Low‐cycle fatigue/high‐cycle fatigue interactions in notched Ti‐6Al‐4V*

Combined low‐cycle fatigue/high‐cycle fatigue (LCF/HCF) loadings were investigated for smooth and circumferentially V‐notched cylindrical Ti–6Al–4V fatigue specimens. Smooth specimens were first cycled under LCF loading conditions for a fraction of the previously established fatigue life. The HCF 10⁷ cycle fatigue limit stress after LCF cycling was established using a step loading technique. Specimens with two notch sizes, both having elastic stress concentration factors of K_t = 2.7, were cycled under LCF loading conditions at a nominal stress ratio of R = 0.1. The subsequent 10⁶ cycle HCF fatigue limit stress at both R = 0.1 and 0.8 was determined. The combined loading LCF/HCF fatigue limit stresses for all specimens were compared to the baseline HCF fatigue limit stresses. After LCF cycling and prior to HCF cycling, the notched specimens were heat tinted, and final fracture surfaces examined for cracks formed during the initial LCF loading. Fatigue test results indicate that the LCF loading, applied for 75% of total LCF life for the smooth specimens and 25% for the notched specimens, resulted in only small reductions in the subsequent HCF fatigue limit stress. Under certain loading conditions, plasticity‐induced stress redistribution at the notch root during LCF cycling appears responsible for an observed increase in HCF fatigue limit stress, in terms of net section stress.     

The effect of stress transients on the HCF endurance limit

Constant amplitude fatigue of a material at a fixed stress ratio, R, and at some limiting stress level, may produce high cycle fatigue (HCF) lives in excess of some large number, typically 10⁷ or higher, which can be treated as an endurance limit. Under vibratory loading, stress transients can exceed this endurance limit amplitude and cause damage that accumulates with repeated transient loading. These HCF transients normally occur at lower stress amplitudes than those needed to cause low cycle fatigue (LCF) where lives, N, are typically in the range N < 10⁴–10⁵. Therefore, the HCF transient stresses produce cycles to failure beyond the normal LCF regime but correspond to amplitudes that are above the fatigue limit stress. In this investigation, a titanium alloy, Ti-6Al-4V, is subjected to HCF stress transients while being cycled under constant amplitude HCF. The HCF transients correspond to blocks of loading above the fatigue limit stress applied for a specified fraction of their expected life. A step-loading procedure is used to determine the fatigue limit stress at a frequency of 420 Hz. Stress transients applied at stresses up to 40% above the endurance limit for cycle counts up to 25% of expected life are found to have little or no effect on the fatigue limit stress. Simple calculations of the propagation life in a test specimen show that most of the life at these transient stress levels is spent in the nucleation phase. Fractography, aided by heat tinting, was unable to detect any prior cracks due to the HCF stress transients on the fractured specimens.     

Manifestations of dynamic strain aging under low and high cycle fatigue in a type 316LN stainless steel

Influence of Dynamic strain aging (DSA) under low cycle fatigue (LCF) and high cycle fatigue (HCF) loading was investigated by conducting LCF and HCF tests on specimens over a wide range of temperature from 573 to 973 K. DSA was found to be highly pronounced in the temperature range of 823–873 K. DSA was seen to have contrasting implications under LCF and HCF deformation. The cyclic hardening owing to DSA caused an increase in the cyclic stress response under LCF, leading to decrease in cyclic life. On the other hand, the DSA-induced strengthening suppressed the crack initiation phase under HCF where the applied stress remains fixed, leading to an increase in the cyclic life.     

Prediction of Fatigue Lives of MAR‐M247 LC Based on the Crack Closure Concept

Low cycle fatigue (LCF), high cycle fatigue (HCF), and combined LCF and HCF tests are carried out on MAR‐M247 LC at 650 °C in air environment. Under combined LCF and HCF loading, block striations form on the fracture surface which are used to complete an effective crack growth curve by using the linear summation model. Crack growth lives starting from equivalent initial flaw sizes are calculated by the crack closure code FASTRAN and compared with experimental fatigue lives. Under HCF loading, predicted and experimental fatigue lives agree well for lifetimes above 10⁵ cycles. Lower lifetimes are overestimated indicating that the linear summation model is not valid for MAR‐M247 LC in this loading range. Interactions between the non‐crystallographic HCF crack growth and striated crack growth that is caused by the LCF loading are probably responsible for this behavior.     

Multiaxial small fatigue crack growth in metals

Observations related to the formation and growth of small cracks ranging from subgrain dimension up to the order of 1 mm are summarized for amplitudes ranging from low cycle fatigue (LCF) to high cycle fatigue (HCF) conditions for polycrystalline metals. Further efforts to improve the accuracy of life estimation which address LCF, HCF and LCF–HCF interactions must consider various factors that are not presently addressed by conventional elastic–plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM) or linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) approaches based on long, self-similar cracks in homogeneous, isotropic materials, nor by conventional HCF design tools such as the ε–N curve, the S–N curve, modified Goodman diagram and fatigue limit.Development of microstructure-sensitive fatigue crack propagation relations relies on deeper understanding of small crack behavior, including (a) interactions with microstructure and lack of constraint for microstructurally small cracks, (b) heterogeneity and anisotropy of cyclic slip processes associated with the orientation distribution of grains, and (c) local mode mixity effects on small crack growth. The basic technology is not yet sufficiently advanced in these areas to implement robust damage tolerant design for HCF. This paper introduces an engineering model which approximates the results of slip transfer calculations related to crack blockage by microstructure barriers; the model is consistent with critical plane concepts for Stage I growth of small cracks, standard cyclic stress–strain and strain–life equations above threshold, and the Kitagawa diagram for HCF threshold behaviors. It is able to correlate the most relevant trends of small crack growth behavior, including crack arrest at the fatigue limit, load sequence effects, and stress state effects.     

Low and high‐cycle fatigue properties of an ultrahigh‐strength TRIP bainitic steel

The scope of this study is to characterize the mechanical properties of a novel Transformation‐Induced Plasticity bainitic steel grade TBC700Y980T. For this purpose, tensile tests are carried out with loading direction 0, 45 and 90° with respect to the L rolling direction. Yield stress is found to be higher than 700 MPa, ultimate tensile strength larger than 1050 MPa and total elongation higher than 15%. Low‐cycle fatigue (LCF) tests are carried out under fully reverse axial strain exploring fatigue lives comprised between 10² and 10⁵ fatigue cycles. The data are used to determine the parameters of the Coffin–Manson as well as the cyclic stress–strain curve. No significant stress‐induced austenite transformation is detected. The high‐cycle fatigue (HCF) behaviour is investigated through load controlled axial tests exploring fatigue tests up to 5 × 10⁶ fatigue cycles at two loading ratios, namely R = ?1 and R = 0. At fatigue lives longer than 2 × 10⁵ cycles, the strain life curve determined from LCF tests tends to greatly underestimate the HCF resistance of the material. Apparently, the HCF behaviour of this material cannot be extrapolated from LCF tests, as different damage, cyclic hardening mechanisms and microstructural conditions are involved. In particular, in the HCF regime, the predominant damage mechanism is nucleation of fatigue cracks in the vicinity of oxide inclusions, whereby mean value and scatter in fatigue limit are directly correlated to the dimension of these inclusions.     

Influence of foreign object damage on fatigue crack growth of gas turbine aerofoils under complex loading conditions

Foreign object damage (FOD) has been identified as one of the main life limiting factors for aeroengine blades, with the leading edge of aerofoils particularly susceptible. In this work, a generic edge ‘aerofoil’ geometry was utilized in a study of early fatigue crack growth behaviour due to FOD under low cycle fatigue (LCF), high cycle fatigue (HCF) and combined LCF and HCF loading conditions. Residual stresses due to FOD were analyzed using the finite element method. The longitudinal residual stress component along the crack path was introduced as a nodal temperature distribution, and used in the correction of the stress intensity factor range. The crack growth was monitored using a nanodirect current potential drop (DCPD) system and crack growth rates were correlated with the corrected stress intensity factor considering the residual stresses. The results were discussed with regard to the role of residual stresses in the characterization of fatigue crack growth. Small crack growth behaviour in FODed specimens was revealed only after the residual stresses were taken into account in the calculation of the stress intensity factor, a feature common to LCF, HCF and combined LCF + HCF loading conditions.     

Effect of LCF on HCF crack growth of Ti-17

An improved understanding of fatigue crack growth phenomena applicable to titanium engine disks was developed through complimentary experimental and analytical investigations of Ti-17. The effect of low cycle fatigue (LCF) on the high cycle fatigue (HCF) threshold and rate of crack propagation was studied. A simplified variable-amplitude spectrum, consisting of high-R cycles, corresponding to HCF loading, and periodic R=0.1 cycles, corresponding to LCF loading, was used to demonstrate a load-interaction effect. When the ratio of HCF to LCF cycles was 100 or more the fatigue crack growth lifetimes were significantly lower than predicted using linear damage summation methods assuming no load-interaction effect. Thus, it was concluded that the LCF cycle accelerated the fatigue crack growth rate of subsequent HCF cycles, even when closure was concluded to be negligible. A phenomenological model was formulated based on hypothesized changes in the propagation resistance, K_PR, and fit to the test data. The model confirmed that the periodic LCF cycles increased fatigue crack growth rates of subsequent HCF cycles.     

Probabilistic high cycle fatigue behaviour of nodular cast iron containing casting defects

Theoretical and experimental investigations were combined to characterize the influence of surface casting defects (shrinkages) on the high cycle fatigue (HCF) reliability. On fracture surfaces of fatigue samples, the defect is located at the surface. The shape used for the calculation is a spherical void with variable radius. Finite-element simulations were then performed to determine stress distribution around defects for different sizes and different loadings. Correlated expressions of the maximum hydrostatic stress and the amplitude of the shear stress were obtained by using the response surface technique. The loading representative point in the HCF criterion was then transformed into a scattering surface, which has been obtained by a random sampling of the defect sizes. The HCF reliability has been computed by using the Monte Carlo simulation method. Tension and torsion fatigue tests were conducted on nodular cast iron with quantification of defect size on the fracture surface. The S – N curves show a large fatigue life scattering; shrinkages are at the origin of the fatal crack leading to the final failure. The comparison of the computed HCF reliability to the experimental results shows a good agreement. The capability of the proposed model to take into account the influence of the range of the defect sizes and the type of its statistical distribution has been demonstrated. It is shown that the stress distribution at the fatigue limit is log-normal, which can be explained by the log-normal defect distribution in the nodular cast iron tested.     

Application of a combined high and low cycle fatigue life model on life prediction of SC blade

A combined high and low cycle fatigue life prediction model for nickel-base single crystal (SC) has been presented to analyze the low cycle fatigue (LCF) and high cycle fatigue (HCF) life of SC blade. In the paper, a power law function of life model based on crystallographic theory is adopted to predict the LCF life. A power law function based on elastic analysis is adopted to predict the HCF life. Furthermore, the LCF and HCF experiments at different temperature are carried out to obtain the model parameters. The predicted results show that the model is reasonable for LCF and HCF. The linear life model introduced in the paper satisfies the combined high and low cycle fatigue life prediction of nickel-base single crystal superalloy. Special attention is put on the combined high and low cycle fatigue life of SC turbine blade. The resolved shear stress and first-order vibration stress are analyzed by the crystallographic rate dependent finite element analysis (FEA) and orthotropic elastic FEA, respectively. It is shown that the prediction model can be well used in the fatigue life prediction of SC blade.     

A high-cycle fatigue apparatus at 20 kHz for low-cycle fatigue/high-cycle fatigue interaction testing

High-cycle fatigue (HCF) failures in aircraft engines are attributed to material damage states, created during processing or by in-service loading and environmental conditions, and then propagated to failure by HCF loading. The loading configuration experienced by aircraft engine turbine blades consists of an axial load caused by the centrifugal acceleration during rotation combined with the tensile and compressive loads caused by the natural vibrations of the blades themselves. To simulate these loading conditions a new testing apparatus was developed that is capable of providing interactive low-cycle fatigue/high-cycle fatigue (LCF/HCF) loading, in ratios (of magnitude and frequency) that give a realistic simulation of the actual flight loads experienced by engine components. This testing apparatus is based on a HCF cell operating at 20  kHz. The cell can also be integrated to a servo-hydraulic load frame, which provides a second fatigue cycle. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the capabilities of the new HCF apparatus via thermographic measurements and by performing LCF/HCF interaction tests.     

On the use of the Goodman diagram for high cycle fatigue design

Materials in rotating machinery are typically subjected to vibratory loading from a number of sources which, in turn, is superimposed on mean stresses which result primarily from steady-state centrifugal loads. In addition, components subjected to vibratory stresses can sustain damage during manufacturing, break-in cycles, or during service such as from foreign objects, fretting, or other types of wear. The combination of vibratory and ‘steady’ stress levels can, for certain load levels, produce low cycle fatigue damage in addition to the damage produced from the high frequency (HCF) vibratory loading since the ‘steady’ stresses are actually low cycle fatigue (LCF) which results in one cycle for every startup and shutdown operation. Design for HCF is generally based on a Goodman diagram which takes into account the vibratory as well as the steady stress amplitudes for fatigue runout or fatigue under a given number of cycles. It does not, however, take into account the combined effects of LCF and HCF. In this investigation, the combined effects are demonstrated analytically by numerical examples which consider both the initiation and propagation phases of fatigue. In addition to the analysis of LCF/HCF interactions, considerations which must be accounted for in design are reviewed in light of a number of failures of components in service in U.S. Air Force fighter engines. A critical assessment of the concepts embedded in the use of the Goodman diagram is presented. Comments on the limitations on the use of a Goodman diagram for design are provided. Some suggestions are offered for the improvement of the design methodology for HCF which involve both damage tolerance considerations and methods for assessing and improving the margin of safety.     

Experimental investigation of fatigue crack growth behavior of GH2036 under combined high and low cycle fatigue

Fatigue crack growth rates have been experimentally determined for the superalloy GH2036 (in Chinese series) at an elevated temperature of 550 °C under pure low cycle fatigue (LCF) and combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) loading conditions by establishing a CCF test rig and using corner-notched specimens. These studies reveal decelerated crack growth rates under CCF loading compared to pure LCF loading, and crack propagation accelerates as the dwell time prolongs. Then the mechanism of fatigue crack growth at different loadings has been discussed by using scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses of the fracture surface.     

Inclusion-controlled high cycle fatigue behavior of a high V alloyed powder metallurgy cold-working tool steel

Axial loading fatigue tests were carried out to study the influence of inclusion on high cycle fatigue behavior of a high V alloyed powder metallurgy cold-working tool steel (AISI 11). The fatigue strength of 1538 MPa with endurance life of 10⁷ cycles were obtained by stair-case method. The fatigue specimens were also subjected to a constant maximum stress of 1650 MPa to investigate the relationship among inclusion origin size (10-30 μm), fish-eye size (70-130 μm) and fatigue life (10⁵-10⁷ cycles). The fatigue life was found to be dependent on the inclusion size and the crack propagating length. A compressive residual stress of 300-450 MPa turned out to be present at the specimen surface, and finally induced the interior failure mode. Further investigation into the correlation between stress intensity factors of inclusion origin and corresponding stages of fatigue crack growth and fatigue life revealed that the high cycle fatigue behavior was controlled by crack propagation. According to the fractographic investigation, two distinct zones were observed in fish-eye, representing Paris-Law and fast fatigue crack growth stage, respectively. Threshold stress intensity for crack propagation of 3.9 MPa√m was obtained from the well correlated line on the ΔK_I-log N_? graph. The fracture toughness can also be estimated by the mean value of stress intensity factor ranges for fish-eye.     

Low cycle fatigue behaviour of particulate reinforced metal matrix composites

The low cycle fatigue (LCF) resistance of two different 6061 Al/20 vol% alumina particulate metal matrix composites (MMCs) in a peaked-aged condition has been evaluated under fully reversed strain control testing. Test results were combined with scanning electron and optical microscopy investigations to determine the effects of reinforcement particles and strain amplitude on the LCF behaviour of these MMCs. Both materials show three stages of response to LCF: initial fast hardening or softening in the first few cycles; gradual softening for most of the fatigue life; and a rapid drop in the stress carrying capability prior to failure. Both MMCs exhibit short LCF life which follows a Coffin-Manson relationship. All tested specimens demonstrate ductile fracture morphology at final failure. The experimental results are discussed in respect of strain amplitude, matrix composition and reinforcement shape and crack initiation.     

Low-cycle fatigue of unidirectional composites:: Bi-linear S–N curves

Low-cycle fatigue (LCF) behavior of polymer matrix composites (PMCs) is investigated in an experimental study of unidirectional glass/epoxy composites subjected to axial tensile loading along longitudinal 0° orientation of fibers. Under high LCF loads, fatigue life of PMCs is found to be less than 10⁴ loading cycles due to the high property degradation rates that are noticeably higher than those seen during high-cycle fatigue (HCF). In PMC response, unique LCF features have been identified and linked with damage accumulation patterns in unidirectional composites. At high loads near the ultimate strength of specimens, large strains and finite strain rates are found to be significant under semi-rectangular loading so the LCF behavior is affected. Lower and upper limits for the LCF life impose some restrictions on the S–N curves that are obtained for the LCF life assessment. A bi-linear S–N curve is used to approximate the data in the LCF and HCF regions. The bi-linear S–N relationship and the associated fatigue model are described by a proposed analytical formula. The concept of pre-LCF damage state is introduced.     

High and low cycle fatigue behavior of linear friction welded Ti–6Al–4V

Linear friction welded Ti–6Al–4V was investigated in fatigue at various stress amplitudes ranging from the high cycle fatigue (HCF) to the low cycle fatigue (LCF) regime. The base material was composed of hot-rolled Ti–6Al–4V plate that presented a strong crystallographic texture. The welds were characterized in terms of microstructure using electron backscatter diffraction and hardness measurements. The microstructural gradients across the weld zone and thermomechanically affected zone of the linear friction welds are discussed in terms of the crystallographic texture, grain shape and hardness levels, relative to the parent material. The location of crack nucleation under fatigue loading was analyzed relative to the local microstructural features and hardness gradients. Though crack nucleation was not observed within the weld or thermomechanically affected zones, its occurrence within the base material in LCF appears to be affected by the welding process. In particular, by performing high resolution digital image correlation during LCF, the crack nucleation site was related to the local accumulation of plastic deformation in the vicinity of the linear friction weld.     

A fatigue damage accumulation model for reliability analysis of engine components under combined cycle loadings

Rotor components of an aircraft engine in service are usually subjected to combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) loadings. In this work, combining with the load spectrum of CCF, a modified damage accumulation model for CCF life prediction of turbine blades is first put forward to take into account the effects of load consequence and load interaction caused by high‐cycle fatigue (HCF) loads and low‐cycle fatigue (LCF) loads under CCF loading conditions. The predicted results demonstrate that the proposed model presents a higher prediction accuracy than Miner, Manson‐Halford model does. Moreover, to evaluate the fatigue reliability of rotor components, reliability model with the failure mode of CCF is proposed on the basis of the stress‐strength interference method when considering the strength degeneration, and its results show that the reliability model with CCF is more suitable for aero‐engine components than that with the failure mode of single fatigue.     

A review on fatigue fracture modes of structural metallic materials in very high cycle regime

In S–N diagrams for high strength steels, experimental data in the usual surface fracture mode appears at higher stress levels with fewer loading cycles, whereas the data in the interior fracture mode tends to appear at lower stress levels with the very long fatigue life. Thus, the duplex S–N property was usually confirmed for those high strength steels in such a very high cycle regime. In the case of interior fracture mode, there can be several different types of the crack initiation with/without nonmetallic inclusion at the crack initiation site, and different crack initiation types can be found even for the surface fracture modes in the conventional fatigue life region. In the present work, the authors have attempted to review the overall feature of these fatigue fracture modes appearing at the usual life regime and the very high cycle regime.     

FATIGUE DAMAGE IN 1045 STEEL UNDER VARIABLE AMPLITUDE BIAXIAL LOADING

Abstract— During constant amplitude loading, two different types of crack systems have been reported In the high cycle fatigue (HCF) region, cracks nucleate on a small number of maxium shear strain amplitude planes One of these cracks becomes a dominant crack and leads to failure of the specimen In the low cycle fatigue (LCF) region, equally developed microcracks are observed over the entire gage section and grow during the majority of the life. The failure is due to a linking in which the microcracks join up during the last few cycles of the fatigue life.
To investigate the interaction of these two types of crack systems in biaxial fatigue, experiments were performed on thin-wall tubular specimens in tension, torsion and combined tension-torsion loading The test program included step loading and block loading in which two equivalent strain amplitudes were employed. One of the equivalent strain amplitudes is in the HCF region and the other was in the LCF region
Fatigue lives were predicted from constant amplitude damage curves when a single crack system dominated the fatigue process Two competitive crack systems were sometimes developed on the maximum shear strain amplitude planes in a single specimen under block loading This resulted in a conservative prediction of the fatigue life.