Total Strain Amplitude Research Articles

Effect of Pt-Al coating on low-cycle fatigue behavior in a Ni-based single crystal superalloy at 760 °C

The effect of Pt-Al coating on low-cycle fatigue behavior of Ni-based single crystal superalloy at 760 °C was evaluated. The results show that Pt-Al coating does not change the cyclic stress response behavior of the Ni-based single crystal superalloy at 760 °C. Under the total strain amplitude from 0.6 % to 1.2 %, the cyclic stress amplitude value of Pt-Al coating samples is slightly lower than uncoated samples during cyclic deformation at the stable stage under the same applied total strain amplitude, and the fatigue life of Pt-Al coating samples is lower than uncoated ones, with an average fatigue life reduction of about 19.9 %. By the relation curve of comparing the cyclic strain amplitude with the reversals to failure, it is observed that the fatigue ductility coefficient ε′f of the Pt-Al coating sample is higher than the uncoated sample, the fatigue ductility index c and fatigue strength coefficient σ′f are lower than the uncoated sample, but the fatigue strength index b has little difference. It is found that the cyclic strength coefficient K′ and the cyclic strain hardening index n' of the Pt-Al coating sample are lower than the uncoated sample after fitting the curves of the relationship between cyclic stress amplitude and total strain amplitude. In addition, the cyclic stress amplitude of Pt-Al coating sample is slightly lower than uncoated sample under the same applied total strain amplitude. It was found by SEM that the cracks of both uncoated and Pt-Al coating samples initialized near the surface of the samples under low-cycle fatigue loading at 760 °C, and multiple crack sources began to spread into the substrate. It was found by TEM observation that at low strain amplitude (Δεt/2 = 0.6 %), the dislocations in both uncoated and Pt-Al coating samples mainly converged in γ, and a large number of dislocation debris gathered in the γ and dislocation entanglement was generated, while a small number of dislocations were observed to cut into γ'. The γ′ is seriously deformed and slightly rafted at Δεt/2 = 1.2 %, and a few dislocations are also observed in γ'.

Low cycle fatigue behavior and failure mechanism of 34CrNiMo6 steel used as connecting rod for diesel engine

Abstract In this paper, for the 34CrNiMo6 steel material used in diesel engine connecting rods, the low-cycle fatigue properties and failure mechanism were studied. The metallographic structure of 34CrNiMo6 has been investigated by using optical microscopes, scanning electron microscopes, and transmission electron microscopes. Tensile tests and low-cycle fatigue experiments were performed at different levels of strain amplitudes, and the microstructural changes were monitored. The examination indicates that the structure of 34CrNiMo6 steel consisted primarily of a ferrite base and small spherical and rod-shaped carbides, with a mean particle size measuring 2 μm. It had exceptional mechanical characteristics of high strength and moderate plasticity. The total strain amplitude (TSA) of 34CrNiMo6 steel affected the cycling behavior, which was stable at low TSA (0.2% ~ 0.3%). At high TSA (0.4% ~ 0.7%), a large number of dislocations were annihilated through the dynamic recovery process, showing a typical cyclic softening phenomenon. The low-cycle fatigue failure behavior was mainly a combined mode of quasi-cleavage fracture and cross-grain fracture.

Effect of hold-type on cyclic life and microstructural evolution of an austenitic stainless steel

The present work investigates the effect of different type of hold on the change in microstructure and cyclic life. i.e., number of cycles to failure of the 304LN grade austenitic stainless steel at an elevated temperature. The strain-controlled low cycle fatigue and creep-fatigue interaction tests were carried out in air at 540 °C for constant total strain amplitude levels of ± 0.5 % and ± 0.7 %. The duration of hold-time was maintained at a constant level of 600 s at peak tensile, compressive and both peak tensile-compressive strain during different creep-fatigue interaction tests. Due to incorporation of creep damage, the cyclic life of the creep-fatigue interaction-tested samples has been found to be lower than that of the low cycle fatigue-tested samples. The tensile-hold appears to have maximum impact on reduction in cyclic life during creep-fatigue interaction tests followed by tension-compression hold and compressive hold. The scanning electron microscopy and electron back scattered diffraction analyses of creep-fatigue interaction-tested samples have revealed that the grain size coarsening, reduction in twin boundary fraction and increase in average Kernel Average Misorientation are the key factors in reduction of cyclic life.

A comparison of conventional and additively manufactured 316L under thermomechanical fatigue

The present study compares the thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) behaviour of 316L stainless steel manufactured conventionally by hot rolling and additively by laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF). Machined cylindrical specimens were tested under strain-controlled in-phase and out-of-phase TMF loading at a temperature range of 550–750 °C and total mechanical strain amplitudes of εamech = 0.2–0.6 %. While the conventional 316L significantly outperforms the L-PBF 316L under in-phase TMF, their lifetimes are comparable under out-of-phase TMF. Under in-phase TMF, creep damage in the form of intergranular crack networks occurs which is significantly more pronounced for the L-PBF 316L due to the higher amount of interfaces. Under out-of-phase TMF, the damage is mostly due to stress-assisted oxide cracking and the crack propagation is fatigue-dominated. TEM inspection revealed that L-PBF 316L exhibits a cellular dislocation structure in the initial state, which rearranges only slightly during cycling. For conventional 316L similar dislocation cells form during TMF cycling indicating that they represent a stable dislocation arrangement in 316L under TMF loading. This is evidenced by the rather stable cyclic stress response of the L-PBF material when compared to the conventional material.

Application of Instrumented Indentation Procedure in Assessing the Low-Cycle Fatigue Properties of Selected Heat-Treated Steels.

The paper presents an analysis of the low-cycle fatigue (LCF) properties of C45, X20Cr13, and 34CrNiMo6 steels subjected to various heat treatment processes. Strain-controlled LCF tests were carried out with a total cyclic strain amplitude equal to 0.5, 1 and 1.5%. Fatigue life, cyclic stress-strain behavior and hardness were analyzed. Qualitative and quantitative relationships between material LCF properties resulting from the heat treatment processes, were related to the indentation force P*, which was derived experimentally by applying an instrumented indentation procedure with the use of the Vickers indenter. The proposed parameter P* and its changes ΔP* seem to be promising for the identification of the structural stress parameter σ* that is necessary for deriving values of the fatigue strength coefficients σf' corresponding to different tempering temperatures. The common feature of all steels analyzed in this paper is that the elastic parts of the strain-life characteristics remain parallel after being subjected to different tempering temperatures.

Comparison of low cycle fatigue behaviour of additively manufactured and wrought Inconel625 alloys

The present investigation highlights a comparison of strain-controlled low cycle fatigue (LCF) behaviour between the additively manufactured (AM) and wrought (WR) Inconel625 alloys at the total strain amplitude levels of ±0.4, ±0.5, ±0.6 and ±0.8 % at 650 °C. The cyclic life has been found to be lower in the AM alloy as compared to the WR alloy. The evolution of precipitates such NbC and γ″ are found in both type of alloys after LCF tests. However, the AM alloy has shown a significant presence of (Cr,Mo)23C6 along the grain boundaries, which acts as a potential source of generation of the intergranular cracks during cyclic deformation. Although, a relatively fine grain structure and enhanced number density of high-angle boundaries have been identified in the LCF-tested samples of AM alloy through EBSD analyses, the formation of intergranular cracks in the AM alloy has resulted in the reduction of cyclic life of the AM alloy.

Effects of two-step austempering processes on the wear resistance and fatigue lifetime of high-carbon nanostructured bainitic steel

The previous research on two-step austempering processes have been mainly focused on the bainitic transformation kinetics, with few details the relationships between the parameters of two-step austempering process and the wear properties and fatigue lifetime. In this paper, the effects of two-step austempering process on wear resistance and fatigue life of high carbon nano-bainite steel were investigated. The results show that the first-step bainite with high volume fraction prolongs the total bainite transformation time. The two-step austempering samples contain finer bainitic ferrite plate and higher volume fraction of retained austenite, as well as resent excellent hardnesses, tensile properties, wear resistance and fatigue lifetime. In particular, the wear resistance of the 50%-290 °C sample is better than that of the 210 °C sample, this is caused by the transformation of the high fraction of retained austenite in the two-step austempering samples into hard martensite and the microstructure refinement zone that forms on the surface of the sample during the wear process. The 50%-290 °C sample have better fatigue properties at low total strain amplitudes (0.7% and 0.8%). When the total strain amplitude is 0.7%, the fatigue life of the 50%-290 °C sample is 57.5% higher than that of the 210 °C sample, which is because of the higher yield strength and finer microstructure of the 50%-290 °C sample. These results support the later study of controlling two-step austempering process for high-carbon nanostructured steels.

Understanding the influence of environmental conditions on the low cycle fatigue behaviour of high strength low alloy (HSLA) steel under air and corrosive (3.5% NaCl) conditions

Offshore structures which are made up of high-strength low alloy (HSLA) steel experience fatigue load due to sea waves and corrosion. In the present work, the influence of environmental conditions (air and 3.5 % NaCl solution) on the strain-controlled fatigue life of High Strength Low Alloy (HSLA) steel has been determined. Low cycle fatigue experiments were conducted on HSLA steel specimens of 12 mm diameter which were prepared parallel to the rolling direction. The strain amplitude was varied in the range of 0.4 to 0.7 % for a constant test frequency of 0.3 Hz. For all the total strain amplitudes (Δεt/2), a significant reduction in fatigue life was observed while testing the specimens under the presence of 3.5 % NaCl solution compared to the air environment. Microscopic investigation indicates that rigorous grain boundary oxidation has happened, and it has created the grain boundary cracking and several sites for fatigue crack initiation and propagation. The presence of corrosive compounds (Fe2O3, FeOOH) was also confirmed by the X-ray diffraction patterns. In addition, mixed modes (transannular and intergranular) of fractures were observed due to the presence of 3.5 % NaCl solution.

A Comprehensive Review of Fatigue Strength in Pure Copper Metals (DHP, OF, ETP)

Due to their exceptional electrical and thermal conductivity properties, high-purity copper (Cu-DHP) and copper alloys of similar composition, such as electrolytic tough-pitch (ETP), oxygen-free electronic (OFE) and oxygen-free (OF), have often been used in the manufacture of essential components for the electrical, electronic and power generation industries. Since these components are subject to cyclic loads in service, they can suffer progressive structural damage that causes failure due to fatigue. The purpose of this review is to examine the most relevant aspects of mechanical fatigue in Cu-DHP, ETP, OFE and OF. The impact of many factors on fatigue strength (Se), including the frequency, temperature, chemical environment, grain size, metallurgical condition and load type, were analyzed and discussed. Stress–life (S-N) curves under zero mean stress (σm = 0) were found for high-cycle fatigue (HCF). For non-zero mean stress (σm ≠ 0), stress curves were based on a combination of Gerber, Soderberg and ASME elliptic failure criteria. Stress–life (S-N) curves were also developed to correlate fatigue strength (Se) with stress amplitude (σa), yield strength (Syp) and ultimate strength (Sut). Finally, for low-cycle fatigue (LCF), strain–life (ε-N) curves that establish a relationship between the number of cycles to failure (N) and total strain amplitude (εplastic) were determined. Hence, this review, as well as the proposed curves, provide valuable information to understand fatigue failure for these types of materials.

Effect of Al on the low cycle fatigue deformation behavior and microstructure evolution of Fe–22Mn-0.6C TWIP steel

The dependence of low cycle fatigue (LCF) behavior and microstructure evolution of Fe–22Mn-0.6C twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP) steel on the alloying element Al has been investigated under fully reversed total strain amplitude control with a nominal strain rate of 0.006 s−1 and strain amplitudes ranging from 0.002 to 0.010 at room temperature. The results indicate a strong dependence of LCF response and evolved microstructure on the addition of Al, owing to its effect on the stacking fault energy (SFE). At all strain amplitudes, the 3Al steel with a higher SFE exhibits a visibly lower cyclic hardening and a higher cyclic softening, resulting in a lower cyclic yield strength than the 0Al steel. As compared with the 0Al steel, the relatively higher SFE of the 3Al steel causes higher accumulated plastic strain, decreased slip planarity and weaker reversibility of dislocations, thereby decreasing the fatigue life. The optical microstructure is featured by increase in slip band density with increasing strain amplitude for both steels. However, the slip band density of the 3Al steel is higher than that of the 0Al steel. Moreover, cyclic loading promotes the formation of dislocation cells, rough labyrinths as well as planar dislocation arrays. Deformation twins are observed only in the 0Al steel with a visible lower critical twinning stress due to its low SFE as compared to the 3Al steel.

Low cycle fatigue behavior and life prediction of a directionally solidified alloy

Low cycle fatigue behavior and life prediction of a directionally solidified alloy

Effect of prefatigue deformation on the uniaxial tensile properties of a dilute Cu-Al alloy

To examine the influence of prefatigue on the uniaxial tensile properties of a Cu-3at%Al alloy with a high stacking fault energy (SFE), the prefatigued tests are carried out at different total strain amplitudes ranging from 1.0 × 10−3 to 5.0 × 10−3 up to the same accumulated plastic strain of 31, and uniaxially tensile tests are subsequently conducted on these prefatigued alloy specimens. With increasing strain amplitude, the induced fatigue dislocation structures change from elongated veins and planar stacking faults to dislocation walls and cells. For the Cu-3at%Al alloy specimen prefatigued at an intermediate Δεt/2 of 2.3 × 10−3, the induced microstructure consists of loose cells, walls and few ill-developed persistent slip bands, which allows for an increase in dislocation storage rate but nearly does not affect dislocation annihilation rate during tensile deformation, thus exhibiting a higher strain hardening capability; therefore, the tensile strength can be improved nearly without loss of uniform elongation compared to the unfatigued specimen. In a word, an appropriate low-cycle prefatigue treatment can cause, to some extent, a strengthening effect on the static mechanical properties of high SFE metals, but such a strengthening effect is not as significant as the case for low SFE metals.

Experimental investigation on the low cycle fatigue performance and fractographic analysis of deep cryogenic treated 6063 aluminium alloy

The influence of soaking time in Deep Cryogenic Treatment (DCT) on the fatigue behaviour of Al 6063 aluminium alloy was investigated. The aluminium rods were subjected to the deep cryogenic treatment for 2, 4, 6, 16, and 24 hrs. The low cycle fatigue behaviour of DCT-treated samples were analyzed using the 25 kN nano fatigue testing machine at the total strain amplitude of 0.4% and cyclic frequency of 0.3 Hz. CT 6 sample retained a higher fatigue life of 2216 cycles than CT 2, 4, 16, and 24 samples which had cycles to failure of about 1392, 1723, 1249, and 364, respectively. Cyclic stabilization was observed through the stress-strain curve, and the mean stress response of DCT samples exhibited a compressive nature during fatigue loading. The plastic strain amplitude response of the CT 6 sample showed a more stabilized response among DCT samples until crack initiation. Fractography reveals the origin and propagation of cracks along with fatigue striations and final fracture of DCT samples. The final fracture of CT 16 and CT 24 samples exhibited microvoid formation due to higher immersion time, whereas CT 2, CT 4, and CT 6 samples had a transgranular fracture. XRD analysis of DCT samples confirmed the formation of Mg2Si, which leads to improved fatigue properties and hardness in DCT samples.

Dislocation-density-related constitutive model and its applicability to cyclic deformation and damage behavior of 316LN SS at 823 K

In the present investigation, an in-depth understanding of the relationship between dislocation kinetics and cyclic plasticity, along with the description of yield asymmetry behavior during loading and unloading in nuclear grade 316LN austenitic stainless steel at 823 K, was examined by employing a constitutive framework using the evolution of physically-based internal-state variables. The formulation encompassed a set of first-order simultaneous differential equations that governed the evolution of dislocation density, mean free path of dislocations, and back stress. These variables were interdependent with the power law which described the kinetics of plastic strain rate. The evolution equations were numerically integrated, and the simulated data were fitted to the experimental data up to stabilized cycle at a temperature of 823 K and total strain amplitudes of ±0.004, ±0.006, ±0.008 and ± 0.010. The predicted cyclic stress response as a function of the cyclic number displayed the continuous cyclic hardening from the first cycle to the initiation of stabilized cycle. Further, good agreement between the predicted and experimental hysteresis loops was found at different cycle numbers. The predicted dislocation density and tensile peak values of back/effective stress increased with cyclic hardening and approached the value of saturation at the stabilized cycle. On the other hand, a rapid decrease in mean free path with cycle number was noticed. An increase in total strain amplitude resulted in a systematic increase in dislocation density, peak stress, back stress and effective stress. At the total strain amplitudes above ±0.006, the predicted higher rates of dislocation accumulation and annihilation, and the faster evolution rate of back stress towards saturation led to the development of stable dislocation substructure configurations with a clear distinction between dislocation high/low dense regions. Furthermore, the applicability of the model was extended by including an empirical relationship between the damage variable and cycle number within the power law, thereby enabling predictions of the cyclic stress-strain response beyond the stabilized cycle.

Effect of Shot Peening on the Low-Cycle Fatigue Behavior of an AA2519-T62 Friction-Stir-Welded Butt Joint.

In this investigation, an AA2519-T62 FSW butt joint was subjected to shot peening with an air pressure of p = 0.6 MPa, a processing time of t = 10 min (per side), and a steel ball diameter of dk = 1.5 mm. In order to evaluate the impact of shot peening on the low-cycle behavior, the samples were tested with coefficient R = 0.1 at total strain amplitudes of 0.35%, 0.4%, and 0.5%. The shot-peened welds are characterized by a higher value of stress amplitude, a lower value of plastic strain amplitude, and their fatigue life increased slightly. The cyclic strength coefficient and the cyclic strain hardening exponent were reduced by 45% and 55%, respectively, as the result of the surface layer hardening. The shot peening process had no noticeable effect on the character of crack initiation and propagation. Almost in all cases, the cracking started in the area under the weld face, located close to the boundary between the thermo-mechanically affected zone and the stir zone at the advancing side. Only at the heaviest loadings (εac = 0.5%) were cracks initiated in the heat-affected zone at the retreating side. Despite the introduction of small cracks in the stir zone, their presence did not affect the decohesion character of the welded joint. Overall, it was observed that there is a minimal, positive impact of shot peening on the properties of the investigated joints.

Studies on high-temperature fatigue behaviour and mechanism for conventionally cast and directed energy deposited forms of Alloy 625

The aim of the present work is to study the low cycle fatigue (LCF) and creep-fatigue interaction (CFI) behaviour of two product forms of Alloy 625. Experiments were performed under total strain control mode using triangular and trapezoidal waveforms under complete reverse loading with R = −1, with a total strain amplitude of ±0.25 %, ±0.4 % and ±0.6 % employing a constant strain rate of 3 × 10−3 s−1 over a temperature range of 298 to 973 K. The additive manufacturing process using the directed energy deposition (DED) technique resulted in an improved fatigue life as compared with the conventional casting (CCA) route. Microstructural analysis using electron back scatter diffraction indicated that an alternating strain got generated within the microstructure and the damage was observed as a strain incompatibility within the partitioned regions of fine and neighbouring coarser grains. The preferred columnar growth occurred in the 〈001〉 direction. Inter-dendritic decohesions were attributed to the Mo, Nb and Ti enrichments. While at ambient temperature, an inter-dendritic de-cohesion and strain incompatibility was the cause for final failure, the occurrence of additional time dependent phenomena such as dynamic strain ageing (DSA), oxidation and creep triggered an earlier fatigue failure at elevated temperatures.

Influence of 0.5% Ag Addition on Low-Cycle Fatigue Behavior of Hot-Extruded Al-5Cu-0.8Mg-0.15Zr-0.2Sc Alloy Subjected to Peak-Aging Treatment

The total strain amplitude controlled low-cycle fatigue tests were performed at room temperature and 200 °C to clarify the influence of 0.5% Ag addition on the low-cycle fatigue behavior of an Al-5Cu-0.8Mg-0.15Zr-0.2Sc (in wt.%) alloy subjected to the peak-aging treatment after hot extrusion and solid solution treatment. The experimental results demonstrate that during low-cycle fatigue deformation, peak-aged Al-5Cu-0.8Mg-0.15Zr-0.2Sc(-0.5Ag) alloys exhibit cyclic hardening, cyclic stability, or cyclic hardening followed by cyclic stability, depending on the Ag addition, imposed total strain amplitude, and testing temperature. The addition of 0.5% Ag greatly increases the low-cycle fatigue life of peak-aged Al-5Cu-0.8Mg-0.15Zr-0.2Sc alloy, where the maximum rising amplitude is about 126.7% at ambient temperature and approximately 90.1% at 200 °C. Furthermore, it has been discovered that the addition of 0.5% Ag has no effect on the beginning and spreading modes of low-cycle fatigue fractures. For the peak-aged Al-5Cu-0.8Mg-0.15Zr-0.2Sc(-0.5Ag) alloys subjected to low-cycle fatigue deformation at different total strain amplitudes and testing temperatures used in this investigation, fatigue cracks initiate trans granularly at the free surface of the fatigue specimen and propagate in a trans granular mode.

Low cycle fatigue response and fracture mechanism in a novel Al-3.5Si-0.5Mg-0.4Cu casting alloy

The LCF (low-cycle fatigue) behavior of a T6-treated low silicon cast aluminum alloy Al-3.5Si-0.5Mg-0.4Cu was investigated under axial symmetric tension-compression cyclic loading conditions. LCF behavior and results of experiment (under 6 different total strain amplitudes from 0.25 % to 0.5 %) are included. OM (Optical Microscopy), SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope), XRD (X-Ray Diffraction) and TEM (Transmission Electron Microscope) are employed to observe and analyze the fracture morphology and microstructure evolution. The results demonstrate that cracks were initiated from surface or subsurface defects. A higher total strain amplitude led to a smaller sum area of fatigue crack initiation region as well as a steady crack propagation regime, and a larger fatigue striation bandwidth. Furthermore, crack propagates along the interface between eutectic silicon and α-Al matrix under lower strain amplitudes. Otherwise, it extends through eutectic silicon particles if higher strain amplitudes are applied.

Characterization of fatigue behavior of AA2024‐T351 aluminum alloy

AbstractThe paper aims to investigate the fatigue behavior of the widely used AA2024‐T351 aluminum alloy in the aircraft industry. An experimental program was conducted to study the fatigue life and damage behavior under symmetrical tensile‐compressive loading. Cyclic tests in the low cycle fatigue regime were performed under fully reversed total strain amplitudes from 0.6% to 1.2%. The AA2024‐T351 alloy exhibited cyclic hardening until failure. Symmetric high cycle fatigue tests were also performed and the parameters for fatigue life estimation using the Manson–Coffin–Basquin model were identified. Elasto‐plastic behavior was analyzed through stress–strain hysteresis loops, evaluating kinematic and isotropic hardenings. Kinematic hardening was found to be strain amplitude dependent, unlike the isotropic hardening. The evolution of the isotropic variable with the percentage of fatigue life could be described by an exponential law. Fractography investigations showed crack initiation at the specimen border with quasi‐cleavage and then crack propagating by striation before ductile fracture.

Influence of mean stress and pressurized water reactor environment on the fatigue behavior of a 304L austenitic stainless steel

AbstractUniaxial strain‐controlled fatigue tests were carried out on a 304L austenitic stainless‐steel specimens in air at 300°C and in pressurized water reactor (PWR), without or with the application of a mean stress, at different total strain amplitudes. For strain amplitude no less than 0.2%, a deleterious effect of PWR water on fatigue life is observed, associated with the enhancement of both crack initiation and propagation. Besides, the fatigue life is reduced by the application of a mean stress for a fixed strain amplitude in a given environment. In particular, due to the acceleration of crack initiation stage by an enhancement of the plastic strain accumulation, the PWR water effect on fatigue life is re‐activated for strain amplitude below 0.2% in the presence of a mean stress. The fatigue life reduction under mean stress application is mostly related to the maximum stress level and strain amplitude, rather than the generated ratcheting strain.