Influence of post weld treatments on the fatigue behaviour of Al-alloy welded joints

In this paper the influence of different post welding treatments, such as ageing or shot peening, on the fatigue behaviour of Al-alloy welded joints was investigated. The analysed joints were candidates for car structural applications. Several four point bending fatigue tests were conducted on GMAW specimens subjected to different post weld treatments. The residual stress field acting on specimens was measured by the X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. The results of tests were discussed with the aid of a finite element model of the specimen aimed to calculate the actual fatigue cycle, also taking account of residual stresses and of their redistribution during the test. This allowed to characterize the fatigue resistance of the joints, taking account of the effective stress acting in the region of crack initiation.