TWI Industrial Member Report Summary 431/1991
By D J Smith, M A M Bourke, A P Hodgson, G A Webster and P J Webster
Background
Preloading or overstressing of flawed components can induce residual stresses near to the tips of flaws. These residual stresses can be beneficial to the structural integrity of the components if they are compressive. This report presents results from an investigation to measure and predict the residual stresses in a preloaded cracked bend specimen made from A533B steel. Experimental results were obtained using the neutron diffraction method, which is unique in being a non-contact method for determining the internal stress state of a component. Numerical predictions were obtained using finite element analyses. Results from the different techniques were compared with no initial assumption being made on which technique was more 'correct'.