On macroscopic and microscopic analyses for crack initiation and crack growth toughness in ductile alloys

Relationships between crack initiation and crack growth toughness are reviewed by examining the crack tip fields and microscopic (local) and macroscopic (continuum) fracture criteria for the onset and continued quasi-static extension of cracks in ductile materials. By comparison of the micromechanisms of crack initiationvia transgranular cleavage and crack initiation and subsequent growthvia microvoid coalescence, expressions are shown for the fracture toughness of materials in terms of microstructural parameters, including those deduced from fractographic measurements. In particular the distinction between the deformation fields directly ahead of stationary and nonstationary cracks are explored and used to explain why microstructure may have a more significant role in influencing the toughness of slowly growing, as opposed to initiating, cracks. Utilizing the exact asymptotic crack tip deformation fields recently presented by Rice and his co-workers for the nonstationary plane strain Mode I crack and evoking various microscopic failure criteria for such stable crack growth, a relationship between the tearing modulusT _R and the nondimensionalized crack initiation fracture toughnessJ _Ic is described and shown to yield a good fit to experimental toughness data for a wide range of steels.     

An investigation of the fatigue and fracture behavior of a Nb-12Al-44Ti-1.5Mo intermetallic alloy

This article presents the results of a study of the fatigue and fracture behavior of a damage-tolerant Nb-12Al-44Ti-1.5Mo alloy. This partially ordered B2 + orthorhombic intermetallic alloy is shown to have attractive combinations of room-temperature ductility (11 to 14 pct), fracture toughness (60 to 92 MPa√m), and comparable fatigue crack growth resistance to IN718, Ti-6Al-4V, and pure Nb at room temperature. The studies show that tensile deformation in the Nb-12Al-44Ti-1.5Mo alloy involves localized plastic deformation (microplasticity via slip-band formation) which initiates at stress levels that are significantly below the uniaxial yield stress (∼9.6 pct of the 0.2 pct offset yield strength (YS)). The onset of bulk yielding is shown to correspond to the spread of microplasticity completely across the gage sections of the tensile specimen. Fatigue crack initiation is also postulated to occur by the accumulation of microplasticity (coarsening of slip bands). Subsequent fatigue crack growth then occurs by the “unzipping” of cracks along slip bands that form ahead of the dominant crack tip. The proposed mechanism of fatigue crack growth is analogous to the unzipping crack growth mechanism that was suggested originally by Neumann for crack growth in single-crystal copper. Slower near-threshold fatigue crack growth rates at 750 °C are attributed to the shielding effects of oxide-induced crack closure. The fatigue and fracture behavior are also compared to those of pure Nb and emerging high-temperature niobium-based intermetallics.     

Dynamic fracture toughness of a Ti-45Al-1.6Mn alloy at high temperature

Dynamic fracture toughness of a reactive sintered γ-base TiAl alloy is studied in the temperature range from 298 to 1073 K. The stop block method is employed in order to observe the crack paths and microcrack distribution ahead of a main crack tip under dynamic loading conditions at high temperature. Fracture surface, crack path, and microcrack observations are carried out using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Microcrack initiation criteria and crack-tip stress shielding effect caused by crack deflection are discussed. The experimental results demonstrate that the dynamic fracture toughness, J _Id , increases with increasing temperature, and after attaining the maximum value at 873 K, the toughness decreases. Crack path morphology varies with temperature. The stress shielding effect at the crack tip caused by main crack deflection was found to affect the difference in crack extension energy for each temperature. The number of microcracks ahead of a main crack varies with temperature. The stress shielding effect at the crack tip caused by microcracking was found to contribute to toughening around 873 K.     

Fracture mechanism and toughness of the welding heat-affected zone in structural steel under static and dynamic loading

Due to the influence of the welding thermal cycle, the toughness of structural steel generally degenerates. Recently, the intercritically reheated coarse-grained heat-affected zone (IC CG HAZ) was found to demonstrate the worst toughness in welded joint, which was associated with its fracture mechanism. In this article, two IC CG HAZs of a structural steel were prepared by welding thermal-cycle simulation techniques. For the two IC CG HAZs, the static and dynamic fracture toughness were evaluated; the fracture mechanism was also studied. Under both static and dynamic loading, cracks in the IC CG HAZ were found to initiate at the intersection of bainitic ferrite α _B ^/0 packets with different orientations, followed by propagation in cleavage. In some crack propagation regions, adjacent cleavage facets are connected by shear, thus producing dimple zones. Though the brittle fracture initiation mechanism remains unchanged, the cleavage facet size, the proportion of the dimple zones between facets, and the distance from the cracking initiation site to the crack tip vary with loading speed and welding conditions. These changes were found to be related to the variations caused by strain rate and welding conditions in fracture toughness for the IC CG HAZs.     

Fracture and toughening mechanisms in an α2 titanium aluminide alloy

The deformation and fracture behaviors of the Ti-24Al-11Nb alloy with an equiaxed α₂ + β microstructure have been characterized as a function of temperature by performing uniaxial tension andJ _IC fracture toughness tests. The micromechanisms of crack initiation and growth have been studied bypost mortem fractographic and metallographic examinations of fractured specimens, as well as byin situ observation of the fracture events in a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with a high-temperature loading stage. The results indicate that quasistatic crack growth in the Ti-24Al-11Nb alloy occurs by nucleation and linkage of the microcracks with the main crack, with the latter frequently bridged by ductile β ligaments. Three microcrack initiation mechanisms have been identified: (1) decohesion of planar slipbands in the α₂ matrix, (2) formation of voids and microcracks in β, and (3) cracking at or near the α₂ + β interface due to strain incompatibility resulting from impinging planar slip originated in α₂. The sources of fracture toughness in the 25 °C to 450 °C range have been attributed to crack tip blunting, crack deflection, and a bridging mechanism provided by the ductile β phase. At 600 °C, a change of toughening mechanisms leads to a lowering of the initiation toughness (theK _IC value) but a drastic increase in the crack growth toughness and the tearing modulus.     

Relationship between fracture toughness and crack extension resistance curves (R curves) for Ti-6Al-4V alloys

The effects of microstructure, impurity content, and testing temperature on the fracture toughness (as measured by the crack tip opening displacement (CTOD)) and microcrack extension resistance curves (R curves) of Ti-6Al-4V alloys were examined. At 0 °C, microstructure is the most influential factor in the toughness-strength relationship. Acicular microstructure specimens have a higher CTOD than specimens with equiaxed microstructures, regardless of strength (0.2 pct proof stress) and impurity content. At −196 °C, impurity content becomes a controlling factor in the toughness-strength relationship. Extra-low impurity (ELI) specimens, which have a lower impurity content, show a higher CTOD, irrespective of microstructure. Microcracks extended from the notch tip before the maximum load was reached during testing were investigated, and crack initiation (δ _i) and extension-resistance properties were evaluated by obtaining exact R curves of the microcracks. At 0 °C, specimens with different microstructures and different impurity contents have almost the same δ _i. But acicular-microstructure specimens with a higher CTOD at a given strength show a greater crack extension resistance. At −196 °C, ELI specimens, which have a higher CTOD, show a larger crack extension resistance. It is concluded that the crack extension-resistance property of the microcracks extended from the notch tip before the maximum load is a controlling factor for the fracture toughness of Ti-6Al-4V alloys.     

Nanometer-scale crack initiation and propagation behavior of Fe3Al-based intermetallic alloy

The initiation and propagation of nanometer-scale cracks have been investigated in detail byin situ transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations for the intermetallic compound Fe₃Al under mode I loading. No dislocation was detected and no dislocation emission was found when cracks propagated directly from the thin edge of a double-jet hole where the thickness of the foil was below a critical thinness. Thinning took place in the thicker region of the foils because a great number of dislocations were emitted from the crack tip, and then an electron semitransparent region was formed in front of the crack tip. Following this process, a dislocation-free zone (DFZ) was formed. The maximum normal stress occurs in the zone. Nanometer-scale cracks initiated discontinuously ahead of the main crack tip in the highly stressed zone. The size of the smallest nanocrack observed was about 3 nm, and the tip radius of the nanocracks was less than 1 nm when the applied loading was low. The radius of the main crack tip was about 2.5 nm. The distances between discontinuous nanocracks and the main crack tip were about 5 to 60 nm, depending on the applied tensile loading. A relationship was found between the tensile loading and the nanocrack distance from the crack tip. The distance increases with the tensile loading, which is consistent with an “elastic-plastic” theoretical model.     

Some aspects of fracture mechanics research during the last 25 years

A review is given of the various concepts of fracture mechanics, furthermore of their application to assess the toughness of steels and to guarantee the safety of structures containing cracks. The three most important parameters are the stress-intensity factor K_I for linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), the crack tip opening displacement CTOD and the J-integral for elastic-plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM). The ASTM designation E 1820-96 provides a common method for determining all applicable toughness parameters from a single test, including R-curves. Many investigations dealt with the numerous influences on these parameters, e.g. specimen geometry arid temperature and strain rate. Various failure concepts have been developed. The method of LEFM based on plane strain fracture toughness K_Ic is well established for high strength steels or low temperatures. For modern steels with high toughness the more complicated concepts of EPFM have to be applied. Because of the availability of commercial software for FE-calculations the application of the J-integral has become widespread in recent years. A number of approximative methods has been elaborated, e.g. CTOD-design-curve, BSI PD6493:1991, CEGB-R6-method, ETM, Eurocode 3 Annex C. Although the theory of fracture mechanics regards the material as an isotropic continuum the question is of great importance, how its materials parameters depend on the microstructure of the steels. Systematic investigations with the aid of the hot deformation simulator Wumsi showed the favourable material properties of fracture mechanics resulting from thermomechanical treatment. Many models were published for the quantitative correlation between microstructure and toughness parameters, mainly K_Ic. At the moment the modified Gurson model is in widespread use, which allows the prediction of J-R-curves.     

Intrinsic fatigue crack growth

The influences of microstructure and deformation mode on inert environment intrinsic fatigue crack propagation were investigated for Al-Li-Cu-Mg alloys AA2090, AA8090, and X2095 compared to AA2024. The amount of coherent shearable δ (Al₃Li) precipitates and extent of localized planar slip deformation were reduced by composition (increased Cu/Li in X2095) and heat treatment (double aging of AA8090). Intrinsic growth rates, obtained at high constantK _max to minimize crack closure and in vacuum to eliminate any environmental effect, were alloy dependent;da/dN varied up to tenfold based on applied ΔK or ΔK/E. When compared based on a crack tip cyclic strain or opening displacement parameter (ΔK/(σ_ys E)^1/2), growth rates were equivalent for all alloys except X2095-T8 which exhibited unique fatigue crack growth resistance. Tortuous fatigue crack profiles and large fracture surface facets were observed for each Al-Li alloy independent of the precipitates present, particularly δ, and the localized slip deformation structure. Reduced fatigue crack propagation rates for X2095 in vacuum are not explained by either residual crack closure or slip reversibility arguments; the origin of apparent slip band facets in a homogeneous slip alloy is unclear. Better understanding of crack tip damage accumulation and fracture surface facet crystallography is required for Al-Li alloys with varying slip localization.     

An investigation of environmental effects on fatigue crack growth in Q1N (HY80) steel

Fatigue threshold tests have been conducted on through-thickness and semielliptic cracks in laboratory air, vacuum, and salt water at stress ratios(R = K_min/K_max @#@) of 0.2 and 0.7. The effects of stress ratio are rationalized by crack closure concepts. Environmental effects are explained by considerations of the irreversibility of slip at the crack tip and the role of debris on the fracture surfaces. Differences in the fatigue crack growth rates in the three environments are attributed largely to the extent of the irreversibility of slip due to the chemisorption of water/ water vapor at the crack tip. Debris in saltwater solutions is also shown to significantly affect the near-threshold growth through its influence on crack closure and the transportation of environment to the crack tip. formerly Graduate Student, Department of Materials Science and Technology, Cambridge University formerly with the Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, Cambridge University     

Fracture and fatigue crack propagation properties of hardened 52100 steel

Good toughness in hardened 52100 ball bearing steel is important in order to prevent premature fracture during mounting or service of bearing elements. Steel cleanliness, residual copper content, and carbon content effects have been investigated in relation to fracture mechanics properties, and it was observed that only the carbon content has any relevance for the range of compositions investigated. The effect of hardening and tempering temperatures for conventional furnace-hardening techniques on toughness was investigated, theK _lcbeing generally much less sensitive to these parameters than blunt notch toughness testing. Cold deformation of the material prior to martensitic hardening significantly increased the blunt notch toughness. Thermal grain refining treatments did not give the same improved blunt notch toughness as observed for prior cold deformation. Short austenitization cycles (ten seconds) for martensitic hardening resulted in microstructures with high retained austenite contents. This microstructure resulted in higher fracture toughness and retardation of the crack growth rates, the mechanism being associated with transformation toughening in the plastic zone. Inductive tempering of martensitic-hardened 52100 was observed to result in similar blunt notch toughnesses as compared to furnace tempered material of the same hardness. A poor correlation between fracture toughness and blunt notch toughness was observed, particularly for the unstable structures,i.e., microstructures with high levels of retained austenite. Fracture toughness does not represent the intrinsic toughness of high carbon martensite with related high contents of retained austenite.     

Dynamic Fracture of a Zr-based Bulk Metallic Glass

In the present study, dynamic fracture experiments are performed on fully amorphous Liquidmetal-1 (LM-1), a Zr-based BMG, to better understand fracture initiation and propagation in notched specimens. Experiments are conducted on notched (110 μm notch radius) four-point bend specimens using an instrumented modified split-Hopkinson pressure bar apparatus. The results of these experiments suggest that the critical dynamic stress intensity factor achieved by the notched LM-1 specimens is ~110 MPa m^1/2, which is similar to the fracture toughness determined from previous quasi-static fracture experiments. This insensitivity of the fracture toughness to crack tip loading rate suggests negligible loading-rate sensitivity on the dynamic fracture initiation toughness in LM-1. In situ high-speed camera images of the notched sample during the dynamic loading process show multiple fracture initiation attempts and subsequent arrests prior to catastrophic fracture initiation. Controlled stress wave loading experiments designed to induce sub-critical levels of damage in the notched specimens show extensive deformation banding extending 150 to 200 μm outward from the notch. The deformation bands, nominally perpendicular to each other, run along the direction of the notch and perpendicular to it. They are consistent with slip-line fields in notched samples of elastic perfectly plastic materials. Subsequent loading of the damaged specimen again shows several attempts at crack initiation followed by blunting; the initial sub-critical damage in the region around the notch is understood to increase the energy required for catastrophic specimen failure and is consistent with an increase in the effective notch radius due to preexisting damage.     

A study of crack tip blunting and the influence of blunting behavior on the fracture toughness of ultra high strength steels

Cross-sections of strained but not fractured compact tension J_IC speciments have been examined to investigate crack-tip blunting behavior as a function J level for four different microstructures. The microstructures were the as-quenched microstructures of HP9-4-20 and HO9-4-10 steels and the microstructures obtained by tempering these steels at 565°C. Smooth blunting was observed for the as-quenched microstructures while the fatigue cracks for tempered microstructures blunted to geometries characterized by two or three corners or vertices. The blunting geometries were clearly defined at J levels well below J_IC. For the case of smooth blunting voids tended to form directly ahead of the crack tip and crack extension by fracture occurred when the ligament between the blunting crack tip and the void directly ahead of the crack tip failed by shear fracture at an angle of about 45°C to the plane of the crack. Blunting to vertices was characterized by the growth of large voids very close to the corners or vertices of the blunting rack tip; it appears that the blunting geometry was maintained by the coalescence of these voids with the blunting crack tip. The results further suggest that if two microstructures have the same constrained ductility and identical inclusion distributions and one blunts smoothly and the other to vertices the microstructure which blunts to vertices can have substantially higher toughness.     

Stress-corrosion cracking of Ti-8Al-lMo-lV in aqueous environments: 2. Plastic zones,crack morphology,and fractography

Optical and electron metallographic studies of stress-corrosion cracks in Ti-8Al-lMo-lV have verified that the principal crack extension mechanism is cleavage of theα grains. There are two distinct crack morphologies which correspond to the two regimes of subcritical crack velocity. At low stress intensities(a ∞ K _I) the microscopic crack front consists of small cleavage facets approximately 1 to 4α grain diameters in size, and ligaments of material which fracture by ductile rupture and corrosion. At high stress intensities (a ≅ constant), the crack front consists of large cleavage “fingers”, 20 to 50α grain diameters in length, separated by regions which fracture by a combination of cleavage (on a much smaller scale), ductile rupture, and corrosion. The transition from Stage I to Stage II crack propagation apparently occurs when the strain-energy release rate is sufficient to support two crack branches,i.e., K_I≥ √2K _Iscc. Thereafter, the diameter of the plastic zone at the crack tip remains constant, suggesting that the effective stress intensity at the tip of each branch is also invariant. The slip within the plastic zone is markedly nonhomogeneous, and trenches are often observed along the slip steps. Formerly with the Metal Science Group, Battelle Columbus Laboratories, Columbus, Ohio.     

A model for roughness-induced fatigue crack closure

A model for predicting the crack closing stress intensity factor for roughness-induced closure of fatigue cracks is developed based on a two-dimensional approach considering crack opening and closure of an idealized crack path. The model highlights the contribution of irreversible cyclic planar slip at the crack tip, and is extended to real cases describing roughness-induced crack closure as a function of fracture surface roughness parameters at low ΔK levels where planar slip prevails. The resulting equation indicates that roughness-induced crack closure depends on the maximum stress intensity factor, the standard deviation of heights as well as the standard deviation of angles of the crack profile elements, and the yield stress of the material. Comparison between the prediction of the model and experimental data of K _cl for lamellar microstructures of Ti-2.5 Cu as well as TIMETAL 1100 shows good agreement.     

Effects of pre-existing grain boundary microvoid distributions on fracture toughness and fatigue crack growth in low alloy steel

The role of dispersions of pre-existing grain boundary microvoids is investigated in fracture toughness and fatigue crack propagation behavior in a low alloy steel. Microvoid damage is achieved by prior exposure of the steel to gaseous hydrogen atmospheres at high temperatures and pressures, where carbon within the steel reacts with ingressed hydrogen to nucleate methane bubbles along prior austenite grain boundaries (hydrogen attack). It is shown that, whereas the crack initiation and crack growth toughness (i.e. K_Ic and the tearing modulus) are severely degraded, even for comparatively mild degrees of microvoid damage, rates of sub-critical crack growth by fatigue remain relatively unaffected. Such results are interpreted in terms of a mutual competition between microstructural damage generated by the grain boundary microvoids, which promotes crack growth by lowering the intrinsic resistance of the microstructure, and the resulting tortuous crack paths, which extrinsically retard crack growth at low stress intensities by lowering the local crack tip “driving force” (crack tip shielding). As shielding effects are minimized at high stress intensities, the degradation in intrinsic toughness is related to changes in ductility by means of a stress-modified critical strain model for ductile fracture, where the presence of small microvoid clusters is shown to promote coalescence through the easier onset of plastic strain localization. Fatigue behavior, conversely, is dominated by extrinsic shielding mechanisms and is modeled in terms of two-dimensional models of crack deflection and roughness-induced crack closure.     

Understanding the potential and pH dependency of high-strength β-titanium alloy environmental crack initiation

An explanation for the strong dependency of crack initiation of precracked high-strength β-titanium alloys in room-temperature 0.6 M NaCl on applied potential and bulk-solution pH is presented. It is proposed that environment-assisted cracking (EAC) susceptibility in neutral aqueous NaCl results from (1) film rupture due to plastic deformation at actively deformed crack tips, (2) accelerated dissolution of titanium, (3) crack tip acidification by hydrolysis of titanium ions, (4) crack tip potential excursions toward bare metal open-circuit potentials (OCPs) during film rupture due to large ohmic voltages in the crack solution, (5) accelerated crack tip proton or water reduction concurrent with titanium dissolution, (6) bare surface-dominated hydrogen ingress into a fracture process zone, and (7) crack initiation by hydrogen embrittlement. Evidence for each of the above stages of the crack initiation scenario is presented, with emphasis on crack tip electrode kinetics and ohmic voltage calculations which govern process zone-controlled hydrogen uptake. The seven stages are consistent with the strong dependencies of crack initiation and growth in precracked high-strength β-titanium alloys on (1) solution pH, (2) applied potential, and (3) strain rate, and they explain the “apparent” EAC resistance of smooth- and blunt-notch specimens. The latter lack both occluded crack tip geometries to promote acidification and ohmic voltage drops below reversible hydrogen, as well as localization of dynamic plastic strain. Hydrogen uptake is, subsequently, limited.     

Experimental and numerical study on the relationship between creep crack growth properties and fracture mechanisms

Evaluation of creep crack growth properties taking microscopic aspects into account is effective for developing more accurate life prediction of structural components. The present study investigated the relationship between creep crack growth properties and microscopic fracture aspects for austenitic alloy 800H and 316 stainless steel. The growth rate of wedge-type intergranular and transgranular creep crack could be characterized by creep ductility. Creep damages formed ahead of the void-type crack tip accelerated the crack growth rate. Based on these experimental results, a three-dimensional finite element method (FEM) code, which simulates creep crack growth, has been developed. The effect of creep ductility on da/dt vs C* relations could be simulated based on the critical strain criteria. The diffusion of vacancies toward crack tip would accelerate the crack growth under creep conditions. The change of vacancy concentration during creep was computed for a three-dimensional compact-type (CT) specimen model by solving the diffusive equation under multiaxial stress field. The experimental results that crack growth was accelerated by creep damages formed ahead of the crack tip could be successfully simulated.     

Aqueous environmental crack propagation in high-strength beta titanium alloys

The aqueous environment-assisted cracking (EAC) behavior of two peak-aged beta-titanium alloys was characterized with a fracture mechanics method. Beta-21S is susceptible to EAC under rising load in neutral 3.5 pct NaCl at 25 °C and −600 mV_SCE, as indicated by a reduced threshold for subcritical crack growth (K _TH ), an average crack growth rate of up to 10 μms, and intergranular fracture compared to microvoid rupture in air. In contrast, the initiation fracture toughness (K _ICi ) of Ti-15-3 in moist air is lower than that of Beta-21S at similar high σ_YS (1300 MPa) but is not degraded by chloride, and cracking is by transgranular microvoid formation. The intergranular EAC susceptibility of Beta-21S correlates with both α-colonies precipitated at β grain boundaries and intense slip localization; however, the causal factor is not defined. Data suggest that both features, and EAC, are promoted by prolonged solution treatment at high temperature. In a hydrogen environment embrittlement (HEE) scenario, crack-tip H could be transported by planar slip bands to strongly binding trap sites and stress/strain concentrations at α colony or β grain boundaries. The EAC in Beta-21S is eliminated by cathodic polarization (to −1000 mV_SCE), as well as by static loading for times that otherwise produce rising-load EAC. These beneficial effects could relate to reduced H production at the occluded crack tip during cathodic polarization and to increased crack-tip passive film stability or reduced dislocation transport during deformation at slow crack-tip strain rates. High-strength β-titanium alloys are resistant, but not intrinsically immune to chloride EAC, with processing condition possibly governing fracture. Formerly Graduate Research Associate, University of Virginia Formerly Graduate Research Associate, University of Virginia