Acoustic emissions during fracture toughness tests of steels exhibiting varying ductility

This investigation is primarily aimed at examining steels with varying ductility using characteristics of acoustic emission (AE). Four steels (AISI 1060, AISI 1080, SA333 grade 6 and AISI 304LN) were selected and their structure property relations were characterized using standard metallographic examinations, hardness and tensile properties. Fracture toughness of these steels was determined as per the guidelines of ASTM standard E1820 with simultaneous recording of AE signals. The results of these investigations have been used to demonstrate that: (a) nature of the variation of AE cumulative counts with time is different for linear and non-linear load–displacement plots, (b) synergistic analysis of the rate of change of cumulative energy, cumulative counts and intensity of AE signals provide the point of crack initiation in a material, and (c) fracture toughness of a material estimated using AE parameters is lower compared to that obtained by ASTM standard procedure.