Analytical and Graphical Aids for the Fatigue Design of Weldments

An empirical model has been developed which predicts the fatigue strength of weldments and considers the four important factors which affect the fatigue performance of weldments: geometry - the severity of the discontinuity; material properties - the fatigue properties of the material at the root of the discontinuity; the residual stress - the sign and magnitude of the residual stresses at the discontinuity; and loading type - axial and tending. Analytical and graphical aids for estimating the fatigue strength of weldments are given which may be useful to designers.