The Influence of Pre-existing Deformation on GMA Welding Distortion in Thin Steel Plates

Weld distortion is particularly problematic for large thin structures that are used in the assembly of ships. The drive toward lighter ships and thinner plate is restricted by the significant increase in distortion as the plate thickness decreases. The influence of pre-existing deformation in the plates to be joined on the resultant distortion in gas metal arc welded structure has been studied. DH-36 steel plate surface profiles were measured before and after the butt welding of two plates 1000 × 500 × 4 mm in size. Three dimensional finite element models that incorporate the initial plate profile have been created to simulate the welding process and to examine the relationship between the final welded plate profiles and the initial deformation present in the plates. Both symmetric and asymmetric models were considered. A significant variation in the unwelded base plates’ initial distortion was observed. Generally, it has been found that if an out-of-plane deformation exists in a plate prior to welding, the level of distortion further increases in the same direction following welding. The final distortions are strongly related to the initial plate profiles. The residual stress distributions in the plates are also to some extent affected by the level of distortion initially present.