Peridynamic modeling of hydrogen-assisted white etching cracks in bearing steel under rolling contact fatigue

Abstract

A coupled mechanical-diffusion peridynamic(PD) fatigue model is proposed to simulate hydrogen-assisted white etching cracks(WEC) in bearing steel under rolling contact fatigue(RCF). The PD model of microstructural alteration is established based on the dislocation-assisted carbon migration theory to simulate the formation of the dark etching region(DER) and white etching area(WEA), and its validity is demonstrated by reported experimental observations. The PD stress-assisted diffusion model is utilized to simulate the diffusion of hydrogen. Then the polycrystalline fatigue simulation is implemented to analyze the evolution of hydrogen-assisted WEC. Moreover, this study discusses the effects of contact conditions and internal inclusions on WEC evolution.