Neutron strain scanning of a small welded austenitic stainless steel plate

Abstract

Abstract

Neutron strain scanning has been used to determine the residual stress distribution over the area of the mid-thickness plane of a small austenitic steel piate across which a weld had been laid. The longitudinal and transverse stresses in the centre of the plate and weld are strongly tensile. Stresses normal to the plane of the plate are low everywhere except near the ends of the weld where tensile ‘hot-spots’ are observed. Near the edges of the plate the effects of boundary and balancing conditions are evident. Longitudinal and transverse stresses tend to zero along the edges of the plate to which they are perpendicular but become strongly compressive near the middle regions of the edges to which they are parallel. The results are compared with published data from other welds that were made and constrained differently. The accuracy of the technique is discussed and the results obtained by measuring with different reflections are compared. It is shown that neutron strain scanning is an acceptable, and unique, method for determining non-destructively the residual stress distribution throughout small austenitic steel components with sufficient accuracy to provide data for design purposes and to validate model calculations.