Prediction of the Period of Initiation of Macrocracks in Notched Specimens

We propose an experimental–numerical procedure for the prediction the number of cycles Ni to the initiation of a fatigue crack near stress concentrators in specimens of complex shape. This procedure is based on direct measurements of the opening displacements of the concentrator and the numerical evaluation of the total range of local strains Δe* or its elastic component \(\Delta \varepsilon _e^ * \) near the tip of the notch. The applicability of this procedure to the prediction of Ni is experimentally checked for specimens in the form of strips cut out from rolled sheets of V95pchT2 alloy with stress concentrators of different geometries.