Fatigue lifetime and crack path prediction in four-point bending test of friction stir Cu-7075-T6 Aluminum alloy welded joints

In this investigation, kinked crack path of friction stir Cu-Al7075-T6 alloy welded joints in four-point bending test conditions has been studied as well as the fatigue lifetime of the welded joints, numerically and experimentally. To do so, four-point bending and fatigue tests of welded specimens have been carried out and the experimental fatigue test data and the kinked crack angles in bending tests have been extracted. Maximum Tangential Stress (MTS) and (KII)min criteria have been used for estimating the kinked crack angles, and Paris law has been applied to predict fatigue crack propagation life of the welded specimens. Functionally graded materials concept has been employed for determining mechanical properties of different regions of welded joints. To do so, the mechanical properties of the weld region such as Young's Modulus and Poisson's ratio have been considered to be linear functions of the positions of the weld region points. It has been shown that, when the original notch is close to the material with the higher fracture toughness (Copper), the kinked crack angle becomes smaller. The results show good agreement between the experimental data and numerical estimations.