Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768

www.elsevier.com/locate/engfracmech

Fatigue behaviour of AA356-T6 cast aluminium

alloy weakened by cracks and notches
B. Atzori *, G. Meneghetti, L. Susmel
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Padova, Via Venezia 1, Padova 35131, Italy
Received 30 October 2002; accepted 5 November 2002

Abstract
In this paper the static and fatigue behaviour of AA356-T6 cast alloy is analysed in order to provide engineers with
some practical rules for a preliminary assessment of this material in an early stage of the design process. The study is
divided into two different parts: in the first part a systematic reanalysis of some data taken from literature highlighted
the influence of the main metallurgical parameters on the static and fatigue properties of the considered material,
whereas in the second part an experimental investigation was performed in order to verify the applicability of the
Atzori–Lazzarin diagram to the AA356-T6 cast aluminium alloy.
Ó 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Cast aluminium alloy; Notch; Fatigue

1. Introduction

It is well-known that the mechanical properties of cast aluminium alloys are strongly influenced by the
metallurgical and microstructural features. The main parameters, that have to be considered to correctly
understand their mechanical behaviour, are: the shape and the size of grains, the dendritic arm spacing
(DAS), the microstructural characteristics of the phases and the presence, the amount, the size and the
shape of porosity and defects [1,2]. Almost all the above mentioned parameters depend mainly on the
casting manufacturing process: as a consequence if the process is varied both the static and the fatigue
material properties can substantially change. For this reason, the designation AA356-T6 groups together
materials that can exhibit different mechanical properties.
In this framework, the first aim of the present study is the suggestion of practical rules to perform a safe
fatigue assessment of AA356-T6 cast aluminium alloy by reanalysing several experimental data found in the
literature. Subsequently a number of tests were conduced on cylindrical notched specimens subjected to
rotating bending to check the accuracy of the Atzori–Lazzarin method in the evaluation of the defect
sensitivity of this material.

*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +39-04-9827-6758; fax: +39-04-9827-6785.
E-mail address: batzori@dim.unipd.it (B. Atzori).

0013-7944/$ - see front matter Ó 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0013-7944(03)00036-5
760 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768

Nomenclature

a crack or notch length

a0 El HaddadÕs parameter used in short crack studies
k inverse slope of the W€ ohler curve
KIC fracture toughness
Ktg stress concentration factor referred to the gross area
R load ratio (rmin =rmax )
DKth threshold value of the stress intensity factor
Dr0 stress range at 2
106 cycles to failure and for a 50% probability of survival for a smooth
specimen
Dr0;n stress range at 2
106 cycles to failure and for a 50% probability of survival for a notched
specimen
Dr1 fatigue limit for a 50% probability of survival for a smooth specimen
Drth fatigue limit for a 50% probability of survival for a notched specimen
a shape coefficient used in Fracture Mechanics
rT tensile strength
ry yield strength

2. Static behaviour

The static properties of AA356-T6 are mainly influenced by the grain size, by DAS and by the size and
number of precipitates (Mg2 Si), whereas the influence of porosity and inclusions on the static strength
seems to be negligible [3].
Fig. 1 presents a reanalysis of the data collected from the literature [3–11]. First of all, several authors
highlight that the material static strength can be improved by obtaining grain sizes less than 800 lm in size.
Moreover, Fig. 1 shows that the tensile strength rT decreases from 300 to 220 MPa and the yield strength ry
from 230 to 160 MPa as the DAS increases from 20 up to 90 lm. The tensile strength values are char-
acterised by a lower dispersion with respect to that showed by the yield strength data. Finally, the DAS
influence on the fracture toughness KIC seems not to be crucial: a value for KIC of 17.4 MPa m1=2 can be
suggested as an average reference value [12,13] for AA356-T6, independently of the casting process.

3. Fatigue behaviour

Fatigue crack initiation generally occurs in AA356-T6 near to the biggest size pores, near to the in-
clusions greater than 100 lm in size and near to the defects. In general terms, the fatigue behaviour is
affected by DAS and by the amount and size of pores [1,2] located close to the component surface [14]. In
particular, the fatigue strength increases as the DAS decreases [15,16] and a DAS value lower than 40 lm is
always advised. Moreover, in order to improve the medium-cycle fatigue strength, some authors (for ex-
ample [17]) highlight the importance to reduce the Fe amount down to 0.2% or less.
The first diagram reported in Fig. 2 shows the fatigue strength Dr0 =2 as a function of the DAS (where
Dr0 =2 is the stress amplitude at 2
106 cycles to failure and for a 50% probability of survival): a reduction
of DAS slightly increases the fatigue strength, but the data dispersion does not allow to establish a sound
Dr0 =2 vs. DAS relationship. Similarly, Fig. 2b highlights that a direct relation between DAS and the inverse
 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768 761

σT 340 (a)
[MPa] 300

260

220
180
σT=-1.17 DAS + 323.9
140
0 25 50 75 100
DAS m]

340
σy (b)
[MPa] 300
σy =-0.522 DAS + 234.7

260

220
180
140
0 25 50 75 100
DAS m]

Fig. 1. DAS influence on tensile strength rT (a) and on yield strength ry (b) [3–11].

slope of the W€ ohler curve k does not exist, since high cycle fatigue behaviour is mostly influenced by the size
of the pores.
Unfortunately, the available data did not allow us to perform a systematic study of the porosity influence
on the fatigue strength. Then the experimental data were subdivided into two different groups according to
the casting manufacturing process, on which the final porosity depends. Table 1 shows that a fatigue
strength Dr0 =2 of 115 MPa and an inverse slope of 7 can be suggested when the casting process allows to
obtain a pore size lower than 180 lm and a porosity amount less than 0.4%. Conversely, when the amount
of porosity is greater than 0.4% and pore size ranges between 300 and 800 lm, the fatigue strength Dr0 =2
drops to an average value of 76 MPa, while concerning the inverse slope k the data dispersion does not
allow to give a significant reference value.
Fig. 2 and Table 1 demonstrate that the microstructure strongly influences the fatigue properties of
AA356-T6 alloy and a critical analysis of the metallurgical aspects is the unique way to correctly under-
stand the correlation between foundry process and fatigue behaviour. Due to the lack of information about
the microstructural parameters and in order to suggest some practical formulae to estimate Dr0 and k
values, the fatigue ratio Dr0 =ð2rT Þ has been introduced by following the classical procedure for data re-
analysis proposed by Fuchs [33] (the same procedure has been applied also for data presented in Fig. 4a).
The diagrams plotted in Fig. 3 show that the fatigue ratio allows all the experimental data to collapse in a
restricted scatter band and in particular this holds true for Dr0 =2 values. By making explicit the formulae
reported in Fig. 3 one obtains:
Dr0 =2 ¼ 8:8rT =ðrT  242:7Þ ½MPa for R ¼ 1 ð1Þ

k ¼ 35:3 Dr0 =2rT þ 4:2 for R ¼ 1 ð2Þ

762 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768

Fig. 2. DAS influence on fatigue strength at 2
106 cycles to failure (a) and on inverse slope k of the W€
ohler curve (b) [3,7,9–11,16–
18,22].

Table 1
Average fatigue strength at 2
106 cycles to failure for R ¼ 1 and inverse slope for different casting manufacturing processes
Casting process Porosity Dr0 =2 k References
Size (lm) Amount (%) [MPa]

Permanent-mould casting >300 >0.4 76 10 4.5–7 [3,7,9,10,15,17,19,20]

Sand-casting and die-casting <800
Direct-chill casting and squeeze casting <180 0.4 115 10 7 [3,9–11,16,18–22]

The parameters influencing the threshold value of the stress intensity factor DKth for long cracks were also
analysed. Fig. 4a shows that DKth increases as the ratio DKth =rT increases, being the load ratio R
(R ¼ Kmin =Kmax ) unchanged. The best fit equation reported in the figure can be rewritten in explicit form
as:
DKth ¼ 1:225rT =ðrT  213:1Þ ½MPa m1=2  for R ¼ 0:1 ð3Þ
Fig. 4b highlights that DKth decreases as R increases, when R is greater than 0. Only two data were available
for R equal to 1 and they seem to suggest that DKth does not change if compared to the value at R ¼ 0.
Additional data should be generated in this diagram zone to confirm the validity of this statement. This
figure also shows that two different DKth vs. R trends exist, due to the different material tensile strengths.
The available data for R ¼ 0:1 verified that if 250 < rT < 276 MPa then DKth ¼ 6–7 MPa m1=2 , whereas if
 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768 763

Fig. 3. Fatigue ratio Dr0 =2rT influence on fatigue strength at 2
106 cycles to failure (a) and on inverse slope k (b) [3,7,9–11,16,18,20].

290 < rT < 310 MPa then DKth ¼ 4 5 MPa m1=2 . However, the DAS influence on the threshold stress
intensity factor seems to be negligible.

4. Notch fatigue assessment according to the Atzori–Lazzarin diagram

The Kitagawa diagram highlights the lower threshold nominal stress range exhibited by short cracks
with respect to that expected if they behaved as long cracks. Recently, Atzori and Lazzarin [28] modified the
Kitagawa diagram in order to account for both the sensitivity to defects (or short cracks) and the notch
sensitivity. The link between the two fatigue behaviours has been established by considering the variation in
the fatigue limit of a notch for a scale variation in a wide range of its absolute dimensions, i.e. being the
elastic stress concentration factor Ktg unchanged (Fig. 5). The fatigue limit will be always between the
material fatigue limit Dr1 and the blunt notch fatigue limit Dr1 =Ktg , characterised by full notch sensitivity.
The sensitivity to small defects and the notch sensitivity in fatigue can then be represented in the same
diagram. Subsequently, Atzori and Lazzarin [29] proposed to define an equivalent notch depth (a2 a) to fit
with the same sloping curve different fatigue test results obtained with specimens of different geometry.
Moreover, in order to correctly describe the real fatigue behaviour near to the a0 value, they modified the
classical TopperÕs relationship [30] as follows [29]:

DKth ¼ Drth ½pða2 a þ a0 Þ1=2 ð4Þ

764 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768

Fig. 4. Tensile strength rT (a) and load ratio R (b) influence on the long crack threshold stress intensity factor DKth [3,8,15,19,21,23–27].

Fig. 5. The Atzori–Lazzarin diagram.

Doing so, the a0 definition does not depend on the shape coefficient a and coincides with that derived from
TopperÕs equation by imposing a ¼ 1.
 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768 765

Fig. 6. The Atzori–Lazzarin diagram applied to rotating bending fatigue tests results of carbon steel specimens [31].

The accuracy of Eq. (4) was checked by Atzori and Lazzarin [29] by reanalysing the experimental results
obtained by Nisitani and Endo [31] by means of rotating bending tests of annealed 0.45 and 0.36 carbon
steels. By observing Fig. 6 it is possible to notice that the Atzori–Lazzarin diagram correlates very well with
the experimental results, indicating that it correctly interprets both the crack and the notch behaviour of
carbon steels.
The new step in the Atzori–Lazzarin approach validation is the evaluation of its accuracy in the in-
terpretation of AA356-T6 notch fatigue behaviour.

5. Application of Atzori–Lazzarin diagram to AA356-T6 cast aluminium alloys

In order to verify the Atzori–Lazzarin diagram applicability to the AA356-T6 cast aluminium alloy, a set
of 50 rotating bending tests were conduced on notched cylindrical specimens obtained from the spokes of a
number of wheels produced by a permanent mould casting process. The average chemical composition of
the considered material is reported in Table 2, whereas the average values of the experimentally evaluated
mechanical properties are: rT ¼ 260 MPa, ry ¼ 192 MPa, E ¼ 74,800 MPa, amount of porosity 0.3% and
DAS ¼ 41 lm.
The determination of the threshold value of the stress intensity factor was performed by using CðT Þ
specimens and according to the standard K-decreasing procedure reported in Ref. [32]. The tests were
conduced by imposing a load ratio R equal to 0.1, even if the rotating bending fatigue tests were char-
acterised by a load ratio of )1. This choice was suggested by two main considerations: firstly, when R > 0
the crack closure phenomenon could be neglected and secondly, the DKth values for R < 0 could be
thought of as equal to the value determined for R ¼ 0 (Fig. 4b). The determined experimental value was

Table 2
Chemical composition of the tested AA356-T6 expressed in percentage of weight
Si Fe Cu Mg Zn Ni Cr Pb Ti B Be Ca Sr V Al
6.789 0.143 0.002 0.282 0.006 0.003 <0.001 0.001 0.099 0.006 0.000 0.002 0.024 0.009 92.616
766 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768

a
ρ

dg
Fig. 7. Notch geometry of tested fatigue specimens (circular cross section).

Table 3
Specimen dimensions and fatigue test results
Code dg [mm] q [mm] a [mm] b [°] a Ktg Dr0 [MPa] k Tr
SS 7.51 1 0 180 1 1 231.0 6.88 1.31
NS02 7.56 0.10 0.24 79.9 1.141 4.05 114.8 4.51 1.19
NS04 9.04 0.18 0.63 59.2 1.201 5.17 109.8 5.86 1.28
NS1 9.03 0.09 1.30 60.3 1.557 14.25 44.8 3.57 1.60
NS3 11.98 0.08 2.90 68.3 2.780 39.50 17.7 4.49 1.34

DKth ¼ 3:95 MPa m1=2 , which is in good agreement with the range of 4–7 MPa m1=2 reported in the literature
for this material.
The notch geometry of the rotating bending specimens is drawn in Fig. 7 while the main dimensions of
each tested series and the shape coefficients a are listed in Table 3. The shape coefficients a, calculated by
means of accurate finite element analyses, refer to a specimen containing a crack of the same depth as the
notch. In Table 3 the fatigue results are summarised in terms of fatigue strength range Dr0 (referred to the
gross area) corresponding to 2
106 cycles to failure (for a 50% probability of survival), inverse slope k and
ratio Tr ¼ Dr0;PS¼90% =Dr0;PS¼10% , whereas the experimental W€ ohler curves, with the scatter bands calculated
under the hypothesis of a log-normal distribution of the number of cycles for each stress level and for a 95%
confidence level, are reported in Fig. 8.

∆σ 300
2
[MPa] 200

100

SS
NS02
NS04
NS1
NS3

10
104 105 106 2·106
Nf [Cycles]

Fig. 8. Experimental fatigue test results.

 B. Atzori et al. / Engineering Fracture Mechanics 71 (2004) 759–768 767

1000
∆σ0,n
[MPa]

100

Fig. 9. Fatigue strength of AA356-T6 weakened by notches.

Fig. 9 shows the sound agreement between the Atzori–Lazzarin diagram and the experimental fatigue
test results. It highlights that the equivalent notch depth concept used in Eq. (4) allows a correct description
of the fatigue behaviour of sharp notches even if the shape coefficients a are different for the analysed
specimen geometries. The relation reported in Fig. 9 was obtained by a best fit of the available
p experimental
results. The corresponding value of the stress intensity factor can be derived as 93 p ¼ 165 MPa mm1=2
(or 5.21 MPa m1=2 ), which is slightly greater than 3.95 MPa m1=2 determined by means of the standard
experimental method [32]. In fact the first one was the DK value determined for a fatigue life of 2
106
cycles, while the second is the DKth value for a real non-propagating crack condition.

6. Conclusions

The mechanical properties of AA356-T6 are strongly influenced by the metallurgical and microstructural
features and even if an accurate study of these parameters is the main way to improve the fatigue per-
formance of this material, the knowledge of the tensile strength rT is enough to perform a preliminary
fatigue design. In fact by reanalysing a number of data collected from literature the following relationships
can be proposed:
Dr0 =2 ¼ 8:8rT =ðrT  242:7Þ ½MPa for R ¼ 1
k ¼ 35:3 Dr0 =2rT þ 4:2 for R ¼ 1
DKth ¼ 1:225rT =ðrT  213:1Þ ½MPa m1=2  for R ¼ 0:1
Finally, a fatigue strength diagram, in the form recently proposed by Atzori and Lazzarin and applied to
carbon steel specimens, was applied to interpret the results of rotating bending fatigue tests on five series of
notched specimens. The employment of such a diagram enables us to take into account the fatigue be-
haviour of both notched or cracked components, providing a bridging between the notch sensitivity and
defect sensitivity of the material.

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