The Influence of Slip Character on the Creep and Fatigue Fracture of an α Ti-Al Alloy

The mechanical performance of engineering titanium alloys has long been known to be sensitive to the nature of applied load waveform. Sustained load hold periods imposed during the fatigue loading of two-phase alpha + beta alloys are detrimental to material performance. A number of factors, particularly material texture, phase morphologies, and slip behavior, are thought to affect the dwell fatigue responses of these materials. This study examines the roles of slip character and applied load waveform on an alloy with a simpler microstructure than the two-phase alloys studied previously. It is found that planar slip has significant influence over the dwell, fatigue, and fracture behaviors of equiaxed-grained, single-phase alpha Ti-7 wt pct Al.