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Fatigue-crack growth behavior in the superelastic and shape-memory alloy nitinol

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Abstract

This article presents a study of fatigue-crack propagation behavior in Nitinol, a 50Ni-50Ti (at. pct) superelastic/shape-memory alloy, with particular emphasis on the effect of the stress-induced martensitic transformation on crack-growth resistance. Specifically, fatigue-crack growth was characterized in stable austenite (at 120 °C), superelastic austenite (at 37 °C), and martensite (at −65 °C and − 196 °C). In general, fatigue-crack growth resistance was found to increase with decreasing temperature, such that fatigue thresholds were higher and crack-growth rates slower in martensite compared to stable austenite and superelastic austenite. Of note was the observation that the stress-induced transformation of the superelastic austenite structure, which occurs readily at 37 °C during uniaxial tensile testing, could be suppressed during fatigue-crack propagation by the tensile hydrostatic stress state ahead of a crack tip in plane strain; this effect, however, was not seen in thinner specimens, where the constraint was relaxed due to prevailing plane-stress conditions.

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Author notes

  1. A. L. McKelvey (Graduate Student, Research Scientist)

    Present address: Department of Materials Science and Mineral Engineering, University of California, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Materials Science Department, Ford Research Laboratory, 48121-2053, Dearborn, MI

    A. L. McKelvey (Graduate Student, Research Scientist)

  2. the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, 94720-1760, Berkeley, CA

    R. O. Ritchie (Professor)

Authors
  1. A. L. McKelvey
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  2. R. O. Ritchie
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McKelvey, A.L., Ritchie, R.O. Fatigue-crack growth behavior in the superelastic and shape-memory alloy nitinol. Metall Mater Trans A 32, 731–743 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-001-0089-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-001-0089-7

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