Nonlinear vibration caused by fatigue

The main aim of this work is to study the interactions between vibration and fatigue crack growth. In this paper, a detailed mathematical modelling of a newly designed fatigue-testing rig, description of the rig, experimental set-up and procedures, and sensor calibrations are presented. The test rig consists of two base-excited oscillators, one positioned above and the other below a single-edge-notched beam sample. The inertial forces of the oscillators act on the sample causing its bending and fatigue. Mathematically the fatigue crack sample is modelled as a discrete spring with piecewise nonlinear stiffness which is assumed to be constant when the crack closes and to decrease with crack length when it opens. The results from the modelling correlate well with the experimental tests.