3D characterization of closure of surface and internal fatigue cracks in nodular cast iron using Digital Volume Correlation of laboratory X-ray tomography images

Digital volume correlation (DVC) of laboratory X-ray tomography images has been used to characterize the closure of artificial internal fatigue cracks in nodular graphite cast iron. DVC allows to produce crack opening displacement (COD) map from 3D tomography images at the sub-voxel scale thanks to the graphite nodules which can be used as internal natural markers. Fatigue samples containing controlled internal defects have been produced in a nodular cast iron by diffusion bonding plates containing laser -machined sharp notches. Specimens with internal cracks and surface cracks were respectively characterized by laboratory tomography at different loads during fatigue crack propagation tests. The local stress intensity factors (SIFs) have been extracted from the measured displacement fields by using Williams series, based on those results the closure levels of internal cracks and surface cracks were comparatively analyzed and discussed. Crack closure levels were found to be linearly related to the location of the surface crack front, and the level of internal crack closure was comparable to that of the surface crack in bulk.