Effects of Specimen Thickness and Notch Shape on Fracture Mode Appearing in Drop Weight Tear Test (DWTT) Specimens of API X70 and X80 Linepipe Steels

Effects of specimen thickness and notch shape on fracture mode appearing in drop weight tear test (DWTT) specimens of API X70 and X80 linepipe steels were investigated. Detailed microstructural analysis of fractured DWTT specimens showed that the fractures were initiated in normal cleavage mode near the specimen notch, and that some separations were observed at the center of the fracture surfaces. The Chevron-notch (CN) DWTT specimens had broader normal cleavage surfaces than the pressed-notch (PN) DWTT specimens. Larger inverse fracture surfaces appeared in the PN DWTT specimens because of the higher fracture initiation energy at the notch and the higher strain hardening in the hammer-impacted region. The number and length of separations were larger in the CN DWTT specimens than in the PN DWTT specimens, and increased with increasing specimen thickness due to the plane strain condition effect. As the test temperature decreased, the tendency to separations increased, but separations were not found when the cleavage fracture prevailed at very low temperatures. The DWTT test results, such as upper shelf energy and energy transition temperature, were discussed in relation with microstructures and fracture modes including cleavage fracture, shear fracture, inverse fracture, and separations.