Predicting Fatigue Crack Initiation in Milled Aerospace-Grade Ti-6Al-4V Using CPFEM

This project forms part of my PhD research, which focuses on analysing and predicting high-cycle fatigue crack initiation in Ti-6Al-4V, a critical material in aerospace engineering. The research aims to deepen our understanding of how manufacturing processes influence the formation of fatigue cracks, with the ultimate goal of optimising manufacturing parameters to enhance component durability.
The study employs cutting-edge computational modelling techniques, particularly the Crystal Plasticity Finite Element Method (CPFEM), to create a detailed digital twin of the material under service conditions. This digital twin integrates experimental data such as residual stresses, EBSD maps, and surface roughness, alongside strain tensors derived from milling simulations conducted using Abaqus Explicit. These milling simulations, performed on ARCHIE-WeSt, replicate real-world manufacturing processes and provide the essential data for the digital twin.
Running these simulations is computationally demanding. For instance, simulating just 0.2 seconds of milling can require up to 128 hours using 12 computational cores, due to the fine mesh required to capture stress and strain gradients and the complexity of solving equations at each integration point. As such, ARCHIE-WeSt’s resources are indispensable for making this research feasible.
The data from these milling simulations will serve as input to the microstructural CPFEM model, enabling the study of material behaviour under fatigue loading at the microstructural level. This requires running large-scale simulations to capture the material’s response accurately. By incorporating the effects of manufacturing processes at the microstructural scale, this research aims to optimise machining parameters and predict the fatigue performance of Ti-6Al-4V with greater precision, ultimately contributing to the development of more reliable and durable aerospace components.

For more information about the project contact Dr Salaheddin Ramimi (salah.rahimi@strath.ac.uk), Principal Knowledge Exchange Fellow at the Advanced Forming Research Centre at the University of Strathclyde or Mauro Arcidiacono (mauro.arcidiacono@strath.ac.uk), PhD candidate at the Department of Design, Manufacture & Engineering Management at at the University of Strathclyde.

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