Abstract
The bending behavior of thin nitinol beams under dynamic loading conditions was experimentally characterized using a three-point bending fixture in a Dynamic Mechanical Analyzer (DMA). Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) was also used to measure the transformation temperatures and assess the effects of annealing treatment on the material behavior. The alloy (54.4Ni/45.5Ti wt. %) was chosen so that the austenitic finish temperature was in the range of 50–100°C. Simple beam bending theory was used to calculate the dynamic moduli of the beam and the transformation temperatures were observed in the form of a hysteresis curve of storage modulus. Monotonic three-point bend loading tests were conducted for pure martensite and pure austenite to measure the critical stresses for martensitic (stress-induced) transformation.
