Slip intermittency and dwell fatigue in titanium alloys: a discrete dislocation plasticity analysis

Slip intermittency and stress oscillations in titanium alloy Ti-7Al-O that were observed using in -situ far-field high energy X-ray diffraction microscopy (ff-HEDM) are investigated using a discrete dislocation plasticity (DDP) model. The mechanistic foundation of slip intermittency and stress oscillations are shown to be dislocation escape from obstacles during stress holds, governed by a thermal activation constitutive law. The stress drop events due to <a>-basal slip are larger in magnitude than those along <a>-prism, which is a consequence of their differing rate sensitiv-ities, previously found from micropillar testing. It is suggested that interstitial oxygen suppresses stress oscillations by inhibiting the thermal activation process. Understanding of these mecha-nisms is of benefit to the design and safety assessment of jet engine titanium alloys subjected to dwell fatigue.