Stress ratio effect on fatigue crack growth assessment via thermoelastic stress analysis

Abstract

The fatigue performance of welded joint is strongly dependent on welding residual stresses as well as the local geometry of the weld toes. To ensure the structural integrity over time of such components, fine predictive models must be proposed together with efficient experimental methods for their assessment.This study introduces a model based on linear elastic fracture mechanics to forecast fatigue life in service of high strength steel welded joints. This model considers the effect of the local stress ratio (dependent on stabilized residual stresses) on the crack growth rate through the definition of an effective stress range. The use of Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA) is used to perform in-situ monitoring of fatigue cracks on welded joints to experimentally characterize the crack-closure phenomenon at different load ratios. Indeed, under adiabatic conditions, the temperature's first harmonic at the surface of a structure submitted to cyclic loading is proportional to the stress tensor's first invariant's amplitude. As a result, the presence of a surface crack and the non-linearity induced by the alterative opening and closing within one loading cycle can be observed in the immediate temperature response. This phenomenon is used to evaluate a crack-opening rate that is related to the fatigue life of the welded joints.