Cycle Fatigue Life Research Articles

A fast prediction method of fatigue life for crane structure based on Stacking ensemble learning model

To quickly obtain the fatigue life of cranes in service, the metal structure that determines the crane life is anchored. Meanwhile, the fast prediction method of fatigue life of crane metal structures based on the Stacking ensemble learning model is proposed. Firstly, in line with the structural stress method, the global rough model of the metal structure is established by the co-simulation technology to obtain the fatigue damage regions of the structure. The local fine model is constructed by local cutting and boundary condition transplantation to determine the critical weld at the failure regions. Secondly, through weld definition, equivalent structural stress acquisition, and fatigue life calculation, the sample data set with lifting load and trolley running position as input and fatigue life cycle times as output is constructed. Then, the Stacking integrated learning model combining gradient boosting, ridge regression, Extra Trees, and linear is built. On this basis, combined with the Miner theory, the rapid prediction of crane fatigue life is realized. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the QD40t × 22.5 m × 9 m general bridge crane. The results show that the life sample set constructed by the structural stress method is more accurate and reasonable than the nominal, hot spot, and fracture mechanics methods. The life prediction results of the Stacking integration model were improved by 6.3 to 49.2% compared to the single model. The method has theoretical and practical significance in reducing accidents and ensuring the safe operation of cranes.

Assessment of dwell-fatigue properties of nickel-based superalloy coated with a multi-layered thermal and environmental barrier coating

A three-layered experimental thermal and environmental barrier coating (TEBC) was deposited using air plasma spraying technology on cylindrical specimens of nickel-based superalloy MAR-M247. TEBC consists of mullite (Al6Si2O13) and hexacelsian (BaAl2Si2O8) upper layer, Y2O3 stabilised ZrO2 interlayer and CoNiCrAlY bond coat deposited on the grit-blasted surface of MAR-M247. The cyclic plastic response and damage mechanisms in uncoated and TEBC-coated MAR-M247 have been studied in isothermal dwell-fatigue tests conducted under strain control with constant strain amplitude at 900 °C. In each cycle, 5-minute dwells were introduced in both tensile and compression peaks of the hysteresis loop. Fatigue hardening/softening curves, stress relaxation curves, cyclic stress-strain curves and fatigue life curves are reported. Ceaseless mild softening has been found in both uncoated and TEBC-coated MAR-M247. TEBC-coated MAR-M247 showed an improved lifetime in the whole range of tested strain amplitudes. Data obtained from stress relaxation curves were used to assess the fraction of creep damage. The generalised damage accumulation rule was used to evaluate damage due to fatigue-creep-environment interaction. A study of the surface relief and internal microstructure using SEM and TEM helped to interpret the specifics of fatigue behaviour of uncoated and TEBC-coated material. The effectiveness of this newly developed TEBC, together with the dwell sensitivity of MAR-M247, were discussed from the perspective relevant to dwell-fatigue cyclic straining.

Damage Proportion Analysis of the Combined High and Low Cycle Fatigue Based on the Continuum Damage Mechanics

ABSTRACTA combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) life prediction model, considering creep, low‐cycle fatigue (LCF), high‐cycle fatigue (HCF) at the maximum LCF nominal stress (HLCF) damages, and the interaction damage between LCF and HLCF, is proposed. The proportions for these four types of damage in total CCF damage are quantified. Compared with the existing CCF models, the CCF model proposed in this paper considers creep damage in CCF and has higher accuracy. The escalation in HCF stress amplitudes leads to reduced CCF life owing to the augmentation of HLCF and interaction damages. The increase in the cycle ratio of HCF to LCF, causing a reduction in CCF life is ascribed to elevated HLCF and creep damages. The calculated damage proportion results from the proposed model are consistent with the observations of the fracture characteristics using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), indicating the necessity of considering creep damage in CCF life prediction at high temperatures.

A novel approach for analyzing linear amplitude sweep (LAS) test data of asphalt binders

Fatigue cracking is one of the crucial distresses considered for the design of flexible pavements. The initiation of fatigue cracking occurs in the binder phase of an asphalt mixture. The linear amplitude sweep (LAS) test was developed to analyze the fatigue damage in the asphalt binder. AASHTO T391 provides a method to analyze the LAS test data by fitting a power equation between the fatigue parameter (G*sinδ) and damage intensity. This method has some inherent weaknesses of overfitting or underfitting of the data at different damage levels. This study proposes a new method where a total curve is divided into two parts that fit the data in two different equations and then sum them up. The first part comprises of the data up to cumulative damage corresponding to the maximum effective stress, and the second part consists of accumulated damage in the material till it reaches the maximum strain (30 %). This method is called the bifurcation method in this paper. LAS test data of 27 long-term aged bitumen samples having different physical properties is used to determine the number of fatigue life cycles (Nf) by these two methods, and results are compared in terms of mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), root mean square error (RMSE), and residual sum of squares (RSS). It is shown that there is a significant reduction in the errors when the data fitting was done using the proposed bifurcation method. Further, the ranking was allotted to the samples based on the number of fatigue life cycles (Nf) at three different strain levels (2.5 %, 5 %, and 10 %) at intermediate-temperature conditions estimated using two methods. The shift indicator parameter was used to analyze the variability in the ranking of the samples due to changes in the strain levels. The study concludes that the proposed bifurcation method fits the predicted values more accurately than the prescribed power law.

Experimental investigations on combined high and low cycle fatigue: Material-level specimen design and strain response characteristics

The paper designs a novel material-level specimen and its dedicated fixture suitable for applying Combined high- and low- Cycle Fatigue (CCF) loads. Unlike full-scale or simulation specimens, the CCF specimen eliminates geometrically induced stress gradients in the test region. Experimental data on CCF life and strain responses of ZSGH4169 alloy are acquired under different CCF loads. The Maximum Strain within Each(MSE) CCF cycle is demonstrated to be independent of the Low-Cycle Fatigue (LCF) loads and High-Cycle Fatigue (HCF) stress amplitudes, but exhibits a correlation with the Cycle Ratio of HCF/LCF (Rf). The growth law of MSE changes from linear to logarithmic as Rf decreases. Strain amplitudes in the dwell stage, observed unaffected by Rf, are quantified as a function of LCF nominal stresses and HCF stress amplitudes. However, under a defined CCF load, strain amplitudes in the dwell stage remain constant. Strain peaks in the dwell stage in a single CCF cycle decrease in a power function with increasing HCF cycles.

Study on the effects of bilateral laser-assisted cutting on surface integrity and fatigue life of FeCoCrNiAl0.6 alloy

This study investigates the impact of various cutting parameters in both unilateral and bilateral laser-assisted cutting processes on the surface integrity and fatigue life of FeCoCrNiAl0.6 high-entropy alloy. By utilizing ABAQUS/FE-SAFE simulations and conducting laser-assisted cutting and fatigue tensile tests, differences in surface quality and fatigue life cycles of FeCoCrNiAl0.6 alloy samples under different cutting scenarios were evaluated. The results indicate that in high-speed laser-assisted cutting, an increase in laser speed leads to a progressive decline in surface quality for both unilateral and bilateral methods. Nevertheless, at a laser speed of 4000 mm/s, optimal surface quality is achieved in both approaches, with the bilateral method consistently providing superior results across varying speeds. Regarding residual stress, unilateral laser-assisted cutting at 4000 mm/s produces a surface residual compressive stress of 532 MPa, which is twice as high as that observed at 10000 mm/s. The bilateral method shows a symmetric distribution of residual compressive stress, with peak values of 567 MPa and 528 MPa on the front and back surfaces, respectively. In terms of fatigue life, bilateral laser-assisted cutting demonstrates enhanced performance at 4000 mm/s, achieving a fatigue life cycle that is 4.72 times longer than that of the unilateral method. Overall, bilateral laser-assisted cutting improves the fatigue life of the material through symmetric thermal effects and higher residual compressive stress, particularly at lower laser speeds and optimal cutting depths.

An Experimental and Numerical Investigation on Fatigue Life Cycle of Leaf Spring

An Experimental and Numerical Investigation on Fatigue Life Cycle of Leaf Spring

A physics-informed deep learning approach for combined cycle fatigue life prediction

The prediction of the combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) life of welded components was valuable for the reliability of practical engineering structures. In this study, a physics-informed Grey-deep convolutional neural networks (DCNN) model was constructed and the model parameters was determined based on the fatigue behavior characteristics of CCF, which was proved perform well in the CCF life prediction of welded components. The predicted results indicated that the proposed model can realize reliable CCF life prediction with good accuracy (MAE = 0.49) and stability (RMSE = 0.44). Further, the proposed model also exhibited good prediction performance under different loading and geometry conditions, indicating the good universality of the proposed model. And the good universality represented that the proposed model had the potential to be applied in more engineering fields.

Simultaneous measurement of the distributed longitudinal strain and velocity field for a cantilevered cylinder exposed to turbulent cross flow

The structural response of a cantilevered cylinder under free-stream conditions both with low and high turbulence intensity generated by turbulence-generating grids is analysed with concurrent measurements of the velocity field and the distributed strain. The thin-walled cylinder, with a diameter (D) of 50 mm, is mounted in a water flume as a cantilevered beam supported at one end, with 95% of its body submerged and exposed to cross flow yielding a Reynolds number of Re = 25000. We employ a novel combination of simultaneous particle image velocimetry and distributed strain measurements using Rayleigh backscattering fibre optic sensors. These sensors are embedded onto the surface of the cylinder to measure the experienced strain (ε\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\varepsilon $$\\end{document}) of the structure along its spanwise direction, covering both the windward and leeward faces of the cylinder. The sensors fine spatial resolution allows us to discern the influence of the flow on the structural response of the cylinder in two distinct regions of the structure: upstream and downstream of the mean separation location. This differentiation allows us to isolate the local effects introduced by the free-stream conditions on the loading events over the body from the global force generated by the vortex shedding and other coherent motions present within the flow. Distinguishing between these direct and indirect effects helps determine which is more relevant for fatigue-life cycle analysis. The cross power spectral density between the fluctuating velocity field and the strain reveals that the load is dominated by the vortex shedding, and this relationship is intensified with the introduction of free-stream turbulence. It also helps to discern the different dynamics imposed by the two free-stream turbulence conditions.

Biomechanical Comparison of Three Locking Compression Plate Constructs from Three Manufacturers under Cyclic Torsional Loading in a Fracture Gap Model.

The aim of the study was to compare the stiffness and cyclic fatigue of locking compression plate constructs from three manufacturers, DePuy Synthes (DPS), Knight Benedikt (KB), and Provet Veterinary Instrumentation (Vi), under cyclic torsion. The constructs of DPS, KB, and Vi were assembled by fixing a 10-hole 3.5-mm stainless steel locking compression plate 1 mm away from a validated bone model with a fracture gap of 47 mm. The corresponding drill guides and locking screws were used. Three groups of six constructs were tested in cyclic torsion until failure. There was no significant difference in initial stiffness between DPS constructs (28.83 ± 0.84 N·m/rad) and KB constructs (28.38 ± 0.81 N·m/rad), and between KB constructs and Vi constructs (27.48 ± 0.37 N·m/rad), but the DPS constructs were significantly stiffer than the Vi constructs. The DPS constructs sustained the significantly highest number of cycles (24,833 ± 2,317 cycles) compared with KB constructs (16,167 ± 1,472 cycles) and Vi constructs (19,833 ± 4,792 cycles), but the difference between KB and Vi constructs was not significant. All constructs failed by screw damage at the shaft between the plate and the bone model. DPS constructs showed superior initial torsional stiffness and cyclic fatigue life than Vi constructs, whereas KB and Vi constructs shared comparable results. Further investigation is required to assess the clinical significance of these biomechanical differences.

Quasi-static tensile and fatigue behaviour of a metastable austenitic stainless Cr-Ni-Cu-N steel

The tensile as well as the fatigue behaviour of an experimental copper-alloyed metastable austenitic stainless steel has been investigated. Three batches were studied: (i) cast material as reference state and two states were recrystallised after (ii) rotary swaging and (iii) forward impact extrusion. Deformation-induced α’-martensite was formed during both rotary swaging and forward impact extrusion with volume fractions of 48 vol% and 4 vol%, respectively. The material was then heat treated to form a fine-grained, fully austenitic microstructure. These fine-grained material states exhibited a higher strength compared to the cast state. However, strain-hardening was highest in the cast state. The effect of the initial microstructure on the cyclic deformation behaviour and fatigue life was investigated using strain-controlled tests. During cyclic deformation all three states exhibited a martensitic phase transformation and concurrently a pronounced cyclic hardening with the formation of up to approximately 70 vol% α’-martensite. The fine-grained state produced by rotary swaging and reversion annealing showed a significantly higher fatigue life of about factor 4 compared to the coarse-grained cast state. Relative to forward impact extrusion, rotary swaging provided a higher fatigue life and fatigue strength.

Prediction of Short- to Long-Term Cyclic Deformation Behavior and Fatigue Life of Polymers.

The prediction of mechanical behavior and fatigue life is of major importance for design and for replacing costly and time-consuming tests. The proposed approach for polymers is a combination of a fatigue model and a governing constitutive model, which is formulated using the Haward-Thackray viscoplastic model (1968) and is capable of capturing large deformations. The fatigue model integrates high- and low-cycle fatigue and is based on the concept of damage evolution and a moving endurance surface in the stress space, therefore memorizing the load history without requesting vague cycle-counting approaches. The proposed approach is applicable for materials in which the fatigue development is ductile, i.e., damage during the formation of microcracks controls most of the fatigue life (up to 90%). Moreover, damage evolution shows a certain asymptote at the ultimate of the low-cycle fatigue, a second asymptote at the ultimate of the high-cycle fatigue (which is near zero), and a curvature of how rapidly the transition between the asymptotes is reached. An interesting matter is that similar to metals, many polymers satisfy these constraints. Therefore, all the model parameters for fatigue can be given in terms of the Basquin and Coffin-Manson model parameters, i.e., satisfying well-defined parameters.

Grain size sensitive modelling of the nonlinear behaviour and fatigue damage of Inconel 718 superalloy

Fatigue tests conducted on various types of materials often exhibit significant scatter, particularly in High Cycle Fatigue tests, attributed to imperfections located at the scale of the microstructure. In metallic materials, one contributor to this dispersion, but not the only one, is the variation in grain size, which cannot be uniform in a structure that has undergone a complex thermal history during its manufacturing process. This paper introduces a new model for predicting the evolution of the grain size in the nickel-based superalloy Inconel® 718 based on the applied thermal load and explores its impact on cyclic elasto-viscoplastic behaviour and fatigue life predictions. The proposed approach is applied to a complete numerical life analysis of an aircraft turbine disk.

Mechanical behavior of carbon nanotubes reinforced polymer

Abstract Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have garnered significant attention due to their extraordinary mechanical and other physical characteristics. This study demonstrates that incorporating a small number of carbon nanotubes, ranging from 0.1 to 0.9 wt.%, into a polymer, can effectively enhance its mechanical properties. In comparison to the pure polymer, the addition of −0.3 % carbon nanotubes resulted in a notable 24.1 % increase in tensile strength, a 4.4 % increase in compressive strength, a significant 319.5 % increase in the fatigue life cycle at 0.1 % carbon nanotubes, and a remarkable 43.0 % increase in fracture toughness at 0.3 wt.% carbon nanotubes.

Fatigue-induced fracture assessment for duplex stainless steel protruding tube-to-tubesheet welded joints in multiple-tube test specimen

A novel fatigue testing result and its numerical discussions are presented for protruding tube-to-tubesheet welded joints. The welded joint specimen is made up of an innovative stainless steel grade for pressure vessels of urea production plant, i.e., duplex stainless steel (DSS). Multiple-tube test specimen in which a bundle of tubes fabricated to the tubesheet by welding, is employed. During the fatigue test, several initial cracking positions were observed from the central tube and surrounding tubes. The crack propagation (CP) phenomena, i.e., CP from the central tube to surrounding tube and from the surrounding tube to central tube, were characterized for the multiple-tube problem. Two types of fracture pattern were occurred. These distinctive cracking behaviors are studied using numerical analyses, i.e., FEM stress analysis and X-FEM CP simulation. The possible crack initiating positions as well as the fracture patterns are identified based on the stress distributions. The CP behaviors between the tubes are carefully examined using stress intensity factor (SIF). Additionally, fatigue life cycles and fatigue resistance of the specimen are discussed. The fatigue-induced fracture of the DSS specimen is rigorously investigated and presented using the experimental and numerical methods.

Effect of warp yarn paths on the symmetrical cyclic bending fatigue properties of 3D woven composites

AbstractIn this study, the symmetric cyclic bending fatigue properties of three‐dimensional (3D) woven composites under the condition of R = −1 were investigated. Three types of 3D preform structures with different warp yarn paths were designed, and a bending fatigue testing fixture suitable for 3D woven composites under R = −1 conditions was developed. In addition, the bending fatigue properties, damage mechanisms, and failure modes of three composites were studied. The results showed that the warp yarn paths were responsible for the differences in quasi‐static bending properties. The bending fatigue properties were related to the warp yarn paths and applied stress. Satin woven (SW) structure had the highest bending fatigue failure strain value, followed by the twill woven (TW) structure, and the plain woven (PW) structure had the lowest. The bending fatigue limits of PW, TW, and SW structures were 40% (136 N), 40% (210.5 N), and 16% (119.4 N) stress levels, respectively. The bending fatigue failure mode of 3D woven composites was softening failure under the condition R = −1.Highlights The warp yarn paths significantly affects the quasi‐static bending properties. A symmetrical cyclic bending fatigue testing fixture was developed. The symmetrical cyclic bending fatigue life of 3D woven composites was obtained. SW composites have the highest bending fatigue failure strain value. The symmetrical cyclic bending fatigue failure modes were softening failures.

A reliability analysis and optimization method for a turbine shaft under combined high and low cycle fatigue loading

AbstractThe combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) loading condition and random uncertainty exert a considerable impact on the design of turbine shafts. To enhance the fatigue life and reliability, this research proposes a CCF reliability analysis and optimization method for turbine shafts. A CCF fatigue reliability analysis framework is established, which focuses on the quantification of CCF loading characteristics and random uncertainty. The consideration of CCF loading characteristics contain the loading frequency ratio of high cycle fatigue (HCF) to low cycle fatigue (LCF), the stress amplitude ratio of HCF to LCF, as well as their interaction. The consideration of random uncertainty contains material, geometry and load, and a surrogate model‐based method is introduced to improve the quantification efficiency. Through the validation by comparing with experimental data and traditional methods, the proposed method is with higher accuracy and efficiency. By integrating the proposed fatigue reliability analysis method with design optimization, optimal design values for the turbine shaft were identified. This method theoretically extends the shaft's CCF life and provides practical engineering guidance for its reliability analysis and design.

Multiaxial low cycle fatigue behavior and life prediction of wire arc additive manufactured 308L stainless steel

Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) is a technique that has gained popularity in various industrial sectors due to its high productivity and flexibility. However, the comprehension of cyclic deformation and fatigue behaviors in WAAM austenitic stainless steel (SS), particularly under complex multiaxial loading conditions, is much less advanced compared to conventional manufacturing methods. This study aims to fill some of these gaps by performing fatigue tests of WAAM 308L SS under axial, torsional and axial–torsional multiaxial loadings. Similar tests were carried out on the hot-rolled 308L SS as a basis for comparison. WAAM 308L SS exhibits notable distinctions in cyclic deformation, fatigue life, cracking mode and fatigue failure mechanisms compared to its hot-rolled counterparts as a result of its distinct manufacturing technologies and resulting microstructures. To assess all fatigue life data, three critical plane criteria, namely FS, SWT and CXH criteria, were employed. The CXH model, which considers the effects of both tensile and shear damage on fatigue properties, has the ability to predict the fatigue life of both hot-rolled and WAAM 308L SS.

Ultrasonic fatigue testing of AISI 304 and 316 stainless steels under environmental and immersion conditions

Ultrasonic fatigue tests were carried out on stainless steel AISI 316 and 304, under two modalities: at room temperature and in immersion (water for 316 and antifreeze for 304 steels); all tests were carried out with a loading ratio R=-1. The results obtained in the tests at room temperature (without immersion), for both materials exhibited a significant increase in temperature, leaving heat marks on the narrow section of the specimens. This phenomenon occurred due to the low coefficient of thermal conductivity of these stainless steels (16.2 W/ (m °K)), and the recorded temperatures were around 200 °C, generating instantaneous failure of material. Analyzes of fracture surfaces on specimens tested at room temperature reveal that crack initiation was related to the high temperature, causing alteration at the granular scale of the material, followed by a typical behavior crack propagation and failure. For specimens tested under immersion conditions, it was possible to reduce the temperature below 100 °C, which solved the problem of failure due to thermal effect. The results for 316 stainless steel immersed in water showed a fatigue life of 1.188×1010 cycles at188 MPa of stress loading in the specimen; while specimens subjected to 263 MPa stress showed a fatigue life of around 7×106 cycles, representing a significant reduction with an approximate factor of 1700. On the other hand, specimens of 304 stainless steel immersed in antifreeze with the lowest loading values of 169 MPa, showing an infinite ultrasonic fatigue life; while tests subjected to 263 MPa loading stress attains 3.62×106 cycles of ultrasonic fatigue life. The scanning electron microscopy visualizations for both cases of immersion tests showed that the initiation and propagation of the crack occurred on the surface of the specimens, exhibiting the typical mechanical fracture behavior without any apparent thermal influence.

A modified nonlinear cumulative damage model for combined high and low cycle fatigue life prediction

AbstractAero‐engine turbine blades are subject to combined high and low cycle fatigue (CCF) loadings during operations. In this paper, a modified nonlinear cumulative damage model is developed based on linear damage accumulation theory and static toughness exhaustion to predict the CCF life of turbine blades and common blade materials. An interaction factor is created to reflect the integrated effect of high cycle fatigue and low cycle fatigue (HCF‐LCF). Available test data from TC4 alloy and other two alloy materials, together with two turbine blades are utilized to validate the robustness and accuracy of the proposed approach. Comparative results demonstrate that the proposed model holds better performance in life predictions under CCF loadings.