On the fatigue and dwell-fatigue behavior of a low-density steel and the correlated microstructure origin of damage mechanism

Abstract The present work deals with revealing the fatigue and dwell-fatigue behavior and correlated damage mechanisms of Fe–Mn–Al–C lightweight steel. Surprisingly, alteration in loading mode from monotonic to cyclic induces reversible dislocation movement and facilitates the occurrence of dynamic strain aging. Additionally, applying dwell time by an acceleration of strain aging intensified stress asymmetry during dwell fatigue. The occurrence of strain aging has a bilateral effect on the crack initiation and growth. On one hand, strain aging stimulates twin formation and retards fatigue crack initiation, however, on the other hand, reduces hardening capacity, restricts the plastic deformation and facilitates crack propagation