Flare Bevel Groove welds 1

[sevenC317]

Hi! I need some insights on the flare bevel groove weld. In the AISC Specification table J2.2 for the effective throat of flare groove welds, can you go lower on the value indicated in the table or is it already the minimum? May I have a link to the reference if there's any? Thanks!

 

[ProgrammingPE]

You are permitted to provide an effective throat that is less than the values listed in Table J2.2. The point of that table is just to give you the effective throat dimension for when a groove is filled flush, which accounts for the depth of fusion of the weld in the tiny space between the two metals you are attaching.

Section J2.1a of AISC 360-22 - Specification for Structural Steel Buildings says:

"When filled flush to the surface, the effective weld throat for a PJP groove weld shall be as given in Table J2.1 and the effective weld throat for a flare groove weld shall be as given in Table J2.2. The effective throat of a PJP groove weld or flare groove weld filled less than flush shall be as shown in Table J2.1 or Table J2.2, less the greatest perpendicular dimension measured from a line flush to the base metal surface to the weld surface."​

This shows that a smaller weld is permitted. The minimum size, though, is not completely clear from the specification, since it only provides Table J2.3, "Minimum Effective Throat of Partial-Joint-Penetration Groove Welds". You obviously need to have at least enough weld to transmit the required forces.

You can also check out AISC's Design Guide 21: Welded Connections--A Primer for Engineers, Second Edition for some more infomation.

STRUCTURAL CENTRAL:
Steel Connections Software
Weld Strength Video

 

[dauwerda]

I would say ProgrammingPE summarized this very nicely.

 

[sevenC317]

Thank you so much for the response! It was very helpful and insightful.