Monitoring of crack growth and crack mouth opening displacement in compact tension specimens at high temperatures : Development and implementation of the Direct Current Potential Drop (DCPD) method

Abstract: The mechanical engineering department at the University of Idaho is conducting a project with the purpose of developing a complete system for investigating creep-, creep-fatigue- and fatigue properties of metallic materials at elevated temperatures up to 650 ˚C with Compact Tension (CT) specimens. Considerable efforts have been made to study and understand these phenomena, although numerous problems still exist. It is important to explore more extensively the complicated phenomena of creep, fatigue and of creep-fatigue interactions. The Direct Current Potential Drop (DCPD) method is a common method used to investigate, for example, the initiation of cracks, crack growth rates and to monitor crack growth. The technique utilizes the fact that the electrical resistance of a CT specimen changes with crack growth. By applying a constant current over the specimen and measuring the resulting voltage over the crack, the crack length can be related to the voltage, and the difference in crack length with difference in voltage. Standards from the American Society for Testing of Materials (ASTM) were used as guidance when designing the DCPD system and CT specimen. The development and implementation processes were divided into an analytical and an experimental stage. The final product consisted of a high temperature extensometer, to measure crack mouth opening displacement (CMOD), and a DCPD system, to measure crack growth, controlled by separate control units. The DCPD system consisted of a DC supply and a nano voltmeter along with Constantan wire and NiCr60 wire respectively, that were mechanically fastened. The DCPD system delivered overall satisfying results and was able to generate sufficient data to produce a crack growth curve, da/dN vs. ΔK. Although, by taking advantage of resistance welding equipment to attach the DCPD wires, along with implementing one shared control unit for the DCPD system and the extensometer, more accurate and accessible measurements and correlations could be extracted.