Lecture 13.

Failure
Learning Objectives
After this lecture, you should be able to do the following:

1. Describe the mechanism of crack propagation for both ductile and

brittle modes of fracture.
2. Define fatigue and determine (a) fatigue lifetime and (b) fatigue
strength in a fatigue plot.
3. Define creep and determine (a) the steady-state creep rate and (b) the
rupture lifetime in a creep plot.

Reading

Chapter 8: Failure

Multimedia

Virtual Materials Science & Engineering (VMSE):

http://www.wiley.com/college/callister/CL_EWSTU01031_S/vmse/

MSE 3300 / 5300 UTA Spring 2015

Lecture 13 - 1

1. Fracture

Simple fracture is the separation of a body into two or more pieces in

response to an imposed stress that is static (i.e., constant or slowly changing
with time) and at temperatures that are low relative to the melting temperature
of materials.
Two fracture modes: (1) ductile and (2) brittle.
Fracture process (two steps): (1) crack formation and (2) propagation in
response to an imposed stress.

Ship-cyclic loading from waves.

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Computer chip-cyclic thermal loading

Lecture 13 - 2

Fracture Mechanisms:
Two Fracture Modes
1. Ductile fracture
Accompanied by significant plastic
deformation
2. Brittle fracture
Little or no plastic deformation
Catastrophic

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Lecture 13 - 3

Review: Ductility

Stress

Ductility: Measure of the degree

of plastic deformation that has
been sustained at fracture
Brittle: little or not plastic
deformation (approximately, a
fracture strain < 5%)
Ductility usually increases with
temperature.
Percent elongation

Percent reduction in area

Strain
1. It indicates the degree to which a structure will deform plastically before fracture
2. It specifies the degree of allowable deformation during fabrication operations
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Lecture 13 - 4

Ductile vs Brittle Fracture

Classification:

Moderately
Ductile

Brittle

Large

Moderate

Small

Ductile:
Warning before
fracture

Moderate
necking

Brittle:
No
warning

Fracture
behavior:

Very
Ductile

Necks down
to a point
fracture

%AR or %EL
Ductile fracture is
usually more desirable
than brittle fracture!
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Lecture 13 - 5

Example: Pipe Failures

Ductile failure:
-- one piece
-- large deformation

Brittle failure:
-- many pieces
-- small deformations
Figures from V.J. Colangelo and F.A. Heiser,
Analysis of Metallurgical Failures (2nd ed.), Fig.
4.1(a) and (b), p. 66 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.,
1987. Used with permission.

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Lecture 13 - 6

Ductile Fracture

Cup-and-cone fracture

Fracture Stages
(a) Initial necking
(b) Formation of small cavities (microvoids)
(c) Crack formation: Coalescence of cavities to form a crack
(d) Crack propagation
(e) Final shear fracture at a 45 angle relative to the tensile direction (The
shear stress is a maximum at the angle.)
MSE 3300 / 5300 UTA Spring 2015

Lecture 13 - 7

Moderately Ductile Failure

Failure Stages:
necking

void
nucleation

shearing
void growth
and coalescence at surface

50
50mm
mm

Resulting
fracture
surfaces
(steel)
particles
serve as void
nucleation
sites.

fracture

100 mm
From V.J. Colangelo and F.A. Heiser,
Analysis of Metallurgical Failures (2nd
ed.), Fig. 11.28, p. 294, John Wiley
and Sons, Inc., 1987. (Orig. source:
P. Thornton, J. Mater. Sci., Vol. 6,
1971, pp. 347-56.)

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Fracture surface of tire cord wire loaded in

tension. Courtesy of F. Roehrig, CC
Technologies, Dublin, OH. Used with
permission.

Lecture 13 - 8

Brittle Fracture
Brittle fracture takes place
without any appreciable
deformation and by rapid crack
propagation.
The direction of crack motion is
very nearly perpendicular to the
direction of the applied tensile
stress.
It yields a relatively flat fracture
surface.

Brittle fracture
without any plastic
deformation
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Lecture 13 - 9

Brittle Fracture
Transgranular fracture:
cracks propagate through
grains.

Intergranular fracture:
cracks propagate along
grain boundaries.

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Lecture 13 - 10

Moderately Ductile vs. Brittle Failure

cup-and-cone fracture

brittle fracture

Fig. 8.3, Callister & Rethwisch 9e.

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Lecture 13 - 11

Stress Concentration: Brittle

Fracture of ductile materials

The measured fracture strengths are

significantly lower than those predicted by
theoretical calculations based on atomic
bonding energies, which is explained by
microscopic flaws or cracks (stress
raisers).

Griffith Crack (elliptical hole)

where

t = radius of curvature
o = applied stress
m = stress at crack tip

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Lecture 13 - 12

Concentration of Stress at Crack Tip

Stress concentration factor:

A measure of the degree to which

an external stress is amplified at
the tip of a crack
(Stress amplification)

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Lecture 13 - 13

Crack Propagation
Cracks having sharp tips propagate easier than cracks
having blunt tips
A plastic material deforms at a crack tip, which
blunts the crack.
deformed
region
brittle

ductile

Energy balance on the crack

Elastic strain energy energy stored in material as it is elastically deformed
this energy is released when the crack propagates
creation of new surfaces requires energy

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Lecture 13 - 14

Criterion for Crack Propagation

Crack propagates if crack-tip stress (m)
exceeds a critical stress (c)
i.e., m > c
where
E = modulus of elasticity
s = specific surface energy
a = one half length of internal crack

For ductile materials => replace s with s + p

where p is plastic deformation energy
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Lecture 13 - 15

Fracture Toughness

Fracture toughness (Kc): a property of the material that is a measure of a

materials resistance to brittle fracture when a crack is present [MPa m-1/2].

c: critical stress for crack propagation

a: crack length
Y: Dimensionless parameter or function that depends on both crack
and specimen sizes and geometries and the manner of load
application

Plane strain fracture toughness: When specimen thickness is much greater

than the crack dimensions, Kc becomes independent of thickness; under
these conditions a condition of plane strain exists.

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Lecture 13 - 16

Fracture Toughness

Fracture toughness (Kc): a material property that is a measure of a

materials resistance to brittle fracture when a crack is present [MPa m-1/2].

Y = 1.0

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Y = 1.1.

Lecture 13 - 17

Fracture Toughness

Plane strain fracture toughness (KIc): a fundamental material property

(Mode I) that depends on many factors, the most influential of which are
temperature, strain rate, and microstructuredepnds on [MPa m-1/2].

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Lecture 13 - 18

Table 8.1: Yield Strength and

Plane Strain Fracture Toughness

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Lecture 13 - 19

Fracture Toughness Ranges

Metals/
Alloys
100

K Ic (MPa m0.5 )

70
60
50
40
30

Graphite/
Ceramics/
Semicond

Polymers

C-C(|| fibers) 1

Steels
Ti alloys
Al alloys
Mg alloys

Based on data in Table B.5,

Callister & Rethwisch 9e.

20

Al/Al oxide(sf) 2
Y2 O 3 /ZrO 2 (p) 4
C/C( fibers) 1
Al oxid/SiC(w) 3
Si nitr/SiC(w) 5
Al oxid/ZrO 2 (p) 4
Glass/SiC(w) 6

10
7
6
5
4

Composites/
fibers

Diamond
Si carbide
Al oxide
Si nitride

0.7
0.6
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5300 UTA Spring 2015

PP
PVC

PET

PC

<100>

Si crystal
<111>
Glass -soda
Concrete

PS

Composite reinforcement geometry is: f

= fibers; sf = short fibers; w = whiskers;
p = particles. Addition data as noted
(vol. fraction of reinforcement):
1. (55vol%) ASM Handbook, Vol. 21, ASM Int.,
Materials Park, OH (2001) p. 606.
2. (55 vol%) Courtesy J. Cornie, MMC, Inc.,
Waltham, MA.
3. (30 vol%) P.F. Becher et al., Fracture
Mechanics of Ceramics, Vol. 7, Plenum Press
(1986). pp. 61-73.
4. Courtesy CoorsTek, Golden, CO.
5. (30 vol%) S.T. Buljan et al., "Development of
Ceramic Matrix Composites for Application in
Technology for Advanced Engines Program",
ORNL/Sub/85-22011/2, ORNL, 1992.
6. (20vol%) F.D. Gace et al., Ceram. Eng. Sci.
Proc., Vol. 7 (1986) pp. 978-82.

Glass 6

Polyester
Lecture 13 - 20

Design Against Crack Growth

Crack growth condition:
K Kc =
Largest, most highly stressed cracks grow first!
--Scenario 1: Max. flaw
size dictates design stress.

--Scenario 2: Design stress

dictates max. flaw size.

amax

fracture
no
fracture
MSE 3300 / 5300 UTA Spring 2015

fracture

amax

no
fracture

Lecture 13 - 21

Design Example: Aircraft Wing

Material has KIc = 26 MPa-m0.5
Two designs to consider...
Design A
--largest flaw is 9 mm
--failure stress = 112 MPa

Design B
--use same material
--largest flaw is 4 mm
--failure stress = ?

Use...
Key point: Y and KIc are the same for both designs.
constant
--Result:

112 MPa 9 mm

4 mm

Answer:
MSE 3300 / 5300 UTA Spring 2015

Lecture 13 - 22

2. Fatigue

Fatigue: failure under applied cyclic stress, dynamic and fluctuating

stresses (e.g., bridges, aircraft, and machine components).
Failure can occur at a stress level considerably lower than the tensile or
yield strength for a static load.
The term fatigue is used because this type of failure normally occurs
after a lengthy period of repeated stress or strain cycling.
It is the single largest cause of failure in metals (~90%).
Fatigue failure is brittle-like in nature even in normally ductile metals in
that here is very little gross plastic deformation associated with failure.

Stress varies with time.

-- key parameters are S, m, and
cycling frequency

max
m

min

time

Key points: Fatigue

--can cause part failure, even though max < y.
--responsible for ~90% of mechanical engineering failures.

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Lecture 13 - 23

Cyclic Stress with Time

(a) Reversed stress cycle

(b) Repeated stress cycle

(c) Random stress cycle

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Lecture 13 - 24

SN Curve
Fatigue limit: a limiting stress level (or
endurance limit), below which fatigue
failure will not occur.
For many steels, fatigue limits range
between 35% and 60% of the tensile
strength.
Fatigue strength: the stress level at
which failure will occur for some specified
number of cycles (e.g., 107cycles).
Fatigue life: the number of cycles to
cause failure at a specified stress level,
as taken from the SN plot (e.g., S1)
Stress amplitude (S) versus logarithm of
the number of cycles to fatigue failure
(N) for (a) a material that displays a
fatigue limit, and (b) a material that does
not display a fatigue limit.
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Lecture 13 - 25

--no fatigue if S < Sfat

For some materials,

there is no fatigue
limit!

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S = stress amplitude

Fatigue limit, Sfat:

S = stress amplitude

SN Curve: Types of Fatigue

Behavior
unsafe

case for
steel (typ.)

Sfat
safe
10 3

Adapted from Fig.

8.19(a), Callister &
Rethwisch 9e.

10 5
10 7
10 9
N = Cycles to failure

unsafe
safe
10 3

10 5
10 7
10 9
N = Cycles to failure

case for
Al (typ.)

Adapted from Fig.

8.19(b), Callister &
Rethwisch 9e.

Lecture 13 - 26

SN Curve

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Lecture 13 - 27

3. Creep
Creep: time-dependent and
permanent deformation of
materials when subjected to a
constant load or stress.
Materials are often placed in
service at elevated temperatures
and exposed to static mechanical
stresses (e.g., turbine rotors in jet
engines and steam generators
that experience centrifugal
stresses, and high-pressure
steam lines).
Important when T > 0.4Tm

Steady-state
Creep Rate

Rupture time
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Lecture 13 - 28

Creep

Sample deformation at a constant stress () vs time at a

constant temperature

Increase in creep resistance

or strain hardening

Steady-state
creep rate

t
Steady-state creep

Primary Creep: slope (creep rate)

decreases with time.
Rupture time
Secondary Creep: steady-state
i.e., constant slope /t)
Steady-state creep rate = /t
Tertiary Creep: slope (creep rate)
increases with time (acceleration of rate) and rupture.
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Lecture 13 - 29

Stress and Temperature Effects

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Lecture 13 - 30

Secondary Creep
Strain rate is constant at a given T,
-- strain hardening is balanced by recovery
stress exponent (material parameter)
activation energy for creep
(material parameter)

strain rate
material const.
Stress (MPa)

Strain rate
increases
with increasing
T,

applied stress
200
100

538C
40
20
10

10 -2
10 -1
Steady state creep rate
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427C

649C
1
es (%/1000hr)

Lecture 13 - 31

Stress versus Rupture Time

Carbonnickel alloy
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Lecture 13 - 32

Stress versus Steady-State Creep

Rate

Carbonnickel alloy
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Lecture 13 - 33

Summary
1. Fracture: Mechanism of crack propagation for both
ductile and brittle modes of fracture
2. Fatigue: (a) fatigue lifetime and (b) fatigue strength
in a fatigue plot.
3. Creep: (a) the steady-state creep rate and (b) the
rupture lifetime in a creep plot

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Lecture 13 - 34

Homework 6
7.7, 7.12, 7.14, 7.24, 7.30
8.7, 8.18, 8.22, 8.31, 8.34
Figure 7.6b: Lecture note 11-14 and 15.
Figure 8.20: Lecture note 13-27
Figure 8.32: Lecture note 13-33

* Problems from Callister, 9th Edition

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Lecture 13 - 35