Application of Ultrasonic Peening for Fatigue Life Improvement of Automotive Welded Wheels

Author:  Y. Kudryavtsev and J. Kleiman
Source:  International Institute of Welding Document XII-2075-05
Doc ID:  2005135
Year of Publication:  2005
Abstract:  
ABSTRACT The efficiency of Ultrasonic Peening (UP) application for fatigue life improvement of automotive welded wheels was studied based on the results of fatigue testing of real wheels in as-welded condition and after application of the UP. During the fatigue loading, the cracks initiate in the weld toe zone at the start and the end areas of the welds. Firstly, the fatigue cracks are observed on the surface and, with the increase in the number of loading cycles, the cracks propagate through the thickness of the material in the rim area causing at certain stage the air leakage. The improvement treatment of welded wheels was performed using the Computerized Complex for UP. On average, the speed of UP of weld toe was about 0.5 m/min. The crack propagation rate in welded wheel subjected to UP was significantly lower than the fatigue crack propagation rate in the wheel in as-welded condition. The comparison of the fatigue life, using the same crack length criterion, had shown that the UP treated welded wheels demonstrated three times longer fatigue life that the same automotive wheel in as-welded condition. KEYWORDS: Ultrasonic peening, automotive welded wheel, fatigue life improvement