An Experimental Study on Low-Cycle Fatigue Crack Initiation Life Prediction of Powder Superalloy FGH96 Based on the Manson-Coffin and Damage Mechanics Methods

Abstract

The applicability of both prediction methods for low-cycle fatigue life of powder superalloy based on the Manson-Coffin equation and damage mechanics were addressed. Both fatigue life prediction models were evaluated by low-cycle fatigue experimental data of powder superalloy FGH96 with non-destructive standard parts and those with inclusions. Due to the characteristics of high strength and low plasticity of powder superalloy FGH96, errors in calculating the plastic strain amplitude deviate severely the prediction outcomes when using Manson-Coffin method. Meanwhile, by introducing the damage variable which characterizes the material damage, the damage evolution equation can be built by fitting the experimental data of standard parts and also applied to powder superalloy specimens containing inclusion. It is indispensable to accurately calculate the damage characterization parameter through finite element analysis in local stress concentration around the inclusion. The applicability of the prediction model was verified by the test life cycles of experimental specimens with different types and sizes of inclusions subsequently. Testing and simulation work showed much better prediction accuracies globally for the damage mechanics approach.