Experimental Approach for Clarifying Initiation and Growth Behaviors of Internal Fatigue Cracks Using Synchrotron Radiation Multiscale X-ray Computed Tomography

The very high cycle fatigue (VHCF) phenomenon has been recognized and extensively studied in the past quarter century. One of the most peculiar and noticeable characteristics of VHCF is the transition of the origin site from the surface to the interior of the material in long-life regimes over 107 cycles. In particular, in high-strength metals, a tiny site can become an origin of internal fatigue cracks, such as nonmetallic inclusions of several micrometers to several tens of micrometers in high-strength steels and crystal grains of several tens of micrometers in titanium alloys. However, such small cracks are difficult to detect using conventional nondestructive approaches, such as industrial X-ray computed tomography (CT) or ultrasonic CT. Given this background, we have attempted to use a synchrotron radiation multiscale X-ray CT provided by SPring-8 in Japan. This system comprises a projection CT (micro-CT) with a spatial resolution of approximately 1 μm and a phase-contrast imaging CT (nano-CT) with a spatial resolution of approximately 200 nm or higher. The present study introduces our experimental approach to clarify internal fatigue crack behaviors using the multiscale X-ray CT with in situ fatigue testing. First, the principle of material selection focusing on the VHCF study is explained with the details of the materials used: (α+β) type Ti-6Al-4V, β type Ti-22V-4Al, and 17-4 precipitation-hardened martensite stainless steel. Afterward, the outline and primary performance of the multiscale X-ray CT are described. Subsequently, important points in conducting accurate in situ fatigue tests are discussed from the viewpoints of the development policies of the testing system and preparation of the special thin specimen for CT imaging. Finally, the multiscale X-ray CT is conducted for the above materials, and the initiation and growth behaviors of the internal fatigue cracks are compared and discussed for an in-depth understanding of the VHCF phenomenon.