ABSTRACT
This paper concerns the applicability of partial joint penetration (PJP) groove welds for beam-to-column connections. Two full-sized beam-to-column connections with PJP groove welds at the ends of the beam bottom flanges were tested under cyclic loads. When the unfused regions created by PJP groove welds were reinforced by fillet welds so that the welded joints have a sufficient cross-sectional area, ductile cracks grew stably and, in consequence, the connections showed sufficient deformation capacity. Test results were reproduced well by non-linear FE analyses. Strains sustained at points around internal discontinuities were found to be low because of greater cross-sectional areas of welded joints compared with the cross-sectional area of the beam flanges. Fracture toughness properties of numerically modelled connections were evaluated by using a recently developed fracture mechanics approach. Both the test results and the fracture mechanics based assessment demonstrated that it is unlikely to initiate brittle fracture at these discontinuities.
