Fracture and Fatigue
Course facts
- Payment: Free, no certificate
- Credits: Non Credit
- Learning style: Self-paced, start anytime
- Resources: Lecture Notes; Problem Set Solutions; Problem Sets
MIT OpenCourseWare details
- As taught in: Fall 2003
- Department: Materials Science and Engineering
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Fracture mechanics and fatigue of metals, ceramics, polymers and thin films, with solved problem sets and case studies of real failures.
Why do materials crack, and how do cracks grow under repeated loads? This class investigates linear elastic and elastic-plastic fracture mechanics, microstructural effects in metals, ceramics, polymers and thin films, and toughening mechanisms. It then treats fatigue through stress-life and strain-life approaches and crack growth models, ending with case studies of real failures.
What You Will Achieve
- Apply linear elastic and elastic-plastic fracture mechanics
- Explain how microstructure affects fracture in different materials
- Use stress-life and strain-life approaches to estimate fatigue life
- Analyze fatigue crack growth and its retardation
Program Overview
Mechanics of Fracture
The first part sets out theory and failure criteria.
- Energy release rate and crack driving force
- Resistance curves
- Stress-, strain- and energy-based criteria
- Microstructural effects
Toughening and Thin Films
Further fracture topics cover interfaces and specific materials.
- Interface fracture mechanics
- Toughening mechanisms
- Fracture mechanisms in polymers
- Thin films, coatings and layered materials
Fatigue
The second half studies failure under cycling.
- Fatigue crack initiation
- Total-life approaches
- Fatigue crack growth
- Corrosion fatigue and creep fatigue
Course Completion
Job Outlook
These methods are used in analyzing failure in structural, bioimplant and microelectronic components, and in materials and mechanical engineering.
Good for: Materials and mechanical engineering students who want a detailed view of fracture and fatigue across several classes of materials.
Keep in mind: It follows Suresh’s Fatigue of Materials, which is required and not supplied, and no exams are published. There are no videos, though seven problem sets come with solutions.
Bottom line: A treatment of fracture and fatigue made concrete by its case studies of real failures.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which real failures do the case studies examine?
The 1985 Japan Airlines plane crash, a total-hip and knee replacement component, laser-linked metal interconnects, mechanical heart valves and turbogenerators.
What should you read for the class?
Fatigue of Materials by S. Suresh, 2nd edition. Reference books by Anderson, Hertzberg and Lawn are also listed.
Does it cover polymers and ceramics?
Yes. Sessions address fracture mechanisms in polymers such as crazing, damage in ceramics, and fatigue crack growth in both brittle solids and polymeric materials.
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