Stress and temperature analysis in tubular x-joints using simufact welding

Welded tubular joints are widely used in various industry structures for high efficiency subjected to pressure, bending and twisting.Welded structures are the main parts of structures, buildings, bridges, gas pipes, pressure vessels and power transmission equipment in the ship building, construction, oil, gas, petrochemical industries and power plants.A sample of pipe-welded joints is a X-tubular joint that has been investigated in this study.The main objective of the present work is to investigate the heat transfer and residual stress caused by the three-stage welding process in X-tubular joint made of St52 using Simufact Welding software.The welding process involves three welding steps using arc welding. The finite element model contains the thermal and mechanical properties of base metal and welding metal as a function of temperature.Also, advanced modeling tools such as mesh adaptation during the process and meshing compatible with the welding site, the birth and death technique of the element and the source of heat transfer have been used.Welding simulation showed that significant residual stresses were created in the joint after welding. Comparison of the results shows that the numerical results and empirical measurements are in good agreement with each other and the existing model can provide a good prediction of temperature distribution and stress control in this welding process.