Mechanical Failure & Failure Analysis

ISSUES TO ADDRESS...
• How do flaws in a material initiate failure?
• How is fracture resistance quantified; how do different
material classes compare?
• How do we estimate the stress to fracture?
• How do loading rate, loading history, and temperature
affect the failure stress?

Ship-cyclic loading Computer chip-cyclic Hip implant-cyclic

from waves. thermal loading. loading from walking.
Adapted from chapter-opening Adapted from Fig. 22.30(b), Callister 7e. Adapted from Fig. 22.26(b),
photograph, Chapter 8, Callister 7e. (by (Fig. 22.30(b) is courtesy of National Callister 7e.
Neil Boenzi, The New York Times.) Semiconductor Corporation.)
Causes of Failure:

Improper material selection & processing

Inadequate design of the component

Misuse

Overloading
 Fracture mechanisms
For engineering materials, two fracture modes are possible:
• Ductile fracture
– Occurs with plastic deformation

• Brittle fracture
– Occurs with Little or no plastic
deformation
– Thus they are Catastrophic meaning
they occur without warning!

Ductility is a function of temperature of the material, strain rate, and the stress state
 Ductile vs Brittle Failure
Fracture Very Moderately
Brittle
behavior: Ductile Ductile

• Ductile fracture is
nearly always
desirable!

%Ra or %El Large Moderate Small

Gold and Lead Ductile: Brittle:
shows 100% warning before No
reduction in area fracture warning
 Example: Failure of a Pipe
• Ductile failure:
--one piece
--large deformation

• Brittle failure:
--many pieces
--small deformation

Figures from V.J. Colangelo and F.A.

Heiser, Analysis of Metallurgical Failures
(2nd ed.), Fig. 4.1(a) and (b), p. 66 John
Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1987. Used with
permission.
 Moderately Ductile Failure
• Evolution to failure:
void void growth shearing
necking and linkage fracture
nucleation at surface
s

• Resulting 50
50mm
mm
fracture
surfaces
(steel)
100 mm
Inclusion From V.J. Colangelo and F.A. Heiser, Fracture surface of tire cord wire
particles Analysis of Metallurgical Failures (2nd loaded in tension. Courtesy of F.
ed.), Fig. 11.28, p. 294, John Wiley and Roehrig, CC Technologies, Dublin,
serve as void Sons, Inc., 1987. (Orig. source: P. OH. Used with permission.
nucleation Thornton, J. Mater. Sci., Vol. 6, 1971, pp.
347-56.)
sites.
 Ductile vs. Brittle Failure

cup-and-cone fracture brittle fracture

Adapted from Fig. 8.3, Callister 7e.

In ductile fracture the process proceeds relatively slowly as the crack length is extended

Such a crack is said to be stable as it resists any further extension unless the applied
stress increases
Direction od crack motion is V-shaped chevron
nearly perpendicular to the
direction of applied stress and Brittle Failure markings or radial fan
shaped ridges are seen on
yields a flat fracture surface
the fractured surface

Arrows indicate point at which failure originated

Adapted from Fig. 8.5(a), Callister 7e.

Crack propagation in Brittle materials

-Transgranular: successive and repeated breaking

of atomic bonds along with specific crystallographic
planes. Fracture cracks pass through the grains

-Intergranular: crack propagation is along the grain

boundaries. The 3D nature of grains may be visible.
Occurs weakened or embrittle grain boundary
regions
 Brittle Fracture Surfaces: Useful to examine
to determine causes of failure
• Intergranular • Intragranular
(between grains) 304 S. Steel (within grains)
(metal) 316 S. Steel
Reprinted w/permission (metal)
from "Metals Handbook", Reprinted w/ permission
9th ed, Fig. 633, p. 650. from "Metals Handbook",
Copyright 1985, ASM 9th ed, Fig. 650, p. 357.
International, Materials Copyright 1985, ASM
Park, OH. (Micrograph by International, Materials
J.R. Keiser and A.R. Park, OH. (Micrograph by
Olsen, Oak Ridge
National Lab.)
D.R. Diercks, Argonne 160 mm
4 mm National Lab.)

Polypropylene Al Oxide
(polymer) (ceramic)
Reprinted w/ permission Reprinted w/ permission
from R.W. Hertzberg, from "Failure Analysis of
"Deformation and Brittle Materials", p. 78.
Fracture Mechanics of Copyright 1990, The
Engineering Materials", American Ceramic
(4th ed.) Fig. 7.35(d), p. Society, Westerville, OH.
303, John Wiley and (Micrograph by R.M.
Sons, Inc., 1996. Gruver and H. Kirchner.)
3 mm
1 mm
(Orig. source: K. Friedrick, Fracture 1977,
Vol. 3, ICF4, Waterloo, CA, 1977, p. 1119.)
 Failure Analysis – Failure Avoidance
• Most failure occur due to the presence of defects
in materials
– Cracks or Flaws (stress concentrators)
– Voids or inclusions
• Presence of defects is best found before hand
and they should be determined non-destructively
– X-Ray analysis
– Ultra-Sonic Inspection
– Surface inspection
• Magna-flux
• Dye Penetrant
 Ideal vs Real Materials
• Stress-strain behavior (Room Temp):
s
E/10 perfect mat’l-no flaws TSengineering << TS perfect
materials materials
carefully produced glass fiber

E/100 typical ceramic typical strengthened metal

e
typical polymer
0.1
• DaVinci (500 yrs ago!) observed... Reprinted w/
permission from R.W.
Hertzberg,
-- the longer the wire, the "Deformation and
smaller the load for failure. Fracture Mechanics
of Engineering
• Reasons: Materials", (4th ed.)
Fig. 7.4. John Wiley
-- flaws cause premature failure. and Sons, Inc., 1996.

-- Larger samples contain more flaws!

 Considering Loading Rate Effect

• Increased loading rate... • Why? An increased rate

-- increases sy and TS allows less time for
-- decreases %EL dislocations to move past
obstacles.
s
TS e Ductility is a function of
sy larger temperature of the
material, strain rate,
e and the stress state
TS
smaller
sy
e
 Impact (high strain rate) Testing
• Impact loading (see ASTM E23 std.):
-- severe testing case (Charpy Specimen)
-- makes material act more brittle
-- decreases toughness
• Useful to compare alternative materials
for severe applications

Adapted from Fig. 8.12(b),

Callister 7e. (Fig. 8.12(b) is
adapted from H.W. Hayden,
W.G. Moffatt, and J. Wulff, The
Structure and Properties of
Materials, Vol. III, Mechanical
Behavior, John Wiley and Sons,
Inc. (1965) p. 13.)

final height initial height

 Considering Temperature Effects
• Increasing temperature...
--increases %EL and Kc
• Ductile-to-Brittle Transition Temperature (DBTT)...

FCC metals (e.g., Cu, Ni)

Impact Energy

BCC metals (e.g., iron at T < 914°C)

polymers
Brittle More Ductile

High strength materials ( s y > E/150)

Adapted from Fig. 8.15,
Callister 7e.
Temperature
Ductile-to-brittle
transition temperature
Figure 8.3 Variation in ductile-to-brittle transition temperature with alloy composition. (a) Charpy
V-notch impact energy with temperature for plain-carbon steels with various carbon levels (in weight
percent). (b) Charpy V-notch impact energy with temperature for Fe–Mn–0.05C alloys with various
manganese levels (in weight percent).

(From Metals Handbook, 9th

ed., Vol. 1, American Society
for Metals, Metals Park, OH,
1978.)
Design Strategy: Build Steel Ships Quickly!
in the North Atlantic were exposed to low temperatures
that changed the mechanism of cracking from ductile to
brittle, causing the hull to fracture easily

• Pre-WWI: The Titanic • WWII: Liberty ships

Reprinted w/ permission from R.W. Hertzberg, Reprinted w/ permission from R.W. Hertzberg,
"Deformation and Fracture Mechanics of Engineering "Deformation and Fracture Mechanics of Engineering
Materials", (4th ed.) Fig. 7.1(a), p. 262, John Wiley and Materials", (4th ed.) Fig. 7.1(b), p. 262, John Wiley and
Sons, Inc., 1996. (Orig. source: Dr. Robert D. Ballard, Sons, Inc., 1996. (Orig. source: Earl R. Parker,
The Discovery of the Titanic.) "Behavior of Engineering Structures", Nat. Acad. Sci.,
Nat. Res. Council, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., NY,
1957.)
• Problem: Used a type of steel with a DBTT ~ Room temp.
As a Designer: Stay Above The DBTT!
DBTT: Ductile to brittle transition temp
 Flaws are Stress Concentrators!
Relationship between material properties, stress level, presence of crack-producing
flaws and crack-propagation mechanisms
-An applied stress may be amplified/concentrated at the
tip depending upon crack orientation and geometry. (X-X’)
-At positions far removed stress is nominal
-Therefore, these flaws are sometimes called stress
raisers
Results from crack propagation
• Griffith Crack Model:
1/ 2
a 
t s m  2s o    K t so
 t 
where
t = radius of curvature of
crack tip
so = applied stress
sm = stress at crack tip
Adapted from Fig. 8.8(a), Callister 7e. Kt = Stress concentration factor
 Concentration of Stress at Crack Tip
The critical stress
-Effect of stress raiser required for crack
flaws is more significant propagation in brittle
in brittle than in ductile materials is
materials. 2𝐸γ𝑠 1
σ𝑐 = ( ) 2
-For ductile materials, π𝑎
plastic deformation
ensues when max Where,
E= Modulus of elasticity
stress exceeds yield
γs = specific surface
strength energy
a = one half of length of
an internal crack

Adapted from Fig. 8.8(b), Callister 7e.

 Engineering Fracture Design
• Avoid sharp corners!
so s
max
Stress Conc. Factor, K t = s
w o
smax 2.5 smax is the concentrated
stress in the narrowed
r, h region
fillet 2.0 increasing w/h
radius
Adapted from G.H. 1.5
Neugebauer, Prod. Eng.
(NY), Vol. 14, pp. 82-87
1943.)
1.0 r/h
0 0.5 1.0
sharper fillet radius
 Cracks usually start smaller than we usually see

We usually
think of
cracks as
features we
can see

Material
weaker at
the
boundaries,
these are
little cracks
waiting to
happen

Most of the materials contain

many chaotic irregularities
(grain boundaries) which
constitute crack precursors
Since there are so many irregularities, close to uniformly
distributed, and fairly randomly oriented, the macro properties
of many or most materials tend to be continuous and isotropic
 Ductile material is tough
against fracture as it can
absorb more energy
before fracture.

Strain Energy density= 1/2σε

• At the small tip of the crack, the stress level becomes very high leading to
progression of the deformation.
• In ductile material starts plastically deforming leading to blunting of the tip.
• Ductile materials after undergoing deformation become brittle, after some amount
of crack tip blunting, the material at the bottom (tip) of the crack become brittle.
• The material tears apart after the getting brittle due to deformation

-Stress must exceed material strength at the

crack frontier.
-In the formation of new surfaces associated
with the crack, enough strain energy must
be released to supply the required surface
energy
 Crack Propagation

Cracks propagate due to sharpness of crack tip

• A plastic material deforms at the tip, “blunting” the
crack.
plastic
deformed
region
brittle

Energy balance on the crack

• Elastic strain energy-
• energy is stored in material as it is elastically deformed
• this energy is released when the crack propagates
• creation of new surfaces requires (this) energy
 Stress intensity factor is not same The stress intensity factor
A stress as the stress concentration factor K describes the stress
concentration factor state at a crack tip, is
(Kt) is used to related to the rate of crack
quantify how growth, and is used to
concentrated the establish failure criteria
stress is in a due to fracture.
mechanical part. It is
defined as the ratio of
the highest stress in
the part compared to
a reference stress
Toughness is the ability of material (assumed to perfect, meaning no cracks) to absorb
energy to fracture. It is measured by the area under stress strain curve to the point of
fracture.

Fracture Toughness is the ability of material with pre-cracks to resist fracture by

absorbing energy.
defined by the stress-intensity factor at a critical point where crack propagation becomes
rapid. It is given the symbol KIc and is measured in units of megapascals times the
square root of the distance measured in metres (MPaSquare root of√m).
 When Does a Crack Propagate?
Crack propagates if applied stress is above critical
stress
1/ 2
i.e., sm > sc  2E s 
sc   
or Kt > Kc  a 

where
– E = modulus of elasticity
– s = specific surface energy
– a = one half length of internal crack
– Kc = sc/s0

For ductile materials  replace s by s + p

where p is plastic deformation energy
 Fracture Toughness
Graphite/ K1c – plane strain stress
Metals/ Composites/
Alloys
Ceramics/ Polymers
fibers concentration factor – with
Semicond edge crack; A Material
100
C-C(|| fibers) 1 Property we use for design,
70 Steels
60 Ti alloys
developed using ASTM Std:
50 ASTM E399 - 09 Standard
40
Al alloys Test Method for Linear-
30 Mg alloys Elastic Plane-Strain Fracture
K Ic (MPa · m0.5 )

20 Toughness K Ic of Metallic
Al/Al oxide(sf) 2
Y2 O 3 /ZrO 2 (p) 4
Materials
10 C/C( fibers) 1 Composite reinforcement geometry is: f =
Al oxid/SiC(w) 3 fibers; sf = short fibers; w = whiskers; p =
Diamond Si nitr/SiC(w) 5
7 Al oxid/ZrO 2 (p) 4 particles. Addition data as noted (vol. fraction of
6 Si carbide Glass/SiC(w) 6 reinforcement):
5 Al oxide PET 1. (55vol%) ASM Handbook, Vol. 21, ASM Int., Materials
4 Si nitride Park, OH (2001) p. 606.
PP 2. (55 vol%) Courtesy J. Cornie, MMC, Inc., Waltham,
3 PVC MA.
3. (30 vol%) P.F. Becher et al., Fracture Mechanics of
Ceramics, Vol. 7, Plenum Press (1986). pp. 61-73.
2 PC 4. Courtesy CoorsTek, Golden, CO.
5. (30 vol%) S.T. Buljan et al., "Development of Ceramic
Matrix Composites for Application in Technology for
Advanced Engines Program", ORNL/Sub/85-22011/2,
1 <100> ORNL, 1992.
Si crystal PS Glass 6 6. (20vol%) F.D. Gace et al., Ceram. Eng. Sci. Proc., Vol.
<111>
0.7 Glass -soda 7 (1986) pp. 978-82.
0.6 Polyester
Concrete
0.5
Observations:
-Yield strength and fracture toughness are inversely related.
Enhancement in YS by solid solution or dispersion additions or strain hardening
decreases FT.
-Brittle materials have low KIc values and are vulnerable to
catastrophic failure.
-For ductile materials KIc is relatively large.

-Fracture mechanics is especially useful in predicting

catastrophic failures in materials having intermediate ductilities.

- KIc is fundamental material property that depends on many

factors like:
• Temperature –FT diminishes with decreasing temp
• Strain rate- FT diminishes with increasing strain rate
• Microstructure
Design using Fracture Mechanics:
Three variables must be considered relative to the possibility for fracture of some
structural component:
-the fracture toughness (Kc) or plane strain fracture toughness (KIc)
-the imposed stress (σ)
-the flaw size (a) assuming that Y has been determined

When designing a component, decide which of these variables are constrained

by the application and which are subject to design control.

Case-1
material selection (and hence Kc or KIc) is often dictated by factors such as density
(for lightweight applications) or the corrosion characteristics of the environment.
Or, the allowable flaw size is either measured or specified by the limitations of available
flaw detection techniques. The KIc and the magnitude of flaw are specified therefore the
design stress must be
𝐾𝐼𝑐
σ𝑐 =
𝑌 𝜋𝑎
On the other hand, if stress level and plane strain fracture toughness are fixed by
the design situation, then the maximum allowable flaw size ac is
1 𝐾𝐼𝑐 2
𝑎𝑐 = ( )
𝜋 σ𝑌
As Engineers we must Design Against Crack
Growth
• Crack growth condition:
K ≥ Kc = Ys a Y: Geometric factor that depends on
the sample size and size of the crack

• Largest, most stressed cracks grow first!

--Result 1: Max. flaw size --Result 2: Design stress
dictates design stress! dictates max. flaw size!
2
Kc 1  K c 
sdesign  amax 
Y amax   Ysdesign 
amax
s

fracture fracture
no no
fracture amax fracture s
Y is a material behavior shape factor
 Design Example: Aircraft Wing
• Material has Kc = 26 MPa-m0.5
• Two designs to consider...
Design A Design B
--largest flaw is 9 mm --use same material
--failure occurs at stress = 112 MPa --largest flaw is 4 mm
Kc --failure stress = ?
• Use... sc 
Y amax
• Key point: Y and Kc are the same in both designs!
--Result:
112 MPa 9 mm 4 mm

s c amax   s
A
c amax 
B
Answer: (sc )B  168 MPa
• Reducing flaw size pays off!

ac= 8.15 mm
 Let’s look at Another Situation
• Steel subject to tensile
stress of 1030 MPa, it has Ka  Ys a  a
K1c of 54.8 MPa(m) – a here
handbook value Y 1
• If it has a ‘largest surface
crack’ .5 mm (.0005 m) Y s a  a  1*1030* 3.141*.0005  40.82
long will it grow and Since K a < K1c the part won't fail!
fracture?

K1c  Y s c  a
2
 K1c 
 
2
• What crack size will result  Y s c 
54.8
a   1*1030
in failure?  3.1416
a  .0009m  .9mm
Figure 8.7 Two mechanisms for improving fracture toughness of ceramics by crack
arrest. (a) Transformation toughening of partially stabilized zirconia involves the stress-
induced transformation of tetragonal grains to the monoclinic structure, which has a
larger specific volume. The result is a local volume expansion at the crack tip, squeezing
the crack shut and producing a residual compressive stress. (b) Microcracks produced
during fabrication of the ceramic can blunt the advancing crack tip
For a crack to propagate, stress must exceed material strength, and enough strain
energy must be released as the crack grows to generate the new surfaces.
A ductile material is more tough against fracture as it undergoes more strain at higher
levels of stress loading before failure
Yield strength and fracture toughness are inversely related; cold work decreases FT
(a) Part 2 Pr against failure duo to crack propagation
The two curves represent two different ways that the tested
specimens were oriented for the tests
The pipe is going to fail by
crack propagation than by
yielding due to lesser pressure
reqd for failure.
So if the pipe wasn’t cold
worked to provide strength of
990MPa, it could have
avoided failure by crack
propagation
As localized yielding
occurs over and over,
more and more bonds
are broken and tiny
voids begin to
coalesce.
Onset of fatigue is
linked to imperfections

Parts fail at lesser

stress levels
 Fatigue behavior:
• Fatigue = failure under cyclic stress
specimen compression on top (Fig. 8.18 is from
Materials Science in
motor Engineering, 4/E by Carl.
bearing bearing counter
A. Keyser, Pearson
Education, Inc., Upper
flex coupling Saddle River, NJ.)
tension on bottom

• Stress varies with time. s

smax
-- key parameters are S (stress
S
amplitude), sm, and frequency sm
smin time

• Key points when designing in Fatigue inducing situations:

-- fatigue can cause part failure, even though smax < sc.
-- fatigue causes ~ 90% of mechanical engineering failures.
• Because of its importance, ASTM and ISO have developed many
special standards to assess Fatigue Strength of materials
 Some important Calculations in
Fatigue Testing
A Material 6.4 mm in  is subject to (fatiguing) loads:
5340 N - tensile then compressive
s max  5340  5340  165.99MPa
  3.22 105
3 2
 6.4*10 2

s min  5340  5340  165.99MPa

 
5
3 2
3.22 10
 6.4*10 2

s max  s min 165.99   165.99  MPa

s m  mean stress   0
2 2
s r  stress range  s Max  s min  331.99MPa

s a  stress amplitude  S  s r 2  165.99MPa

Fatigue is believed to be strongly
linked to imperfections

Figure Fatigue corresponds to the brittle fracture of an alloy after a total of

N cycles to a stress below the tensile strength.
 Steel and titanium
Fatigue Design Parameters show endurance limit,
Aluminum do not show

• Fatigue (endurance) S = stress amplitude

case for
limit, Sfat: unsafe steel (typ.)
--no fatigue failure if
S < Sfat Sfat
safe Adapted from Fig.
8.19(a), Callister 7e.
Fatigue Limit is defined in: ASTM
3 5 7 9
D671 10 10 10 10
N = Cycles to failure
• However, Sometimes, the
fatigue limit is zero!
S = stress amplitude
case for
unsafe Al (typ.)

In mechanical design, the

most common approach is to safe Adapted from Fig.
design for infinite life 8.19(b), Callister 7e.
3 5 7 9
10 10 10 10
N = Cycles to failure
 Let’s look at an Example
Given: 2014-T6 Alum. Alloy bar (6.4 mm )
find its fatigue life if a part is subject to loads:
5340 N - tensile then compressive
s max  5340 2 
5340 5  165.99 MPa


 6.4*10 2
3
 3.22  10

s min  5340 2 
5340  165.99MPa
 
6.4*10 3

2  3.22 105

s max  s min 165.99   165.99  MPa

sm   0
2 2
s r  s Max  s min  331.99MPa

s a  S  s r 2  165.99MPa
Examining Fig (right) at S = 165.99
Fatigue Life = Cycles to Failure  7 106
For metals other than Ferrous alloys, F.S. is
taken as the stress that will cause failure
after 108 cycles
Figure 8.21 Fatigue behavior for an acetal polymer at various
temperatures.

(From Design Handbook for Du

Pont Engineering Plastics, used
by permission.)

For polymers, we
consider fatigue
life to be (only)
106 cycles to
failure thus fatigue
strength is the
stress that will
lead to failure
after 106 cycles
 Fatigue Mechanism
• Cracks in Material grows incrementally
typ. 1 to 6
da
 K 
m

dN
~ s a
increase in crack length per loading cycle
crack origin
• Failed rotating shaft
--crack grew even though
Kmax < Kc
--crack grows faster as
• s increases Adapted from
from D.J. Wulpi,
• crack gets longer Understanding How
• loading freq. increases. Components Fail,
American Society for
Metals, Materials Park,
OH, 1985.
Figure 8.11 An illustration of how repeated stress applications can generate
localized plastic deformation at the alloy surface leading eventually to sharp
discontinuities.
Figure 8.12 Illustration of crack growth with number of stress cycles, N, at two
different stress levels. Note that, at a given stress level, the crack growth rate,
da/dN, increases with increasing crack length, and, for a given crack length such as
a1, the rate of crack growth is significantly increased with increasing magnitude of
stress.
 At ultimate tensile
strength above 200 ksi,
endurance limit caps at
100 ksi
For a perfectly
polished rotating
bending specimen
Strain-life method:

Sf fatigue strength
σf:Fatigue strength coeff
and
f is fatigue strength fraction:
ratio of fatigue strength at
1000 cycles to ultimate
strength
And b:
 Improving Fatigue Life
1. Impose a compressive S = stress amplitude
Adapted from
surface stresses Fig. 8.24, Callister 7e.

(to suppress surface Increasing

near zero or compressive sm
crack growth) sm moderate tensile sm
Larger tensile sm

N = Cycles to failure

--Method 1: shot peening --Method 2: carburizing

shot
C-rich gas
put
surface
into
compression

2. Remove stress bad better

concentrators. Adapted from
Fig. 8.25, Callister 7e.

bad better
Figure 8.17 Fatigue strength is increased by prior mechanical deformation
or reduction of structural discontinuities.
 Other Issues in Failure – Stress Corrosion
Cracking
• Water can greatly accelerate
crack growth and shorten life
performance – in metals,
ceramics and glasses

• Other chemicals – that can

generate (or provide H+ or O2-)
ions – also effectively reduce
fatigue life as these ions react
with the metal or oxide in the
material
Figure 8.18 The drop in strength of glasses with duration of load (and without
cyclic-load applications) is termed static fatigue.

(From W. D. Kingery, Introduction to

Ceramics, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.,
New York, 1960.)
Figure 8.19 The role of H2O in static fatigue depends on its reaction with the
silicate network. One H2O molecule and one –Si– O–Si– segment generate two
Si–OH units, which is equivalent to a break in the network.
Figure 8.20 Comparison of (a) cyclic fatigue in metals and (b) static
fatigue in ceramics.
 SUMMARY
• Engineering materials don't reach theoretical strength.
• Flaws produce stress concentrations that cause
premature failure.
• Sharp corners produce large stress concentrations
and premature failure.
• Failure type depends on T and stress:
- for noncyclic s and T < 0.4Tm, failure stress decreases with:
- increased maximum flaw size,
- decreased T,
- increased rate of loading.
- for cyclic s:
- cycles to fail decreases as s increases.
- for higher T (T > 0.4Tm):
- time to fail decreases as s or T increases.
Creep is a time dependent plastic deformation of a
material under constant load or stress condition.

-in real life, materials usually fail under constant load

conditions. Constant stress tests at lab scale however
help in anlysing creep data for establishing the rate
controlling mechanism of plastic deformation.

-creep is described by plots of strain vs time

-to determine the creep curve, the material is loaded

under constant load or stress and is maintained at
constant temperature. The strain in the specimen is
recorded as a function of time.
creep is a complex failure mode that describes how
materials deform when exposed to constant stress
and/or elevated temperatures.

These deformations are typically in the form of

dislocations where voids are formed either on the grain
boundaries or within the crystal structure of the grain
due to the applied stress.

These voids or dislocations then travel throughout the

material over the lifetime of the part, resulting in
permanent deformation known as creep.

These deformations can occur well below the yield point

of the material. Creep typically presents itself in three
stages, namely, primary, secondary, and tertiary creep.
Creep deformation in steel is only considered a
problem when its operating temperature reaches
40% of its melting temperature for long periods of
time. Various creep mechanisms can present
themselves depending on the load conditions and
the type of material.

How Does Creep (Deformation) Work?

Creep deformation works by localized dislocations
forming either within the grain structure of a metal
or on the grain boundaries.
For polymers, creep works by molecular chains
sliding past each other. Creep deformation is highly
dependent on applied stress and operating
temperatures.
A creep deformation curve can be broken down into
three sections: primary, secondary, and tertiary creep
The first part of the curve refers to an
elastic region that is developed when
a material is first exposed to the load
and begins to strain and harden over
time.
The creep rate will slowly reduce as a
function of time due to strain
hardening in the material.
The second linear area refers to a
steady state deformation during
which the creep rate is constant.
The final section refers to the failure region in
While there is still a level of strain which the material's creep rate rapidly
hardening, this is balanced by the increases until it reaches the rupture point.
The mechanism of failure usually manifests as
material undergoing a recovery
the development of micro cracks, internal
stage that softens the material and voids, and grain boundary separation. This
enables deformation. results in a decrease in effective cross-
Used by engineers as a parameter sectional area causing increased stress which
to inform their designs accelerates the failure rate
A more common way of indicating the creep behavior of
a metal is to plot the creep strain rate of a material at
different temperatures, as below:

This gives an extensive

overview of a material’s
behavior in relation to a
range of different
temperatures.

It can be seen that increased temperatures result in

higher strain rates and reduced time to rupture.
Creep can be represented as the change in strain
over time as seen in the equation below:

Where:
1.C - Constant that changes depending on the creep mechanism
and the material
2.σ - Stress applied to the material
3.m, b - Exponents that depend on the specific creep mechanism
4.d - The materials’ average grain size
5.Q - Activation energy of deformation
6.k - Boltzmann’s constant
7.T - Absolute temperature
The need often arises for engineering creep data that are impractical to collect from
normal laboratory tests.
This is especially true for prolonged exposures (on the order
of years).
One solution to this problem involves performing creep and/or creep
rupture tests at temperatures in excess of those required, for shorter time periods,
and at a comparable stress level, and then making a suitable extrapolation to the
in-service condition.

A commonly used extrapolation procedure employs the Larson–Miller parameter,

defined as T (C + log tr)
where C is a constant (usually on the order of 20), for T in Kelvin and the rupture
lifetime tr in hours

The rupture lifetime of a given material measured at some specific stress level will
vary with temperature such that this parameter remains constant.