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Practical Fracture Analysis

&
Case Studies

Chennai ASM International


&
Madras Metallurgical Society

Debbie Aliya
Aliya Analytical Inc., Grand Rapids, MI
www.itothen.com
Approaches to Failure Analysis

< Recipe Approach


< Toolbox Approach
Curiosity
Epistomology
Visual Inspection
Testing
Thinking
Cultivating Compentence in FA Work
LEARN TO ALWAYS STRIVE TOWARDS
P Cultivating Clarity
< Compare, Contrast, Connect, Create,
< Choose with Confidence
P Greater KNOWLEDGE
< Always more to learn!
P More Efficient STRUCTURE of knowledge
< fragments vs integrated
P CULTIVATING WAYS TO OVERCOME
LIMITATIONS OF KNOWLEDGE
< curiosity, taking advantage of other's knowledge
Advantages and limitations of
different approaches to FA work
P Recipe approach- Follow these 13 Steps to
Failure Analysis
< You might not skip any steps
< You might do the test at the wrong place
< You might do a test that wont tell you anything useful
< You might destroy evidence that could have been
useful later in the investigation
P Lots of references available
< ASM Handbook, Don Wulpis Book,
Brooks/Choudhury, etc.
Advantages and limitations of
different approaches to FA work

P TOOLBOX approach- Use the tools of the trade


and associated engineering disciplines to
understand the event in question.
< You have to use your MIND to think.
< You can not be operating in automatic mode
< You can still make mistakes
< You have to ask a lot of questions
Basic Skills to Cultivate
P Clarity of Thought
P Knowing how to preserve evidence
P Knowing how to plan the investigation
P Knowing how to define the desired outcome
P Knowing what technical specialties can shed
light on the situation
P Knowing how to interpret the results
P Knowing the limitations of your knowledge
P Knowing someone who knows what needs to be
known
The Toolbox

P Preserving evidence/ Knowing how to avoid rushing


P Recognizing damage types
P Negotiation / Communication / People skills
P Visual inspection: Looking AT and Looking FOR
P Photography
P Fractography / Stress Analysis
P Mechanical testing/ Mechanical behavior
P Microscopy/ Physical Metallurgy/ Polymer Physics
P Materials Characterization (composition, structure, properties)
P Non-destructive Testing
So how do you decide which of the
long list of tests you will do?

P Need to be clear about what you want to know


P Make sure you do tests to answer all of the
questions that come up
P Often, you cant go back and do a test later....
P Here are some case studies....
Case Studies Using an
Epistemologically Derived
Systems Thinking Approach in
a Failure Prevention
Consulting Practice
Epistemology: Branch of
philosophy dealing with
How we know what
we think we know?
Heres where we really need our
brains.

How confidently do
we want to know
what we have
figured out that we
want to know?

WHAT DOES
CONFIDENT
MEAN?
Why did it break?

Heres the 13 step


program for Failure
Analysis. Lets do
everything I have the
equipment and
knowledge to do.
Right. We have
$200.00 to spend.

Well, we can do a
couple of hardness
tests.

OK.
A more productive approach

Why did it break?

Well, the stress


exceeded the
strength.

OK.

(Silence.)
What else would you like to
know?
Well, weve been using others
JUST LIKE IT FOR 40 years.
Why did THESE break?

AAAAHHHH. Now thats


more difficult. But the stress
still exceeded the strength.
This is a fatigue crack. It did
not break all at once.
Ok. So nobody did something
really stupid. Thats all I need
to know.
What else would you like to
know?
This is a really strange looking
crack.

Thats what we thought too. It broke


during installation. Its a suspension
component for a heavy vehicle
application

Well, we better take a closer look.


So why do you
want to know?

Well, we have 5
more and were
already losing
production capacity.
Why do you
want to know?

Well, these are


safety parts for an
automotive
application. This
was a production
test failure.
Why do you want to know?
Our overseas equipment manufacturer will
take 3 months and $20k to replace it. We
want to make our own.
Why do you want to know?
The plant is old. These pipes carry a
dangerous chemical.
Why do you want to know?
Its a new design. We thought it would work
and have to start full production in 4 weeks.
Why do you want to know?
We just bought the license to make these
assemblies from a long time supplier. Were
finding out the prints were not a complete as
we need. Were already in production.

Whoops. Did you install it right?


(How did I know to ask this question?)

We dont know. We dont like how the fracture


looks. Its got a lot of porosity.
What do we need IN ORDER
to know that we will end up with
enough confidence for the
situation at hand?
We need to know what the situation is.

That includes knowing what the


consequences of the failure are.

Labs that do generic work dont usually


ask enough questions up front.
We need to know what the situation is.
We need to know what the situation is.
So that, when we are done, we
can tell the story..

The story, as it hangs together


or not, gives us a degree of
epistemological confidence.

One story is worth a thousand


data points.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENT TO
CALL IF FA WORK:
We want to have a
DATA BASED WARM FUZZY.
Define Purpose of investigation
Some classical reasons...
How did the loss of function occur?
In how much DETAIL do you want to know?

P How can we prevent a recurrence?


P Who is at fault?
P What steps are we going to take to determine the
answers to our questions?
< SCOPE -MAKE A LIST- A PLAN FOR THE
INVESTIGATION!
P Keep plan flexible!!!!!!!
Define Purpose of investigation

P Are you looking for a defect?


P How do we define a Defect, Imperfection,
Characteristic, Flaw, Natural Variation,
???
Was it ever defined during the design process?
Balancing normal results of good practice against economic
reality and knowledge of product
< Take time to think about this stuff.
P FOLLOW YOUR CURIOSITY!!!
Common Guess and Test Method
Often works well....

P Time
between
steps gets
shorter as
we go from
top to
bottom....
Define Purpose of investigation
How comprehensive was the design in the first place?
NEW TOPIC....Damage Categories

P This course is focused on fracture


P Need to understand deformation
P Need to understand some basic aspects of wear
and corrosion and other environmental effects
P Environment affects both strength and stress!!!!
What is Failure? What is Damage?

P In a general sense, an engineering "failure" is the


failure of a device, component, or assembly to
meet user expectations.
P Damage is an undesired change of state, in this
case to a physical object.
P Failure is an opinion. Damage is a fact.
Intro to Damage Categories
P Physical Damage Types (Metals and Polymers)
< Deformation
< Fracture
< Wear
Usually micro-fracture and/or deformation, may also
involve corrosion
< Corrosion
< Mechanical Property Deterioration, possibly leading to
other damage
Temperature Influences
Radiation Damage
< COMPLEX MULTIPLE (Corrosion / Deformation)
Understanding Deformation
P Deformation is a shape change related to an
external load or an internal stress
< Can be temporary
If it is a failure, it is probably because it is deforming too
much or not enough
This type of deformation is related to the geometry and
material family primarily and only secondarily to the process
condition (What do I mean here?)
< Can be permanent
This type of deformation is related to the geometry, material
family and process condition
What is fracture?
P A process that tends to create fragments where a
single piece existed prior, usually due to
separation of atomic bonds
Understanding fracture

P If LOCAL stress exceeds LOCAL strength, part


can crack)
< Geometry affects both stress and strength
notches cause stress concentration in most cases, can also
cause strengthening
prevention of deformation can allow brittle cracking to kick
in
P Stress theory most directly useful in figuring out
whether a crack is suspicious or not...
Material Behavior

P Ductile versus Brittle- MUST DEFINE SCALE


< Not always that obvious
P Must Determine / Know Loading Geometry
P Stress State - Contrast to Loading Geometry
Fracture is often associated with
extensive deformation

P deformation makes
many materials more
forgiving of both
imperfections and
excessive loads than
they otherwise would
be
For broken components, first things
we want to know are....

P Is this a NORMAL fracture or crack?


< What loads caused the crack?
P What were the environmental conditions during
entire service and at the time of the damage
event?
< Did corrosion contribute to the ease of cracking?
P COMMENT ON STRUCTURAL CODES
How do we Prevent Fracture
VERY BASIC CONCEPTS

P Control LOCAL stresses (Basic Design)


< WORKMANSHIP!!!
P Choose the right material
< Specify the right material in a clear, industry
standard manner
P These are sometimes things that will JUMP
OUT at you as you do the investigation.
What is wear?

P Complex process which may involve multiple


microscale damage types
P Difficult to analyze because what wore away is
usually gone or changed from its original
condition
P Simulative wear tests are very problematic,
especially when accelerated
P Wear can contribute to fracture
Many wear processes are actually
micro-deformation / fracture events
Environmental Damage
Corrosion, Oxidation, Thermal Effects, Radiation Effects
< Corrosion due to presence of incompatible substances
or amounts of substances
Converts material to something else (corrosion product)
which
May be soluble in the environment so it goes away
May have a greater volume than original material, creating internal
stresses which can then cause other types of damage
< Corrosion prevention is a VERY KNOWLEDGE
INTENSIVE FIELD WHICH IS STILL IN
CHILDHOOD IF NOT INFANCY
Mars Fontana, formerly of Ohio State University, clarified
the basic types of corrosion
Be sure to use careful visual
inspection techniques in corrosion
studies

< Look for general appearance


Corrosion severity distribution
Coating uniformity
Is it old, new? Consistent with reports/ background data?
Part number, date, lot number, etc.??
Corrosion Example
Paper Mill Application- 300 Series Stainless Steel

P Low concentration of chlorine containing


bacteriacide was specified to be used in paper
pulp
P Branched crack appearance indicated that failure
was chloride related
Environmental Damage
Corrosion, Oxidation, Thermal Effects, Radiation Effects

P Oxidation
Often a result of corrosion (rust)
If high temperature related, more likely to be called oxidation
Aluminum people may call it oxidation when it is really heat
damage (! Lots of funny and wrong terminology)
P For corroded or oxidized or heat damaged
structures, assemblies or components, we
want to know....
< What environmental conditions were present at what
times?
< What stresses were present?
Corrosion product can create stresses
Gas as a corrosion product or absorbed gas can create stresses
Heat or Thermal Damage

P Strength is generally lower at higher


temperatures
< Distortion occurs more readily at higher temperatures

< Elastic Modulus is generally lower at higher


temperatures
P Permanent changes take place in the arrangement
of the atoms of metal alloys during high
temperature short time exposure.
< This can impair the ability of the material to sustain
the operating environment and/ or stresses
< Oxidation, sulfidation, etc., happen faster at high
temperature
P End of Basic Damage Category Intro
P Begin How to Get Starting Doing FA Work
Getting Set Up for the Analysis...

P First do nothing
P Then preserve evidence in an intelligent, planned
manner. May need to get agreement from other
parties.
< Need to do a visual inspection in order to do this...
We will have instruction on this next....
P Then plan the investigation. May need to get
agreement from other parties.
Intro to visual inspection techniques

P You need to learn to focus your attention


< Learn to look at
< Learn to look for
< Learn to go back and forth
between looking at and for
<
<
P This is one of the most
important things in the class
< Lets do it again now!!!
Intro to visual inspection techniques

P Overview of part
< Witness marks may be near the initiation or may be
somewhere else!
Look for anything unusual

P Surface finish
issues
P Secondary
cracks
Intro to visual inspection techniques
< Look for general appearance
Corrosion
Coating uniformity
Is it old, new? Consistent with reports/ background data?
Part number, date, lot number, etc.??
Intro to visual inspection techniques
< Compare to print
Deformation
Manufacturing problems
Look for Heat or Environmental
Damage
Start doing your classical
macrofractograhy evaluation
Shear lip shows final separation
Classical Macro-Fractography
Intro comments on identification of crack initiation site(s)
P Ratchet marks
often indicate
fatigue crack
origins
P We may or may
not see beach
marks.
Classical Macro-Fractography
Intro comments on identification of crack propagation direction

P Fan shaped marks often point back to initiation


Classical Macro-Fractography
Crack location and adjacent to initiation is of particular interest

P These photos hide part surface near initiation.


Be aware of
NON FRACTURE FEATURES

P Solidification Features
Smear Marks
Intro to visual inspection techniques
Macrofractography is an important part
of visual inspection
P Identification of expected crack locations and
initiation sites a key part of macrofractography
The Art and Science of
Macro-Fractography
with Loading Geometries

P First: Ductile v Brittle


P Second: Loading Geometry
< Axial Tension
< Axial Compression
< Bending
< Torsion
< Direct Shear
< Hertzian (Contact- point or line)
P Contrast with STRESS STATE at a POINT!
Classification by Material Behavior
Ductile versus Brittle

P This is the classical way to characterize cracks


< books (and many FA practitioners) act like it is obvious....
< can be very difficult to tell which is which
< YOU must state at what scale the ductile behavior or brittle
behavior is happening (visible or microscopic)
Recognizing basic fragment shapes

3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE-- Monotonic loading


P Basic Simplified Loading Geometries
< AXIAL Tension
Macro Brittle Macro
Ductile
Basic Macrofractography.
Much more powerful tool than commonly appreciated
P These techniques overcome some of the
limitations usually encountered when evaluating
dirty, damaged fractures and brittle materials.
P Recognizing basic fragment
shapes in axial, bending
and torsional loading
situations
P Also quickly mention
traditional surface
appearances linked with
fracture types.
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
AS A FUNCTION OF THE LOADING GEOMETRY

3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE-- Monotonic loading

P Basic Simplified Loading Geometries


< What does LOADING GEOMETRY MEAN?
Interaction between KNOWN APPLIED forces and
component SHAPE
Example of AXIAL Tension
GET PICKY, SPECIFY CYLINDRICAL SPECIMEN
Recognizing fracture appearances
Classical and Nominal 2D fracture views

P Tensile Overloads (MONOTONIC)


< Slant Fracture
< Flat Fracture
< Cup and cone

These are
considered
macroscopically
ductile
Recognizing fracture appearances
Classical and Nominal 2D fracture views

P Tensile Overloads (MONOTONIC)


< Slant Fracture
< Flat Fracture - Macro Brittle
< Cup and cone
Recognizing fracture appearances
Classical and Nominal 2D fracture views

P Ductile Tensile Overloads (MONOTONIC)


< Slant Fracture
< Flat Fracture
< Cup and (truncated)
cone (MIXED MODE)
Classification by Loading Geometry
Key to Macrofractography

P Axial Tension
< For elastic loads in smooth sections, stresses are uniform
< Cracks will either be perpendicular to load (brittle, in
presence of notch) or at approximately 45 degrees to load
(ductile)
Classification by Loading Geometry
Key to Macrofractography

P Axial
< For plastic loads, stress becomes non-uniform even in
smooth sections (necking)
< For shapes with notches, etc., stress is non-uniform-
higher near notch
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE-- Monotonic loading
P Basic Simplified Loading Geometries
< AXIAL Compression
(Images from Understanding How Components Fail by
Don Wulpi, Pub. ASM International
What if specimen were cylindrical???
What if specimen were tall and skinny???

AXIAL COMPRESSION
CREATES LATERAL TENSION!
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE-- Monotonic loading

P Basic Simplified Loading Geometries


< What does LOADING GEOMETRY MEAN?
Interaction between forces and component SHAPE
Example of BENDING

Monotonic loading can be FAST!


Recognizing basic fragment shapes
3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE -- Monotonic loading
P Basic Simplified Loading Geometries
< Bending (BRITTLE AND DUCTILE)
Carrot photo by Marc Pepi, Naval Air Warfare Center, Ridgecrest CA
Classification by Loading Geometry:
Key to Macrofractography

P Bending
< For both elastic and plastic loads, stress is non-
uniform
< Tension side tends
to initiate cracks
< Compression side
will not usually have
cracks initiate
< Center thickness
has high shear
stresses
Classification by Loading Geometry:
Key to Macrofractography
Bending, continued

P Brittle and Fatigue cracks generally start out


perpendicular to applied load on tension side, and
may turn to run parallel to tension side, and end
in a swoop (For ANISOTROPIC materials)
Complex Loading: Tension + Bending

Axial tension
plus bending
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
3 D VIEW IMPERATIVE-- Monotonic loading

P TORSION
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
Torsion (BRITTLE)
P Carrot photo by Marc Pepi, Naval Air Warfare
Center, Ridgecrest CA

This is NOT a slant fracture


Torsion
P For both elastic and plastic loads, stress is non-
uniform-highest at surface
< Torsional loads can produce several types of
characteristic fragment shapes
< spiral (broken chalk)
< X from reversed bending...
< Flat (CAREFUL- DUCTILE)
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
Basic Simplified Loading Geometries

Torsion - Ductile- Single overload


DUCTILE CRACK- HRC 50 STEEL
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
Basic Simplified Loading Geometries

P Torsion
< DUCTILE Single Overload FRACTURES MAY
Be FLAT
Often show swirl pattern
(example of low clamping force torqued off screw....)
Stress is lowest at the center, that is the last to go!
NOTE: Ductile Torsion Can be LONGITUDINAL ON
CYLINDER....
Shear Stresses demonstrated with longitudinal slit garden hose
P Final fracture in (rotating) bending
< STRESS STATE CHANGES AS CRACK GROWS
Recognizing basic fragment shapes
Fourth Loading Geometry- Direct Shear

P Blanking sheet metal


P Use of shear pins
P Shear strength is lower than tensile (ductile
fracture includes shear at the microscopic level.
P Loads are concentrated
Direct Shear
What is real loading going to be?

P Equations show uniform loads


P If support is not truly UNIFORM, stress wont be
either
Direct Shear
Direct Shear
What is real loading going to be?
P For a Fillet Weld
< THIS DOES NOT
ACCOUNT FOR
BENDING STRESSES!!!
Hertzian Stresses (Contact Stresses)
P Hertzian stresses can cause wear in bearings
< In addition to stresses from axial and side loads, there
may be friction effects.
KEY POINT OF FRACTURE
ANALYSIS: Since most real
components are either shaped or
loaded in a manner to create non-
uniform stresses, we can learn to
PREDICT the EXPECTED CRACK
LOCATION!
Fragment Shape Summary

P Depends on Loading Geometry


P Depends on Material Behavior
< Material behavior is sometimes a function of part and
loading geometry
Recognizing classical fracture
appearances
P We have just looked at lots of monotonic
cracks
P FATIGUE CRACKS
< Due to cyclic loading
< Current research says precursor crack process starts
right away (endurance limit theory debunked)
< Three basic stages of fatigue cracks- not always
present
Initiation
Stable growth
Unstable growth leading to final separation
Recognizing fracture appearances
Classical and Nominal 2D fracture views

P FATIGUE CRACKS
< The beach marks you SEE with your EYES are
created by
Changes in atmospheric conditions / environment / humidity
OR
Changes in dymanic load range over some time period
< Beach marks are not the same as striations
Recognizing fracture appearances
Fatigue Cracks due to Cyclic Loading
P Classical and Nominal 2D fracture features
Beach Marks
Beach marks can be hard to
see sometimes.....
Cyclic Loads- Brittle Materials
YOU NEED TO KNOW THE SERVICE CONDITIONS
Recognizing fracture appearances
Fatigue Cracks due to Cyclic Loading
P Classical and Nominal 2D fracture features
< Ratchet Marks
Useful as fatigue identifiers when there are no beachmarks
Be careful- some monotonic cracks have step like features
that are due to the same causes as those found in fatigue
Monotonic ratchet marks much less common
Recognizing fracture appearances
FAST FRACTURE
P Classical and Nominal 2D fracture features
< River Patterns USUALLY point back to crack
initiation
Can be due to brittle cracking
Can also be due to technically (microscopic scale) ductile cracking
Can be due to monotonic (single) load
Can be due to last stages of separation after fatigue cracking
Recognizing basic fracture
appearances
USEFUL FOR MANY SITUATIONS...

P Surface Roughness Rule (Dr. W. T. Becker)


< Not so classical fracture features
I think this is related to energy being used up....
Cracks TEND to get rougher as they grow
Some geometries prevent this...
Brittle bends
Bends where tension goes to compression
Recognizing basic fracture
appearances
POWERFUL TOOL!!!

P These techniques work for metals and plastics!


P Comments on part protection
NEXT: More details on expected
crack location
THIS IS A KEY TO FRACTURE ANALYSIS!!!

P If fracture initiates somewhere other than


expected high (tensile) stress, suspect material
imperfection, surface damage or
SOMETHING STRANGE
may be contributing to ease of fracture.
Expected fracture location

P Is different from COMMON fracture location


< To understand expected fracture location, need details
of assembly
example: where are bearings on shaft?
Another key to predicting expected
fracture initiation location is that
STRENGTH in addition to STRESS
can vary within the part.
P Usually this is a help- heat treated steel parts tend
to be stronger on the outside surfaces -
compensates for higher stresses on outside.
P Metallurgical surface imperfections often not
limited by designer...
< Decarburization
Bottom Line on Stresses in Real Parts

P Most real parts have higher stresses at the surface


P Makes Surface Hardening Useful
P Makes Decarb and other surface problems
particularly bad...
This allows you to calculate
desired strength of part as a
function of position
VERY POWERFUL IDEA!!!!!!!!!!

P The desired hardness range for a given metal


depends on its composition and application.
One more complication:
Residual stresses must be added to
applied stresses to really be able to
predict expected crack initiation SITE
Practical specimen selection
P When it is the only one that broke
P When there are multiple subject parts
P Legal Implications
P ORDER OF TESTING
Specimen extraction

P Replication procedures
< Do it if you need to be safe
< Acetate Tape
< Acetate Slurry
< Silicone
Specimen extraction

P Cleaning Issues
< You may have to clean to see anything
< You destroy evidence when you clean
< If you keep some of corrosion product, you can
prevent some loss of information
< You can do EDS on one side- AS RECEIVED
< Do Macro and Micro Fractography on the mating side
< If you have to cut your part to get it in the SEM, you
will probably need to use coolant.
< NO PERFECT WORLD. COMPROMISE.
The DETAILED TOOLBOX
Composition- You need to know what
you think youre working with....
P AT BEST, TELL YOU WHAT IS THERE, NOT
HOW STRONG IT IS OR ANY OTHER
CHARACTERISTIC!
P many different methods
< spark, wet, instrumental, gravimetric, combustion,
AA. OES, ICP, GDS, EDS, WDS, etc.
economy tests
May test only a small portion of specimen
referee method tests
Usually capable of testing entire cross section of specimen
< With proper calibration, economy tests as precise as referee,
but may not be as accurate due to differences in composition
from location to location within part.
Back to Visual Inspection-
WHAT IS REALLY THERE???
REMEMBER: You shall find what you shall seek!!!*

P Using your eyes and brains


< Excercise to SEE as well as to LOOK FOR
SOMETHING!!!
<
< Michael Gelbs Book: How to Think like Leonardo da
Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day
< * David Levys Book: Tools for Critical Thinking
P Time Permitting, lets do another round of
looking at a part....
Visual Inspection-
WHAT IS THERE???

P Photo documentation shows (hopefully) what


you saw
P Macro fractography (hopefully) helps you
understand what you see
Predicting expected crack locations-
WHAT SHOULD BE THERE?
P Basic stress analysis
< intuitive (Thread roots, fillets, keyways)
Predicting expected crack locations
P Cornerstone of Macrofractography
P Numerical Example - three point bending
normal stresses
shear stresses
Equation below from Machinerys Handbook
Predicting expected crack locations
Three Point Bending Example
P numerical (Example of three point bending)
normal stresses
Figure from WTB
Who Cares about Shear Stresses?
THATS HOW METALS DEFORM!!!
Who Cares about Shear Stresses?
THATS HOW METALS DEFORM!!!
Stress Analysis-may already exist.
HERE WE SEE STRESS STATE
RATHER THAN LOADING
GEOMETRY!

SHOULD already exist


NEEDS TO BE
CALIBRATED WITH
STRAIN GAGES ON REAL
PART!!!
Microfractography
Must follow, rather than precede, macrofractography
P You need a Scanning Electron Microscope
(SEM)
Microfractography
THE BASIC FIVE TYPES OF CRACK PATH
P These are SEM views of Microvoid Coalescence
P MVC in Tension MVC in Shear
Microfractography
THE BASIC FIVE TYPES OF CRACK PATH
P These are SEM views
P Cleavage Intergranular
Microfractography
THE BASIC FIVE TYPES OF CRACK PATH
P These are SEM views
< Fatigue in Carbon Steel Fatigue in Stainless
Photo by Larry Hanke, MEE-INC
Microfractography
- THE NON FRACTURE FEATURES....

P Recognizing
< Solidification features (shown below....)
< Rub marks
< Dirt
Microfractography
- THE NON FRACTURE FEATURES....
P Recognizing
< Rust and other corrosion products
Microfractography- WHY DO IT?
Understanding interactions of microstructure with crack path

P What does it mean when it is classical MVC?


P What does it mean when it is shear MVC?
P What does it mean when it is intergranular?
P What does it mean when it is cleavage?
P What does it mean when it is striations?
Micro fractography
Using the SEM

P Defines the Crack Path at a particular position


Grey Arrow Location....
Note Dimple Shape......
Black Arrow Location
Note ELONGATED DIMPLES
SEM extends your eyes!
Multiple Types of Damage Present
Back Scatter Image Mode
This image was obtained with the usual SEI

This images was from BS


Micro scale cyclic loading features

P Striations
P False striations
P Rub marks
Micro Scale Fatigue Features
HRC 40 Alloy Steel
Micro chemical analysis (EDS)
Contaminants and Corrosion Products, Plating Layers

P Attachment / Accessory to SEM


P SEMI QUANTITATIVE
P You have to use your brain in addition to the
computer
< Bradys Materials Handbook good reference
Example of Microchemical Analysis
Results
EDS SPECTRUM AND MAPS

P Good for corrosion product studies and analysis


of thin coatings
30 KV Accelerating Voltage
5 KV Accelerating Voltage
Bulk composition analysis
What it does and does not tell you

P There are many methods


< Economy vs Referee
< Difference in quality often due more to sampling
technique than accuracy of method
P Minor deviations may not even be out of spec
< Ladle versus Product Specification for Steels
< Surface treatments may make it hard to evaluate
P Usually not THE ROOT CAUSE
Mechanical tests
What they do and do not tell you

P Manufacturing and/or Service Conditions may


have changed original properties
P Minor deviations may not even be out of spec
< Castings
< Wrought Material purchased in coil form
P Importance of good lab technique is difficult to
overemphasize
Hints for a successful investigation

P What is a successful investigation?


One that reveals causes and possible preventive measures-one
that we can learn from (obviously other answers exist here...)
P HAVE a written project proposal for the
investigation before any destructive testing is
performed
P Lead investigator should ask a lot of questions as
test is being planned
USUAL MINIMUM ACTIVITIES

P background data collection- review of documents


and interviews, etc.
P visual evaluation
P hardness- especially for ferrous metals
Self consistency of multiple tests
should be evaluated

EXPLAIN HOW THE CONCLUSIONS FOLLOWED


DIRECTLY FROM THE RESULTS.

A WELL WRITTEN REPORT WHERE ADEQUATE


RESOURCES ARE ALLOCATED SHOULD ALLOW THE
READER TO REACH THE SAME CONCLUSIONS THAT
THE ANALYST DID. THE REPORT SHOULD BE A
TEACHING TOOL. Obviously, this is not always possible.
1) Make a plan for an FA
Investigation
2) What do you do when the
data is not self consistent????
DO YOU HAVE AN EXAMPLE?
THANK YOU!!!!

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