Fatigue strength assessment of ground fillet-welded joints using 4R method

In the present paper, a fatigue analysis for welded joints made of mild, and high- and ultra-high-strength steel grades and post-weld-treated with grinding and combined grinding and peening methods is carried out using literature data. The 4R method was used to re-analyze the data points considering material strength, residual stress, applied stress ratio, and weld toe radius. The use of the 4R method, instead of local fatigue strength assessment approaches, enabled residual stresses to be taken into consideration and accurately predicted the fatigue strength of joints in the as-welded and post-weld-treated conditions, including grinding and combined grinding and peening methods.