Prediction of steady-state stresses within heat affected zone due to creep mismatch in welded straight pipes

This paper reports the steady-state stresses within the heat affected zone (HAZ) of a welded straight pipe subject to creep. The creep constants and exponent are varied systematically to see the effect of various mismatches in creep properties on the steady-state creep stresses, via detailed two-dimensional finite element (FE) creep analyses. The weldments consist of the base metal and weld metal with the HAZ, which are characterized using the idealized power creep laws with the same creep exponent. The internal pressure and axial loading are considered to see the effect of the loading mode. To quantify the creep stresses, a creep mismatch factor is introduced as a function of the creep constants and exponent. It is concluded that the ratio of the section-averaged stresses for a mismatched case to those for an evenmatched case are linearly dependent on the mismatch factor. The results are compared with the FE results, including the Type IV region, as well as the R5 procedure.