High temperature fatigue behaviour of intermetallics

There would be considerable benefits in developing new structural materials where high use temperatures and strength coupled with low density are minimum capabilities. Nickel and titanium aluminides exhibit considerable potential for near-term application in various branches of modern industry due to the number of property advantages they possess including low density, high melting temperature, high thermal conductivity, and excellent environmental resistance, and their amenability for significant improvment in creep and fatigue resistance through alloying. Reliability of intermetallics when used as engineering materials has not yet been fully established. Ductility and fracture toughness at room and intermediate temperatures continue to be lower than the desired values for production implementation. In this paper, progress made towards improving strain-controlled fatigue resistance of nickel and titanium aluminides is outlined. The effects of manufacturing processes and micro alloying on low cycle fatigue behaviour of NiAl are addressed. The effects of microstructure, temperature of testing, section thickness, brittle to ductile transition temperature, mean stress and environment on fatigue behaviour of same γ-TiAl alloys are discussed.