The effects of residual macrostresses and microstresses on fatigue crack propagation

The effects of residual microstresses and tensile residual macrostresses on fatigue crack propagation (FCP) are examined in a high-carbon steel. Phase-specific diffraction measurements show that uniaxial deformation and radial cold expansion produce predominantly microstress and tensile macrostress fields, respectively. Microstresses are found to have little effect on FCP rates, while tensile macrostresses increase crack growth rates in a manner that depends systematically on ΔK. The increases are partly attributed to crack closure, which was found to be appreciable near the surface of control samples but absent in the presence of tensile residual stresses. Both the ΔK dependence and absence of microstress effects were explored by X-ray microbeam measurements around propagating fatigue cracks and found to stem from fading and/or redistribution of residual macrostresses and microstresses during fatigue crack growth.     

Induction Heat Treatment of Sheet‐Bulk Metal‐Formed Parts Assisted by Water–Air Spray Cooling

In order to produce components with massive secondary functional elements from sheet metal bulk forming operations, termed sheet‐bulk metal forming, can be applied. Owing to high, three‐dimensional stress and strain states present during sheet‐bulk metal forming, ductile damage occurs in the form of micro‐voids. Depending on the material flow properties, tensile residual stresses can also be present in the components' formed functional elements. During service, the components are subjected to cyclic loading via these functional elements, and tensile residual stresses exert an unfavorable influence on crack initiation and crack growth, and therefore on the fatigue life. Following the forming process, temperature and microstructurally related compressive residual stresses can be induced by local heat treating of the surface. These residual stresses can counteract potential crack initiation on the surface or in the subsurface regions. In the present study, the adjustability of the residual stress state is investigated using a workpiece manufactured by orbital cold‐forming, which possesses an accumulation of material in its edge region. Based on residual stress measurements in the workpiece's edge region using x‐ray diffractometry, it is possible to verify the compressive residual stresses adjusted by varying the cooling conditions.     

Fatigue Crack Growth Analysis Under Spectrum Loading in Various Environmental Conditions

The fatigue process consists, from the engineering point of view, of three stages: crack initiation, fatigue crack growth, and the final failure. It is also known that the fatigue process near notches and cracks is governed by local strains and stresses in the regions of maximum stress and strain concentrations. Therefore, the fatigue crack growth can be considered as a process of successive crack increments, and the fatigue crack initiation and subsequent growth can be modeled as one repetitive process. The assumptions mentioned above were used to derive a fatigue crack growth model based, called later as the UniGrow model, on the analysis of cyclic elastic–plastic stresses–strains near the crack tip. The fatigue crack growth rate was determined by simulating the cyclic stress–strain response in the material volume adjacent to the crack tip and calculating the accumulated fatigue damage in a manner similar to fatigue analysis of stationary notches. The fatigue crack growth driving force was derived on the basis of the stress and strain history at the crack tip and the Smith–Watson–Topper (SWT) fatigue damage parameter, D = σ_maxΔε/2. It was subsequently found that the fatigue crack growth was controlled by a two-parameter driving force in the form of a weighted product of the stress intensity range and the maximum stress intensity factor, ΔK ^p K _max ^1?p . The effect of the internal (residual) stress induced by the reversed cyclic plasticity has been accounted for and therefore the two-parameter driving force made it possible to predict the effect of the mean stress including the influence of the applied compressive stress, tensile overloads, and variable amplitude spectrum loading. It allows estimating the fatigue life under variable amplitude loading without using crack closure concepts. Several experimental fatigue crack growth datasets obtained for the Al 7075 aluminum alloy were used for the verification of the proposed unified fatigue crack growth model. The method can be also used to predict fatigue crack growth under constant amplitude and spectrum loading in various environmental conditions such as vacuum, air, and corrosive environment providing that appropriate limited constant amplitude fatigue crack growth data obtained in the same environment are available. The proposed methodology is equally suitable for fatigue analysis of smooth, notched, and cracked components.     

Fatigue crack propagation under varied mean stress conditions

Measurements of fatigue crack growth rates in copper monocrystalline and polycrystalline sheet specimens have been made at 295 K and 77 K to determine mean stress effects on growth rates. When load conditions remained unchanged throughout the period of crack growth, the rate of fatigue crack growth is independent of the level of mean stress and depends only on the cyclic stress amplitude. When the mean stress is changed during the crack growth period, a reduction of mean stress under plane strain conditions causes complete cessation of growth. A similar effect was not observed in plane stress crack growth, presumably due to reduced elastic constraint in narrow specimens containing large cracks. No change in growth rates occurs if the mean load is increased. In the event of crack growth stoppage, either restoration of the full previous mean load or crack re-nucleation under continued cycling at the reduced load levels is sufficient to restore the prior growth rate. A simple model is adapted to explain these observations which emphasizes the interaction of the growth rate with compressive residual stresses generated at the tip of the propagating crack. R. A. Yeske, formerly Research Assistant at Materials Science Department, Northwestern University, Evanston, III. This paper is based on a portion of a thesis submitted by R. A. Yeske in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Northwestern University.     

Effects of Processing Residual Stresses on Fatigue Crack Growth Behavior of Structural Materials: Experimental Approaches and Microstructural Mechanisms

Fatigue crack growth mechanisms of long cracks through fields with low and high residual stresses were investigated for a common structural aluminum alloy, 6061-T61. Bulk processing residual stresses were introduced in the material by quenching during heat treatment. Compact tension (CT) specimens were fatigue crack growth (FCG) tested at varying stress ratios to capture the closure and K _max effects. The changes in fatigue crack growth mechanisms at the microstructural scale are correlated to closure, stress ratio, and plasticity, which are all dependent on residual stress. A dual-parameter ΔK–K _max approach, which includes corrections for crack closure and residual stresses, is used uniquely to connect fatigue crack growth mechanisms at the microstructural scale with changes in crack growth rates at various stress ratios for low- and high-residual-stress conditions. The methods and tools proposed in this study can be used to optimize existing materials and processes as well as to develop new materials and processes for FCG limited structural applications.     

Evaluation of the fatigue behavior of ductile irons with various matrix microstructures

The stress-failure (S-N) curves for ferritic irons, pearlitic irons, and austempered ductile irons (ADIs) have been determined under tension-tension loading with a stress ratio of 0.1. The effects of Ti contents of up to 0.10 wt pct (resulting from the deliberate use of Ti-containing steel scrap) on fatigue behavior were investigated. It was found that ferritic and pearlitic ductile irons can contain up to 0.10 wt pct Ti without any adverse effect on fatigue behavior. In ADIs, fatigue properties deteriorate at such high Ti contents. Tests were also conducted to investigate the effects of microstructural features on fatigue properties. It was found that the effect of the graphite nodule count (the number of graphite particles on a unit area of a polished surface) on the fatigue limit is significant only in ADIs. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis has shown that cracks usually initiate from surface dross-type defects. However, in ADIs, fatigue cracks can also initiate at shrinkage cavities and at surface or subsurface locations. An offset bilinear S-N curve behavior (the linear S-N curve at higher stress levels is separated from the linear S-N curve at lower stress levels) has been observed in ADIs. This is attributed to surface residual compressive stresses, which prohibit fatigue crack initiation from surface positions at lower applied stress levels. In ferritic and pearlitic ductile irons, the offset bilinear S-N curve behavior is not observed because of the rapid relaxation of the residual compressive stresses.     

Fatigue crack propagation in carburized high alloy bearing steels

Fatigue cracks were propagated through carburized cases in M-50NiL (0.1 C,4 Mo, 4 Cr, 1.3 V, 3.5 Ni) and CBS-1000M (0.1 C, 4.5 Mo, 1 Cr, 0.5 V, 3 Ni) steels at constant stress intensity ranges, ΔK, and at a constant cyclic peak load. Residual compressive stresses of the order of 140 MPa (20 Ksi) were developed in the M-50NiL cases, and in tests carried out at constant ΔK values it was observed that the fatigue crack propagation rates,da/dN, slowed significantly. In some tests, at constant peak loads, cracks were stopped in regions with high compressive stresses. The residual stresses in the cases in CBS-1000M steel were predominantly tensile, probably because of the presence of high retained austenite contents, andda/dN was accelerated in these cases. The effects of residual stress on the fatigue crack propagation rates are interpreted in terms of a pinched clothespin model in which the residual stresses introduce an internal stress intensity, K_i where K_i, = σ_id _i ^1/2 (σ_i = internal stress, d_i = characteristic distance associated with the internal stress distribution). The effective stress intensity becomes K_e = K_a + K_i where K_a is the applied stress intensity. Values of K_i were calculated as a function of distance from the surface using experimental measurements of σ_i and a value of d_i = 11 mm (0.43 inch). The resultant values of K_e were taken to be equivalent to effective ΔK values, andda/dN was determined at each point from experimental measurements of fatigue crack propagation obtained separately for the case and core materials. A reasonably good fit was obtained with data for crack growth at a constant ΔK and at a constant cyclic peak load. The carburized case depths were approximately 4 mm, and the possible effects associated with the propagation of short cracks were considered. The major effects were observed at crack lengths of about 2 mm, but the contributions of short crack phenomena were considered to be small in these experiments, since the two steels were at high strength levels, and short cracks would be expected to be of the order of 10 μm. Also, the two other steels behaved differently and in a way which followed the residual stress patterns. Both M-50NiL and CBS-1000M have a high fracture toughness, with K_lc = 50 MPa · m^1/2 (45 Ksi · in^1/2), and the carburized cases exhibit excellent resistance to rolling contact fatigue. Thus, M-50NiL, carburized, may be useful for bearings where high tensile hoop stresses are developed, since fatigue cracks are slowed in the case by the residual compressive stresses, and fracture is resisted by the relatively tough core.     

The Small Fatigue Crack Growth Behavior of an AM60 Magnesium Alloy

The effects of thermomechanical processing and subsequent heat treatment on the small fatigue crack growth (FCG) behavior of an AM60 (Mg-6.29Al-0.28Mn wt pct) alloy were evaluated. The effects of mechanical loading parameters, such as maximum stress and load-ratio, on the small FCG behavior were also determined. Maximum stress did not appear to affect the crack propagation rate of small cracks in the stress and crack size ranges considered. Materials with different microstructures and yield stresses, introduced by different processing conditions, showed similar crack growth rates at equivalent stress intensity factor ranges. The effect of load ratio on small crack growth rates was recorded. Fracture surface characterization suggested that the fatigue crack propagation mechanism was a mixture of transgranular and intergranular cracking. Porosity and other material defects played respective important roles in determining the fatigue crack initiation and propagation behavior.     

Effect of thermal residual stresses on fatigue crack opening and propagation behavior in an Al/SiC p metal matrix composite

The effects of a thermal residual stress field on fatigue crack growth in a silicon carbide particle-reinforced aluminum alloy have been measured. Stress fields were introduced into plates of material by means of a quench from a solution heat-treatment temperature. Measurements using neutron diffraction have shown that this introduces an approximately parabolic stress field into the plates, varying from compressive at the surfaces to tensile in the center. Long fatigue cracks were grown in specimens cut from as-quenched plates and in specimens which were given a stress-relieving overaging heat treatment prior to testing. Crack closure levels for these cracks were determined as a function of the position of the crack tip in the residual stress field, and these are shown to differ between as-quenched and stress-relieved samples. By monitoring the compliance of the specimens during fatigue cycling, the degree to which the residual stresses close the crack has been evaluated. formerly Research Student, Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge formerly Lecturer, Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge This article is based on a presentation made in the symposium entitled “Creep and Fatigue in Metal Matrix Composites” at the 1994 TMS/ASM Spring meeting, held February 28–March 3, 1994, in San Francisco, California, under the auspices of the Joint TMS-SMD/ASM-MSD Composite Materials Committee.     

飞机机翼缘条紧固孔细节原始疲劳质量评估方法

为了对飞机机翼缘条紧固孔细节原始疲劳质量进行评估,本文首先对飞机机翼缘条结构中常用的BXXX铝合金紧固孔试件分别开展了高、中、低3种应力水平下的疲劳试验,通过断口判读和反推得到3组关于裂纹长度a和疲劳寿命t的（a?t）数据,在此基础上应用当量初始缺陷尺寸（EIFS）控制方程对每个试件的EIFS值进行计算并初步评估,验证了在不同应力水平下紧固孔结构细节的EIFS无显著性差异;得到了紧固孔结构细节的裂纹萌生时间（TTCI）分布,在指定应力水平下对紧固孔结构细节95%置信水平下的经济寿命进行预测,并与设计寿命进行对比,提出了一种不同超越概率P下的结构细节当量初始缺陷尺寸模型,基于给定5%的裂纹超越概率,对结构细节的通用EIFS分布进行评估。通过以上对飞机机翼缘条紧固孔细节原始疲劳质量的三重评估,得到综合评估结果:飞机机翼缘条紧固孔细节原始疲劳质量满足要求。      

逐层钻孔法测量P110级石油套管淬火残余应力分析

利用逐层钻孔法测试了直接淬火和水淬+空冷+水淬2种冷却工艺下的残余应力,分析了2种工艺下残余应力对裂纹产生和扩展的影响。结果表明:直接淬火工艺下,切向残余拉应力为229~281 MPa,轴向残余拉应力为191~237 MPa;水淬+空冷+水淬工艺下,切向残余应力为压应力,范围为-422~-185 MPa,轴向残余应力为拉应力,范围为90~190 MPa。与直接淬火工艺相比,优化冷却工艺使钢管切向应力变为压应力,轴向残余应力仍为拉应力但数值上减小,随孔深增加,轴向应力减小幅度趋于平缓,进而降低和缓解了钢管内微裂纹产生和扩展趋势。     

Hydride-Phase Formation and its Influence on Fatigue Crack Propagation Behavior in a Zircaloy-4 Alloy

The hydride-phase formation and its influence on the fatigue behavior of a Zircaloy-4 alloy charged with hydrogen gas are investigated. First, the microstructure and fatigue crack propagation rate of the alloy in the as-received condition are studied. Second, the formation and homogeneous distribution of the delta zirconium hydride in the bulk and its effect on the fatigue crack propagation rate are presented. The results show that in the presence of hydrides, the zirconium alloy exhibits reduced toughness and enhanced crack growth rates. Finally, the influence of a preexisting fatigue crack in the specimen and the subsequent hydride formation are examined. The residual lattice strain profile around the fatigue crack tip is measured using neutron diffraction. It is observed that the combined effects of residual strains and hydride precipitation on the fatigue behavior are more severe leading to propagation of the crack under near threshold loading.     

The effect of residual stress on the fatigue crack growth behavior of Al-Si-Mg cast alloys—Mechanisms and corrective mathematical models

The fatigue crack growth (FCG) behavior of various types of alloys is significantly affected by the presence of residual stress induced by manufacturing and post-manufacturing processes. There is a qualitative understanding of the effects of residual stress on fatigue behavior, but the effects are not comprehensively quantified or accounted for. The difficulty in quantifying these effects is largely due to the complexity of residual-stress measurements (especially considering that parts produced in similar conditions can have different residual-stress levels) and the lack of mathematical models able to convert experimental data with residual stress into residual-stress-free data. This article provides experimental, testing, and mathematical techniques to account for residual-stress effects on crack growth rate data, together with two methods for eliminating residual stresses in crack growth test specimens. Fracture-mechanics concepts are used to calculate, in simple and convenient ways, stress-intensity factors caused by residual stresses. The method is advantageous, considering that stress-intensity factors are determined before the actual test is conducted. Further on, residual-stress-intensity factors are used to predict the residual-stress distribution in compact tension (CT) specimens prior to testing. Five cast Al-Si-Mg alloys with three Si levels (in unmodified (UM) as well as Sr-modified (M) conditions) were analyzed both with and without residual stress. Fatigue cracks are grown under both constant stress ratio, R=0.1, and constant maximum stress-intensity factor, K _max = const., conditions. The mechanisms involved in crack growth through residual-stress fields are presented.     

Effect of Treatment Area on Residual Stress and Fatigue in Laser Peened Aluminum Sheets

Two 2.0-mm-thick aluminum sheets were laser peened and the resulting residual stresses were measured using incremental hole drilling, surface X-ray diffraction, and synchrotron X-ray diffraction techniques. Laser peening was applied to two samples using the same laser peening parameters, but one of the samples has a larger peened area. The aim of this research was to discover the effect of peen area on residual stress, for application in aerospace structures for fatigue life enhancement. It was found that a larger peened area has higher and deeper compressive stresses in the crack-opening direction, leading to greater enhancement of fatigue life.     

Effect of postweld treatment on the fatigue crack growth rate of electron-beam-welded AISI 4130 steel

This article studies the effect ofin-chamber electron beam and ex-chamber furnace postweld treatments on the fatigue crack growth rate of electron-beam-welded AISI 4130 steel. Mechanical properties of the weldment are evaluated by tensile testing, while the fatigue properties are investigated by a fatigue crack propagation method. Microstructural examination shows that both postweld treatments temper the weldment by the appropriate control of beam pattern width, input beam energy, and furnace temperature. In addition, the ductility, strength, and microhardness of the weldment also reflect this tempering effect. The fatigue crack growth rate is decreased after both postweld treatments. This is mainly caused by the existence of a toughened microstructure and relief of the residual stress due to the fact that (1) the residual stress becomes more compressive as more beam energy is delivered into the samples and (2) postweld furnace tempering effectively releases the tensile stress into a compressive stress state. Formerly Lecturer, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chung Cheng Institute of Technology     

Cyclic-Tension Fatigue Behavior in a Rolled AZ31B Magnesium Alloy Studied Using Ultrasonic Shear Waves

Nondestructive evaluation of cyclic-tension fatigue in a rolled magnesium alloy, Mg-3Al-1Zn, was performed using vertically polarized shear wave (SV) reflection and shear horizontal wave (SH) transmission methods. Internal friction measured by SV reflection increased rapidly in the early stages of the fatigue and finally saturated, showing dominating interactions of movable dislocations and twinning boundaries with the waves as acoustic nonlinearities. The propagation time and logarithmic damping ratio in the SH transmission method followed a repeated increase and subsequent sudden decrease pattern, and finally converged toward fatigue failure due to acoustoelasticity, which represents the interaction with residual stresses. The wave and phase data were determined using an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope, a surface roughness tester, and X-ray diffraction. The results demonstrated that during the fatigue process, residual stress accumulated on the compressive side of the specimen, despite the applied cyclic-tension loading. Brittle cracks that originated in inclusions provided sudden relief from the residual stress.     

Influence of residual stresses and loading frequencies on corrosion fatigue crack growth behavior of weldments

The effect of residual stresses and loading frequencies on corrosion fatigue crack growth behavior under synthetic seawater with a free corrosion potential was examined using center-cracked tension (CCT) and single edge-cracked tension (SECT) specimens machined from mild steel butt-welded joints and the parent material. A series of fatigue crack growth tests were carried out with a sinusoidal loading wave form at a stress ratio of 0.05 with a loading frequency of 0.017 to 6.7 Hz. The results show that the crack growth resistance of a weld metal in the SECT specimen is higher than that in the CCT specimen regardless of testing conditions. The discrepancy is attributed to the differences in residual stress distribution at the crack tip in the two specimen geometries. The crack growth rate of the weld metal in the CCT specimen in seawater increased with decreasing loading frequency. The acceleration of the crack growth rate may be related to the occurrence of brittle striation or cleavage due to hydrogen embrittlement. It was found that the corrosion fatigue crack growth rate of a welded joint with tensile residual stress can be predicted using the effective stress intensity factor range, which takes into account both the residual stress and the loading frequency effects.     

Evaluation of Residual Stress Development at the Interface of Plasma Electrolytically Oxidized and Cold-Worked Aluminum

Fatigue failure in hard oxide-coated aluminum is usually driven by rapid short crack propagation from the interface through the substrate; mitigation of this is possible by introducing interfacial compressive stresses. Combining cold work with hard oxide coating can improve their performance under conditions of simultaneous wear, corrosion, and fatigue. Three-dimensional strain fields in an aluminum alloy with combined cold work and PEO coating have been measured and mechanisms for stress redistribution presented. These comprise material consumption, expansive growth of oxide layers, and local annealing.     

Crack closure and residual stress effects in fatigue of a particle-reinforced metal matrix composite

A study of the influence of macroscopic quenching stresses on long fatigue crack growth in an aluminium alloy-SiC composite has been made. Direct comparison between quenched plate, where high residual stresses are present, and quenched and stretched plate, where they have been eliminated, has highlighted their rôle in crack closure. Despite similar strength levels and identical crack growth mechanisms, the stretched composite displays faster crack growth rates over the complete range of ΔK, measured at R = 0.1, with threshold being displaced to a lower nominal ΔK value. Closure levels are dependent upon crack length, but are greater in the unstretched composite, due to the effect of surface compressive stresses acting to close the crack tip. These result in lower values of ΔK_eff in the unstretched material, explaining the slower crack growth rates. Effective ΔK_th values are measured at 1.7 MPa√m, confirmed by constant K_max testing. In the absence of residual stress, closure levels of approximately 2.5 MPa√m are measured and this is attributed to a roughness mechanism.