The continuous development of high-performance structural materials coupled with advances in analysis capability has allowed for the use of minimal safety factors in the design of high-performance components and structures. It is well understood that residual stresses play a critical role in material performance; however, obtaining an accurate measurement of the residual stresses is often difficult. This is especially true in thick sections where many residual stress measurement techniques are not applicable. This paper will discuss two residual stress measurement techniques that are well suited for thick sections: the contour method and the slitting method. The contour method uses the measured surface displacements normal to a plane cut through a component to generate a two-dimensional map of the residual stress normal to the cross-section of the cut. The slitting method uses resistance strain gages to measure the strain release as a cut is made to incremental depths into a material. The measured strain versus depth data are used to determine the initial residual stress component transverse to the slit direction through an elastic inverse calculation.

The application of these methods will be described for important structural applications, including: (1) Maps of the weld direction residual stress component in as-welded and partially stress relieved Ti-6Al-4V fusion welds; (2) Maps of the weld direction residual stress component for sample gas tungsten arc welds and reduced pressure electron beam welds in a nickel-based alloy (Alloy 22, UNS N06022); (3) Residual stress profiles (stress versus depth) for laser peening parameter studies in Ti-6Al-4V, and Alloy 22, where laser peening is a surface treatment technology used to impart compressive residual stress near the surface of a component.