• Composites Research
• /
• v.12 no.5
• /
• pp.1-11
• /
• 1999

Cyclic deformation and fatigue behavior of $Al/$Al_2O_3$ metal matrix composites and matrix alloy were studied. Hatigue strength Al/$Al_2O_3$ composites was about 210MPa, and that of Al matrix alloy was 170MPa. Most of the resultant displacement due to permanent plastic deformation occurred in less than the first 5% of fatigue life. In case of composites, decrease of cyclic displacement was smaller than that of matrix because the reinforcements acted as barriers to dislocation movement. Consequently, cyclic stress-displacement response curve can be considered to have these atages ; an initial few cycles of rapid hardening, followed by progressive hardening for most the fatigue life, and then just prior to failure, an instantaneous drop in stress carrying capability of the material due to multiple microcrack initiation, eventual coalescence of microcrack to form a macrocrack and then rapid macroscopic crack growth.