Effect of Prestressing on the Fatigue Performance of Compression Springs

Mark Hayes, Senior Metallurgist, IST Peter Thoma, Material Development, Innotec

Effect of Prestressing

Prestressing is beneficial to fatigue life

This project aimed to quantify this benefit
For compression springs made from -Piano wire -Oil tempered SiCr -302 Stainless Steel

Explain benefit in terms of residual stress

Effect of Prestressing

Prestressing of compression springs -Occurs when the free length is reduced during axial loading beyond the torsional stress limit. -Increases the elastic range of the spring -Imparts a residual torsional stress into the surface of the spring.

-Improves the fatigue life, but by how much?

Effect of Prestressing

The springs had a high solid (block) stress. They were shortened when prestressed
-Minimally -More -Maximum cold when prestressed to block -Most when prestressed warm -In each prestress condition they were fatigue tested on forced motion mechanical machines set to accurate stress ranges -At the highest applied stress range the springs failed -At the lowest they survived 10 million

Effect of Prestressing Typical S/N fatigue data

Effect of Prestressing

Piano Wire Fatigue stress range limit - Without prestress - Prestrestressed to block - Warm Prestressed 430 MPa 475 MPa 480 MPa

Effect of Prestressing

CrSiV wire Fatigue stress range limit - Without prestress - Prestressed to block - Warm prestressed 528 MPa 531 MPa* 548 MPa

* Springs shortened very little

Effect of Prestressing

302 Stainless steel wire

Fatigue stress range limit

Without prestress Prestressed to 38 mm Prestressed to 30 mm Prestressed to block Warm Prestressed Glass bead peened 109 MPa 204 MPa 193 MPa 198 MPa 247 MPa >400 MPa

Effect of Prestressing

Residual stress All the springs failed from the inside surface of an active coil Hence the residual stress of interest is that present at the inside coil position at the surface To establish the direction and magnitude of the residual stress X-ray methods were used

Effect of prestressing

The residual stress in the 45 direction of maximum applied stress has been reduced by cold prestressing

Effect of prestressing

The change in residual stress due to cold prestressing and hot prestressing is clear from this graph

Effect of Prestressing

Residual stress in piano wire springs at 45 direction As-coiled Cold prestressed Warm prestressed + 220/ +230 MPa + 40 / + 50 MPa 0 / + 10MPa

Cold prestressing has reduced the residual tensile stress at this crucial position by 180 MPa Hot prestressing reduced it by 220 MPa

Effect of Prestressing

The fatigue stress range improvement for piano wire was 45 MPa when cold prestressed And 50 MPa when hot prestressed

Not prestressed

Cold prestressed + 40 MPa 475 MPa

Hot prestressed 0 MPa 480 MPa

Residual stress + 220 MPa Fatigue limit

430 MPa

Effect of Prestressing

Improvement in fatigue due to shot peening A residual compressive stress at the spring surface of 600 MPa typically results in an improvement in the fatigue stress range is 150 200 MPa The effect of prestressing on fatigue performance could be quantified on the same basis

Effect of Prestressing

Conclusion Prestressing improves compression spring fatigue performance The fatigue improvement is 25 30% of the magnitude of the change in residual stress