Third International Symposium on Fatigue Design and Material Defects 3

The fatigue properties of materials/components are usually controlled by the presence of defects due to the manufacturing process that significantly reduce the fatigue strength and service life with respect to the theoretical values of a material. In general, the presence of defects accelerates the initial phase of fatigue damage, a process that involves a volume of a few microstructural units.

Therefore, non-metallic inclusions with dimensions of the order of ten microns play a key role in the fatigue strength of bearings and springs. Micro folds and oxide entrapments with dimensions of the order of 100 microns can be critical for the fatigue properties of forged components. Inhomogeneities and defects (gas pores, cavities) of larger size affect the quality of metal castings and modern Additive Manufacturing processes.

The concepts of defect tolerant design, developed more than 20 years ago, aim to cover the gap between simple stress-based design approaches with generous safety factors, the methods developed for fracture assessment of components and NDE requirements. The ability to predict fatigue properties and service life of components in relation to their manufacturing process is of special interest also for the modern Additive Manufacturing (AM) processes, whose rapid evolution needs efficient tools for product development, fatigue assessment and component qualifications.

Following the successful symposia of Trondheim in 2011 and Paris in 2014, these topics will be discussed at the Third International Symposium on Fatigue Design and Material Defects, to be held in September 2017 in Lecco, Italy.

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