Fracture, Fatigue, and Structural Integrity of Metallic Materials and Components Undergoing Random or Variable Amplitude Loadings

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Metal Failure Analysis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2022) | Viewed by 31682

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Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Ferrara, via Saragat 1, 44122 Ferrara, Italy
Interests: structural integrity assessment; vibration fatigue; multiaxial fatigue; metal plasticity; finite element analysis
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Guest Editor
Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Swansea University, Swansea, UK
Interests: fatigue; creep; thermo-mechanical fatigue (TMF); superalloys; lifing; nickel alloys; titanium alloys
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Dirlik Controls Ltd, Rugby, Warks CV22 7NB, UK
Interests: thermo-mechanical fatigue; vibration fatigue; crack propagation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In casting a glance at engineering and industrial fields, it is often discovered that a large part of metallic components and structures are subjected, in service, to random or variable amplitude loadings. The examples are many: vehicles subjected to loadings and vibrations caused by road irregularity and engine, structures exposed to wind, off-shore platforms undergoing wave-loadings, and so on.

Just like constant amplitude loadings, random and variable amplitude loadings can make fatigue cracks initiate and propagate, even up to catastrophic failures. Engineers faced with the problem of estimating the structural integrity and the fatigue strength of metallic structures, or their propensity to fracture, usually make use of theoretical or experimental approaches, or both. Counting methods (e.g., rainflow) provide information on the fatigue cycles in the load, whereas damage accumulation laws (as the celebrated Palmgren–Miner linear rule) establish how to sum up the damage of each counted cycle. In structural integrity, this is named as the “time-domain” approach. Over recent years, the “frequency-domain” approach has also received increasing and widespread use, especially with random loadings; this approach estimates fatigue life based on load statistical properties represented, in frequency-domain, by a power spectral density. Neither of the previous approaches, however, can do without the support of experimental laboratory testing, which provides a means to collect material strength data under specific loading conditions or to verify preliminary estimations.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect articles aimed at providing an up-to-date overview of several topics in the field of fracture, fatigue strength, and the structural integrity of metallic components subjected to random or variable amplitude loadings. Researchers are encouraged to submit research papers focused on theoretical or experimental aspects, as well as on engineering case studies and examples.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Denis Benasciutti
Prof. Dr. Mark T. Whittaker
Dr. Turan Dirlik
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • Structural integrity
  • Random loading
  • Variable amplitude loading
  • Fatigue
  • Fracture
  • Spectrum loading
  • Time-domain approach
  • Frequency-domain approach

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Editorial

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4 pages, 181 KiB  
Editorial
Fracture, Fatigue, and Structural Integrity of Metallic Materials and Components Undergoing Random or Variable Amplitude Loadings
by Denis Benasciutti, Mark T. Whittaker and Turan Dirlik
Metals 2022, 12(6), 919; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met12060919 - 27 May 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1080
Abstract
When quickly reviewing engineering and industrial fields, one often discovers that a large number of metallic components and structures are subjected, in service, to random or variable amplitude loadings [...] Full article

Research

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20 pages, 5645 KiB  
Article
Fatigue Analysis of Nonstationary Random Loadings Measured in an Industrial Vehicle Wheel: Uncertainty of Fatigue Damage
by Julian M. E. Marques, Luigi Solazzi and Denis Benasciutti
Metals 2022, 12(4), 616; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met12040616 - 02 Apr 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1824
Abstract
This article presents an application of a method for estimating the inherent statistical variability of the fatigue damage computed in one single nonstationary random time history. The method applies the concept of confidence interval for the damage, which is constructed after the single [...] Read more.
This article presents an application of a method for estimating the inherent statistical variability of the fatigue damage computed in one single nonstationary random time history. The method applies the concept of confidence interval for the damage, which is constructed after the single time history is subdivided into pseudo-stationary segments, with each of them further divided into shorter blocks. As a case study, the method is applied to the strain time histories measured in a wheel of a telescopic handler industrial vehicle. A preliminary screening involving the short-time Fourier transform and the run test is carried out to verify whether the measured time histories are truly nonstationary and fall within the hypotheses of the proposed method. After that, the confidence interval for the unknown expected damage is computed; its upper bound can be used as a safety limit in a structural integrity assessment. The obtained results seem very promising and suggest the possible use of the proposed approach in similar engineering applications. Full article
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11 pages, 2474 KiB  
Article
Computational Failure Analysis under Overloading
by Slobodanka Boljanović and Andrea Carpinteri
Metals 2021, 11(10), 1509; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met11101509 - 23 Sep 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1337
Abstract
The aim of this research work is to shed more light on performance-based design through a computational framework that assesses the residual strength of damaged plate-type configurations under overloading. Novel expressions are generated to analyze the power of crack-like stress raisers coupled with [...] Read more.
The aim of this research work is to shed more light on performance-based design through a computational framework that assesses the residual strength of damaged plate-type configurations under overloading. Novel expressions are generated to analyze the power of crack-like stress raisers coupled with retardation effects. Analytical outcomes show that careful consideration of the overload location and crack size can be quite effective in improving safety design and failure mode estimation. Full article
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17 pages, 3924 KiB  
Article
Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Cumulative Fatigue Damage under Random Dynamic Cyclic Loads of Lattice Structures Manufactured by Laser Powder Bed Fusion
by Marco Pisati, Marco Giuseppe Corneo, Stefano Beretta, Emanuele Riva, Francesco Braghin and Stefano Foletti
Metals 2021, 11(9), 1395; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met11091395 - 03 Sep 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2227
Abstract
Lattice structures are lightweight engineering components suitable for a great variety of applications, including those in which the structural integrity under vibration fatigue is of paramount importance. In this work, we experimentally and numerically investigate the dynamic response of two distinct lattice configurations, [...] Read more.
Lattice structures are lightweight engineering components suitable for a great variety of applications, including those in which the structural integrity under vibration fatigue is of paramount importance. In this work, we experimentally and numerically investigate the dynamic response of two distinct lattice configurations, in terms of fatigue damage and life. Specifically, Face-Centered-Cubic (FCC) and Diamond lattice-based structures are numerically studied and experimentally tested under resonant conditions and random vibrations, until their failure. To this end, Finite Element (FE) models are employed to match the dynamic behavior of the system in the neighborhood of the first natural frequency. The FE models are employed to estimate the structural integrity by way of frequency and tip acceleration drops, which allow for the identification of the failure time and a corresponding number of cycles to failure. Fatigue life under resonant conditions is well predicted by the application of conventional multiaxial high cycle fatigue criteria to the local state of stress. The same approach, combined with the Rainflow algorithm and Miner’s rule, provides good results in predicting fatigue damage under random vibrations. Full article
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17 pages, 3763 KiB  
Article
Fatigue and Crack Growth under Constant- and Variable-Amplitude Loading in 9310 Steel Using “Rainflow-on-the-Fly” Methodology
by James C. Newman, Jr.
Metals 2021, 11(5), 807; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met11050807 - 15 May 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2477
Abstract
Fatigue of materials, like alloys, is basically fatigue-crack growth in small cracks nucleating and growing from micro-structural features, such as inclusions and voids, or at micro-machining marks, and large cracks growing to failure. Thus, the traditional fatigue-crack nucleation stage (Ni) [...] Read more.
Fatigue of materials, like alloys, is basically fatigue-crack growth in small cracks nucleating and growing from micro-structural features, such as inclusions and voids, or at micro-machining marks, and large cracks growing to failure. Thus, the traditional fatigue-crack nucleation stage (Ni) is basically the growth in microcracks (initial flaw sizes of 1 to 30 μm growing to about 250 μm) in metal alloys. Fatigue and crack-growth tests were conducted on a 9310 steel under laboratory air and room temperature conditions. Large-crack-growth-rate data were obtained from compact, C(T), specimens over a wide range in rates from threshold to fracture for load ratios (R) of 0.1 to 0.95. New test procedures based on compression pre-cracking were used in the near-threshold regime because the current ASTM test method (load shedding) has been shown to cause load-history effects with elevated thresholds and slower rates than steady-state behavior under constant-amplitude loading. High load-ratio (R) data were used to approximate small-crack-growth-rate behavior. A crack-closure model, FASTRAN, was used to develop the baseline crack-growth-rate curve. Fatigue tests were conducted on single-edge-notch-bend, SEN(B), specimens under both constant-amplitude and a Cold-Turbistan+ spectrum loading. Under spectrum loading, the model used a “Rainflow-on-the-Fly” subroutine to account for crack-growth damage. Test results were compared to fatigue-life calculations made under constant-amplitude loading to establish the initial microstructural flaw size and predictions made under spectrum loading from the FASTRAN code using the same micro-structural, semi-circular, surface-flaw size (6-μm). Thus, the model is a unified fatigue approach, from crack nucleation (small-crack growth) and large-crack growth to failure using fracture mechanics principles. The model was validated for both fatigue and crack-growth predictions. In general, predictions agreed well with the test data. Full article
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16 pages, 5307 KiB  
Article
High Cycle Fatigue Data Transferability of MAR-M 247 Superalloy from Separately Cast Specimens to Real Gas Turbine Blade
by Miroslav Šmíd, Vít Horník, Ludvík Kunz, Karel Hrbáček and Pavel Hutař
Metals 2020, 10(11), 1460; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met10111460 - 31 Oct 2020
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3694
Abstract
Cast polycrystalline superalloys are widely used for critical components in aerospace and automotive industries, such as turbine blades or turbocharges. Therefore, their fatigue endurance belongs to one of the most essential mechanical characteristics. Full-scale testing of such components involves great technical difficulties and [...] Read more.
Cast polycrystalline superalloys are widely used for critical components in aerospace and automotive industries, such as turbine blades or turbocharges. Therefore, their fatigue endurance belongs to one of the most essential mechanical characteristics. Full-scale testing of such components involves great technical difficulties and requires significant experimental effort. The present study evaluates the effects of microstructural parameters with respect to representative fatigue testing of a cast turbine blade by separately cast specimens. For that purpose, the cast polycrystalline MAR-M 247 Ni-based superalloy was investigated in the following conditions: (i) specimens extracted from a real gas turbine blade; specimens separately cast into the mould with (ii) top or (iii) bottom filling systems. Obtained diverse microstructures allowed us to assess the effect of grain size, porosity, and texture on fatigue performance. The tests were held at a symmetrical loading regime at temperature 800 °C in laboratory air. The results indicate that the level of porosity is a dominant structural parameter determining the fatigue endurance, while grain size and texture effects were of minor importance contributing mainly to fatigue life scatter. Full article
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24 pages, 11522 KiB  
Article
Elastoplastic Fracture Analysis of the P91 Steel Welded Joint under Repair Welding Thermal Shock Based on XFEM
by Kai Yang, Yingjie Zhang and Jianping Zhao
Metals 2020, 10(10), 1285; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met10101285 - 25 Sep 2020
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2710
Abstract
P91 steel is a typical steel used in the manufacture of boilers in ultra-supercritical power plants and heat exchangers in nuclear power plants. For the long-term serviced P91 steel pressurized structures, the main failure mode is the welded joint failure, especially the heat [...] Read more.
P91 steel is a typical steel used in the manufacture of boilers in ultra-supercritical power plants and heat exchangers in nuclear power plants. For the long-term serviced P91 steel pressurized structures, the main failure mode is the welded joint failure, especially the heat affected zone (HAZ) failure. Repair welding technique is an effective method for repairing such local defects. However, the thermal shock composed of high temperature and thermal stress in the repair welding process will pose a critical loading condition for the existing defects near the heat source which cannot be detected by conventional means. So, the evaluation of structural integrity for the welded joint in the thermal-mechanical coupling field is necessary. In this work, the crack propagation law in the HAZ for the P91 steel welded joint was investigated under repair welding thermal loads. The weld repair model of the P91 steel welded joint was established by ABAQUS. The transient temperature field and stress field in repair welding process were calculated by relevant user subroutines and sequential coupling simulation method. The residual stress was determined by the impact indentation strain method to verify the feasibility of the finite element (FE) model and simulation method. In order to obtain the crack propagation path, the elastoplastic fracture analysis of the welded joint with initial crack was performed based on the extended finite element method (XFEM). The influence of different welding linear energy on the crack propagation was analyzed. The results show that the cracks in the HAZ propagate perpendicular to the surface and tend to deflect to the welding seam under repair welding thermal loads. The crack propagation occurs in the early stage of cooling. Higher welding linear energy leads to larger HAZ and higher overall temperature. With the increase of welding linear energy, the length and critical distance of the crack propagation increase. Therefore, low welding linear energy can effectively inhibit the crack propagation in the HAZ. The above calculation and analysis provide a reference for the thermal shock damage analysis of repair welding process, which is of great significance to improving the safety and reliability of weld repaired components. Full article
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13 pages, 3608 KiB  
Article
The Use of Surface Topography for the Identification of Discontinuous Displacements Due to Cracks
by Fatih Uzun and Alexander M. Korsunsky
Metals 2020, 10(8), 1037; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met10081037 - 02 Aug 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2854
Abstract
The determination of three components of displacements at material surfaces is possible using surface topography information of undeformed (reference) and deformed states. The height digital image correlation (hDIC) technique was developed and demonstrated to achieve micro-level in-plane resolution and nanoscale out-of-plane precision. However, [...] Read more.
The determination of three components of displacements at material surfaces is possible using surface topography information of undeformed (reference) and deformed states. The height digital image correlation (hDIC) technique was developed and demonstrated to achieve micro-level in-plane resolution and nanoscale out-of-plane precision. However, in the original formulation hDIC and other topography-based correlation techniques perform well in the determination of continuous displacements. In the present study of material deformation up to cracking and filan failure, the ability to identify discontinuous triaxial displacements at emerging discontinuities is important. For this purpose, a new method reported herein was developed based on the hDIC technique. The hDIC solution procedure comprises two stages, namely, integer-pixel level correlation and sub-pixel level correlation. In order to predict the displacement and height changes in discontinuous regions, a smoothing stage was inserted between the two main stages. The proposed method determines accurately the discontinuous edges, and the out-of-plane displacements become sharply resolved without any further intervention in the algorithm function. High computational demand required to determine discontinuous displacements using high density topography data was tackled by employing the graphics processing unit (GPU) parallel computing capability with the paging approach. The hDIC technique with GPU parallel computing implementation was applied for the identification of discontinuous edges in an aluminium alloy dog bone test specimen subjected to tensile testing up to failure. Full article
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16 pages, 3717 KiB  
Article
Computing the Growth of Small Cracks in the Assist Round Robin Helicopter Challenge
by Rhys Jones, Daren Peng, R.K. Singh Raman and Pu Huang
Metals 2020, 10(7), 944; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met10070944 - 14 Jul 2020
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2284
Abstract
Sustainment issues associated with military helicopters have drawn attention to the growth of small cracks under a helicopter flight load spectrum. One particular issue is how to simplify (reduce) a measured spectrum to reduce the time and complexity of full-scale helicopter fatigue tests. [...] Read more.
Sustainment issues associated with military helicopters have drawn attention to the growth of small cracks under a helicopter flight load spectrum. One particular issue is how to simplify (reduce) a measured spectrum to reduce the time and complexity of full-scale helicopter fatigue tests. Given the costs and the time scales associated with performing tests, a means of computationally assessing the effect of a reduced spectrum is desirable. Unfortunately, whilst there have been a number of studies into how to perform a damage tolerant assessment of helicopter structural parts there is currently no equivalent study into how to perform the durability analysis needed to determine the economic life of a helicopter component. To this end, the present paper describes a computational study into small crack growth in AA7075-T7351 under several (reduced) helicopter flight load spectra. This study reveals that the Hartman-Schijve (HS) variant of the NASGRO crack growth equation can reasonably accurately compute the growth of small naturally occurring cracks in AA7075-T7351 under several simplified variants of a measured Black Hawk flight load spectra. Full article
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Review

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21 pages, 3547 KiB  
Review
Dirlik and Tovo-Benasciutti Spectral Methods in Vibration Fatigue: A Review with a Historical Perspective
by Turan Dirlik and Denis Benasciutti
Metals 2021, 11(9), 1333; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met11091333 - 24 Aug 2021
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 5735
Abstract
The frequency domain techniques (also known as “spectral methods”) prove significantly more efficient than the time domain fatigue life calculations, especially when they are used in conjunction with finite element analysis. Frequency domain methods are now well established, and suitable commercial software is [...] Read more.
The frequency domain techniques (also known as “spectral methods”) prove significantly more efficient than the time domain fatigue life calculations, especially when they are used in conjunction with finite element analysis. Frequency domain methods are now well established, and suitable commercial software is commonly available. Among the existing techniques, the methods by Dirlik and by Tovo–Benasciutti (TB) have become the most used. This study presents the historical background and the motivation behind the development of these two spectral methods, by also emphasizing their application and possible limitations. It further presents a brief review of the other spectral methods available for cycle counting directly from the power spectral density of the random loading. Finally, some ideas for future work are suggested. Full article
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16 pages, 4600 KiB  
Review
An Overview of Fatigue Testing Systems for Metals under Uniaxial and Multiaxial Random Loadings
by Julian M. E. Marques, Denis Benasciutti, Adam Niesłony and Janko Slavič
Metals 2021, 11(3), 447; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/met11030447 - 08 Mar 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3419
Abstract
This paper presents an overview of fatigue testing systems in high-cycle regime for metals subjected to uniaxial and multiaxial random loadings. The different testing systems are critically discussed, highlighting advantages and possible limitations. By identifying relevant features, the testing systems are classified in [...] Read more.
This paper presents an overview of fatigue testing systems in high-cycle regime for metals subjected to uniaxial and multiaxial random loadings. The different testing systems are critically discussed, highlighting advantages and possible limitations. By identifying relevant features, the testing systems are classified in terms of type of machine (servo-hydraulic or shaker tables), specimen geometry and applied constraints, number of load or acceleration inputs needed to perform the test, type of loading acting on the specimen and resulting state of stress. Specimens with plate, cylindrical and more elaborated geometry are also considered as a further classification criterion. This review also discusses the relationship between the applied input and the resulting local state of stress in the specimen. Since a general criterion to classify fatigue testing systems for random loadings seems not to exist, the present review—by emphasizing analogies and differences among various layouts—may provide the reader with a guideline to classify future equipment. Full article
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