Characterization of residual stress in a 316H stainless steel weld by neutron diffraction and finite element modeling

Abstract

The accurate prediction and measurement of residual stress is highly important for service reliability of welded engineering components. In this study, the residual stress distribution of 316H double V-groove welded joint was simulated using finite element method (FEM) and measured by neutron diffraction technique. The measured and simulated results of residual stress after heat treatment are consistent in the overall trend. The post-weld heat treatment causes the residual stresses in different zones of the weldment to redistribute and greatly reduce overall. From the heat-affected zone to the base metal, the tensile stress along the x direction gradually decreases, the compressive stress along the y direction gradually increases, and the stress along the z direction remains very low level. The residual stresses measured by neutron diffraction technique are calculated by fitting the {311} diffraction peaks. The effect of crystal plane selection on the measured residual stress is also discussed.