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An engineering approach to fatigue analysis based on elastic-plastic fracture mechanics
Last modified: 2011-02-25
Abstract
Nowadays cast iron components are widely used in highly stressed structures. Component lifetime
is strongly influenced by inhomogeneities caused by the material’s microstructure and the manufacturing
process (graphite particles, (micro-)shrinkage pores, inclusions). Inhomogeneities often act as a fatigue crack
starter. Lifetime until failure may be divided into stages for crack initiation, short and long crack growth.
Initiation of a crack of technical size (a ≈ 1mm) is often dominated by the growth of short cracks. The paper
presents an approach to analyze the mechanically short fatigue crack growth based on elastic-plastic fracture
mechanics. The application of the approach is successfully demonstrated for cast iron material
EN-GJS-400-18-LT using data from fatigue tests, microstructure and fracture surface analyses to assess the
fatigue life.
is strongly influenced by inhomogeneities caused by the material’s microstructure and the manufacturing
process (graphite particles, (micro-)shrinkage pores, inclusions). Inhomogeneities often act as a fatigue crack
starter. Lifetime until failure may be divided into stages for crack initiation, short and long crack growth.
Initiation of a crack of technical size (a ≈ 1mm) is often dominated by the growth of short cracks. The paper
presents an approach to analyze the mechanically short fatigue crack growth based on elastic-plastic fracture
mechanics. The application of the approach is successfully demonstrated for cast iron material
EN-GJS-400-18-LT using data from fatigue tests, microstructure and fracture surface analyses to assess the
fatigue life.
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