Parameters influencing thermomechanical fatigue of a directionally-solidified Ni-base superalloy

• Low cycle TMF tests were performed to understand effects of TMF cycle parameters.
• Minimum temperature of the TMF cycle significantly influenced material life.
• The life limiting cycle (IP or OP) was sensitive to TMF cycle variables.
• Only creep–fatigue TMF resulted in rafting of the γ′γ′ precipitates.
• Transverse TMF life was reduced compared to longitudinal TMF for similar conditions.

Thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) is a low cycle fatigue process in which material life is correlated to the mechanical strain amplitude. However, it is well known that several other factors influence this life. This paper examines several of these parameters and their influence on life using experiments conducted on a second generation directionally-solidified (DS) Ni-base superalloy. The parameters considered include the influence of the temperature extremums (TmaxTmax of either 750 or 950 °C and TminTmin of either 100 or 500 °C), strain ratio (R∊R∊), the strain-temperature phasing (in-phase (IP) and out-of-phase (OP)), the influence of dwells at the high temperature end of the cycle resulting in a creep–fatigue (CF) interaction, and material anisotropy associated with the grain growth direction (longitudinal versus transverse). Results suggest that the phasing has a primary role in controlling the mechanism of degradation. IP TMF is dominated by crack formation in volumes surrounding debonded carbides for both continuously cycling (CC) and CF at 950 and 750 °C, while OP TMF is dominated by surface oxidation and repetitive cracking of the oxide that reforms at the crack tip at 950 °C. Decreasing the TmaxTmax to 750 °C the environmental and creep effects are reduced resulting in virtually pure fatigue exposure under OP conditions. With decreasing TminTmin from 500 °C to 100 °C was observed an increase in inelastic strain amplitude and corresponding decrease in life. Variations in R∊R∊ were found to have no significant influence on life or stabilized stress behavior. TMF loading in the transverse orientation resulted in life reductions over the longitudinal orientation due to cracks propagating in a transgranular manner. Lastly, only in material exposed to CF with a TmaxTmax of 950 °C rafting of the γ′γ′ precipitates was observed.