Abstract
The fracture mode of spot welded joints, made of SAPH440 steel sheets, is investigated. It was found that the weldment failure in the peel test of the joints occurred through the weld nugget. This is called an interfacial failure and is not acceptable because it is a sign of insufficient mechanical strength. Investigation showed that this kind of fracture is attributed to the brittleness of the nugget zone, caused by its martensitic microstructure due to the high cooling rate in the welding. For eliminating this defect, resistance spot welding procedures were augmented with post-heating stage. This approach is intended to reduce the cooling rate after welding and also to temper the weld nugget, generating a more ductile microstructure in the weld zone. The results of this research can be used for planning spot welding process and provides a guideline for analysing the results of hardness and peel test.
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