Abstract
It has been well appreciated that reducing weld-induced deformation as law as possible is important during fabrication for a more efficient production of blocks. The weld-induced deformation is more serious in thin plates than in thick plates because heat affect zone of thin plates is wider than that of thick plates and in addition internal and external constraints much more influence upon weld-induced deformation of thin plates. This paper deals with the application of the mechanical tensioning method to butt weld of thin plates to reduce the weld-induced deformation. In order to investigate the quantitative effect of tensioning method upon the reduction of angular deformation and shrinkage in longitudinal and transverse direction of weld line, butt welding test have been carried out for several thin plate specimens with varying plate thickness and magnitude of tensile load. From the present experimental study, it has been found that the tensioning method is very effective on reduction of weld-induced residual stress as well as weld-induced deformation.
