Overview
Elimination of Overwelding (2011-463)
Project Team:
- Ingalls Shipbuilding
- Applied Thermal Sciences
- Concurrent Technologies Corporation
- University of New Orleans
- University of Maine
- Naval Surface Warfare Center - Carderock (NSWCC)
April 2011 - September 2013
NSRP ASE Investment: $1.4M
Industry Investment: $1.4M
Objective:
Develop and validate new weld sizing criteria for thin plate structures that will result in stronger welds, lighter ships and reduced plate buckling and distortion.
Summary:
Improvements to shipbuilding facilities and process technology have not kept pace with the rate of change in ship design. Worse, new designs using thinner steels are subject to legacy weld size requirements. These two factors result in widespread over welding which leads to plate buckling. This project will use a combination of material tests and numerical modeling to show that reducing weld sizing criteria for thin steel joints will not compromise weld strength or longevity. The smaller weld sizes will, in turn, reduce the thermal distortion of thin plate members found on various Navy and Coast Guard surface ship classes. Additionally, better fit-up and weld fusion between thinner materials that result from better weld process control and weld sizing will contribute to reduced repair costs and eliminate the need for conventional straightening techniques such as open flame or line heating.
Key Deliverables:
Request Final Report from NSRP – Limited Distribution authorized to the U.S. shipbuilding and repair industry and NSRP ASE Program representatives
Point of Contact:
T.D. Huang, Ingalls Shipbuilding