Evaluation of the effect of the TIG-dressing technique on welded joints through the strain energy density method

Among the various techniques employed to increase the fatigue strength of a welded joint, the TIG dressing technique acts on the weld geometry re-melting the welding toe to eliminate the presence of sharp V-notches. The main aim of this work is to investigate the effect of the TIG dressing technique on the fatigue behavior of welded joints summarizing the results of experimental tests taken from the literature through the Strain Energy Density method. The experimental tests considered were performed both on as-welded and TIG-dressed joints in order to better understand the improvement that such a technique leads to the welded joints. Finally, the data were summarized through the Strain Energy Density technique to show that the same fatigue curve, defined in terms of Strain Energy Density versus number of cycles, obtained for the as-welded joints could be used also for the TIG-dressed joints being the method not dependent on the geometry considered.