the proposed formula were in good agreement with the numerical data of this investigation.

Numerical Investigation on Fracture Initiation Properties of Interface Crack in Dissimilar Steel Welded Joints

Fracture toughness property is of significant importance when evaluating structural safety.The current research of fracture toughness mainly focused on crack in homogeneous material and experimental results.When the crack is located in a welded joint with high-gradient microstructure and mechanical property distribution,it becomes difficult to evaluate the fracture toughness behavior since the stress distribution may be affected by various factors.In recent years,numerical method has become an ideal approach to reveal the essence and mechanism of fracture toughness behavior.This study focuses on the crack initiation behavior and driving force at different interfaces in dissimilar steel welded joints.The stress and strain fields around the crack tip lying at the interfaces of ductile-ductile,ductile-brittle and brittle-brittle materials are analyzed by the numerical simulation.For the interface of ductile-ductile materials,the strain concentration on the softer material side is responsible for ductile fracture initiation.For the ductile-brittle interface,the shielding effect of the ductile material plays an important role in decreasing the fracture driving force on the brittle material side.In the case of brittle-brittle interface,a careful matching is required,because the strength mismatch decreases the fracture driving force in one side,whereas the driving force in another side is increased.The results are deemed to offer support for the safety assessment of welded structures.

Seismic Behaviour of Beam-Column Joints of Precast and Partial Steel Reinforced Concrete

A beam-column joint of precast and partial steel reinforced concrete( PPSRC) is proposed for precast reinforced concrete frames. The PPSRC consists of partial steel and reinforced concrete. The partial steel is located in the core joint region and the connections between concrete members. This paper presents an experimental study of a series of PPSRC specimens. These specimens are tested under low cyclic loading.Experimental results demonstrate that the bearing capacity of the PPSRC specimens is 3 times that of the ordinary reinforced concrete( RC) beam-column joints. The strength and stiffness degradation rates are slower compared with that of the RC beam-column joints. In addition,the strength of the core joint region and the connections is higher than other parts of the PPSRC specimens. Beam failure occurs firstly for the PPSRC specimens,followed by column failure and connections failure. The failure of the core joint region occurs finally.Test results show that the seismic performance of the PPSRC is better than that of the ordinary RC beam-column joints.

Experimental Study on the Bending Properties of Grouting Butt Joints Reinforced by Steel Plate Embedded in Bamboo Tube

The construction of grouting butt joints of bamboo tubes is simple and efficient.However,when the joint is bent,the low tensile strength of the mortar easily leads to cracking of the mortar prior to the failure of the bamboo tube.In this paper,a comparative test of the bending capacity was performed on grouting butt joints reinforced by nonperforated,fully perforated,and semiperforated steel plates embedded in bamboo tubes to obtain the loaddisplacement curves and ultimate bearing capacity of various specimens.The strengthening effect of CFRP pasted on bamboo tubes was also studied.The results show that the opening at the end of the steel plate is beneficial to resist the slip between the mortar and steel plate,while the complete section in the middle of the steel plate is conducive to making full use of the tensile strength of the steel plate.Therefore,it is best to insert the semiperforated steel plate with openings in the end and without openings in the middle into the mortar to enhance the bending properties of the grouting butt joint,which can make the failure mode of the joint change from brittle failure of mortar to ductile compression failure of bamboo tube.In addition,pasting CFRP sheets on the external wall of the bamboo tube helps to reduce the tensile stress of the mortar,while increasing the width of the steel plate can increase the bending moment of inertia of the mixture of the steel plate and mortar.These two complementary measures are very effective in delaying the cracking of the bamboo tube and improving the bending capacity of the joint.

Possibility of Inducing Compressive Residual Stresses in Welded Joints of SS400 Steels

Since the welded constructions produce easily stress corrosion cracking (SCC) or fatigue disruption in corrosive medium or under ripple load, two methods inducing compressive stress on structural surfaces by anti-welding-heating treatment (AWHT) and explosion treatment (ET) are presented. The results show that they are good ways to resisting SCC on the welded SS400 steel or other components.

Weld Joint Efficiency of the Kazakhstani Constructional Steel

In the Republic of Kazakhstan, the regulatory framework in construction based on Eurocodes has been in force since 2015. However, Kazakhstani produced steel has not been studied for compliance with the requirements of Eurocode 1993. This has resulted in limited use of Kazakhstani structural steel in construction. The feasibility of using structural steel in welded joints has been experimentally investigated. To verify the application of such joints in construction, including earthquake engineering, experimental studies of welded joints made of structural steel produced by Arcelor-Mittal in Temirtau have been carried out. In total, 7 types of structural steel of various thicknesses were selected. Five specimens have been used in each series of tests. The Brinell hardness values of the weld joint, yield strength of steel and tensile strength, relative rupture strain were determined. It was found that for all types of structural steel, the quality of weld joints complied with the requirements of Eurocode 1993—a sample rupture appeared along the plates (main body of the metal), not along the weld joints. It has been established that structural steel produced in the Republic of Kazakhstan fully complies with the requirements of Eurocode 1993. The studies on the dependence of Brinell hardness values of weld joint steel on the yield strength, tensile strength and relative rupture strain have been carried out. The correlation dependences between the values of yield strength of steel and tensile strength, relative rupture strain and BH Brinell hardness were studied. The results of work will allow for significantly increasing the use of Kazakhstani structural steel in seismic and conventional areas of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Improving the Fatigue Performance of the Welded Joints of Ultra-Fine Grain Steel by Ultrasonic Peening

Contrast tests were carried out to study the fatigue performance of the butt joints treated by ultrasonic peening, aiming at the improvement of ultrasonic peening treatment(UPT) on welded joints of a new material. The material is a new generation of fine grain and high purity SS400 steel that has the same ingredients as the traditional low carbon steel. The specimens are in two different states:welded and ultrasonic peening conditions. The corresponding fatigue testing data were analyzed according to the regulation of the statistical method for fatigue life of the welded joints established by International Institute of Welding(IIW). Welding residual stress was considered in two different ways: the constant stress ratio R=0.5 and the Ohta method. The nominal stress-number (σ-N)curves were corrected because of the different plate thickness compared to the standard and because there was no mismatch or angular deformation. The results indicated that: 1) Compared with the welded specimens, when the stress range was 200 MPa, the fatigue life of the SS400 steel specimens treated by ultrasonic peening is prolonged by over 58 times, and the fatigue strength FAT corresponding to 106 cycles is increased by about 66%; 2) As for the SS400 butt joint (single side welding double sides molding), after being treated by UPT, the nominal S-N curve (m=10) of FAT 100 MPa(R=0.5) should be used for fatigue design. The standard S-N curves of FAT 100 MPa(R=0.5, m=10) could be used for fatigue design of the SS400 steel butt joints treated by ultrasonic peening.

Interfacial microstructure evolution of 12Cr1MoV/TP347H dissimilar steel welded joints during aging

The interfacial microstructure evolution of 12Cr1MoV/TP347H dissimilar steel welded joints with a nickel-based filler metal during aging was studied in detail to elucidate the mechanism of premature failures of this kind of joints.The results showed that not only a band of granular Cr_(23)C_(6)carbides were formed along the fusion boundary in the ferritic steel during aging,but also a large number of granular or plate-like Cr_(23)C_(6)carbides,which have a cube-cube orientation relationship with the matrix,were also precipitated on the weld metal side of the fu-sion boundary,making this zone be etched more easily than the other zone and become a dark etched band.Stacking faults were found in some Cr_(23)C_(6)carbides.In the as-welded state,deformation twins were observed in the weld metal with a fully austenitic structure.The peak micro-hardness was shifted from the ferritic steel side to the weld metal side of the fusion boundary after aging and the peak value increased signific-antly.Based on the experimental results,a mechanism of premature failures of the joints was proposed.

Effects of laser heat treatment on salt spray corrosion of 1Cr5Mo heat resistant steel welding joints

The surface of 1Cr5 Mo heat-resistant steel welding joint was processed with CO2 laser, and the corrosion behaviors before and after laser heat treatment(LHT) were investigated in the salt spray corrosion environments. The microstructures, phases, residual stresses and retained austenite content of 1Cr5 Mo steel welding joint before and after LHT were analyzed with optical microscope and X-ray diffraction, respectively. The cracking morphologies and chemical compositions of corrosion products after salt spray corrosion were analyzed with field emission scanning electron microscopy(FESEM) and energy disperse spectroscopy(EDS), respectively, the polarization curves were measured on a PS-268 A type electrochemical workstation, and the mechanism of corrosion resistance by LHT was investigated as well. The results show that the passive film of original sample is destroyed owing to the corrosive media penetrating into the subsurface, resulting in the redox reaction. The content of residual austenite in the surface and the self-corrosion potential are increased by LHT, which is contributed to improving the capability of salt spray corrosion resistance.

Gas dynamic control of properties of welded joints from high strength alloyed steels

Gas dynamic control in welding with consumable electrode in conditions of two-jet gas shielding and its impact on the processes in the welding area and properties of the welded joints from high strength alloyed steel 30HGSA is considered in the paper. The results of a comparative experimental study of controlling the properties of welded joints by changing the gas dynamics of the active shielding gas are given. The impact force of a shielding gas jet on the drop of the electrode metal is 12 times higher in conditions of two-jet gas shielding than in those of single jet shielding. It is found that gas dynamics of the active shielding gas jet determines the formation of the welded joints, their chemical properties and the properties of the welded joints from high strength alloyed steels. The consumable electrode welding method with two-jet gas shielding provides controlled dynamics in the welding area and allows controlling the transfer of the electrode metal, chemical composition of the weld, stabilizing the welding process, it ensures higher mechanical properties of the welded joints.

Microstructure and properties of SAF2507 superduplex stainless steel welded joints

SAF2507 plates （ 12 mm thickness ） were welded using shield metal arc welding （SMAW） process with E2594 electrode. The microstructure, o-phase, and impact fraetograph of the welded joints were analyzed using optical microscope and scanning electron mieroseope. The results show that the fusion zone consists of ferrite, chromium nitride, and secondary aastenite precipitation when welding is performed at low heat input （0. 5 kJ/mm）. However, the increase in heat input causes precipitation of brittle o＂ phase at the y/c~ interface in weld metal and heat-affected zone, as well as a brittle fracture along the grain boundary. Heat input in the range of O. 5 kJ/mm to 1.5 kJ/mm is suitable for joining SAF2507 plates.