UNIT 2

Welded Connections

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Welding is the process to unite various pieces of metal by creating a strong

metallurgical bond. Bond is achieved by heat or pressure or both. Welding is
the most efficient and direct way of connecting the metal pieces. Over many
decades, different welding techniques have been developed to join metals.

2.0 ADVANTAGES OF WELDING

There are many advantages of welding. Some of the important ones are as
follows.
1. Welded joints are aesthetical to look when compared to bolted joint Welded
joints are more rigid than bolted joints. Hence the material at various sections
are utilized more efficiently to resist stresses than that of less rigid
connections.
2. Welding does not require driving of holes. This reduces the cost incurred for
drilling. Hence, while computing the tensile strength of members, the net area
remains the same as the gross area.
3. Welded joints are well suited for liquid and gas containing structures.
4. Welding offers the possibilities of fabricating new sections like castellated
beams or creating complex joints in tubular truss.

3.0 DISADVANTAGES OF WELDING

Some of the disadvantages of welding are;

1. Welding requires greater skill than bolting and hence requires highly skilled
human resources.
2. Improper welding will distort the members and its alignment, and hence
requires more concentration.
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 3. The inspection of weld joints is more difficult and cumbersome than bolted
joints.
4. The process of welding may leave a higher residual stress in the material.
5. Welding equipment is more expensive and requires larger
initial investment.
6. Welding at site is more difficult and also requires constant power supply.

Types of Welds
1. Fillet welds
2. Groove welds just see the images u will understand
3. Slot welds, and
4. Plug welds

Of these welds, fillet is used to a large extent. Groove welds are used to a lesser
extent. However, slot and plug welds are rarely used.

Fillet Welds

Fig. 4 Fillet weld and its cross section

Fillet welds (Fig. 4A) are widely used due to their economy, ease of fabrication,
and adoptability at site. They are approximately triangular in cross section (Fig.
4). These welds require less precision in ‘fitting up’ two sections, due to the
overlapping of pieces. They are adopted in field as well as in shop welding. It
does not require any edge preparation and hence cheaper than groove welds.
Fillet welds are assumed to fail in shear. They can be present on one side

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(single) or on both sides (double) of a member as shown in Table1 and Fig. 5.

Table 1 Single and double fillet welds

SINGLE DOUBLE

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 FILLET

Fig. 5 Idealised and actual fillet weld

GROOVE WELDS

In this type of weld, grooves are generally made in the base metal before welding
and hence are called as groove weld. They are generally used to connect
structural members aligned in the same plane, such as in butt joints. The details
of a typical groove weld are shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 6 Details of typical groove weld

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Some of the commonly used groove welds in butt joints are shown in Fig. 7.

Fig. 7 Types of groove welds in butt joint

The square groove weld is used to connect plates up to 8 mm thickness. They are
also used in T-connections. The grooves have a slope of 30O and 60O with the

vertical, which depend on the thickness of the plate and the welding operation.
Partial penetration groove welds should not be used especially in fatigue
situations. Root opening or gap (see Fig. 6) is provided for the electrode to
access the base of the joint. The bevel angle (see Fig. 6) for typical root openings
is shown in Table 2.

Table 2 Root openings and bevel angle for groove weld

Root openings Bevel angle

3 mm 60O
6 mm 45O
9 mm 30O

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Weld metal is more expensive than the base metal. Hence, the choice between
single or double penetration depends on the availability of access on both sides,
the thickness of plate to be welded, the type of welding equipment available and
the position of weld.

When the plate thickness is more than 12 mm, the groove can be either double-
bevel or double-V type. When the plate thickness is more than 40 mm, the
groove can be either double - U or double - J type. For plates between 12 to 40
mm, the groove can be wither single-J and single-U type.

Groove welds are chosen in situations where the members need to transmit
the full load of the members they join. Hence, the strength of welds should be
more than or equal to the strength of the members they join. To ensure this,
full penetration groove welds are used more frequently.
SLOT AND PLUG WELDS

Slot and Plug welds (Fig. 8) are limitedly used to connect the steel members.
They are generally used to complement the fillet welds in situations where it is
not possible to provide sufficient length of fillet welds due to some constraints.
These welds fail in shear. The extent of penetration of these welds into the parent
metal is difficult to determine since it is difficult to inspect it. They are to be
avoided when the members are subjected to tensile forces. The calculation of
design strength of slot or plug welds are similar to that of fillet welds.

slot welding
a type of weld that joins two pieces of material together using an elongated hole

A plug weld
is a circular weld that joins two pieces of metal together through a small hole in one of the pieces.
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 Fig. 8 Typical slot and plug welds

WELDING POSITON

The welding positions can be of four types, which are:

• Flat - On the floor

• Overhead - Under the roof

• Vertical - On the wall

• Horizontal - On the wall

Figure 9 shows the different weld positions which exist during welding
operation.

a) Flat - On the floor b) Overhead - Under the roof

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 c) Vertical - On the wall d) Horizontal - On the wall
Fig. 9 Different weld positions
next concept

TYPES OF JOINTS

There are five basic types of common joints. They are

• Butt joint
• Lap joint
• T – joint
• Corner joint, and
• Edge joint
Each joint is suitable for a specific situation. The choice of the joint for a
particular job depends on the size and shape of the members to be welded at the
joint, the type of loading, area available for welding at the joint, and relative
cost of various types of welds.

Butt Joint

Fig. 10 Typical butt joint

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Butt joints are used to join the ends of flat plates of nearly equal thickness. A
typical butt joint is shown in Fig. 10. This joint avoids eccentric transfer of force
at the connection. It is preferable to have full penetration of welds at the butt
joints so that the joint is fully efficient. The size of connection is quite small and
hence is very economical. It is aesthetical to look at. Face reinforcement (weld
beyond the surface) is normally provided in Butt joints. This increases the
efficiency of the joint and ensures that depth of weld is at least equal to the
thickness of the plate.

Lap Joint

Fig. 11 Typical lap joint

Lap joints are easy to fit and join any two members. A typical lap joint is shown
in Fig. 11. It is the most commonly used joint. It does not require any special
preparation. Lap joints utilize fillet welds. They are well suited for shop and
field welding. Lap joints can accommodate minor errors in fabrication and
minor adjustment in length. The main advantage of lap joints is that it can join
plates with different thicknesses without any difficulty (Fig. 12). The main
disadvantage of this joint is that it introduces eccentric transfer of loads at the
connection.

Fig. 12 Lap joint with plates of different thickness

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 T – Joints

Fig. 13 Typical T - joint

A T-joint is usually used to fabricate built-up sections from simple members. A

typical T-shaped joint is shown in Fig. 13. Some of the commonly used built-up
shapes where T-joints are seen are I-sections, Plate girders, Hangers, Brackets,
and Stiffeners. The members in the built-up sections are joined by means of
fillet welds or groove welds.

Corner Joint

Corner joints are normally seen in built - up rectangular box sections. A typical
corner joint is shown in Fig. 14. They are generally seen at places which are
subjected to high torsional moments.

Fig. 14 Typical corner joint

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Corner joints are seen in the built - up rectangular box sections. A typical corner
joint is shown in Fig. 14. They are commonly seen at places which are subjected
to high torsional moments.

Edge Joint

Fig. 15 Typical corner joint

Edge joints are generally not used in structural applications. They are used to
keep two or more plates in position in a given plane. A typical edge joint is
shown in Fig. 15.

WELD SYMBOL AND WELDING SYMBOL

A weld symbol is a symbol which indicates the type of weld to be adopted to

joint the metal pieces. However, a welding symbol is a concise way of
describing all particular information related to the weld on drawings.

Weld Symbol

Weld symbol is unique for each specific type of weld. Hence the weld symbol
used is different for fillet, groove, plug, and slot welds.

Basic Weld Symbols

The basic weld symbols for the commonly used welds are shown in Table 3.

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 Table 3 Basic weld symbols

Weld symbol is only a part of the information regarding the welding operation to
be performed at a joint. As indicated in Table 3, whenever a weld symbol
consists of both vertical and inclined legs, the vertical is always drawn towards
the left side of the inclined line.
Welding Symbol

The welding symbol contains all the information necessary in connection with
a welding operation. It also includes the type of weld, where welds are to be
located, the type of joint to be used, and the size and amount of weld metal to be
deposited in the joint.

The symbols used are standardized by the various codes of practice so that the
entire information can be concisely represented in a drawing.
next concept
The basic welding symbol comprises of three parts, namely

 a reference line
 an arrow, and
 a tail

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Apart from this there are also supplementary welding symbols to represent

 Dimensions and other data

 Supplementary symbols
 Finish symbols
 Specification, process or other reference

Basic Welding Symbols

Fig. 16 Basic welding symbols

 Reference Line

The reference line is always drawn horizontally. It is mandatory and forms the
foundation of a welding symbol. All information with respect to the welding
process is to be indicated around this line.

 Arrow

The arrow line is present at one end of the reference line. It simply connects one
end of the reference line to the joint or area to be welded. The direction of the
arrow has no bearing on the significance of the reference line. Some of the
possible types of arrows used in the welding symbol are shown in Fig. 17.

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 Fig. 17 Different types of arrows used in welding symbol

 Tail

The tail is shown on the other end (away from arrow end) of the reference line. It
is not mandatory. The tail is used to specify a certain welding process. It is used
only when necessary. It is used to mention some special characteristic of the
weld like type of electrode, some type of reference or specification, welding or
cutting process, procedures or other supplementary information. If additional
information is not needed, then the tail will be omitted. The representation of tai
with additional information is shown in Fig. 18.

Fig. 18 Representation of tail with additional information

Interpretation of Symbols

 Fillet weld – on arrow side

Symbol Meaning

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 Fig. 19 Fillet weld, Arrow side

 Fillet weld – on other side

Symbol Meaning

Fig. 20 Fillet weld, Other

side

 Fillet weld – on both sides

Symbol Meaning

Fig. 21 Fillet weld, Both

sides

 Bevel edge

Symbol Meaning

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 The symbol indicates that one edge of a joint is to be beveled. The arrow
should points towards the member to be beveled. Hence, the arrow should
show a definite break so that the member to be beveled can be clearly
identified.
Fig. 22 Bevel edge

Standard Location of Elements of a Welding Symbol

The standard location of various elements of a welding symbol to be indicated

in drawing is summarized below.

Fig. 23 Standard location of welding symbols

Supplementary Symbols

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There are some supplementary weld symbols used in addition to the basic weld
symbols which are indicated in section 8.1. These include Finish and contour
symbols, All round weld, and Field or site weld which are shown in Table 4.

Table 4 Supplementary weld symbols

Finish and contour symbols

Finish symbol shows the method of finish to be carried out to a weld. Generally,
the finish of welding is either by chipping (C) or by machining (M) or by
grinding (G). Contour symbols are used with weld symbols to show how the face
of the weld is to be formed. The face of the weld will be either flat, convex or
concave as shown in Table 4.

All round weld

Fig. 24 Typical representation of all round weld

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 The all round symbol (Table 4) indicates that the welds are continued all around
the joint. A typical all round weld and its representation is shown in Fig. 24.

Field or site weld

Fig. 25 Representation of field or site weld

The symbol used for field or site weld is a flag (Table 4). It points toward the
tail of welding symbol. If no symbol is present, it indicates the weld as shop
weld. A typical representation of field or site weld is shown in Fig. 25.
next concept

WELD DEFECTS

As mentioned earlier, welding requires greater skill so that the defects can be
avoided. Some of the commonly observed defects in welds are;

1. Incomplete fusion
2. Incomplete penetration
3. Porosity
4. Undercutting
5. Inclusion of slag
6. Cracks
7. Lamellar tearing

1. Incomplete fusion

Incomplete fusion, also known as lack of fusion, is a weld defect that occurs when the weld metal
and base metal don't fully join. It can happen between adjacent weld beads or at the weld root

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This occurs when the surfaces have not been cleaned properly, and are coated
with oxides, mill scales, and other foreign materials. Insufficient current
supplied by the welding equipment or high rate (speed) of welding can also lead
to incomplete fusion.
Incomplete penetration in welding is a defect that occurs when the weld
metal doesn't fully fill the
2. Incomplete penetration groove between the metals being joined. This can happen when the
joint is not filled completely through its thickness.
Incomplete penetration can be due to improper grooves or unsuitable groove
design made for the welding process. This can also be a result of the usage of
large size electrodes, insufficient welding current, and excessive welding rates.

3. Porosity

Improper welding techniques will result in air voids being entrapped in the
molten metal during the cooling process resulting in porosity. Some of the
common reasons are excessively high current, longer arc length, poor welding
procedures, and careless use of back-strips.

4. Undercutting

In case of groove welds, grooves are made at the edges of the base metal to
accommodate the welding process. If the grooves are not completely filled with
weld, it results in undercutting of the base metal (i.e., the thickness of the base
metal will be less in that region). This may lead to places of stress concentrations
during the process of force transfer and can be dangerous. Hence to eliminate
undercutting, it is mandatory to have face reinforcement (welding over the
surface of base metal) in all groove joints.

5. Inclusion of slag

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Slag is formed from the coating of the electrodes which are used to shield the
molten material from oxides during the cooling process. The slag is generally
removed after the weld cools by either wire brushing or by gentle tapping. If
the process of cooling is done rapidly, the slag gets trapped inside the weld.
This weakens the weld strength and is not desirable. When the required weld
thickness is large, it is made by several passes. In such cases, the slag should be
removed after the completion of each pass. If this is not done properly, it also
results in the inclusion of slag.

5. Cracks

Cracks are the most serious weld defects since it reduces the weld strength
directly. This results mostly due the relative differences in internal stresses in the
weld. The direction of the weld can be either along the longitudinal or transverse
direction of weld. They can be seen on the surface or present inside the weld.
They can be avoided by using good quality electrodes, adopting uniform rate of
welding and ensuring slower cooling periods.

6. Lamellar tearing

This is the formation of cracks beneath the weld. The high temperature during
welding causes large relative strains in the base metal due to localised stresses
and results in tearing of the base metal. This can be prevented by choosing
proper welding techniques and adopting uniform rate of welding.

WELD DISTORTIONS

During welding operation, proper care must be ensured to avoid weld distortions.
Improper welding techniques results in weld distortions. Some of

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the commonly observed distortions during welding are Transverse shrinkage,
Longitudinal shrinkage, Angular change, Rotational distortion, Longitudinal
bending distortion and Bucking distortion. These distortions are shown in Fig.
26.

a) Transverse shrinkage b) Longitudinal shrinkage

c) Angular change d) Rotational distortion

e) Longitudinal bending distortion f) Buckling distortion

Fig. 26 Typical weld distortions

11.0 IMPORTANT CODAL PROVISIONS OF IS 800 : 2007 WITH RESPECT

TOWELDING

The welds and welding shall conform to the following codes:

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• IS 816 : 1969 – Code of practice for the use of metal arc welding for general
construction in mild steel

• IS 9595 : 1996 – Metal arc welding of carbon and carbon manganese steels

Cl. [Link] End Returns

>2a
a = weld
size

>2a
Fig. 27 Details of end returns of weld

Fillet welds terminating at the ends or sides of parts should be returned

continuously around the corners for distance of not less than twice the size of the
weld, unless it is impractical. This is particularly important on the tension end of
parts carrying bending loads.

Cl. [Link] Lap Joint

Fig. 28 Typical lap joint

In lap joints the minimum lap should be not less than four times the thickness
of the thinner part joined. Single end fillet should be used only when lapped parts
are restrained from openings. When end of an element is connected only

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by parallel longitudinal fillet welds, the length of the weld along either edge
should be not less than the transverse spacing between longitudinal welds.

Cl. 10.5.2 Size of weld

The size of normal fillets shall be taken as the minimum weld leg size. For
deep penetration welds, where the depth of penetration beyond the root run is 2.4
mm (minimum), the size of the fillet should be taken as the minimum leg size
plus 2.4 mm.

Fig. 29 Size of weld

For fillet welds made by semi-automatic or automatic processes, where the

depth of penetration is considerably in excess of 2.4 mm, the size shall be taken
considering actual depth of penetration subject to agreement between the
purchaser and the contractor.

The size of fillet welds shall not be less than 3 mm. The minimum size of the
first run or of a single run fillet weld shall be as given in Table 5, to avoid the
risk of cracking in the absence of preheating.

Table 5 Minimum weld size

-- 10 3
10 Thickness of Thicker Part
20 Minimum
5 Size
Over, mm Upto and including, mm mm

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 20 32 6
32 50 8 for first run
10 for min. size of weld

The size of butt weld shall be specified by the effective throat thickness.

Fig. 30 Typical butt joint

Cl. 10.5.3 Effective Throat Thickness, te

[Link]

Fig. 31 Effective throat thickness of fillet weld

The effective throat thickness te (Fig. 31) of a fillet weld shall not be less than 3
mm and shall generally not exceed 0.7t, and 1.0t under special circumstances,
where t is the thickness of the thinner plate of elements being welded.

For the purpose of stress calculation in fillet welds joining faces inclined to
each other, the effective throat thickness shall be taken as K times the fillet size,
where K is a constant, depending upon the angle between fusion faces, as given
in Table 6.

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 Table 6 Values of k for different angles between fusion faces

Angle between fusion faces, Constant K

The effective
600 – 900 0.70
throat 910 – 1000 0.65

1010 – 1060 0.60

1070 – 1130 0.55
1140 – 1200 0.50
thickness te (Fig. 32) of a complete penetration butt weld shall be taken as the

thickness of the thinner part joined, and that of an incomplete penetration butt
weld te (Fig. 32) shall be taken as the minimum thickness of the weld metal
common to the parts joined, excluding reinforcement.

Fig. 32 Effective throat thickness of butt weld

Cl. 10.5.4 Effective Length

The effective length of fillet weld shall be taken as only that length
which is of the specified size and required throat thickness. In practice the
actual length of weld is made of the effective length shown in drawing plus
two

25
times the weld size, but it should not be less than four times the size of the weld.

The effective length of butt weld shall be taken as the length of the continuous
full size weld, but it should not be less than four times the size of the weld.

Cl. 10.5.5 Intermittent Welds

The intermittent fillet welding shall have an effective length of not less than
four times the weld size, with a minimum of 40 mm, except as otherwise
specified.

The clear spacing between the effective lengths of intermittent fillet

weld shall not exceed 12 and 16 times the thickness of thinner plate joined,
for compression and tension joint respectively, and in no case be more than
200 mm.

The intermittent butt weld shall have an effective length of not less than four
times the weld size and the longitudinal space between the effective length of
welds shall not more than 16 times the thickness of the thinner part joined,
except as otherwise specified. The intermittent welds shall not be used in
positions subject to dynamic, repetitive and alternate stresses.

Cl. 10.5.7 Design Stresses in Welds

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 Shop welds

Fillet welds The design strength of a fillet weld, fwd, shall be based on its
throat area.

fwd = fwn / γmw in which fwn = fu / √ 3

where

fu = smaller of the ultimate stress of the weld and the parent metal

γmw = 1.25 = partial safety factor

Butt welds shall be treated as parent metal with a thickness equal to the throat
thickness, and the stresses shall not exceed those permitted in the parent metal.
Site Welds The design strength in shear and tension for site welds made during
erection of structural members shall be calculated as per [Link] but using a
partial safety factor γmw of 1.5.

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Where a fillet weld is applied to the square edge of a part, the specified size of the
weld should generally be at least 1.5 mm less than the edge thickness in order to
avoid washing down of the exposed arris (Fig. 33).

1.5 mm

Fig. 33 Fillet weld on square edge of plate

Where the fillet weld is applied to the rounded toe of a rolled section, the
specified size of the weld should generally not exceed 3/4 of the thickness of
the section at the toe (Fig. 34).

1/4 t
t

Fig. 34 Fillet weld on round toe of rolled section

Where the size specified for a fillet weld is such that the parent metal will not
project beyond the weld, no melting of the outer cover or covers shall be allowed
to occur to such an extent as to reduce the throat thickness (Fig. 35)

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 Fig. 35 Full size fillet weld applied to the edge of a plate or section

When fillet welds are applied to the edges of a plate or section in members
subject to dynamic loading, the fillet weld shall be of full size, that is, with its leg
length equal to the thickness of the plate or section, with the limitations
enumerated in [Link].

Fig. 36 End fillet weld normal to direction of force

End fillet weld normal to the direction of force shall be of unequal size with a
throat thickness not less than 0.5t where t is the thickness of the part as shown in
Fig. 36. The difference in thickness of the welds shall be negotiated at a uniform
slope.

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Cl. 10.5.9 Stresses Due to Individual forces

When subjected to either compressive or tensile or shear force alone, the stress
in the weld is given by:
P
fa or q = tt lw
where
fa = calculated normal stress due to axial force in N/mm2 q
= shear stress in N/mm2
P = force transmitted (axial force N or the shear force Q)
tt = effective throat thickness of weld in mm
lw= effective length of weld in mm

Cl. 10.5.10 Combination of stresses

Fillet Welds

When subjected to a combination of normal and shear stress, the equivalent

stress fe shall satisfy the following

fu
2
fe = fa 3q 2
3 mw
<

where
fa = normal stresses, compression or tension, due to axial force or bending moment
(10.5.9), and
q = shear stress due to shear force or tension (10.5.9)

[Link].2 Combined bearing, bending and shear - Where bearing stress, fbr is
combined with bending (tensile or compressive) and shear stresses under the

30
most unfavorable conditions of loading, the equivalent stress fe is obtained from
the following formulae:

2 2 2
fe = f b  f br  f b fbr  3q
where
fe = equivalent stress
fb = calculated stress due to bending in N/mm2
fbr =calculated stress due to bearing in N/mm2, and q
= shear stress in N/mm2

Cl. 10.8 Intersections

Members or components meeting at a joint shall be arranged to transfer the

design actions between the parts, wherever practicable, with their centroidal axes
meeting at a point. Where there is eccentricity at joints, the members and
components shall be designed for the design bending moments, which result due
to eccentricity.

The disposition of fillet welds to balance the design actions about the centroidal
axis or axes for end connections of single angle, double angle and similar type
members is not required for statically loaded members but is required for
members, connection components subject to fatigue loading.

Eccentricity between the centroidal axes of angle members and the gauge lines
for their bolted end connections may be neglected in statically loaded members,
but shall be considered in members and connection components subject to
fatigue loading.

Cl. 10.11 Analysis of a Bolt/Weld Group

Bolt/Weld Group Subject to In-plane Loading

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The design force in a bolt/weld in a bolt/weld group or design force per unit
length in a bolt/weld group subject to in-plane loading shall be determined in
accordance with the following:

a) The connection plates shall be considered to be rigid and to rotate relative to

each other about a point known as the instantaneous centre of rotation of the
group.

b) In the case of a group subject to a pure couple only (Fig. 37a), the
instantaneous centre of rotation coincides with the group centroid. In the case
of in-plane shear force applied at the group centroid (Fig. 37b), the
instantaneous centre of the rotation is at infinity and the design force is
uniformly distributed throughout the group. In all other cases (Fig. 37c),
either the results of independent analyses for a pure couple alone and for an
in-plane shear force applied at the group centroid shall be superposed, or a
recognized method of analysis shall be used.

c) The design force in a bolt or design force per unit length at any point in the
group shall be assumed to act at right angles to the radius from that point to
the instantaneous centre, and shall be taken as proportional to that radius.

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 a) Pure couple at In-plane shear In-plane shear force
centroid force at centroid away from centroid
b) c)
Fig. 37 Location of Pure couple and In-plane shear with respect to centroid

Bolt/Weld group Subject to Out-of-Plane Loading

The design force of a bolt in bolt group or design force per unit length in the
fillet weld group subject to out-of-plane loading (Fig. 38) shall be determined
in accordance with the following:

a) The design force in the bolts per unit length in the fillet weld group resulting
from any shear force or axial force shall be considered to be equally shared by
all bolts in the group or uniformly distributed over the length of the fillet weld
group.

b) The design force resulting from a design bending moment shall be considered
to vary linearly with the distance from the relevant centroidal axes.

33
 i) In bearing type of bolt group plates in the compression side of the neutral
axis and only bolts in the tension side of the neutral axis may be
considered for calculating the neutral axis and second moment of area.

ii) In the friction grip bolt group only the bolts shall be considered in the
calculation of neutral axis and second moment of area.

iii) The fillet weld group shall be considered in isolation from the connected
element; for the calculation of centroid and second moment of the weld
length.

Fig. 38 eOut-of-plane
V shear force with respect to weld plane

The design force per unit length in a fillet weld/bolt group may alternatively be
Z Z
determined by considering the fillet weld group as an extension of the connected
member and distributing the design forces among the welds of the fillet weld
group so as to satisfy equilibrium between the fillet weld group and the elements
B rack et
of the connected member.

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12.0 Numerical Problems

1. Two plates of size 200 x 10 mm and 200 x 8 mm are connected by a weld groove having (i) Single
– V groove weld joint, and (ii) Double – V groove weld joint. Determine the maximum tension
which the joints can resist. The steel plates are of grade Fe 410 grade with yield strength of 250MPa.
Assume shop welding.
Solution
Case (i) : Single – V groove weld (Fig. 39)
In this case, incomplete penetration results due to single – V groove.

Fig. 39 Single V groove weld

Single V is an incomplete penetration welding. Hence the throat thickness is 5/8th of the
thickness of thinner plate.
te = 5/8 t = (5/8) x 8 = 5 mm
Effective length of weld Lw = width of plate = 200 mm.
Strength of weld, P = L x tt x fy / γmw Cl. 6.2
= 200 x 5 x 200/1.25 = 200,000 N = 200 kN

Case (ii) : Double – V groove weld (Fig. 40)

In this case, complete penetration results due to Double – V groove.

Fig. 40 Double V groove weld

Effective throat thickness is 8mm which is the thickness of the thinner plate.
te = 8 mm
Strength of weld, P = L x tt x fy / γmw Cl. 6.2
= 200 x 8 x 200/1.25 = 320,000 N = 320 kN

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2. Find the size and length of the fillet weld for the lap joint to transmit a factored load of 120 kN asshown
in Fig. 41. Assume site welds, Fe 410 grade steel and E41 electrode. Assume width of plate as 75
mm and thickness as 8 mm.

Fig. 41 Lap joint connection

Solution
Minimum size of weld for 8 mm thick section = 3 mm (Table 5, Cl.
[Link])Maximum size of weld = 8 – 1.5 = 6.5 mm (Cl.
[Link]) Choose the size of weld, a = 6 mm
Effective throat thickness = te = 0.70 a = 4.2 mm
Strength of 6 mm weld / mm length = 4.2 x 410 / (√3 x 1.5) Cl.
[Link].1
= 662.7 N/mm
Assuming only two longitudinal welds along the sides
Required length of weld = 120 x 103 /662.7 = 181 mm
Length to be provided on each side = 181/2 = 90.5 mm
> 75 mm (width of plate)
Hence, provide 90.5 mm weld on each side with an end return of 2x 6 = 12 mm
Overall length of the weld provided = 2 x (90.5 + 2 x 6) = 205 mm

3. Two plates are connected to form a fillet joint using 6mm weld. Welding is provided on three sides
with a lap of 300mm as shown in Fig.42. Find the strength of the joint. If welding is provided
on all four sides (Fig. 44), determine the strength of the joint. Also find the percentage increase in the
strength. Use Fe 410 steel with yield stress 250 MPa. Assume shop welding.

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 Fig. 42 Lap joint connection with weld on three sides
Solution
Case (i) : Welding on three sides (Fig. 42)

Lw = 300 + 200 + 300 = 800 mm

Design strength of fillet weld joint, P1 = 0.7a fwd Lw / γmw Cl. [Link].1
= 0.7 x 6 x (410 /√3) x 800 / 1.25
= 6,36,286 N
Hence, allowable load = 6,36,286 / 1.5 = 4,24,191 N

Case (ii) : Welding on four sides (Fig. 43)

Fig. 43 Lap joint connection with weld on four sides

Lw = 300 + 200 + 300 + 200 = 1000 mm

Design strength of fillet weld joint, P2 = 0.7a fwd Lw / γmw Cl. [Link].1
= 0.7 x 6 x (410 /√3) x 1000 / 1.25
= 7,95,358 N
Hence, allowable load = 7,95,358 / 1.5 = 5,30,239 N

Percentage increase in strength = (P2 – P1) / P1 x 100 = 25 %

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4. Determine the size of the weld required for the bracket connection shown in Fig. 44. Assumeshop
welding.
Solution

Eccentricity, e = 100 + 75 = 175 mm

Torsional moment , M = 60 x 175 = 10,500 kN-
mmConsidering unit thickness of weld at root
Ip = Izz + Iyy = 3.08 x 106 mm4
Shear stress due to direct force, f1 = 60,000 / (400x1) = 150 MPa

Fig. 44 Bracket connection showing load and resultant stress in weld

Further, rmax = 125 mm

Shear stress due to torsional moment, f2 = M x rmax / Ip
= 426 MPa
Resultant stress in the critical part of the weld / mm widthR
= (f12 + f22 + 2 f1 f2 cos ) 0.5 = 530 MPa
Strength of the weld per unit length and thickness, PP
= 0.7a fwd Lw / γmw
= 0.7 a (410/√3) 1 / 1.25 = 132.6 a N
Equating the resultant, R with the strength of weld, P (i.e., R = P)
a = 3.99 mm
Size of weld to be provided = 4mm

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5. Determine the load, V that can be applied on the bracket shown in Fig. 45. Use 6 mm field fillet
welding.
Solution

Shear stress due to direct force, q = V / (2 x 200 x 1)

= 0.0025 V N/mm2
Moment on weld, M = 200 V N-mm
Considering unit thickness of weld at root,
Moment of inertia Iz = 2 (1x 2003) / 12 = 1.33 x 106 mm4

Fig. 45 Bracket connection showing load out of plane

Normal stress due to bending in tension, fa = M y / Iz

Here, M = 200 V N-mm, y = 100 mm, Iz = 1.33 x 106
mm4 Hence, fa = 0.015 V
Equivalent stress, fe is computed as (cl. [Link].1)
fe = ( fa2 + 3 q2 ) 0.5 = 0.0156 V
For 6 mm fillet weld (field weld)
Strength of weld/mm , fwd =0.7 x 6 (410 / √3) / 1.50 = 662.8 N/mm
Equating the equivalent stress, fe with the strength of 6 mm weld, fwd
fe = fwd
0.0156 V = 662.8
Hence, V = 42487 N = 42.5 kN
For the current bracket a load of 42.5 kN can be safely applied

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