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Bomas - 1997 - Materials Science and Engineering A PDF
Bomas - 1997 - Materials Science and Engineering A PDF
Bomas - 1997 - Materials Science and Engineering A PDF
Abstract
Based on the weakest link concept a method is developed, from which the survival probability of every surface and volume
element of a case hardened part, which is loaded near the fatigue limit, can be calculated. Prerequisite of the calculation is the
knowledge of the hardness and residual stress distribution, the surface roughness, and the surface oxidation depth. By
multiplication of the survival probabilities of neighboured elements the survival probability of a limited region or of the whole
part can be calculated, which includes a fatigue limit determination. It is shown, that this method can be applied successfully to
unnotched specimens of case hardened steels. The necessary calculation parameters can be gained from a set of reference parts.
Because of the possibility to formulate a survival probability for every volume and surface element, there are no geometrical
restrictions to the parts which shall be calculated. 0 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.
The here presented calculation method for the fatigue The failure of casehardened parts under loading near
limit of parts of case hardened steel is based on the the fatigue limit is a problem of crack initiation. This is
weakest link concept which was developed by Weibull the condition under which the weakest link concept can
[l] for the strength of brittle materials and later trans- be applied to describe fatigue failure. Two main sites of
ferred to fatigue behaviour by Heckel and co-workers fatigue crack initiation and different reasons have to be
[2-61. The principles of this concept were also applied considered in case hardened parts:
to the calculation of the fatigue limit of homogeneous l crack initiation at the surface (A) due to surface
materials by several other authors [7-lo]. Only a few roughness (R) or due to surface oxidation (SO)
people showed the physical nature of the weakest links l crack initiation in the volume (v>
and the correlation between their size distribution and According to the rules of probability mathematics,
the fracture probability [ll]. The application of the the survival probability P, of a case hardened part can
weakest link concept to inhomogeneous materials like be calculated as the product of the survival probabili-
case hardened steel is new and needs additional devel- ties of the surface P,(A) and the volume P,(V):
opments considering different crack initiation mecha-
nisms and the role of local strength and residual ps = Ps(A).Ps(V (1)
stresses. The weakest link concept is based on the assumption
that material strength is determined by bulk or surface
imperfections which are equally distributed in the
stressedregion. Fracture is caused by the weakest link,
* Corresponding author. Tel.: + 49 421 2185350; fax: + 49 421 which means the worst imperfection with respect to
2185333; e-mail bomas@iwt.uni-bremen.de crack initiation. Thus, the fracture probability near the
Table 1
Specimen data (cs = surface carbon content, xc = case depth)
Specimen Material charge Rz (w) xso (w-4 cs (“x3) -yc (mm) Loading Fatigue limit (N/mm-*)
Experiment Calculation
[15] A. Melander, S. Preston, Mater. Sci. Forum 1022104 (1992) (1993) 111-124.
199-210. [18] H. Bomas, P. Mayr, Antriebstechnik 27 (1988) 40-45.
[16] T.H. Topper, M.H. El Haddad, Can. Metall. Q 18 (1979) 207. [19] C. Jansen, H. Bomas, P. Mayr, in 28. Tagung des Arbeitskreises
[17] G. Lowisch, H. Bomas, P. Mayr, in: H.P. Rossmanith, K.J. Bruchvorgange, Deutscher Verband fur Materialforschung und
Miller (eds.), Mixed Mode Fatigue and Fracture, ESIS Publ. 14 -priifung, 1996, pp. 247-256.