Effect of start/stop position distribution on residual stresses in the multi-pass welded 12Cr1MoV/P91 dissimilar pipe

Welding residual stresses between 12Cr1MoV and P91 steel pipes were analyzed by experiment and finite element method (FEM). Both measured hoop and axial stresses are in general agree with the simulation results. Meanwhile, to examine the effect of start/stop welding position on residual stresses, a simulation model whose welding passes all started at the same location during multi-pass welding was compared with a model whose start/stop positions were uniformly distributed along circumferential direction of the dissimilar pipe. The results show that higher residual stresses occurred near the superimposed start/stop position than the steady region when calculated by the model whose welding passes all started at the same location. Whereas, start/stop welding positions which are distributed uniformly along the circumferential direction of the pipe can significantly relieve this effect, correspondingly leading to a more uniform residual stress distribution around the multi-pass welded dissimilar pipe.