50-Fold Difference in Region-II Fatigue Crack Propagation Resistance of Titanium Alloys: A Grain-Size Effect

Fatigue crack growth rates (da/dN) in ambient laboratory air have been determined for a wide variety of materials from four basic α + β titanium alloy systems. Each material was cyclically loaded with a haversine waveform and a load ratio, R = 0.10. The results indicate that, at a constant value of stress-intensity range (ΔK), the width of the da/dN data band exceeds an order of magnitude. For example, at ΔK = 21 MPa·m^1/2, a 50-fold difference in fatigue crack propagation rates is observed. Analysis of the crack growth rate data at this point indicates a systematic dependence on grain size (l), viz. that da/dN decreases with increasing l. An interpretation of this effect is offered in terms of reversed (cyclic) plastic zone size considerations.