CONTINUUM DAMAGE MECHANICS MODELING OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE DEFORMATION AND FAILURE IN A PIPE WELDMENT

Predictions have been made of the deformation and failure history of a pipe weldment using a finite element creep continuum damage mechanics model, which incorporates the characteristic material properties of the parent metal, the weld metal and heat-affected zone microstructures of the weldment. It is shown that the computer predictions are in close agreement with the results of large-scale pressure vessel tests, provided that the material characterization is carried out correctly, and that the constitutive equations which control the evolution of creep strain and damage, represent the dominant physical mechanisms present.