Effects of tooling on the residual stress distribution in an inertia weld

Neutron diffraction residual strain measurements have been made on a tubular structure formed by joining two nickel-based superalloy RR1000 parts by inertia welding. Residual strains in the radial, hoop and axial directions of the tube cross-section have been measured. The corresponding residual stress field has been calculated accounting for the stress-free lattice parameter variations in the region close to the weld line. Tensile residual stresses were observed near the inner diameter of the tube with magnitudes of the order of +500, + 1100 and + 1300 MPa in the radial, axial and hoop directions, respectively. By comparison near the outer diameter (OD) of the weld the corresponding stresses are of the order of -200, -1000 and 150 MPa. The final stress state reflects the influence of the gripping fixture tooling and thermal gradients during inertia welding. Additional X-ray (at the surface) and hole-drilling (at the near surface) measurements show a steep residual stress gradient in the near surface region. Tensile hoop and axial machining stresses at the surface indicate the potential for improving the inertia weld tooling and the machining parameters used when removing the flash. © 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.