Effect of stress parameters on ratcheting deformation stages of polycrystalline OFHC copper

Engineering stress‐controlled ratcheting tests under different sets of stress amplitudes and mean stresses show that ratcheting deformation in polycrystalline OFHC copper occurs in three different stages. A plateau region with almost no accumulation of inelastic strain follows general ratcheting deformation during initial loading cycles. With breakdown of the plateau region inelastic ratcheting deformation occurs at an increasingly rapid rate. The effect of the stress amplitude on the ratcheting process is found to be more than mean stress effect. Reconstruction of the ratcheting curves clearly separates the conditions for stress‐controlled low cycle fatigue with zero mean stress and ratcheting with tensile mean stress.