Revisiting the procedure for characterising mechanical properties in welded joints through nanoindentation

Owing to the microstructural inhomogeneities and residual stresses that are generated during welding, welded joints are the weakest parts of structures. Nanoindentation, a non-destructive technique, is commonly used to analyse the local mechanical properties and residual stresses in welded joints. However, the pile-up effect is often neglected during the nanoindentation procedure, which results in inaccurate measurements. In this study, an alternative procedure, based on a previous study, was used to measure the local mechanical properties and residual stresses in metal inert gas (MIG) welded joints. Moreover, a new equation is proposed for estimating the residual stresses.