applsci-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Engineering Materials

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Materials Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2025 | Viewed by 2652

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Coimbra, 3030788 Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: structural integrity; fatigue and fracture; additive manufacturing; composite materials; fatigue in corrosion environments
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Given that fatigue and fracture phenomena account for 80% to 90% of failures in mechanical components, it is crucial to study these phenomena to ensure long-term durability and reliability. The introduction of new materials and manufacturing processes presents new challenges in terms of design, requiring more targeted research. This Special Issue aims to serve as a forum for analyzing new trends in fracture mechanics and fatigue design across all materials, with a particular focus on new materials, production processes, failure models, and design criteria. Papers addressing the effects of processing techniques, microstructural features, loading history, environmental conditions, and the modeling of mechanical behavior, as well as those covering advanced applications, are encouraged. Both experimental and numerical approaches will be considered. The Special Issue is open to both original research and review articles.

Prof. Dr. Joel De Jesus
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fatigue
  • fracture
  • fatigue crack growth
  • corrosion fatigue
  • low-cycle fatigue
  • high-cycle fatigue
  • numerical fatigue analysis
  • fatigue crack initiation
  • variable amplitude fatigue
  • fatigue damage accumulation
  • failure analysis
  • stress-based, strain-based, and energy-based criteria
  • linear elastic fracture mechanics
  • elasto-plastic fracture mechanics
  • computational fracture mechanics

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

20 pages, 27305 KiB  
Article
Additively Manufactured Inconel 718 Low-Cycle Fatigue Performance
by Joseph Johnson and Daniel Kujawski
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(3), 1653; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15031653 - 6 Feb 2025
Viewed by 612
Abstract
Inconel 718 is one of the most used alloys within the aerospace gas turbine industry. The acceptance of Inconel 718 within the aerospace gas turbine industry has largely been due to its high strength and fatigue capabilities up to 677 °C (1250 °F). [...] Read more.
Inconel 718 is one of the most used alloys within the aerospace gas turbine industry. The acceptance of Inconel 718 within the aerospace gas turbine industry has largely been due to its high strength and fatigue capabilities up to 677 °C (1250 °F). This alloy is traditionally produced through conventional manufacturing methods, such as casting, wrought, and sheet forming. The various traditional manufacturing methods of this alloy have been well understood and characterized for use in critical components. However, Inconel 718 can also be produced with non-traditional manufacturing methods, such as by additive manufacturing. Producing Inconel 718 by additive manufacturing has the opportunity to design more complex components that provide distinct advantages over conventionally produced components. However, prior to implementing additively manufactured Inconel 718 within the aerospace gas turbine industry, there needs to be a complete understanding of the material’s performance. In an effort to completely characterize additively manufactured Inconel 718, this study focuses on the characterization of the alloy’s low-cycle fatigue performance. Specimens were produced via the laser powder bed fusion process in a vertical orientation. Both as-printed surfaces and fully machined surface specimens were evaluated at 24 °C (75 °F) and 538 °C (1000 °F). Fractography analysis was then completed on the specimens to understand differences in the crack initiation and propagation with respect to test temperatures and surface conditions. Based on these tests, it was shown that the fatigue life knockdown due to the as-printed surface conditions was 62.8% at 538 °C (1000 °F) versus only 8.5% at 24 °C (75 °F). These findings are discussed in detail within this article, and future work is proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Engineering Materials)
Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 9525 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Fatigue Life and Failure Criteria in Ultrasonic Testing Through Thermal Analyses
by Maria Clara Carvalho Teixeira, Marcos Venicius Soares Pereira, Rodrigo Fernandes Magalhães Souza, Felipe Rebelo Lopes and Talita Goulart da Silva
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(3), 1076; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15031076 - 22 Jan 2025
Viewed by 643
Abstract
An experimental study was conducted to analyze temperature evolution during very high cycle fatigue tests. The temperature–number of cycles (T–N) curve is typically divided into three phases: Phase I—a rapid temperature increases at the start of the test, Phase II—temperature stabilization, [...] Read more.
An experimental study was conducted to analyze temperature evolution during very high cycle fatigue tests. The temperature–number of cycles (T–N) curve is typically divided into three phases: Phase I—a rapid temperature increases at the start of the test, Phase II—temperature stabilization, and Phase III—a sharp temperature rise at the test’s end, coinciding with specimen fracture. The high frequencies used in ultrasonic fatigue testing can induce self-heating in specimens, but the thermal effects are not yet fully understood. Temperature is known to influence the fatigue performance of materials. To explore this, specimens were subjected to varying stress levels and intermittent loading conditions while monitoring temperature evolution using infrared thermography. The T–N curves were obtained, and S–N curves were constructed for specimens tested at room temperature. All tests were performed under fully reversed loading conditions. The experimental data were used to evaluate models commonly applied in conventional fatigue testing. Additionally, the temperature gradient at the beginning of the ultrasonic fatigue test and the heat dissipation per cycle were estimated and analyzed as potential fatigue damage parameters. These findings indicate that parameters derived from the T–N curve have significant potential for predicting very high cycle fatigue life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Engineering Materials)
Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 3925 KiB  
Article
Influence of Low-Temperature Stress-Relieving Treatment in the Fatigue Life of Components Produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion in AlSi10Mg
by Malcolm António, Rui Fernandes, Joel de Jesus, Luís Borrego, Ricardo Branco, José da Costa and José Ferreira
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(1), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15010112 - 27 Dec 2024
Viewed by 673
Abstract
This study investigates the impact of low-temperature stress-relieving treatment on the fatigue life of AlSi10Mg components produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF). The research focuses on a bicycle crank arm, comparing its performance in as-built and heat-treated conditions. The heat treatment involved [...] Read more.
This study investigates the impact of low-temperature stress-relieving treatment on the fatigue life of AlSi10Mg components produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF). The research focuses on a bicycle crank arm, comparing its performance in as-built and heat-treated conditions. The heat treatment involved stress-relieving at 250 °C for 2 h, followed by water quenching. The study found that the as-built condition exhibited a supersaturated Si cellular-dendritic microstructure, while the heat-treated condition showed coarsening of β-Mg2Si phases and Si precipitates. This morphological change led to a decrease in hardness and an increase in ductility. Fatigue tests demonstrated that the heat-treated crank arms achieved the target of 100,000 cycles without failure, unlike the as-built samples, which failed prematurely. The fractography analysis identified surface porosity as the primary crack initiation site. The findings suggest that low-temperature stress-relieving treatment can enhance the fatigue performance of L-PBF AlSi10Mg components by reducing residual stresses and improving defect tolerance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fatigue and Fracture Behavior of Engineering Materials)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop