EXPERIENCE WITH THERMOMECHANICAL FATIGUE UNDER SERVICE-TYPE LOADING

The thermomechanical fatigue behaviour of different high temperature alloys has been investigated and is under investigation respectively. The creep-fatigue behaviour of heat resistant steels was investigated by long-term service-type strain cycling tests simulating thermomechanical fatigue (TMF-) loading conditions at the heated surface of e.g. turbine rotors. Single-stage as well as three-stage cycles leads to similar results at the application of the damage accumulation rule. Life prediction which simulates typical combinations of cold starts, warm starts and hot starts has been established successfully for isothermal service-type loading and will be exceeded for thermomechanical loading. Long-term thermomechanical fatigue testing of Thermal Barrier Coating systems show typical delamination damage. An advanced TMF cruciform testing system enables complex multiaxial loading.