Low Cycle Fatigue (LCF)

High Cycle Fatigue (HCF)

What is Fatigue?

TheASTMdefinition.....
The process of progressive localized permanent structural change
occurringinmaterialsubjectedtoconditionswhichproducefluctuating
stressesandstrainsatsomepointorpointsandwhichmayculminatein
crackorcompletefractureafterasufficientnumberoffluctuations.

Translation:
Cyclicdamageleadingtolocalcrackingorfracture.

Requirements have evolved for Gas Turbine Engines....

Emphasis today is on Cyclic Properties...

Design
Material
Time
Requirements
Properties

Historical

BasicEngineering
Properties

Strength,
Creep

1960s-1970s

Add...Fatigue

HCF,LCF,TMF

Late1970s

Add...Damage
Tolerance

CrackGrowth

Emphasis today is on Cyclic Properties...

HighCycleFatigue

LowCycleFatigue

Allowablevibratorystresses
Crackinitiationlife
1/1000tosmallcrack

retirement

CrackGrowth

Component

Remaininglifefromcrack

Safety

Inspection

inspectioninterval
sizerequirement

For Crack Initiation, High Cycle Fatigue

(HCF) and Low Cycle Fatigue (LCF) are
treated separately. Why?

GeneraldistinctionforGasTurbines:

HCF-Usuallyhighfrequency,duetoresonant
vibration.Failurecriteriabasedonallowable
stresses.Millions of Cycles

LCF-Usuallylowfrequency,duetoengine
start/stoporthrottlecycles.Accuratelife
predictionrequired.Thousands of Cycles

Turbine Disk Design Requirements

Most Severe Structural Challenge: High structural loads, fatigue, & creep
Environmentally friendly
Fatigue cracking resistance
initiation
propagation
Creep resistant
Strong
Lightweight
Predictable/Inspectable
Affordable
Environmentally stable
Nickel Superalloy Balances All Requirements

Combustor, Turbine Components

Present a Severe Thermal Fatigue Cracking Challenge

Mechanical fatigue, caused

by cyclic thermal strains
High temperature
accelerates fatigue damage
Exacerbated by crack tip
oxidation

Fatigue is a Major Challenge for Many Engine Components,

Including Fan Blades

Caused by Load Cycling

Occurs at cyclic loads well below
the Ultimate Strength
fatigue crack initiation site

High Cycle Fatigue (HCF)

Caused by vibration/flutter
Low Cycle Fatigue (LCF)
Caused by engine cycling

Compressorbladetestedin
avibratoryfatiguetestrig

Cyclic vs. Monotonic Curves: Behavior can be significantly different ...

FromMetalFatigueinEngineering,H.O.FuchsandR.I.Stephens,JohnWiley&
Sons,NY,1980

Crack Size: How big is big? ...

HCF: S-N Curves ...

InitiallyusedtoaddressHCFforallowable

stress,butwhataboutpredictingactualcycles
oflife?...

HCFcyclepredictionismoreofastatistical

estimatewithalargescatterallocation,
insteadofanexactscience

P&WA Stress Control HCF Test Apparatus

Specimen

Fully Reversed Stress/Strain Cycle

S/N Plot

Basic Cycle

Terms to Remember
AlternatingStressAmplitude:

max min
2

max min
2

MeanStress:

StressRatio:
StressRange:

min
max

max min

Soderberg(USA,1930)
Goodman(England,1899)

a m

1
Se S y
a m

1
Se Su

a m

Gerber(Germany,1874)

Se Su

(Where Se is the fully reversed endurance limit.)

Cyclic Deformation Parameters: Fatigue loop illustration ...

Fatigue: How do HCF and LCF fit with

Stress vs. Life? ...

*Existsintheoryonly

HCF: S-N Curves ...

Fatigue Strengthis theMaximumStressthatcan

be repeatedly applied for a specified number of

cycles (typically 107) without failure. Titanium
alloysarecurvefitto109cycles.

HCF: Notes on Approaches ...

Soderbergishighlyconservativeandseldom

used
Actualtestdatausuallyfallsbetween

Goodman&GerberCurves
Thisisnotalargedifferenceinthetheories

whenthemeanstressissmallinrelationto
thealternatingstress.
P&Whasfoundthemostsuccesswiththe

Goodmanapproach

HCF: A Christienson Diagram Contains all of

this information ...

HCF: An example of Pratts Goodman

diagram which combines Stress Amplitude and
Mean Stress Effects ...

Thediscontinuousslopeonthex-axismodifies

fortheyieldvalueinsteadoftheultimateas
requiredbyatraditionalGoodmanDiagram.

HCF: Cyclic limits ...

107cycles-Mostotheralloys
109cycles-Titanium,certainNickelBlade

Alloys
109cycles-?????(Proposedfollowingthe
HCFInitiative)
9

Why no actual 10 Testing?

Presentfrequencycapabilityis200Hz,

whichis1.6years!!
Assuming25testsontwomachines,thisis

20yearstocharacterizeasinglematerial!!!
Targetnowis2000Hzforcoupontesting,
whichis2monthsforasingletest.

HCF: Elastic Stress-Life Relationship ...

HCF Notches: Parameters of Interest ...

Parameter

Kt
Concentration

Kf
Factor(KfKt)

(relatedtograinsize)

Description

ElasticStress

FatigueNotch

Materialconstant

Notchradius

Notchsensitivity

HCF Notches: Neuber proposed the

following relationship ...

Kf 1

Where:

Kf 1
Kt 1

Kt 1
1 / r

1
1 / r

Se(notched)=Se(unnotched)/Kf

Inthepreviousequations,thenotchedvalue

wouldthenbesubstituted.

LCF Testing: Verification ...

Threeprimarywaysofverificationtesting:
Subcomponents
SpinPit
FerrisWheel

P&WA Strain Control LCF/TMF Test Apparatus

LCF Testing: Typical set-up involves

uniaxial loading ...

Cyclic Fatigue: Testing Parameters of Interest ...

StrainRange

StressRange

Max.TensileStress

MeanStress

InelasticStrain

Temperature

P/A=max-min

m=0.5*(max+min)

i,p

Cyclic Loading: Key Relationships ...

E
ElasticModulus,(monotonic)or(cyclic)
StressRatio,

tot elastic inelastic

min
R
max
where

inelastic plastic creep

Max.Stress,

max mean

Min.Stress,

min mean

Total Strain = Elastic Strain Range + Plastic Strain Range

tot e p

Whereand
E

tot

E
2 K '

p 2

2K '

1
n'

1
n'

LCF: Pratt & Whitney Definition ...

Nucleationtodetectablecrack.

Initiationisa1/32crackalongthesurface.

Theacceptableprobabilityofoccurrenceof

anLCFcrackas1crackoccurringina
samplesizeof1000(1/1000orB.1)having
a1/32inchlongcrackatthepredicted
minimumlife.

LCF: Characteristics ...

Fromstress/straincyclingintheplastic

rangeatsignificantlyhigherstressesthanfor
HCF.
Thestress/straincyclesthatcauseLCF

crackingareproducedbysignificantengine
powerlevelchanges.
Microscopicchangesinamaterialthathas

beensubjectedtoLCFcyclingmaybeseen
afteronlyafewcycles.
Microscopicdislocationsinthecrystal
structure.
Thedislocationslinkuptoform
cracks.
Dependsonthestressesand
orientationoftheindividualgrain.
Highlystatisticalinnature.

LCF: What are the parameters? ...

LCF: Mean Stress Effects must be included ...

SimpleapproachbyJ.Morrow:

t 3.4

Su Sm N 0.12 0.6 N 0.6

E

AlternativeapproachbySmith,Watson&

Topper(1970):

max a E f

2 N 2b f f E 2 N b c

wheremax=m+aandaisthealternatingstrain

Notch LCF: Overall philosophy ...

Kt<~1.5

Localstress-straincalculated

SmoothLCFcurvesused

Kt>~1.5

Localstress-straincalculated

NotchLCFcurvesusedusuallymean

stress/strainrange,temperaturecorrected

Notch LCF: Strain Range-Mean Stress

Curves ...

Strain

Range,

Kt Kmax max Kt Kmin min

E max
E min

Where:
Kmax&Kminaretemp.correctionfactorsonstrainatmaxandmin
stresspoints
Kvs.TisderivedfromLCFtestsatvarioustemperatures
Ktisthegeometricstressconcentrationfactor
max&minarethenominalmaxandminstresses
Emax&Eminareelasticmoduliatthemaxandminstresspoints

Notch LCF: Notch Factors ...

Kt,K,andKrelatelocalbehaviortonominal:

Notch LCF: Surface stresses and strains in

stress concentration areas are important
and need to be calculated ...

Threemethodsusedmostoften:

LinearRule-elasticequivalentstress
method

NeuberRule-ideallyforplanestresscases

GlinkaMethod-energybasedmethod

Notch LCF: Linear Rule ...

Notch LCF: Neuber Rule ...

Notch LCF: Neuber Rule for Cyclic

Loading must be solved incrementally...

Reversed loading cyclic curves assumes

kinematichardeningandrelatesusingcyclic
curve with a 2X stress-strain multiplier
fromthenewreferenceorigin.

Notch LCF: Glinka Relationship ...

Cumulative Damage: How is it done? ...

Definition-The means by which the damage

associated with a complex stress history may be
calculated or estimated by allowing the combining
cycles of different stress magnitudes.

Why is this needed?

Militarycombatmissionshavemanyin-flight
throttleexcursions.
Reducemissionintomajorandminor(orsub)
cycles
Major(TypeI)cycleisthelargestoverallstrainexcursion
inthemission.
Fullpowerexcursionsfromintermediate,orabove,toidle
andbackarecalledTypeIIIcycles.
Theseexcursionsgenerallyimpacttheoveralllife.
Excursionsofsmallermagnitude(TypeIV)aregenerally
notdamaging.*

*Thismaybeuntrueforsomecomponents

Cumulative Damage: Methodology ...

Manydifferentmethodshavebeenproposed

Linearcumulativedamage-MinersRule-appearstodothe

bestjobforthetypeofstressexcursionsencounteredinjet
engineoperation.

MinersRulestates:

ni
1
Ni

Where:

NiislifecapabilityforstressexcursionI

niistheactualnumberofoccurrencesofexcursionI

Thebasicassumptionisthatfatiguedamageiscumulative

andthelifecapabilityofapartwillbeexhaustedwhenthe
sumofthelifefractionsreaches1.0

Cumulative Damage: Cycle counting using

the ASTM Rainflow technique determines
pairs ...

ThepairsareA-D,B-C,E-F,andG-H.

Cyclic Stress-Strain Behavior: Derived from loci of cyclic endpoints ...

Constitutive Modeling Approach

Parameter

3.5E+07
3.0E+07

Constant 1
Constant 2

2.5E+07

Constant 3

2.0E+07
1.5E+07
1.0E+07
5.0E+06
0.0E+00
0

Rate dependent test data

and model correlation

500

1000
Temperature (F)

1500

Model parameter temperature

dependencies

2000

ANSYS analysis of
constitutive specimen

Constitutive Modeling Approach

specimen correlation

specimen prediction

component analysis

UnderstandingMetallurgical Aspects of Fatigue

Metallurgical Aspects...
RelevantTopics:
CrystalStructure
DeformationMechanisms
CrackInitiation..SequenceofEvents
VisualAspects-Fractography

Deformation for crystal structures can be visualized like a sliding row

of bricks...

Metals have a highly ordered crystal structure...

CubicArrangement

HexagonalClose-Packed
Structure
Zn,Mg,Be,-Ti,etc.

Two predominant deformation mechanisms in metals...

Dislocation:occursatalltemperatures,
butispredominantatlowertemperatures.

Diffusion:importantathighertemperatures,
especiallyaboveonehalfthemeltingtemperature

Can you find the Illustrated Dislocation Defect?

Edgedislocation.(a)Bubble-raftmodelofanimperfectioninacrystalstructure.
Notetheextrarowofatoms.(b)Schematicillustrationofadislocation.[Braggand
Nye,Proc. Roy. Soc. (London),A190,474,1947.]

Pure metals are easily deformed. Several methods are used to inhibit
deformation...

Dispersionstrengthening
Solidsolutionstrengthening
Precipitationhardening
Microstructurecontrol(grainsizeandmorphology,precipitate
control,etc.)

Solid Solution Strengthening: Perturbations to crystal lattice retard

dislocation motion...

Precipitation Hardening: Local areas of compositional and/or

structural differences retard dislocation motion...

Grain Boundary Strengthening: Crystallographic and/or

compositional boundary. Strengthens at low temperature; but weak
link at high temperature...

Grain Boundary Resistance: Will resist dislocation motion at the

boundary...

Grain Boundaries Illustrated: Notice the vacancies and excess atoms at boundaries...

Grain Boundary Mechanics:

Crystallographic and/or compositional boundary. Strengthens at low

temperature; weak link at high temperature...

Persistent Slip Band Formation:

A product of cyclic deformation important to fatigue initiation for ductile
metals ...

FromMetalFatigueinEngineering,H.O.FuchsandR.I.Stephens,JohnWiley
&Sons,NY,1980

Diffusion: A high temperature deformation mechanism ...

Diffusion: Usually considered at temperatures above half the melting

point ( K) ...

MeltingPoint(F) 1/2MeltingPoint(F)

Aluminum

1220

379

Titanium

3035

1288

Nickel

2647

1094

Iron

2798

1170

Cobalt

2723

1132

32

-213

Ice

Grain Boundary Sliding: A diffusion controlled deformation process ...

Grain Boundary Sliding: Can provide large deformation at boundary with

relatively small intergranular deformation ...

Fatigue Crack Initiation: Occurs when enough local deformation

damage accumulates to produce a crack ...

fromdislocations-asinslip

fromdiffusion-asingrainboundarysliding

orfromboth

Fracture Stages: Steps of an Idealized Fatigue Process ...

Stage I

Stage II

CrystallographicFracture,alongafewplanes,brittl
appearance,atangletoprincipalloadingdirection.

Usuallytransgranular,butnumerousfractureplanes
toprincipalloadingdirection.Striationsoftenseenathigh
magnificationformoreductilealloys.

Stage III Finalfracture;brittle,ductileorboth.

Fracture Stages: Fatigue origin often at a Mechanical or Metallurgical

Artifact ...

Schematic of stages I and II transcrystalline microscopic fatigue crack growth.

Typical Fatigue Fractures: Several Common Features ...

1.

Distinctcrackinitiationsiteorsites.

2.

Beachmarksindicativeofcrackgrowtharrest.

3.

Distinctfinalfractureregion.

Fatigue Features: Initiation sites . . .

Fatigue Features: Beach marks ...

Fatigue Features: Final Fracture ...

FinalFracture

FatigueArea

Ramberg-Osgood Relationship: Describes cyclic inelastic behavior ...

IN100,(TestsConductedinAirat650C,Frequency,=0.33Hz)

Typical Failure Modes: General Characteristics ...

FailureModeSomeGeneralCharacteristics
OverstressRapidfracture,maybeductileorbrittle,large
deformation,oftentransgranular,oftenthefinalstage
ofsomeotherfracturemode.

Creep/StressRuptureUsuallylongtermevent,largedeformation,
intergranular,elevatedtemperature

HighCycleFatigueOftenshorttermevent,smalldeformation,
transgranular

LowCycleFatigueModeratetimeevent,moderatedeformation,fracture
dependentontime/temp.

ThermomechanicalFatigueModeratetimeevent,subsetofLCFwithdeformation
duelargelytothermallyinducedstresses,fracture
usuallyshowsheavyoxidation/alloydepletion

Cyclic Behavior Must be Modeled: After Tensile yield, there are two models
which describe compressive behavior ...

Isotropic

-assumessymmetricalbehaviorintensionandcompression.

Kinematic

-assumesyieldstress,followinginelasticdeformation,isdegraded...

Hardening Models: Defines the Bauschinger effect ...

Cyclic Effects on Stress-Strain Behavior: Progressive changes occur during cyclic

loading ...

Material:

Copper in 3 Conditions

FromMetalFatigueinEngineering,H.O.FuchsandR.I.Stephens,JohnWiley&
Sons,NY,1980

Summary:

Cyclicpropertiesareimportanttoourproduct.

Principaldeformationmechanismsareslipatlowtemperatureanddiffusion
athightemperature.

Crackingcanbecrystallographic,transgranular,orintergranular.

Simpledeformationmodelscanbeusedtoconsolidatedataandpredictloca
stressesandstrains.