CHAPTER 4:

CONNECTIONS

WELDING

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Two structural members are jointed by means of welds
Welded designs offer the opportunity to achieve a more efficient use
of materials.
Welding is the only process that produces a one piece construction.
The speed of fabrication and erection helps compress production
schedules.
Welding saves weight and consequently cuts costs. Connecting steel
plates are reduced or eliminated since they often are not required.
No deductions are there for holes; thus the gross section is effective
in
carrying loads.
Welded joints are better for fatigue loads, impact loads and
vibrations.

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A properly welded joint is stronger than the jointed
material. Fused joints create a rigid structure in contrast
to the non-rigid structures made using other types of
joints. The compactness and greater rigidity of welded
joints permits design assumptions to be realised more
accurately.

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 Refer subramaniam page 551

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
 No holes on the main member are needed  Electricity is required
 Welding connections are better for  Failure can be brittle
fatigue, impact or vibrations  Internal stresses are developed
 Saves weight of structure
due to heating.
 Less noise pollution compared to riveting.
 requires highly skilled human
 Welding offers airtight and watertight
jointing of plates and hence is employed resources
in the construction of water/oil storage  inspection is difficult and
tanks, ships expensive
 More rigid (due to the direct connection
of members by welding)
 Aesthetic in appearance and appear less
cluttered
 Offers more freedom to the designer in
choosing sections

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TYPES OF WELD CONNECTION
(a) Groove welds
(b) Fillet welds
(c) Slot welds
(d) Plug welds

 It has been found that fillet welds are used extensively (about 80%) followed by
groove welds (15%). Slot and plug welds are used rarely (less then 5%) in structural
engineering applications. Fillet welds are suitable for lap and T-joints and groove
welds are suitable for butt, corner, and edge joints.

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 (a) Groove welds
Groove welds are used to connect structural members
that are aligned in the same plane and often used in butt
joints.

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Single V butt weld

Double V butt weld

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Square groove weld is used to connect plates up to 8-mm thickness.
Partial penetration groove welds should not be used especially in fatigue
situations.
The choice between single or double penetration depends on access on
both sides, the thickness of the plate, the type of welding equipment, the
position of the weld, and the means by which the distortion is controlled.
Since groove welds will transmit the full load of the members they join,
they should have the same strength as the members they join. Hence, only
full penetration groove welds are often used.
groove welds are better in highly stressed structures where smooth flow of
stress is necessary.
If the butt joint has the same characteristics as the parent metal, is finished
smooth with it on both sides (by proper grinding or the like), and has
complete penetration with no unweld zones, it approaches the condition of
no joint at all and, for most common types of parent metal, may have
impact and fatigue resistance equal or superior to that of the base metal.

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 (b) Fillet welds
Fillet welds are most widely used due to their
economy, ease of fabrication, and adoptability at
site.
Approximately triangular in cross section
Since they do not require any edge preparation,
they are cheaper than groove welds.
Fillet welds are assumed to fail in shear.

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Fillet welds are normally easier to make, require less material
preparation, and are easier to fit than groove welds.
On the other hand, for a given amount of weld material, they
are not as strong and they cause greater concentration of stress.
In lightly stressed structures where stiffness rather than strength
controls design and fatigue or brittle fracture is not a problem,
fillet welds are entirely adequate and generally more
economical.
Reliable fillet welds may be, and frequently are, designed for
severe stress and service conditions, but, as a rule, groove welds
are better in highly stressed structures where smooth flow of
stress is necessary.

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Design specification of butt/groove weld
Generally for section or thickness ≤ 8 mm, provide square or single U
and V
For greater than 8 mm, provide Double U and V
Size of weld
Throat thickness → thickness of thinner plate for full penetration of
double U and V
For calculating strength, Effective throat thickness= 5/8 th of thickness
of thinner plate
Effective area = throat thickness x length of weld
Length of weld ≥ 4 times thickness of throat
Strenght of weld ≥ strength of plates
Effective length = actual length – 2s
(le = l – 2s)
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IS 800 PAGE 79/93
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Design strength in tension and
compression

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Design strength in shear

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Problem:
Two plates of 18 mm and 15 mm thickness are
joined by groove weld. The joint is subjected to
working load of 300 kN. Calculate the length of
the weld considering single groove and double
groove weld. Use Fe 410 grade steel.

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FILLET WELD
Idealization of fillet weld : Right angled triangle with
equal sides ‘s’; s is size of fillet weld

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 Maximum size of fillet weld, smax
 Along the edge of the plate, less than 6-mm thick, the maximum size is
equal to the thickness of the plate.
 Where the fillet weld is applied to the square edge of a plate of thickness
greater than 6 mm, size of the weld should be at least 1.5 mm less than the
edge thickness. (This limit is specified such that the total strength may be
developed without overstressing the adjacent metal.)
Max value of size ‘s’ = thickness – 1.5 mm (for square edge)
[IS 800 , Clause 10.5.8.1]
 Where the fillet weld is applied to the rounded toe of the rolled section,
the size of the weld should not exceed 3/4 of the thickness of the section
at the toe [Cl 10.5.8.2]

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Minimum size of fillet weld, smin

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Effective throat thickness
The shortest distance from the root of the fillet weld to
the face of the diagrammatic weld (line joining the toes)
Effective throat thickness ≥ 3 mm
and
< 0.7 x thickness of thinner plate

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Minimum Effective Length of Fillet Weld
 Minimum length = four times the size of the
 Effective length is taken equal to its overall length minus twice the size of
weld.
 End returns are made equal to twice the size of the weld to relieve the
high stress concentration at the ends. End returns must be provided for
welded joints that are subject to eccentricity, stress reversals, or impact
loads.

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Effective area of weld = Aw= Le x te
In lap connections,
Min length of weld ≥ 4 x thickness of thinner plate
OR
40 mm [IS 800 Clause 10.5.1.2]
Design strength as per code [Cl 10.5.7.1.1]

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