New cycle counting method for multiaxial fatigue

Multiaxial fatigue is a very important physical phenomenon in several mechanical components. Fatigue life study under cyclic stresses is of utmost importance to avoid unexpected failure of equipments, vehicles or structures. Among several fatigue characterization tools, a correct definition of a loading cycle under multiaxial fatigue loading conditions shows to be crucial to estimate multiaxial fatigue life. The aim of this work is to achieve a correct definition for a multiaxial fatigue loading cycle and accomplish a multiaxial fatigue model to estimate block's fatigue life under multiaxial loading conditions. To reach this goal, several loading paths were carried out using the 42CrMo4 low alloy steel under different loading conditions. Sequential, proportional, non-proportional and asynchronous loading effects were modulated through eleven loading blocks. Furthermore, two models were proposed: a cycle counting method and a fatigue life evaluation criterion. The results from the proposed models were correlated with the fatigue data and compared with two well known cycle counting models: the Bannantine and Socie and the Wang and Brown criteria. The proposed models were successfully validated by experimental data. Results show that the new proposals lead to an improved multiaxial fatigue characterization under complex loading conditions. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.