Fatigue Crack Growth Behavior of Explosively-Bonded Clad Steel Plates

Fatigue crack growth behavior of explosively-bonded clad steel plates was studied by making fatigue crack growth tests under a constant stress intensity factor range and carrying out a finite element elasto-plastic analysis of fatigue crack growth. Effects of an initial residual stress, a hardening layer and a yielding point of each original material on crack propagation were examined. It was concluded from the examination that for explosively clad materials which had a clad interface, residual stresses and a hardening layer near the interface, the fatigue crack growth rates were not related to the stress intensity factor range, but closely related to a maximum strain range at the crack-tip.