Fatigue Behaviour of Medium Carbon Steel Assessed by the Barkhausen Noise Method

Abstract In this paper, an attempt to estimate the stage of the fatigue process using the Barkhausen noise method is studied. First, microstructural and static tensile tests were carried out and, subsequently, fatigue tests up to failure were conducted. After determination of the material behaviour in the assumed static and dynamic conditions, the interrupted fatigue tests were performed. Each specimen was stressed up to a different number of cycles corresponding to 10%, 30%, 50%, 70% and 90% of fatigue lifetime for the loading conditions considered. In the next step of the experimental programme, the specimens were subjected to the Barkhausen magnetic noise measurements. Various magnetic parameters coming from the rms Barkhausen noise envelopes were determined. The linear relationship betweenthe full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the Barkhausen noise envelope and the number of loading cycles to fracture was found. Specimens loaded up to a certain number of cycles were also subjected to a tensile test to assess an influence of fatigue on the fracture features.