M. Tech. (Engineering, Industrial, Dept. Industrial Engineering and Operations management, Faculty of Engineering and Technology) Vaal University of Technology| / This research work focused on welded titanium alloy (grade 5) pipes, to ascertain if the weld joints can withstand the immediate and accumulated effects of fluid flow in (industrial) applications. Modeling of welded pipes was done using Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 5.0. The cylindrical pipe models were of 206,375mm inner and 219,075mm outer diameter respectively; made of Ti6Al4V material. Three models were made: one of unwelded pipes, another with a seam weldment and the third with a circumferential weld. The welds were modeled as autogenous gas tungsten arc welding and the models included calculated heat affected zones. The pipes were modeled with a flowing fluid under pressure exerted evenly on all sides of the pipe walls (circumference). The boundary conditions were such that the pipe ends were supported as if the pipe were continuous. Stress and strain analysis on the pipe models were performed by the Finite Element Method using Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 5.0. The results of the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) indicated that stress vary very negligibly along the pipe. A comparison of the FEA modeling results to the analytically determined value of the stress showed very low or zero percentage deviation.

Devido à crescente utilização de componentes eletrônicos nos veículos automotores, as exigências mecânicas nesses itens estão cada vez maiores. Nos primeiros veículos a eletrônica embarcada era inexistente, em meados do século passado, passou a ser pequena e utilizada somente para funções de funcionamento e pouco importantes para a segurança, e caso ocorresse alguma falha não havia risco de vida. Nos automóveis desenvolvidos nas últimas décadas, os componentes eletrônicos estão sendo utilizados em aplicações como controle de injeção de combustível, sistemas de tração e freios, direções elétricas e acionamento de air bags, que estão diretamente relacionadas à segurança. Os requisitos de qualidade desses itens elevaram-se consideravelmente exigindo operação em temperaturas extremas e grandes acelerações. O processo de união mais eficiente para satisfazer aos requisitos mecânicos ainda é o de soldagem, mas há dificuldade em realizar as uniões sem danificar o componente ou prejudicar as propriedades elétricas em peças finas, da ordem de décimos de milímetros na espessura, com diferentes camadas de revestimento. Este trabalho analisa o processo de soldagem em capacitores, utilizando uma fonte de soldagem por resistência do tipo inversora, estudando os parâmetros de operação necessários para realizar a união de uma chapa de aço com 0,6 mm de espessura recoberta com três camadas de diferentes materiais: cobre, níquel e superfície externa de ouro. Este componente deve ser soldado a uma peça de alumínio. A influência da corrente de soldagem, pressão dos eletrodos, tempo de aplicação da corrente e tempo de retenção sobre a qualidade da união, avaliada pela resistência à tração alcançada e capacidade de realizar a união sem dano aos componentes ou ocorrência de falhas na superfície, foi analisada utilizando projeto de experimentos (DOE). Os resultados experimentais comprovam a eficiência do processo para utilização neste tipo de componentes garantindo a qualidade da junta e do componente para o desempenho de sua função. / Due to the increasing use of electronics in vehicles, the mechanical demands on these items are increasing. In the first vehicles onboard electronics was nonexistent in the middle of the last century, came to be used only for small, operating functions and unimportant to safety, and when there was a failure there was life threatening. In cars developed in recent decades, the electronic components are being used in applications such as fuel injection control, drive systems and brakes, directions and drive electric air bags, which are directly related to safety. The quality requirements of these items rose considerably demanding operation at extreme temperatures and high accelerations. The joining process more efficient to meet the mechanical requirements is still welding, but there is difficulty in performing the joints without damaging the component or interfere with the electrical properties of thin pieces, exhibiting tenths of a millimeter in thickness of different coating layers. This study examines the welding process in capacitors, using a inverter resistance welding power source, studying the operation parameters required to perform the joining of a steel plate 0.6 mm thick coated with three layers of different materials: a copper layer, a nickel layer and an external gold layer. This component must be welded to an aluminum plate. The influence of welding current, electrode pressure, time of current application and retention time on the quality of the union, as assessed by tensile resistance and ability to perform achieved union without damage to components or occurrence of any failures, was analyzed using design of experiments (DOE). The experimental results demonstrate the efficiency of the welding process in such components assuring the quality to perform its function.

Devido à crescente utilização de componentes eletrônicos nos veículos automotores, as exigências mecânicas nesses itens estão cada vez maiores. Nos primeiros veículos a eletrônica embarcada era inexistente, em meados do século passado, passou a ser pequena e utilizada somente para funções de funcionamento e pouco importantes para a segurança, e caso ocorresse alguma falha não havia risco de vida. Nos automóveis desenvolvidos nas últimas décadas, os componentes eletrônicos estão sendo utilizados em aplicações como controle de injeção de combustível, sistemas de tração e freios, direções elétricas e acionamento de air bags, que estão diretamente relacionadas à segurança. Os requisitos de qualidade desses itens elevaram-se consideravelmente exigindo operação em temperaturas extremas e grandes acelerações. O processo de união mais eficiente para satisfazer aos requisitos mecânicos ainda é o de soldagem, mas há dificuldade em realizar as uniões sem danificar o componente ou prejudicar as propriedades elétricas em peças finas, da ordem de décimos de milímetros na espessura, com diferentes camadas de revestimento. Este trabalho analisa o processo de soldagem em capacitores, utilizando uma fonte de soldagem por resistência do tipo inversora, estudando os parâmetros de operação necessários para realizar a união de uma chapa de aço com 0,6 mm de espessura recoberta com três camadas de diferentes materiais: cobre, níquel e superfície externa de ouro. Este componente deve ser soldado a uma peça de alumínio. A influência da corrente de soldagem, pressão dos eletrodos, tempo de aplicação da corrente e tempo de retenção sobre a qualidade da união, avaliada pela resistência à tração alcançada e capacidade de realizar a união sem dano aos componentes ou ocorrência de falhas na superfície, foi analisada utilizando projeto de experimentos (DOE). Os resultados experimentais comprovam a eficiência do processo para utilização neste tipo de componentes garantindo a qualidade da junta e do componente para o desempenho de sua função. / Due to the increasing use of electronics in vehicles, the mechanical demands on these items are increasing. In the first vehicles onboard electronics was nonexistent in the middle of the last century, came to be used only for small, operating functions and unimportant to safety, and when there was a failure there was life threatening. In cars developed in recent decades, the electronic components are being used in applications such as fuel injection control, drive systems and brakes, directions and drive electric air bags, which are directly related to safety. The quality requirements of these items rose considerably demanding operation at extreme temperatures and high accelerations. The joining process more efficient to meet the mechanical requirements is still welding, but there is difficulty in performing the joints without damaging the component or interfere with the electrical properties of thin pieces, exhibiting tenths of a millimeter in thickness of different coating layers. This study examines the welding process in capacitors, using a inverter resistance welding power source, studying the operation parameters required to perform the joining of a steel plate 0.6 mm thick coated with three layers of different materials: a copper layer, a nickel layer and an external gold layer. This component must be welded to an aluminum plate. The influence of welding current, electrode pressure, time of current application and retention time on the quality of the union, as assessed by tensile resistance and ability to perform achieved union without damage to components or occurrence of any failures, was analyzed using design of experiments (DOE). The experimental results demonstrate the efficiency of the welding process in such components assuring the quality to perform its function.

Devido à crescente utilização de componentes eletrônicos nos veículos automotores, as exigências mecânicas nesses itens estão cada vez maiores. Nos primeiros veículos a eletrônica embarcada era inexistente, em meados do século passado, passou a ser pequena e utilizada somente para funções de funcionamento e pouco importantes para a segurança, e caso ocorresse alguma falha não havia risco de vida. Nos automóveis desenvolvidos nas últimas décadas, os componentes eletrônicos estão sendo utilizados em aplicações como controle de injeção de combustível, sistemas de tração e freios, direções elétricas e acionamento de air bags, que estão diretamente relacionadas à segurança. Os requisitos de qualidade desses itens elevaram-se consideravelmente exigindo operação em temperaturas extremas e grandes acelerações. O processo de união mais eficiente para satisfazer aos requisitos mecânicos ainda é o de soldagem, mas há dificuldade em realizar as uniões sem danificar o componente ou prejudicar as propriedades elétricas em peças finas, da ordem de décimos de milímetros na espessura, com diferentes camadas de revestimento. Este trabalho analisa o processo de soldagem em capacitores, utilizando uma fonte de soldagem por resistência do tipo inversora, estudando os parâmetros de operação necessários para realizar a união de uma chapa de aço com 0,6 mm de espessura recoberta com três camadas de diferentes materiais: cobre, níquel e superfície externa de ouro. Este componente deve ser soldado a uma peça de alumínio. A influência da corrente de soldagem, pressão dos eletrodos, tempo de aplicação da corrente e tempo de retenção sobre a qualidade da união, avaliada pela resistência à tração alcançada e capacidade de realizar a união sem dano aos componentes ou ocorrência de falhas na superfície, foi analisada utilizando projeto de experimentos (DOE). Os resultados experimentais comprovam a eficiência do processo para utilização neste tipo de componentes garantindo a qualidade da junta e do componente para o desempenho de sua função. / Due to the increasing use of electronics in vehicles, the mechanical demands on these items are increasing. In the first vehicles onboard electronics was nonexistent in the middle of the last century, came to be used only for small, operating functions and unimportant to safety, and when there was a failure there was life threatening. In cars developed in recent decades, the electronic components are being used in applications such as fuel injection control, drive systems and brakes, directions and drive electric air bags, which are directly related to safety. The quality requirements of these items rose considerably demanding operation at extreme temperatures and high accelerations. The joining process more efficient to meet the mechanical requirements is still welding, but there is difficulty in performing the joints without damaging the component or interfere with the electrical properties of thin pieces, exhibiting tenths of a millimeter in thickness of different coating layers. This study examines the welding process in capacitors, using a inverter resistance welding power source, studying the operation parameters required to perform the joining of a steel plate 0.6 mm thick coated with three layers of different materials: a copper layer, a nickel layer and an external gold layer. This component must be welded to an aluminum plate. The influence of welding current, electrode pressure, time of current application and retention time on the quality of the union, as assessed by tensile resistance and ability to perform achieved union without damage to components or occurrence of any failures, was analyzed using design of experiments (DOE). The experimental results demonstrate the efficiency of the welding process in such components assuring the quality to perform its function.

No description available.

Fracture Mechanics process of Welded Joint is a very vast research area and has many possibilities for solution and prediction. Although the fatigue strength (FAT) and stress intensity factor (SIF) solutions are reported in several handbooks and recommendations, these values are available only for a small number of specimens, components, loading and welding geometries. The available solutions are not always adequate for particular engineering applications. Moreover, the reliable solutions of SIF are still difficult to find in spite of several SIF handbooks have been published regarding the nominal applied SIF. The effect of residual stresses is still the most challenge in fatigue life estimation. The reason is that the stress distributions and SIF modified by the residual stresses have to be estimated. The stress distribution is governed by many parameters such as the materials type, joint geometry and welding processes. In this work, the linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), which used crack tip SIFs for cases involving the effect of weld geometry, is used to calculate the crack growth life for some different notch cases. The variety of crack configurations and the complexity of stress fields occurring in engineering components require more versatile tools for calculating SIFs than available in handbook’s solutions that were obtained for a range of specific geometries and load combinations. Therefore, the finite element method (FEM) has been used to calculate SIFs of cracks subjected to stress fields. LEFM is encoded in the FEM software, FRANC, which stands for fracture analysis code. The SIFs due to residual stress are calculated in this work using the weight function method. The fatigue strength (FAT) of load-carrying and non-load carrying welded joints with lack of penetration (LOP) and toe crack, respectively, are determined using the LEFM. In some studied cases, the geometry, material properties and loading conditions of the joints are identical to those of specimens for which experimental results of fatigue life and SIF were available in literature so that the FEM model could be validated. For a given welded material and set of test conditions, the crack growth behavior is described by the relationship between cyclic crack growth rate, da/dN, and range of the stress intensity factor ( K) , i.e., by Paris’ law. Numerical integration of the Paris’ equation is carried out by a FORTRAN computer routine. The obtained results can be used for calculating FAT values. The computed SIFs along with the Paris’ law are used to predict the crack propagation. The typical crack lengths for each joint geometry are determined using the built language program by backward calculations. To incorporate the effect of residual stresses, the fatigue crack growth equations which are sensitive to stress ratio R are recommended to be used. The Forman, Newman and de Konig (FNK) solution is considered to be the most suitable one for the present purpose. In spite of the recent considerable progress in fracture mechanics theories and applications, there seems to be no, at least to the author’s knowledge, systematic study of the effect of welding geometries and residual stresses upon fatigue crack propagation based completely on an analytical approach where the SIF due to external applied load (Kapp) is calculated using FEM. In contrast, the SIF due to residual stresses (Kres) is calculated using the analytical weight function method and residual stress distribution. To assess the influence of the residual stresses on the failure of a weldment, their distribution must be known. Although residual stresses in welded structures and components have long been known to have an effect on the components fatigue performance, access to reliable, spatially accurate residual stress field data are limited. This work constitutes a systematic research program regarding the concept for the safety analysis of welded components with fracture mechanics methods, to clarify the effect of welding residual stresses upon fatigue crack propagation. / Die Bewertung einer Schweißnaht ist ein großes Forschungsgebiet und hat viele Möglichkeiten für Lösungskonzepte und Vorhersagen. Obwohl für die Schwingfestigkeit und die Spannungsintensitätsfaktor (SIF)-Lösungen in verschiedenen Handbüchern Empfehlungen ausgewiesen sind, sind diese Werte nur für eine geringe Anzahl von Proben, Komponenten, Belastungsfälle und Schweißgeometrien verfügbar. Die vorhandenen Lösungsansätze sind nicht immer für spezielle technische Anwendungen geeignet. Darüber hinaus sind zuverlässige bewährte Lösungen von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren immer noch schwierig zu finden, obwohl verschiedene SIF-Handbücher mit Hinweis auf den anliegenden nominalen SIF veröffentlicht sind. Der Einfluss von Eigenspannungen ist eine der größten Herausforderungen bei der Lebensdauerabschätzung. Aufgrund der Tatsache, dass infolge der Eigenspannungen sowohl die Spannungsverteilung als auch der SIF verändert werden, muss eine Abschätzung erfolgen. Die Spannungsverteilung wird durch viele Parameter beeinflusst, wie zum Beispiel den Werkstoff, die Nahtgeometrie und den Schweißprozess. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde für die Berechnung des Ermüdungsrisswachstums unter verschiedenen Kerbfällen das Konzept der linear-elastischen Bruchmechanik (LEBM) verwendet, welches K-Lösungen für die Rissspitze bei unterschiedlichen Fällen der Schweißgeometrie berücksichtigt. Aufgrund der Komplexität der Risskonfigurationen und der Spannungsfelder in praxisrelevanten Komponenten werden weitere Hilfsmittel zur Berechnung von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren benötigt, welche die herkömmlichen Lösungen in Handbüchern erweitern. Deshalb wurde die Finite Elemente Methode (FEM) zur Berechnung von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren an Rissen verwendet. Die LEBM wird in der FEMSoftware FRANC berücksichtigt. Die aus Eigenspannungen resultierenden Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren wurden mit Hilfe der Gewichtsfunktionsmethode berechnet. Die Ermüdungslebensdauer (Schwingfestigkeit) von tragenden und nichttragenden Schweißnähten mit ungenügender Durchschweißung beziehungsweise Kerbriss wurden mit Hilfe der LEBM durch Integration der Zyklischen Risswachstumskurve ermittelt. Zur Validierung des FEM-Modells konnte in einigen untersuchten Fällen auf experimentelle Ergebnisse zur Lebensdauer und zum SIF aus der Literatur zurückgegriffen werden, wo identische Geometrien, Materialeigenschaften und Belastungsverhältnisse der Naht vorlagen. Unter Vorgabe des Werkstoffes und der Prüfbedingungen wurde das Risswachstumsverhalten mit dem Zusammenhang von Risswachstumsgeschwindigkeit da/dN und zyklischem Spannungsintensitätsfaktor K mit dem Paris-Gesetz beschrieben. Eine numerische Integration der Paris-Gleichung erfolgte über ein FORTRAN-Programm. Die damit erhaltenen Ergebnisse sind als Ermüdungslebensdauer (Schwingfestigkeit) verwendbar. Die berechneten SIF‘en entlang der Paris-Geraden werden zur Vorhersage des Risswachstums benutzt. Die typischen Risslängen für jede Nahtgeometrie wurden mit Hilfe des eigens integrierten Programmes ermittelt. Zur Berücksichtigung des Einflusses von Eigenspannungen wird empfohlen, Risswachstumsgleichungen zu nutzen, die empfindlich auf das Spannungsverhältnis R reagieren. Für die vorliegende Zielsetzung gilt der Lösungsansatz nach Forman, Newman und de Konig (FNK) als der am besten geeignete. Trotz der jüngsten, beträchtlichen Fortschritte in den bruchmechanischen Theorien und Anwendungen sind systematische Studien zum Einfluss der Schweißgeometrie und der Eigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsrisswachstum, in welchen der SIF aufgrund extern anliegender Beanspruchungen (Kapp) mit der FEM berechnet wurde, in der Literatur kaum vorhanden. Im Gegensatz dazu wurde der SIF infolge von Eigenspannungen (Kres) mit Hilfe der analytischen Gewichtsfunktionsmethode und der Eigenspannungsverteilung berechnet. Um den Einfluss von Eigenspannungen auf das Versagen einer Schweißverbindung abzuschätzen, muss deren Verteilung bekannt sein. Obwohl die Wirkung von Eigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsverhalten in geschweißten Strukturen und Komponenten schon lange bekannt ist, ist der Zugriff auf verlässliche und präzise Daten von räumlichen Eigenspannungsfeldern begrenzt. Bezüglich einer konzeptionellen Sicherheitsanalyse von geschweißten Komponenten mit bruchmechanischen Methoden begründet diese Arbeit einen systematischen Ansatz, um den Einfluss von Schweißeigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsrisswachstum zu verdeutlichen.

Fracture Mechanics process of Welded Joint is a very vast research area and has many possibilities for solution and prediction. Although the fatigue strength (FAT) and stress intensity factor (SIF) solutions are reported in several handbooks and recommendations, these values are available only for a small number of specimens, components, loading and welding geometries. The available solutions are not always adequate for particular engineering applications. Moreover, the reliable solutions of SIF are still difficult to find in spite of several SIF handbooks have been published regarding the nominal applied SIF. The effect of residual stresses is still the most challenge in fatigue life estimation. The reason is that the stress distributions and SIF modified by the residual stresses have to be estimated. The stress distribution is governed by many parameters such as the materials type, joint geometry and welding processes. In this work, the linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), which used crack tip SIFs for cases involving the effect of weld geometry, is used to calculate the crack growth life for some different notch cases. The variety of crack configurations and the complexity of stress fields occurring in engineering components require more versatile tools for calculating SIFs than available in handbook’s solutions that were obtained for a range of specific geometries and load combinations. Therefore, the finite element method (FEM) has been used to calculate SIFs of cracks subjected to stress fields. LEFM is encoded in the FEM software, FRANC, which stands for fracture analysis code. The SIFs due to residual stress are calculated in this work using the weight function method. The fatigue strength (FAT) of load-carrying and non-load carrying welded joints with lack of penetration (LOP) and toe crack, respectively, are determined using the LEFM. In some studied cases, the geometry, material properties and loading conditions of the joints are identical to those of specimens for which experimental results of fatigue life and SIF were available in literature so that the FEM model could be validated. For a given welded material and set of test conditions, the crack growth behavior is described by the relationship between cyclic crack growth rate, da/dN, and range of the stress intensity factor ( K) , i.e., by Paris’ law. Numerical integration of the Paris’ equation is carried out by a FORTRAN computer routine. The obtained results can be used for calculating FAT values. The computed SIFs along with the Paris’ law are used to predict the crack propagation. The typical crack lengths for each joint geometry are determined using the built language program by backward calculations. To incorporate the effect of residual stresses, the fatigue crack growth equations which are sensitive to stress ratio R are recommended to be used. The Forman, Newman and de Konig (FNK) solution is considered to be the most suitable one for the present purpose. In spite of the recent considerable progress in fracture mechanics theories and applications, there seems to be no, at least to the author’s knowledge, systematic study of the effect of welding geometries and residual stresses upon fatigue crack propagation based completely on an analytical approach where the SIF due to external applied load (Kapp) is calculated using FEM. In contrast, the SIF due to residual stresses (Kres) is calculated using the analytical weight function method and residual stress distribution. To assess the influence of the residual stresses on the failure of a weldment, their distribution must be known. Although residual stresses in welded structures and components have long been known to have an effect on the components fatigue performance, access to reliable, spatially accurate residual stress field data are limited. This work constitutes a systematic research program regarding the concept for the safety analysis of welded components with fracture mechanics methods, to clarify the effect of welding residual stresses upon fatigue crack propagation. / Die Bewertung einer Schweißnaht ist ein großes Forschungsgebiet und hat viele Möglichkeiten für Lösungskonzepte und Vorhersagen. Obwohl für die Schwingfestigkeit und die Spannungsintensitätsfaktor (SIF)-Lösungen in verschiedenen Handbüchern Empfehlungen ausgewiesen sind, sind diese Werte nur für eine geringe Anzahl von Proben, Komponenten, Belastungsfälle und Schweißgeometrien verfügbar. Die vorhandenen Lösungsansätze sind nicht immer für spezielle technische Anwendungen geeignet. Darüber hinaus sind zuverlässige bewährte Lösungen von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren immer noch schwierig zu finden, obwohl verschiedene SIF-Handbücher mit Hinweis auf den anliegenden nominalen SIF veröffentlicht sind. Der Einfluss von Eigenspannungen ist eine der größten Herausforderungen bei der Lebensdauerabschätzung. Aufgrund der Tatsache, dass infolge der Eigenspannungen sowohl die Spannungsverteilung als auch der SIF verändert werden, muss eine Abschätzung erfolgen. Die Spannungsverteilung wird durch viele Parameter beeinflusst, wie zum Beispiel den Werkstoff, die Nahtgeometrie und den Schweißprozess. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde für die Berechnung des Ermüdungsrisswachstums unter verschiedenen Kerbfällen das Konzept der linear-elastischen Bruchmechanik (LEBM) verwendet, welches K-Lösungen für die Rissspitze bei unterschiedlichen Fällen der Schweißgeometrie berücksichtigt. Aufgrund der Komplexität der Risskonfigurationen und der Spannungsfelder in praxisrelevanten Komponenten werden weitere Hilfsmittel zur Berechnung von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren benötigt, welche die herkömmlichen Lösungen in Handbüchern erweitern. Deshalb wurde die Finite Elemente Methode (FEM) zur Berechnung von Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren an Rissen verwendet. Die LEBM wird in der FEMSoftware FRANC berücksichtigt. Die aus Eigenspannungen resultierenden Spannungsintensitätsfaktoren wurden mit Hilfe der Gewichtsfunktionsmethode berechnet. Die Ermüdungslebensdauer (Schwingfestigkeit) von tragenden und nichttragenden Schweißnähten mit ungenügender Durchschweißung beziehungsweise Kerbriss wurden mit Hilfe der LEBM durch Integration der Zyklischen Risswachstumskurve ermittelt. Zur Validierung des FEM-Modells konnte in einigen untersuchten Fällen auf experimentelle Ergebnisse zur Lebensdauer und zum SIF aus der Literatur zurückgegriffen werden, wo identische Geometrien, Materialeigenschaften und Belastungsverhältnisse der Naht vorlagen. Unter Vorgabe des Werkstoffes und der Prüfbedingungen wurde das Risswachstumsverhalten mit dem Zusammenhang von Risswachstumsgeschwindigkeit da/dN und zyklischem Spannungsintensitätsfaktor K mit dem Paris-Gesetz beschrieben. Eine numerische Integration der Paris-Gleichung erfolgte über ein FORTRAN-Programm. Die damit erhaltenen Ergebnisse sind als Ermüdungslebensdauer (Schwingfestigkeit) verwendbar. Die berechneten SIF‘en entlang der Paris-Geraden werden zur Vorhersage des Risswachstums benutzt. Die typischen Risslängen für jede Nahtgeometrie wurden mit Hilfe des eigens integrierten Programmes ermittelt. Zur Berücksichtigung des Einflusses von Eigenspannungen wird empfohlen, Risswachstumsgleichungen zu nutzen, die empfindlich auf das Spannungsverhältnis R reagieren. Für die vorliegende Zielsetzung gilt der Lösungsansatz nach Forman, Newman und de Konig (FNK) als der am besten geeignete. Trotz der jüngsten, beträchtlichen Fortschritte in den bruchmechanischen Theorien und Anwendungen sind systematische Studien zum Einfluss der Schweißgeometrie und der Eigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsrisswachstum, in welchen der SIF aufgrund extern anliegender Beanspruchungen (Kapp) mit der FEM berechnet wurde, in der Literatur kaum vorhanden. Im Gegensatz dazu wurde der SIF infolge von Eigenspannungen (Kres) mit Hilfe der analytischen Gewichtsfunktionsmethode und der Eigenspannungsverteilung berechnet. Um den Einfluss von Eigenspannungen auf das Versagen einer Schweißverbindung abzuschätzen, muss deren Verteilung bekannt sein. Obwohl die Wirkung von Eigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsverhalten in geschweißten Strukturen und Komponenten schon lange bekannt ist, ist der Zugriff auf verlässliche und präzise Daten von räumlichen Eigenspannungsfeldern begrenzt. Bezüglich einer konzeptionellen Sicherheitsanalyse von geschweißten Komponenten mit bruchmechanischen Methoden begründet diese Arbeit einen systematischen Ansatz, um den Einfluss von Schweißeigenspannungen auf das Ermüdungsrisswachstum zu verdeutlichen.