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Digital Measurement of Welds Saves a Tremendous Amount of Steel

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Wind Turbines Alone Account for Hundreds of Thousands of Metric Tons in Steel Savings

The potential for optimization is particularly evident in the case of wind energy: For a 10-megawatt offshore turbine with a tower weighing around 600 metric tons, optimized weld assessment could save approximately 180 metric tons of steel—without compromising safety. With the planned expansion of offshore wind capacity to 30 gigawatts (by 2030), the total steel saved would amount to no less than 360,000 metric tons, resulting in CO₂ savings in the millions. The project partners are now working to incorporate the results into regulatory standards through their participation in technical committees. The goal is to expand the conservative FAT class concepts to include an individualized, data-driven assessment. According to the participants, the methodology also applies to bridge and crane construction as well as the construction machinery sector. After all, these are industries in which many millions of metric tons of steel are processed annually in Germany.

As part of the “ORka3D” project, a researcher at Fraunhofer IWM is examining weld bead specimens using cyclic 4-point bending tests until cracks appear. Crack initiation points, strain fields, and failure cycles are precisely measured and correlated with scanned weld defects. This creates the database needed to individually predict the service life of each weld from simple 3D scans in the future. This will save an enormous amount of steel in the future.(Image: IWM)
As part of the “ORka3D” project, a researcher at Fraunhofer IWM is examining weld bead specimens using cyclic 4-point bending tests until cracks appear. Crack initiation points, strain fields, and failure cycles are precisely measured and correlated with scanned weld defects. This creates the database needed to individually predict the service life of each weld from simple 3D scans in the future. This will save an enormous amount of steel in the future.
(Image: IWM)

(In addition to the Fraunhofer Institutes IWM and LBF, the project involved industry partners Liebherr, Volvo Construction Equipment, and Salzgitter Mannesmann Forschung, as well as sensor manufacturers GOM, Micro-Epsilon, and Quelltech, and the engineering services provider Jörss–Blunk–Ordemann (JBO). The ORka3D project, “Optimization of Resource Use in Welded Structures through Automated In-Line Service Life Assessment Based on 3D Scans,” was funded under the 7th Energy Research Program by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE).)

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