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CTOD Testing
Job Knowledge
The concept of fracture toughness was introduced in an earlier Connect article, Job knowledge 71, which
discussed the Charpy-V test, a simple qualitative test that gives only an indication of the toughness of a
metal.
The next few articles will look at the tests that enable fracture toughness to be accurately measured in a
quantitative manner by using a full size specimen containing a crack with loading that is representative of
service conditions.
This allows a fitness-for-purpose analysis to be carried out which enables a critical defect size to be
calculated. Thus, prior to fabrication, realistic acceptance standards can be set and decisions on appropriate
NDE techniques and detection sensitivities can be made.
For equipment already in service, it is possible to justify the continued use of cracked or otherwise flawed
components until such time as repair or replacement can be effected. Such engineering critical assessments
can save an operator large amounts of time and money, running into perhaps hundreds of millions of pounds
in the case of an oil rig for example. Whilst the Crack Tip Opening Displacement (CTOD) test was developed
for the characterisation of metals it has also been used to determine the toughness of non-metallics such as
weldable plastics.
The CTOD test is one such fracture toughness test that is used when some plastic deformation can occur
prior to failure - this allows the tip of a crack to stretch and open, hence 'tip opening displacement'.
Unlike the inexpensive 10mm by 10mm square Charpy-V test piece with a blunt machined notch, the CTOD
specimen may be the full thickness of the material, will contain a genuine crack and will be loaded at a rate
more representative of service conditions. Conventionally three tests are carried out at the relevant
temperature to ensure consistency of results.
The test piece itself is 'proportional' - the length, depth and thickness of each specimen are inter-related so
that, irrespective of material thickness, each specimen has the same proportions.
There are two basic forms - a square or a rectangular cross section specimen. If the specimen thickness is
defined as 'B', the depth (W) will be either B or 2B with a standard length of 4.6W. A notch is machined at the
centre and then extended by generating a fatigue crack so that the total 'defect' length is half the depth of
the test piece- see Fig.1. A test on a 100mm thick weld will therefore require a specimen measuring 100mm
thick, 200mm wide and 920mm long - an expensive operation, the validity of which can only be determined
once the test has been completed.
Fig.1. Proportional rectangular cross section CTOD specimen
The test is performed by placing the specimen into three point bending and measuring the amount of crack
opening. This is done by means of a strain gauge attached to a clip placed between two accurately
positioned knife edges at the mouth of the machined notch (Fig.2)
Fig.2. Typical test arrangement. The specimen can be easily
immersed in a cooling bath

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As bending proceeds, the crack tip plastically deforms until a critical point is reached when the crack has
opened sufficiently to initiate a cleavage crack. This may lead to either partial or complete failure of the
specimen. The test may be performed at some minimum temperature eg the minimum design temperature or,
more rarely, at a range of temperatures.
The values that are required for the calculation of toughness are firstly the load at which fracture occurs and
secondly the amount by which the crack has opened at the point of crack propagation (Fig.3).
Fig.3. Position of CTOD specimen
immediately prior to crack propagation
Since the length of the crack and the opening at the mouth of the notch are known it is a simple matter to
calculate the crack tip opening by simple geometry. Whilst the test is in progress the results are recorded
automatically on a load/displacement chart (Fig. 4). This illustrates the various shapes of curve that may be
produced - (a) is a test where the test piece has fractured in a brittle manner with little or no plastic
deformation. (b) exhibits a 'pop-in' where the brittle crack initiates but only propagates a short distance
before it is arrested in tougher material - this may occur several times giving the curve a saw tooth
appearance or after this one pop-in deformation may continue in a ductile manner as in (c) which shows
completely plastic behaviour.
Fig.4. Load vs crack opening displacement curves
showing three types of fracture behaviour
The location of the notch in the weld HAZ or parent metal is important as an incorrectly positioned fatigue
crack will not sample the required area, making the test invalid. To be certain that the crack tip is in the
correct region, polishing and etching followed by a metallurgical examination are often carried out prior to
machining the notch and fatigue cracking. This enables the notch to be positioned very accurately.
Examination may also be carried out after testing as further confirmation of the validity of the test results.
Once the sample is broken open the crack surface is examined to ensure that the fatigue crack has a
reasonably straight front. The residual stresses present in a welded joint may cause the fatigue crack front to
be irregular - if this is excessive the test may be invalid. To overcome this problem the test piece may be
locally compressed at the machined notch tip to redistribute the residual stress.
Two depressions each side of the sample can often be seen where this compression has been carried out.
The fatigue cracking itself should be carried out using a low stress range. The use of high stresses to speed
up the fatigue cracking process can result in a large plastically deformed area ahead of the fatigue crack and
this will invalidate the results of the test.
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Other causes of test failure can unfortunately only be determined once the test has been completed and the
crack surface examined. The precise length of the fatigue crack is measured - this is required for the analysis -
but if the length of the crack is not within the limits required by the specification the test is invalid. If the
fatigue crack is not in a single plane, if the crack is at an angle to the machined notch or if the crack is not in
the correct region the test may need to be repeated.
Related specifications
BS
7448
Parts 1- 4 Fracture Mechanics Toughness Tests
BS
7910
Guide on Methods for Assessing the Acceptability of
Flaws in Metallic Structures.
ASTM
E1820
Standard Test Method for Measurement of Fracture
Toughness.
BS EN
ISO
15653 Metallic Materials - Method of test for the
determination of quasistatic fracture toughness of
welds
This article was written by Gene Mathers.
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