Effect of stress biaxiality on the high-strain fatigue behavior of an aluminum-copper alloy

Although there is now a considerable volume of high-strain (<10⁵ cycles) fatigue data for uniaxial tension-compression and simple-bending conditions, relatively little information is available regarding the effects of stress and strain biaxiality. A method which has been used to study the effects of biaxiality on longlife fatigue strength is to subject thin-walled tubes to repeated internal pressure and an end load which is in phase with, and a linear function of, the pressure. The object of the present research was to use this method to study the influence of stress biaxiality on the high-strain fatigue behavior of a high strength, aluminum-4% copper alloy at room temperature. From a continuum-mechanics point of view, this material is completely elastic after the first few load cycles. Cylinder results for hoop to axial stress ratios of 2:1, 1:1, 1:2 and 2: ?1 suggest that fatigue failure of this material in the life range 10³ to 10⁵ cycles is primarily dependent on the maximum range of tensile stress. This conclusion and a study of fracture surfaces led to the use of linear-elastic fracture mechanics to interpret the fatigue and brittle fracture behavior of these cylinders.