Effects of pre-fatigue on the strain localization during tensile tests of DP 500 steel at low and high strain rates

Abstract

The analysis involved subjecting DP 500 steel to pre-fatigue loads, and then tension at high strain rates using Hopkinson bar. Digital image correlation method was used to investigate how the pre-fatigue loads change the strains’ distribution on the surface of the sample subjected to tension. The analysis involved both films recorded at low rates of deformation (1.0 × 10⁻² s⁻¹) using ARAMIS system and the images captured with a high-speed camera during dynamic deformations with a Hopkinson bar (6.0 × 10² s⁻¹). It was noted, based on the micro-structural analysis, that pre-fatigue loads cause the formation of micro-damages in the examined material. Thus, macroscopically observed stress–strain characteristic as well as Huber–Mises substitute strains’ distribution determined locally by the image correlation method is also subject to changes. The observed effects include the following: reduction of deformation corresponding to the tensile strength, decrease in elongation at break, and increase in yield limit and tensile strength. The observed effects are intensified with an increased stress value and pre-fatigue cycles’ number. Furthermore, these phenomena are more intensive in the conditions of dynamic deformation.