Influence of Residual stress on the fracture behaviour of an Aluminium alloy

Abstract

Influence of residual stresses on fracture response of an Aluminum alloy is investigated. Cylindrical flat ended<br><br>punching tools are employed to introduce residual stresses on 15mm thick C(T) specimens. The residual stress<br><br>field resulting from Local Compression is simulated and analysed using a finite element analysis. The<br><br>dependence of residual stress field on the size as well as the relative position of the punching tools to the crack tip<br><br>is also investigated by performing a parametric study. The effect of residual stress on the subsequent fracture<br><br>response of Aluminum specimens under mode Ι loading is explored by performing an experimental programme.<br><br>The scatter of fracture toughness results compared for specimens with and without residual stress. The results<br><br>show a remarkable reduction in fracture toughness following local compression of the specimens.