An Improved Unique Fatigue Crack Growth Rate Curve Model and Determination of the Model Shape Exponents

Abstract

It is essential to precisely predict the crack growth, especially the near-threshold regime crack growth under different stress ratios, for most engineering structures consume their fatigue lives in this regime under random loading. In this paper, an improved unique curve model is proposed based on the unique curve model, and the determination of the shape exponents of this model is provided. The crack growth rate curves of some materials taken from the literature are evaluated using the improved model, and the results indicate that the improved model can accurately predict the crack growth rate in the near-threshold and Paris regimes. The improved unique curve model can solve the problems about the shape exponents determination and weak ability around the near-threshold regime meet in the unique curve model. In addition, the shape exponents in the improved model at negative stress ratios are discussed, which can directly adopt that in the unique curve model.

Keywords

Near-threshold regime / Crack growth rate / Stress ratio / Improved unique curve model / Shape exponents

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