Aj. Luevano et al., ACCUMULATION OF MICROSTRUCTURAL DAMAGE DUE TO FATIGUE OF HIGH-STRENGTH ALUMINUM-ALLOYS, Journal of materials engineering and performance, 3(1), 1994, pp. 47-54
The microstructural features of aluminum alloy 7050-T7451 in the vicin
ity of fatigue cracks and on the crack path were studied to determine
which of these features influence fatigue crack propagation. The studi
es included characterization of the full spectrum of microstructural a
nd fracture surface features-from the largest (e.g., roughness and gra
in type) to the smallest (e.g., second-phase particles and dislocation
s). Of all the features studied, only the second-phase particles were
shown to have a definite influence by causing crack deflection. The nu
mber of particles encountered by the fatigue cracks were significantly
higher than the expected average. The fatigue crack path was predomin
ately transgranular, and there was no change in the dislocation and pr
ecipitation structures in the crack-affected zone.