Comparison on crack propagation under tension at 150℃ of Mg-2Zn-1.5Mn alloy sheets with and without crack notch

Generally,edge crack of rolled magnesium alloy sheets initiates in the RD(rolling direction)-ND(normal direction)plane and then propagate in the RD-TD(transverse direction)plane.Hence,the Mg-2Zn-1.5Mn(ZM21)alloy sheets with and without crack notch were designed to carry out in-situ tensile experiments under 150℃(the same temperature of rolling),with the aim to understand their crack propagation mechanism.The scanning electron microscopy(SEM)and electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD)techniques were utilized to reveal microstructural evolution in real time at designated displacements.The results show that the prismatic slip,basal slip,and extension twining play synergistic role in coordinating strain during the tensile process in ZM21 alloy sheet at 150℃.In both tensile samples with and without crack notch,localized strain is mainly concentrated at relatively fine grain area and the grain boundaries or triple junctions of the grains with large basal Schmid factor(SF)difference,which eventually leads to severe surface roughening and subsequent crack initiation.Compared with the sample without crack notch,the pre-cracked sample exhibits severer deformation at the crack tip due to strain concentration.Strain gradient distribution is observed at the crack tip region in the pre-cracked sample.The crack propagation path of the sample with pre-crack is identified and the underlying mechanism is also discussed.

Simulation of top-down crack propagation in asphalt pavements

Top-down crack in asphalt pavements has been reported as a widespread mode of failure.A solid understanding of the mechanisms of crack growth is essential to predict pavement performance in the context of thickness design,as well as in the design and optimization of mixtures.Using the coupled element free Galerkin (EFG) and finite element (FE) method,top-down crack propagation in asphalt pavements is numerically simulated on the basis of fracture mechanics.A parametric study is conducted to isolate the effects of overlay thickness and stiffness,base thickness and stiffness on top-down crack propagation in asphalt pavements.The results show that longitudinal wheel loads are disadvantageous to top-down crack because it increases the compound stress intensity factor (SIF) at the tip of top-down crack and shortens the crack path,and thus the fatigue life descends.The SIF experiences a process "sharply ascending—slowly descending—slowly ascending—sharply ascending again" with the crack propagating.The thicker the overlay or the base,the lower the SIF; the greater the overlay stiffness,the higher the SIF.The crack path is hardly affected by stiffness of the overlay and base.