Influence of imperfections on the fatigue performance of resistance spot welded joints

In this study, the influence of two different types of weld imperfections, i.e. production-related gaps and weld cracks, on the fatigue performance was investigated for resistance spot welded TRIP steel HCT690. It was ascertained that gaps of 3 mm lead to a significant drop in fatigue life compared to gap free shear tension samples under a load ratio R of 0.1. This fact was attributed to decreased stiffness, higher transverse vibration and higher rotation () between the sheets. Furthermore, FE-simulations have shown an increase in local stresses in gapped samples. The investigation into the influence of cracks was split depending on the crack location in the weld area. Surface cracks in the electrode indentation area as well as in the HAZ were produced and analyzed. The results showed that surface cracks independent of their position have no effect on the fatigue life. The produced internal imperfections have shown only a marginal impact on the fatigue life. By using a 3D FE-simulation of crack containing samples and crack free samples the influence of such imperfections was validated by determining the local stresses in critical areas.