UC Davis

The fully effective utilization of large aluminum forgings in aerospace structures has been hampered in the past by inadequate understanding of, and sometimes inaccurate representation of, bulk residual stresses and their impact on both design mechanical properties and structural performance. In recent years, significant advances in both computational and experimental methods have led to vastly improved characterization of residual stresses. As a result, new design approaches which require the extraction of residual stress effects from material property data and the formal inclusion of residual stresses in the design analysis, have been enabled. In particular, the impact of residual stresses on durability and damage tolerance can now be assessed, and more importantly, accounted for at the beginning of the design cycle. In an effort to support the development of this next-generation design capability, the AFRL sponsored Metals Affordability Initiative (MAI) consortium has conducted a detailed experimental and analytical study of fatigue crack initiation and fatigue crack growth in aluminum coupons with known, quench induced residual stresses. In this study, coupons were designed and manufactured such that simple 'design features,' such as holes and machined pockets, were installed in locations with varying levels of bulk residual stress. The residual stresses at the critical locations in the coupons were measured using multiple techniques and modeled using detailed finite element analysis. Fatigue crack initiation (FCI) and fatigue crack growth (FCG) tests were performed using both constant amplitude and spectrum loading and the results were compared against computed FCI and FCG lives. © (2014) Trans Tech Publications, Switzerland.