Metric and Imperial Units

The above welding stress equations may be used with both imperial and metric units. As with all mathematical calculations care must be taken to keep consistent units throughout. Examples of units which could be adopted have been provided below:

Notation

• a = weld throat thickness, in or mm
• Aw = weld throat area, in² or mm²
• L = length of welds, in or mm
• P = total axial force, kip or kN
• σ = stress in weld, psi or MPa
• τ = shear stress, psi or MPa
• ø = angle of weld to load, degrees