Three dimensional void analysis of AM60B magnesium alloy tensile bars using computed tomography imagery

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Sandia National Laboratories, California (SNL) are collaborating on the development of new techniques to study damage evolution and growth in notched Bridgman tensile bars subjected to monotonic loading. This paper focuses on analyzing damage evolution as a function of load, using the nondestructive testing (NDT) technique of X-ray computed tomography (CT). This project included several AM60B magnesium alloy tensile bars, which were loaded to different percentages of their average failure load, and subsequently scanned using CT. The CT data was analyzed using a three dimensional (3D) technique to quantify different characteristics of void damage progression as a function of load. The void analysis is being used to refine and calibrate existing material models.