Predicting fretting fatigue crack propagation using finite element analysis

Abstract

Fretting fatigue is a complex mechanical phenomenon which combines the fretting and fatigue. This is common in components in contact and undergoing in oscillatory motion at the same time. Experimental studies of fretting fatigue require applying millions of load cycles in predicting fatigue life which consumes immense amount of time and money. This paper focuses on assessing use of finite element models and analytical techniques for fretting fatigue crack propagation. An analytical method based on Paris law and finite element simulation method using extended finite element method (XFEM) were adopted for predictions. For the analytical method stress intensity factor of the crack tip was extracted using a finite element model based on Virtual Crack Closure Technique (VCCT).