Dynamic Behavior and Design of Fatigue Test Specimens

Abstract

In tension-tension, as well as in compression-tension, fatigue testing it has been observed that there exist combinations of loading and specimen characteristics for which the specimen becomes unstable. The theory explaining this behavior is well known and stability curves which predict the stability or instability of the specimen have been tabulated. Unfortunately these tabulations do not extend into the regions of interest for actual fatigue tests. The present work outlines the theory and offers a simple criterion for the design of stable fatigue tests which results from the extension of these stability curves.