Corros Rev 2015; aop
Original article
K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan*
Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel under
corrosion and corrosion fatigue conditions
DOI 10.1515/corrrev-2015-0034
Received November 17, 2014; accepted July 26, 2015
Abstract: Crack initiation and growth behavior in 4340
steel under static and cyclic loads in various environ-
ments are examined using the two-parameter approach
developed by the authors. It is shown that environmental
effects can be time dependent, stress dependent, or both,
depending on the amplitude, peak stress, and aggressive-
ness of the environment. It is shown that the tests under
vacuum are required to establish the reference state for
the quantification of the chemical driving forces involved
in crack initiation and growth in aggressive environments.
Failure diagrams are proposed by extending the Kitagawa-
Takahashi diagram for fatigue. It is shown that these can
be used to quantify the mechanical and chemical internal
stresses required to cause both initiation and growth of an
incipient crack in a smooth as well as notched specimens.
Conditions for propagating and nonpropagating incipient
cracks that are initiated under stress concentrations are
also discussed, taking the example of the 4340 steel data
available.
Keywords: 4340 steel; crack initiation and propagation;
Kitagawa diagram; mechanical and chemical internal
stresses; notch stress concentration; two driving force
parameter.
1 Introduction
The 4340 steel is the typical steel used in service, which
has been extensively evaluated in the past. Available
data in the literature are extensive, although most of the
*Corresponding author: A.K. Vasudevan, Technical Data Analysis
Inc., 3190 Fairview Park, Falls Church, VA 22043, USA,
e-mail: akruva@gmail.com
K. Sadananda: Technical Data Analysis Inc., 3190 Fairview Park,
Falls Church, VA 22043, USA
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studies have been focused on one or the other aspect of the
material behavior. In this paper, we will examine (a) the
material response in the light of two-parameter approach
developed by the authors for fatigue crack growth, (b)
the application of the failure diagrams that focus on the
propagating and nonpropagating conditions, (c) the role
of internal stresses that are either in situ generated and/
or provided by preexisting stress concentrations, (d) the
interplay of the mechanical and chemical driving forces
causing the crack growth, and finally (e) their limiting
roles under given loading conditions. The purpose of the
analysis is essentially to focus on the extent of our current
understanding, identifying where additional data are
required for developing predictive relations for service
loads and environments.
2 Materials and methods
2.1 Background
AISI 4340 steel is a nominally 1.8% nickel-chromium-
molybdenum low-alloy steel of high hardenability, with
high strength and toughness in relatively large sections,
achieved with a quench-and-temper heat treatment. Its
typical composition is as follows (in weight percent):
C = 0.34–0.44, Si = 0.1–0.35, Mn = 0.55–0.9, P  ≤  0.4, S  ≤  0.4,
Cr = 0.65–0.95, Mo = 0.2–0.35, Ni = 1.55–2.0, and the balance
Fe. There are equivalent British and Japanese steels
within the composition range. The alloy strength varies
from 930 to 1400 MPa depending on the heat treatment.
In general, its ductility and the environmental suscep-
tibility inversely vary with its strength. Its applications
include high-strength heavy-duty shafts, aircraft landing
and power transmission gears, axles, spindles, couplings,
pins, etc. Although temper embrittlement due to the seg-
regation of S and P can occur depending on the heat treat-
ment, its susceptibility to hydrogen embrittlement is also
well documented. Studies have been made using smooth,
notched, and precracked specimens under different loads
2      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel
and external environments, as well as under precharged
conditions (Gangloff, 2003; Gangloff & Wei, 1977; Page &
Gerberich, 1982). In this paper, we only examine the rel-
evant data from the literature that can help us in under-
standing the generic material response under significant
environmental and mechanical loading conditions.
2.2 E nvironmentally assisted crack
­nucleation and growth
Figure  1 shows schematically the crack nucleation and
growth in smooth, notched, or precracked specimen.
Environment can accelerate crack nucleation and growth
process for a given applied stress, or reduce the stress
necessary for nucleation and growth for a given time.
Although the required stress that cause nucleation and/
or crack growth decreases with increasing concentration
and/or time, there is threshold stress or minimum stress
below which no further reduction occurs. This is similar
to endurance limit under fatigue. For a cracked speci-
men, this is called the threshold stress intensity factor,
KISCC, which depends on material-environment conditions.
In essence, stress is the primary factor in contributing to
crack nucleation and growth, and environment enters
through reduction in the material resistance. The reduc-
tion depends on the specifics of the localized material-
environmental reactions and their kinetics in relation to
Crack initiation to growth
Smooth Notch Fracture mechanics
Crack growth
σf
Stage III
con1 Failure
Initiation
Stage II
da/dt
σapl
Plateau
σth
Stage I
KISCC
Time
Kapl
Figure 1: Schematic illustration of crack initiation to growth and
failure of a crack in a smooth-notched-cracked specimen. σth is the
threshold stress for smooth specimen, and KISCC is the threshold
stress for a fracture mechanics specimen. Notch specimen falls
between these two limiting conditions.
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the kinetics of any other superimposed crack nucleation
and growth process, such as fatigue. The environmental
contributions can be only quantified in terms reduction
in the material resistance, taking into consideration inert
environment as reference. Hence, any lack of material
data in an inert environment will hinder the proper quan-
tification of the environmental effects on the nucleation
and growth of a crack. Unfortunately, there are not much
of data available for different materials in inert environ-
ment to help us in understanding and quantifying the role
of environments in accentuating the crack initiation and
growth.
Given that crack is a high-energy defect, its nuclea-
tion and growth require stress concentration. Hence, in
smooth specimen, localized heterogeneous deformations
enhance the local buildup of internal stresses, which
help in the nucleation, and growth of the crack. Inter-
nal stresses are normally generated via dislocations,
and hence material microstructure and flow properties
become important considerations in failure process. The
presence of grain boundaries and interfaces provides the
low-energy paths for both nucleation and propagation of
cracks, as well as for the environmental accentuation of
the damage. Hence, associated fractographic information
would help in understanding the mechanisms involved.
In the following, we examine the crack nucleation and
growth kinetics in smooth, notched, and precracked spec-
imens of 4340 steel to understand the material behavior,
particularly in aqueous environments.
Figure  2A shows schematically the typical material
behavior of environmentally sensitive materials under
cyclic loads, as depicted earlier by McEvily and Wei (1972).
There are three distinct limiting thresholds, ΔK threshold
for fatigue, KISCC threshold under static loads, and KIC for
fracture toughness for overload fracture. Here K stands
for linear elastic stress intensity factor. Type A behavior
(Figure 2A) shows that environment accelerates fatigue
crack growth even when the applied stresses are below
KISCC. Here the environmental contribution to fatigue
depends predominantly on the time of exposure of the
crack tip to the environment. It is obvious that the process
that contributes to this superimposed environmental
effect should be different from that which contributes to
KISCC. That process does not seem to be available during
static or stress corrosion crack growth. Hence, this process
accentuates only the crack growth under cyclic loads
but by itself does not independently contribute to crack
growth. As the crack growth rate due to fatigue process
increases with stress, this environmental contribution
decreases because the exposure time for a unit increment
of crack length decreases. Thus, we have an interplay of
 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      3

A (a) Type-A (b) Type-B (c) Type-C

Predominantly a Predominantly a Time + Stress

time dependent stress dependent dependent
process process processes
da/dN

nm ive
t
en
ro s
v i es
en ggr
A

Kmax → KIC

Kmax → KIC

Kmax → KIC
rt
Ine

Kmax → KISCC

Kmax → KISCC
KISCC

Threshold Kmax,th KIC > KISCC KISCC KIC > KISCC KISCC KIC > KISCC

Kmax

B
Frequency Frequency
Cycle
dependent
da/dN

(a) ∆K Kmax

Frequency
Frequency
Time
dependent
da/dt

(b) ∆K Kmax

Figure 2: (A) Schematic representations of inert and environmental effects on fatigue crack growth showing early classification due to
McEvily and Wei (1972). (B) Representation of frequency effects in cycle and time-dependent processes in terms ΔK and Kmax.

cycle-dependent process due to fatigue and time-depend- crack growth contribution due to static load is zero as
ent process due to crack tip chemical driving forces. In the applied stress intensities are below KISCC. The type B
the following, we use the terms chemical driving force behavior shown in the figure involves contribution from
and chemical stress somewhat interchangeably, although fatigue and stress corrosion crack growth, and the linear
it is the stress that is computed and is represented in all summation of the two can be applicable only in this case,
figures. The time-dependent accentuation of crack growth if there is no synergism between the two. The contribution
due to environment should itself depend on frequency from the stress corrosion becomes important only when
of testing, as increasing frequency reduces the time of the Kmax at the crack tip exceed KISCC. This stress-dependent
exposure to environment and crack growth moves toward contribution increases with the increase in stress although
a cycle-dependent process. By contrast, decreasing fre- the time of exposure of crack tip decreases with increasing
quency increases the time of exposure of the crack tip to crack growth rate. Hence, this environmental contribution
the aggressive environment, enhancing the environmen- is more of a stress-dependent process than a time-depend-
tally induced time-dependent process. The type A behav- ent process. There may be additional synergetic effects as
ior cannot be computed by linear summation rule because a function of R ratio and frequency. For example, KISCC

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4      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel

itself can be reduced at high frequencies and R ratios
because of the ripple-load effects that were found earlier
(Pao, Bayles, & Yoder, 1991) in some structural steels. The
type C behavior in the figure is a combination of types A
and B, and hence the linear summation rule does not work
fully for this case.
The simplest way to find out if the crack growth
process is time or cycle dependent is to represent the
data in terms of both da/dN vs. ΔK, and da/dN or da/dt
vs. Kmax, for a given R ratio, but at different frequencies.
If the process is purely cycle dependent, the data should
collapse on da/dN vs. ΔK plot because crack growth is
predominately frequency independent. If the process is
purely time dependent, then the collapse occurs in da/dt
vs. Kmax plot, see Figure 2B. If both are present as in the
case of type C, then such collapse does not occur or occurs
in a limited range where one or the other process is domi-
nant. We will use this procedure in analyzing the crack
growth data in 4340 steel.
2.2.1 Two-parametric approach for fatigue
Unlike the static case (such as stress corrosion), cyclic
loads involve two load parameters for unambiguous
(Sadananda & Vasudevan, 2004). They involve cyclic
amplitude and mean or maximum stress. Hence, ideally,
fatigue crack growth needs to be represented in a 3-D plot
(Figure 3), involving da/dN vs. ΔK and Kmax with the rec-
ognition that one cannot have ΔK without Kmax. Hence,
B Kmax,th*
A da/dN
<0
R >0
R
∆K
for pure fatigue condition, ΔK = Kmax. In the 3-D plot, one
can make cuts at constant da/dN and represent the data
in terms of ΔK and Kmax for different da/dN values starting
from da/dN = 0, which represents the threshold condition.
Thus, we have to recognize that fatigue threshold is not a
single value but a curve involving two parameters with the
limiting thresholds ∆Kth∗ and ∆K max,th
∗
. The crack growth
trajectory is defined by the variation of these two limiting
values with crack growth rate (Figure 3C). The pure fatigue
process is designated by the 45° line in this plot. Any
deviation from this line represents a superimposed Kmax-
dependent process. In the environmentally accelerated
process, the deviation from this 45° line represents the
environmental contribution. To develop the crack growth
trajectory maps, the tests have to be done for a range of
R ratios that scan the material behavior in the full range
of ΔK and Kmax values. For expediency, at least two tests,
one at low R ratio and the other at high R ratio, have to be
evaluated.
It should be recognized that when crack growth rate
(da/dN or da/dt) is represented in terms of Kmax and ΔK, we
are only accounting the crack growth in terms of mechani-
cal crack tip driving forces. The contribution from environ-
ment enters through chemical potential gradients, which
cannot be quantified directly. Hence, to evaluate these
contributions, it is important to have crack growth rate
data in an inert state as a reference. For the same crack
growth rate, it is then possible to measure the changes in
the mechanical driving forces due to contribution from
Chemical forces. Unfortunately, crack growth rate data in
vacuum or inert environment for many materials including
Alloy 4340 are not available. In Figure 3C, trajectory path,
the 45° line, provides some reference in which a measure
ry of the environmental contribution can be estimated,
to
jec although actual data would help in computing correctly
Tra
da/dN4 the contribution to each of the two parameters, Kmax and

4
2
3 ΔK. The reason is environment can affect both ΔK and Kmax
1 parameters, although the effect on Kmax is more dominant
Threshold ∆Kth*
in general. Here the chemical forces help in the reduction
Kmax
Km
ax of Kmax component required for crack growth, which can
∆K C be quantified using the trajectory map. However, the lack
Θ=45°
R=
R=0
c
pla ons of inert or vacuum data required to establish the reference
ax *

ne t
would prevent the quantification of the environmental
m
K
∆K*

Fatigue requires two

*=

th
row
∆K

load parameters ck g contributions to crack growth for life prediction. For mate-
Cra jectory
tra
3-D representation rials that are extremely environmentally sensitive, ultra-
Kmax* high vacuums are required to establish the reference inert
material behavior. With this background, we examine the
Figure 3: (A) Three-dimensional representation of fatigue crack
crack growth behavior in AISI 4340 steel reported in the
growth in terms of two parameters ΔK and Kmax. (B) Two-dimensional
representation by taking cuts at various da/dN. (C) Crack growth
literature.
trajectory map showing the variation of the two limiting values of ΔK There is also a question of how to quantify the envi-
and Kmax vary with increasing crack growth rate. ronmental effects during fatigue crack growth. For

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 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      5

example, which is the independent variable and which A 10-4

is the dependent variable? In simple terms, should one 4340 steel
express the changes in crack growth rates for a given 10-5 Newman et al.
applied mechanical forces or changes in the crack tip 10-6
air

driving forces for a given crack growth rates as depicted in

da/dN (m/cycle)
the trajectory maps? It appears to be convenient to define 10-7
and quantify the changes in the crack growth rates for
10-8
a given ΔK or Kmax, as has been done by many investiga- R=0.1
R=0.4
tors in the past. The problem becomes complicated if one 10-9 R=0.7
recognizes, as has been done in our analyses, that fatigue R=0.8
R=0.9
involves two load parameters, and the effect of environ- 10-10
R=0.95
ment differs in each. Hence, it is convenient to define the
10-11
environmental contribution in terms of the changes in the 1 10 100
∆K (MPa (m)0.5)
crack tip driving forces needed to cause the same crack
growth rate, using the inert environment as reference B 10-4
stated (Figure 3C). 4340 steel
10-5 Newman et al.
air
10-6

3 C
 rack growth under fatigue
da/dN (m/cycle)

10-7

in AISI 4340 steel 10-8 R=0.1

R=0.4
10-9 R=0.7
Figure 4 shows the fatigue crack growth of AISI 4340 steel R=0.8
in ambient air. The data were collected from Newman, 10-10 R=0.9
R=0.95
Vizzini, and Yamada (2010). Following the conventional
10-11
procedure, data are represented in terms of ΔK for differ- 1 10 100 1000

ent R ratios (Figure 4A). If crack growth is purely cycle Kmax (MPa (m)0.5)

dependent, crack growth rates per cycle, da/dN, for dif-

ferent R ratios tend to crowd together when represented
in terms of ΔK but spread out when represented in terms
of Kmax. By contrast, if crack growth is time dependent,
crowding occurs in terms of Kmax and not in terms of ΔK
because Kmax is more sensitive than ΔK to a time-depend-
ent process. If crack growth involves both processes, then
data spread out in terms of both ΔK and Kmax.
Examining Figure 4A indicates that da/dN fatigue
data seem to spread out more in the threshold regime
and seem to converge with increasing crack growth rate
around Paris regime and spreads out again in the overload
fracture regime. It was shown before (Vasudevan, Sadan-
anda, & Holtz, 2005) that under inert environments, crack
growth rate data as function of R ratio collapse essentially
into one curve with no noticeable R ratio effects. The
absence of R ratio effects in inert environments (ultrahigh
vacuums for reactive metals) happens only when crack
growth is purely cycle dependent. In such cases, the crack
growth trajectory follows the 45° line in Figure 3C. The
deviation from the 45° line, therefore, becomes a measure
of environmental contribution.
Figure 4B shows the same da/dN data in terms of Kmax
showing large spread in the data in terms of the variable.
Figure 4: (A) Fatigue crack growth (da/dN) vs. ΔK, in ambient air,
for different R ratios. The data were collected from Newman et al.
(2010). (B) Same data in panel a, but represented in terms of Kmax.
In comparison with Figure 3A, the data are spread out more in terms
of Kmax.
One can plot da/dt instead of da/dN; however, because
all tests were done at the same frequency, the results
will remain the same. To evaluate the material behavior,
ΔK-Kmax values were generated for different crack growth
rates using the raw data from Figure 4A from which the
limiting values ΔK* and Kmax∗
are determined for various
crack growth rates, and these limiting values are plotted
as trajectory map in Figure 5. Each point along the line in
the trajectory map represents a crack growth rate. Hence,
the increasing ∆K ∗ -Kmax
∗
values represent the changing
crack tip driving forces required to force increasing crack
growth rate. Because of the 2-D nature of the plot, the crack
growth rate could not be represented in the figure. The
45° line represents the behavior when ∆K ∗ = Kmax∗
, which
is pure fatigue behavior. Figure 5 shows the deviation in
the crack growth behavior of 4340 steel in ambient air. The
curve deviates more at low crack growth rates and slightly

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6      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel
14
4340 steel
12 Crack growth trajectory map
A
10
B with frequency and R ratio. Figure 6A, for example, shows
∆Kth* (MPa(m)0.5)
Pure fatigue line
8 that the data converge at high R ratios in the Paris regime
C
6
4
2 test, particularly at high R ratios. At low R ratios and low
0
0 4 8 12
Kmax,th* (MPa(m)0.5)
Figure 5: Crack growth trajectory path in relation to pure fatigue
trajectory. If A and B are equivalent crack growth rates in inert and
air environments, AB represents changes in the crack tip driving
force, with AC and CB components corresponding to changes in ΔK
and Kmax components.
moves toward the inert line. With the increasing crack
growth rate, it essentially remains with constant shift for
the remaining crack growth rates. Although the deviation
from the pure fatigue line provides a measure of environ-
mental contribution, the exact contribution requires the
relevant trajectory data for the inert environment. Figure 5,
for example, provides a hypothetical case that assumes
such data are available. If points A and B are equivalent
crack growth rates in inert and aggressive environments,
respectively, then vector AB designates the change in the
applied stresses to enforce the same crack growth rates.
The vector AB can be split into AC and CB, where CB is
perpendicular to the ∆K ∗ = K max
∗
line. AC and CB thus rep-
resent the environmental contributions to ΔK* and Kmax ∗
components, respectively, to accomplish the same crack
growth rate. These complexities are inherent in the fatigue
crack growth because the tests can be done at constant ΔK
or constant Kmax or at constant R, and environmental con-
tributions for each test can be different. Unfortunately, the
crack growth data of 4340 steels for different R ratios in
inert environment are not available. It is important to do
such tests for the quantification of environmental contri-
bution. The assumption that all R ratio effects are due to
crack closure only misrepresents the problem and contrib-
utes to errors in the correct quantification of the material
behavior. The trajectory maps, however, provide a measure
of how the two driving forces for fatigue crack growth
change due to the presence of environment.
Figure  6A–E provides the crack growth behavior of
the alloy at two different frequencies and R ratios in air,
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distilled water, and NaCl salt solution at ambient air (Weng,
Zhang, Kalnaus, Feng, & Jiang, 2013). Crack growth data
are presented in terms of both da/dN vs. ΔK and da/dt vs.
Kmax. The material behavior changes with the environment,
while they are spread out at low. The behavior is similar
to that observed in Figure 4A. In distilled water (Figure 6B
and C), the behavior is distinctly different. On the basis of
da/dt-Kmax, the behavior is more similar to stress corrosion
ΔK values, there is deviation more resembling the type A
16 behavior in Figure 2A. This becomes even more prominent
in the NaCl environment as can be seen in Figure 6D and
E. The behavior is approaching that of type C (Figure 2),
where both time dependent (Type a) and stress dependent
(Type b) are being superimposed on fatigue crack growth.
The representative trajectory maps cannot be drawn due
to limited data in terms of R ratio. It is obvious that life
prediction under such environment and loading condi-
tions cannot be done using simple rule of mixtures. The
best bet is to use the crack growth rate data relevant to
that particular environment for service applications in
those environments, recognizing that changing the envi-
ronment can change the material behavior.
4 Crack initiation to propagation
The previous analysis pertains to the growth of preexisting
crack using linear elastic fracture mechanics methods. In
a smooth specimen or even in a notched specimen, crack
needs to be initiated before it propagates. It was shown
that for the analysis of both initiation and propagation
phases of a crack as well as for the quantification of the
nonpropagating conditions of initiated cracks, the failure
diagrams are useful. These are developed by extending
the original Kitagawa-Takahashi diagram (Kitagawa &
Takahashi, 1976) for fatigue crack growth. A schematic
illustration of the failure diagram is shown in Figure 7. In
this diagram, a horizontal line with an endurance limit of a
smooth specimen Δσe as the limiting value is connected to
the fracture mechanics threshold value ΔKth. In this case,
both values correspond to the same R ratio. The horizontal
line and the crack growth line intersect at crack length ac.
Kitagawa-Takahashi showed experimentally that for crack
lengths less than ac, the endurance limit remains the same.
The diagram has been interpreted by considering that the
threshold stress decreases for crack lengths less than ac,
merging with the smooth specimen endurance value when
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 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      7

A 10-3 B 10-3
4340 steel 4340 Steel
Cycle-dependent
air regime Distilled water
10-4 10-4

da/dN, mm/cycle
da/dN, mm/cycle

10-5 10-5
R=0.1, 10 Hz R=0.1, 10 Hz
R=0.5, 10 Hz
R=0.25, 10 Hz
-6 -6 R=0.1, 20 Hz
10 R=0.5, 10 Hz 10
R=0.5, 20 Hz
R=0.1, 20 Hz

10-7 10-7
2 4 6 8 10 30 50 1 10 100
∆K (MPa (m)0.5) ∆K (MPa (m)0.5)

C 10-2 D 10-3

4340 Steel 4340 Steel

NaCl Environment
Distilled water
10-3 10-4
da/dN, mm/cycle

da/dN, mm/cycle

10-4 10-5
R=0.1, 10 Hz

R=0.5, 10 Hz R=0.1, 10 Hz
10-5 10-6
R= 0.1, 20 Hz R=0.5, 10 Hz

R=0.5, 20 Hz

-6
10 10-7
1 10 100 1 10 100
0.5
Kmax (MPa (m) ) ∆K (MPa (m)0.5)

E 10-2
4340 Steel
NaCl Environment

10-3
da/dN, mm/s

10-4

R=0.1, 10 Hz

R=0.5, 10 Hz
10-5

10-6
1 10 100
Kmax (MPa (m)0.5)

Figure 6: (A) Crack growth rate in air at three R ratios and two frequencies. The data merge at higher crack growth rates. (B) Crack growth
rate in distilled water at two R ratios and two frequencies. (C) The data from panel b is replotted in terms of (da/dt) as a function of Kmax. The
data collapses, indicating the predominately the time-dependent crack growth. (D) Crack growth data in NaCl environment as a function of
ΔK. (E) The crack growth data in panel d is replotted in terms of (da/dt) vs. Kmax. At higher Kmax, the data merge indicative of time-dependent
process.

the crack length goes to zero (Tanaka, Nakai, & Yamashita, By considering that fatigue is a two-load parameter
1981). Under this scenario, the specimen endurance and problem, we have shown that (a) the crack growth behav-
the thresholds for long crack growth depend on R ratio, ior of long crack is a fundamental material property for
thereby resulting in a separate diagram for each R ratio, as a given environment; (b) there are two limiting thresh-
shown by Usami and Shida (1979). olds, ΔKth and Kmax,th; and (c) Kmax,th ≥ ΔKth. Hence, the

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8      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel

Original Kitagawa-Takahashi the internal stresses that need to be generated by cyclic

diagram
plasticity to augment applied stresses for crack initiation
ac and propagation. For example, for smooth specimen,
Experimental they represent the dislocation processes that generate the
∆σe data and curve
intrusions and extrusion and thus local stress concentra-
∆σ =∆Kth/{y(TTa)0.5} tions where crack can initiate. Endurance limit then is the
minimum stress below which the cyclic plasticity will not
Log (∆σ)

Endurance
be sufficient to generate the required internal stresses for
Non-propagating
crack nucleation or for a preexisting crack to propagate

∆σ
cracks
NF
Log (crack length)
Figure 7: Original Kitagawa-Takahashi diagram connecting the
endurance of smooth specimen and the crack growth threshold
of fracture mechanics specimen, thus defining nonpropagating
regime.
previous diagram can be represented in terms of two
limiting thresholds and endurance limits (Sadananda,
Sarkar, Kujawski, & Vasudevan, 2009): ΔKth and Δσe, or
Kmax,th and σmax,e. However, Kmax,th and σmax,e representation
is more convenient because time-dependent environmen-
tal effects can easily be represented by Kmax variable. The
R ratio dependence is then reduced to the dependence on
ΔK or Kmax. The modified diagram is shown in Figure 8. The
diagram is further modified by extrapolating the crack
growth threshold line and fracture line (KIC line) to crack
lengths less than ac to meet the y-axis at σIN and σf, the
crack initiation stress and failure stress for smooth speci-
men, respectively. The physical interpretation for the inter-
nal stress triangle thus formed has been provided before
(Sadananda & Sarkar, 2013). In essence, it corresponds to
ac
E σf
Modified Kitagawa-
Takahashi diagram
B σIN
F σ=KIC/{y(πa)0.5}
C a*
Internal stress
Cr reg
∆σe
further. In the giga-cycle regime, crack nucleation can
shift from surface to internal inhomogeneity, which is
close to surface where local cyclic plasticity can generate
the required internal stresses for propagation. Thus, the
modified Kitagawa-Takahashi diagram in Figure 8 unifies
the crack nucleation, short crack growth regime with
long crack growth thresholds. Most important to note is
that the internal stress triangle defines both the minimum
local stress and its stress gradient required to ensure the
incipient crack that is nucleated propagates continuously
to failure. For example, if the applied stress is at A, then
the local stress needs to be increased to a minimum level
indicated by B for crack to initiate, and the gradient has to
be such that crack can grow along paths B to C and C to D
to become long enough for it to grow even under remote
applied stress. In this example, remote stress is the endur-
ance limit. Hence, for crack less than ac, the internal stress
magnitude and the minimum gradient have to be fulfilled
to ensure crack growth. Otherwise, growing crack can get
arrested, resulting nonpropagating cracks. In the case of
crack initiated at very sharp notches, although the magni-
tude of the internal stress is high to nucleate a crack, the
internal stresses fall down rapidly, resulting in nonpropa-
gating cracks. For this reason, the fatigue stress concentra-
tion factor, KF, differs from the elastic stress concentration
factor. The modified Kitagawa-Takahashi diagram hence-
forth is called “failure diagram” because it is applicable
to all subcritical crack growth phenomena, where internal
stresses and their gradients, short crack growth analysis,
nonpropagating cracks, etc., are equivalently applicable.
The diagram connects the behavior of smooth specimen to
that of fracture mechanics specimen. The notched speci-

G
ac im

σ=Kmax,th/{y(πa)0.5}
men falls in between these two extremes.
kg e

A
σmax,e. D
ro
wt
h
Log (σ)

Non-propagating
cracks Crack growth at
constant σ H 5 F ailure diagram for stress
corrosion
Log (cl)

Figure 8: Modified Kitagawa-Takahashi diagram for fatigue. The

Failure diagram for stress corrosion is given in Figure  9.
diagram is now defined in terms of Kmax and σmax thresholds. Crack The threshold stress σth for smooth specimen forms the
growth initiation as well as failure is indicated. limiting stress values on the stress axis (y-axis) for a given

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Failure diagram
σf*
σIN
B
c1
ac
Log (stress)
σth KIC/{√(πa)
Internal stress
C
σth*
cS A
D KISCC/{√(πa)}
σapl
Non-propagating
cracks
Log (crack length)
σth
Figure 9: Failure diagram for stress corrosion connecting thresholds
for smooth specimen, σth, and for fracture mechanics specimen, KISCC.
σ ∗th is the limiting threshold with increasing concentration.
concentration C1. With increasing concentration, this
threshold also reaches a limiting threshold stress value
σ ∗th , as shown in Figure 9. The crack growth threshold
line for a long crack is represented by KISCC. As in fatigue,
we consider the long crack threshold KISCC as a material
property and is therefore independent of crack length.
Internal stress triangle forms (Figure 9) as the horizontal
line joining the smooth specimen threshold joins the KISCC
line. The critical crack length ac is the minimum crack
length that can grow under the imposed applied stress in
the concentrated aggressive environment. For lengths less
than ac, either chemical or mechanical internal stresses
are needed to force the crack to move from incipient stage
to the sustaining-growth stage. The required internal
stresses have to meet in terms of both the magnitude and
the gradient as designated by the internal stress triangle
to ensure continuous crack growth from its inception.
Otherwise, the incipient crack nucleated will get arrested,
resulting in nonpropagating crack, just as was observed
during fatigue crack growth (Sadananda & Vasudevan,
2011).
Considering that y-axis represents the mechani-
cal stress, the significance of the internal stress triangle
should be understood. For example, if the initial crack size
and applied stress is represented by A in Figure 9, then
internal stress has to be generated for A to move to posi-
tion B for that crack to move continuously to cause failure,
and the internal stress gradient has to be such to move
point B to point C along BC when the remote applied stress
is sufficient to move the crack C to D to cause failure. Thus,
Figure 9 defines the minimum internal stress magnitude
and its gradient required to cause continuous crack growth
and failure. If the magnitude and/or gradient requirements
are not met, then we have nonpropagating stress corro-
sion cracks. The question then pertains to the nature and
the source of the internal stress during stress corrosion.
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K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      9
Here it consists of two components. One is the local defor-
mation at the crack tip, which can accelerate the crack
growth process by creating internal stresses. The local
σf
con1 Failure deformation itself could be accentuated by, say, adsorp-
Initiation tion or chemisorption or by the reduction of the resistance
σth
to deformation or plastic flow. Enhanced localized defor-
Time mation that aids the cracking process by way of building
internal stresses is the essence of the hydrogen-enhanced
local plasticity (HELP)-type of mechanisms. Many acro-
σth*
Con
nyms have been used in the literature to characterize the
interdependent mechanisms involving environment and
local plasticity. Figure 9 defines the essential role of these
interactive processes in terms of building the necessary
internal stresses and their gradients, which is applicable
to all subcritical crack growth processes. Using this figure,
one can define, in essence, the mechanical equivalent
of chemical forces. Ultimately, measurable entity is only
the mechanical force, and the role of chemistry can only
be deduced using a pure inert environment as reference.
Thus, operating chemical forces can only be expressed
as reduction in the mechanical forces required for crack
increment using inert state as reference. This can be done
without knowing the details of the chemical and/or elec-
trochemical forces involved in contributing to the local net
internal stresses at the crack tip regime. Although Figure 9
provides only the requirement of mechanical stresses for
continuous crack growth, it does not provide the rate of
crack growth or crack growth kinetics. As these concepts
are relatively new, there are not many experimental data
available in the literature for their validation. Figure  10,
for example, illustrates the role of H environment in terms
of reduction in the stress necessary for crack initiation
and failure. Here we are using the stress value at very low
H concentration as reference for convenience. If the curve
40
4340 steel
35
Gangloff, 1986
Kth (MPa (m)0.5)
Chemical stress contribution
30
25
20
15
100 101 102 103
H Pressure (KPa)
Figure 10: Chemical stress contribution can be defined using the
close to inert behavior as reference.
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 10      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel

is unique for that environment, as the authors seem to
imply, then one can define the mechanical equivalent of
chemical forces for that environment for life prediction. In
addition, Figure 9 also provides chemical stress gradient
in terms of equivalent mechanical stress gradient repre-
sented by the internal stress triangle. It is the gradient in
the chemical driving forces as the crack length increases,
which is reflected in terms of mechanical stress gradient.
Failure diagram thus provides a measure of the localized
chemical driving forces and their gradients as the crack
grows in the combined mechanical and chemical driving
forces.
Figure  11 provides an example of the application
of failure diagram for 4340 steel in H2SO4 environment,
where the authors have studied the stresses for crack ini-
tiation at different notch configurations. Figure 11 demon-
strates that notch tip stresses for crack initiation exceed
the KISCC line. For a more critical evaluation of the previ-
ously mentioned concepts, tests are required using very
sharp notches in the propagating and nonpropagating
regimes, as was done under fatigue crack growth.
Stress fields and gradients ahead of the notch tip can vary
depending on the stress concentration factor Kt, notch tip
radius ρ, and material flow stress in relation to applied
stress. Figure 12 shows schematically how the stress fields
can vary under elastic-plastic conditions. Most important
to note is that with increasing Kt, peak stress increases and
the stress gradients become sharp, which can affect the
growth of an incipient crack originating from the notch
tip. El Haddad, Topper, and Smith (1979) were the first one
to address this problem in a somewhat empirical way. The
stress intensity factor Kplc for an incipient crack emanat-
ing from an elastic-plastic notch tip has been analyzed
(Sadananda & Sarkar, 2013) for a 2-D case, and the results
for selected Kt values are shown in Figure 13. After passing
the regime of peak stress of the notch, the stress intensity
of the incipient crack decreases and reaches a minimum
Notch tip stress fields under elastic – plastic conditions
Peak stress
Stress gradient
Elastic notch

ρ Peak position
6 C
 rack initiation and growth Stress profiles

at notches
Stress

The failure diagram connects the behavior of smooth

specimen and fracture mechanics specimen (Figure 1). dl

The behavior of notched specimen falls in between the Distance

two. For a smooth specimen, the internal stresses need to Figure 12: Notch tip stress fields under elastic-plastic conditions.
be generated by heterogeneous plasticity in the form of Peak stress and stress gradient change with increasing Kt.
dislocation pileups, cell walls, intrusions, and extrusions.
The preexisting notches provide stress concentrations to
some extent by localizing the deformation under stress. 8000
Crack emanating from a plastic notch
7000 Kt=6
ρ=0.5
6000 Kt=4
{x/ρ,Kpl}min
Stress intensity (Kpl)

Kt=3
σf=1880 MPa 5000
4340 steel
B 4000
Nominal stress (MPa)

1000

3000 For crack growth Kpl > Kmax,th

Chemical
stress C KIC-Line
2000 Kt=2
A D Non-propagating cracks
100 σth=175 MPa when {Kpl}min < Kmax,th
Exptal data 1000
KISCC-Line
0
Non-propagating cracks 0 5 10 15 20
x/ρ
10
10-5 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100
Crack length (m) Figure 13: Stress intensity of an incipient crack emanating from a
notch under elastic-plastic conditions – arbitrary units. Note the
Figure 11: Failure diagram for 4340 steel generated based on the stress intensity goes through a minimum before it increases as
based on the Hiroshi and Mura data in H2SO4 solution. crack length increases.

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 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      11
before it increases again with further increase in the crack
length. The decrease is due to sharp drop in the internal
stresses due to notch. The subsequent increase is due to
further increase in the crack length under the remote load.
This sharp reduction in the internal stress contribution
explains why short cracks show decreasing and increasing
crack growth rates before they become one with those of
the long crack. Hence, short crack acceleration and decel-
erations have nothing to do with the lack of crack closure
but due to varying internal stress fields that are inherent
with localized stress concentrations. Most important to
note is that because the threshold for crack growth Kmax,th
is independent of crack length or notch configurations,
crack arrest occurs when the minimum in Kplc in Figure 13
falls below the crack growth threshold. Extensive analy-
sis using different Kt’s and notch tip radii, ρ, showed that
the stress intensity of an incipient crack growing in the
elastic-plastic stress field of a notch, Kplc, and the loca-
tion where the minimum in Kplc occurs, X/ρ minimum, are
related to Kt as follows:
( K plc / σ apl )min = 0.35 K t1.3 (1)
and
( X / ρ )min = 0.6 K t -0.46, (2)
and the continuous crack growth occurs only if Kplc ≥ Kmax,th.
The condition for a crack to propagate continuously
has been established as
2( K plc / σ apl ) min= ( √ ρ) (kt )1.3 , (3)
with the requirement that Kplc must exceed Kmax,th.
­Equation 3 indicates the elastic stress concentration factor
Kt and the notch tip radius ρ are involved in determining
the propagating or nonpropagating conditions, besides
the applied stress σapl. From the point of failure diagram
(Figure 9), the previously mentioned relations can be
expressed as
2( K plc / σ apl )min = ( √ ρ ) (K t ) ≥ K max,th = σ th √( πac ), (4)
1.3 ∗
where the threshold condition and the minimum crack
length requirements are imposed based on the failure
diagram.
Kplc is the stress intensity of an incipient crack or short
crack nucleated at the notch tip. As the crack grows, the
notch depth becomes part of the total crack, and the K of
the short crack should become the same as that of the long
crack. The previous equation only provides stress inten-
sity of the short crack at the minimum value (Figure  13)
and the condition for its continuous growth. If Kplc at
the minimum falls below Kmax,th, then nonpropagating
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conditions occur unless the applied stress is increased.
The previously mentioned equation provides the relation
between the Kplc and the notch severity Kt and notch tip
radius ρ.
Figure 14 shows the experimental data of Pao (2014)
on 4340 steel tested in vacuum using selected Kt and ρ
values. Tests were done using single edge-notched speci-
mens, and the stress intensity for crack initiation is deter-
mined using monotonically increasing loads to determine
when a detectable crack increment occurs. The computa-
tion of K is done considering notch as a sharp crack. Kplc is
calculated using the previously mentioned equations for
the test specimens considering applied stress and their
notch geometries. The results are shown in Figure 14.
Because both Kt and ρ affect the stress fields and thus K
of short cracks, Kt/ρ is used as a characterizing parameter.
The results show that (a) Kplc decreases essentially linearly
with increasing severity of the notch and decreasing ρ.
Experimental Kint, which is calculated based on total crack
length, is significantly higher than Kplc. However, with
increasing Kt/ρ, the experimental value drops continu-
ously. The value of Kint for Kt/ρ close to 100 is for a fatigue
precracked specimen, and therefore it can be considered
as close to the Kmax,th value of the material in vacuum
because of lack of any better evaluation. Results indicate
that for the specimen geometries and loads employed,
only when Kt/ρ is small, the initiated crack will con-
tinue to propagate for that applied load. For specimens
with higher Kt/ρ values (due to either higher Kt value or
lower ρ value or both), Kplc is below Kint of the precracked
specimen. It implies that incipient crack nucleated at the
notch tip may become a nonpropagating crack unless
the applied stresses are increased further. In most of the
200
4340 steel
150 Kint
Kplc or KInt (MPa(m)0.5)
Vacuum
from pao, 2014
100
KInt-Crack
50
Kplc
0
100 101 102 103
Kt/ρ
Figure 14: Variation of Kplc and experimental Kint as function of Kt/r
(data from P. Pao, unpublished, 2014).
12      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel

J-integral tests, specimens show the R curve behavior, systems (Vasudevan & Sadananda, 2011). In essence, the
indicating that applied stresses need to be increased to time of exposure increases to arrive at sufficient chemical
overcome the material resistance to crack growth. These forces to accumulate to compensate the decreased applied
concepts are somewhat similar. mechanical forces. The balance between the mechani-
cal and chemical forces needed for a crack to grow can
be deduced from the flow diagram (Figure 9) for a given
7 C
 rack growth behavior in 4340 material and environment. Experimentally, Figure 15

steels shows that differences in the values for distilled water,

NaCl, and H2SO4 are insignificant in the scale presented.
By contrast, the applied mechanical forces required for
We now examine our current understanding of the crack
the same incubation times are significantly higher for
growth behavior in 4340 steels based on extensive data
hydrogen gas, even if one considers any disparities in the
available in the literature. Because most of the tests are
specimen configurations or test conditions. If one con-
done in environments that affect the crack growth in one
siders that hydrogen is the damaging species involved in
way or the other, we examine here only the crack growth
all these, then it requires that hydrogen should be gener-
under static load. Figure  15 shows incubation time as a
ated at the crack tip by some chemical reaction and the
function of apparent stress intensity K for crack initia-
nascent hydrogen that formed should be diffused into the
tion in different environments. Incubation time is the time
crystal to cause the embrittlement of the material ahead
needed in a static test for the detectable initiation of crack
of the crack or notch tip. Thus, the sequence of processes
at the notched or precracked specimens. Conceptually, it
involves liquid penetration to the crack tip, reaction at
is similar to the number of cycles needed for crack initia-
the crack tip to generate atomic hydrogen, and diffusion
tion under cyclic load. Hence, incubation time involves the
into the material causing embrittlement. The slowest of
time needed for the crack tip damage process to proceed at
the processes will govern the kinetics. In the case of gas
the tip to the extent that remotely applied stresses become
hydrogen, for the reaction to be active, the presence of
sufficient to pop open a crack or extend existing crack, in
moisture may be required, thus slowing down the reac-
the case of fatigue, the time or number of cycles needed
tion kinetics. Figure 15 seems to indicate that reaction can
to build the necessary internal stresses to augment the
occur readily in all the three aqueous environments in
applied stresses for the crack to grow. For static loads, it
comparison with gaseous hydrogen. Correspondingly, the
is the time required for the chemical forces to accumulate
slopes of K versus time are also different.
to augment the applied mechanical forces to pop open a
Sieverts’ law states that hydrogen solubility in a
crack or extend the existing crack. The figure shows that
metal depends on the gas pressure, and therefore crack
the incubation time increases with the decrease in the
growth kinetics should vary with external gas pressure. A
applied stress intensity, as has been observed in several
classic experiment by Oriani and Josephic (1974) showed
that threshold stress intensity for crack growth in 4340
100 steel decreased with increase in gas pressure (Figure 16).
4340 steel In addition, they showed that stress intensities are
Hirose et al. 1994
higher for deuterium (D2) than those for H2 due to higher
H2-gas data based atomic mass. The slopes are interestingly close to 0.5 as
Kapparent (MPa (m)0.5)

on Clark & Landes

Sieverts’ law dictates. Similarly, Pao and Wei (1978) have
Slope ~ 0.15 determined the steady-state crack growth rates in hydro-
gen in 4340 steel and showed that the rate increases with
Distilled water the increase in pressure; again with the slope close to
3% NaCl
Slope ~ 0.5 0.1N H2SO4 that given by Sieverts’ law, (Figure  17). In essence, the
H2 gas
experiments indicated that hydrogen concentration in
the metal is an important variable in determining the
crack growth rates. Although concentration of hydrogen
10
10 100 1000 104 105 is pressure dependent, Sieverts’ law does not take into
Incubation time (s) account the crack growth kinetics for a given hydrogen
Figure 15: Incubation time versus apparent stress intensity for
concentration. The problem is hydrogen can contribute to
crack initiation in 4340 steels. (Y. Hirose, Z. Yajima and T. Mura, not only embrittlement but also enhanced local plastic-
Int. J. Ofshore & Polor Engrg. 4, 151–155, 1994). ity. Hence, plasticity-related mechanisms such as HELP,

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 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      13

30 by alternate blunting and cleave process, and the cleav-

4340 steel age component increases with the increase in hydrogen
Oriani & Josephic (1974) pressure. Figure  18 shows the TEM micrograph showing
Threshold Kth (MPa (m)1/2)

how increasing hydrogen pressure decreases the plastic-

20 ity component and increases the cleavage resulting in
D2 sharper crack front. The crack tip angle α at the crack
H2
tip measured in terms of alpha decreases with hydrogen
Slope=0.45 pressure (cotangent α), increases with hydrogen pressure,
and levels off as pressure increases, reaching a saturation
value (Figure 19). The increase in temperature reduces the
cleavage component because of increased plasticity con-
10
101 102 103 104 105
tribution. They proposed that alternate cleavage and slip
Hydrogen pressure (Pa) occur intermittently contributing to the net crack growth,
as shown schematically in Figure  20. This mechanism
Figure 16: Effect of hydrogen pressure on threshold for crack
results in the local enhanced plasticity as well as cleav-
growth in 4340 steel.
age by the presence of hydrogen. Here the plasticity is
more of an unavoidable obstruction facilitated perhaps by

10-2
4340 steel
H2S
Pao & Wei (1977) 100 µm 100 µm
-3
10
da/dt (m/s)

Slope=0.57

10-4

10-5 1
10 102 103 104
PH S (Pa)
2
A B
Figure 17: Steady-state crack growth rate as a function of gas Figure 18: Vehoff and Neumann (1983) show that with increasing H
­pressure in 4340 steel. concentration, cleavage component increases in relation to blunting
component in Fe-Si alloys.

etc., have been proposed, and plasticity is known to dis- 15

sipate the local stresses and hence retard the embrittle- Fe-3% Si
aN -Relative cleavage crack increment

ment process. Hydrogen can reduce the stresses needed Vehoff & Rothe, 1983
313 K

for dislocation nucleation at the crack tip, thus blunting

the crack tip, and it can decrease the lattice frictional 10
343 K
stress to enhance the mobility of the dislocations. Other
complexities can also arise, such as dislocation trapping
by forming an environment, dislocation drag, and/or
5
dislocation transport of hydrogen atoms. One or several a <q H2 q
of these processes can occur in combination making the
analysis difficult. Cleavage comp. aN=cot(a )
Another classical work done by Vehoff and Neumann 0
10-1 100 101 102 103 104 105
(1979) and Vehoff and Rothe (1983) on Fe-Si alloys is
Pressure (H2) - Pa
of interest here to see how the blunting and cleavage
mechanisms can occur sequentially to contribute to net Figure 19: Change in the angle with change in gas pressure for an
crack growth. They showed that crack moves forward Iron alloy at two different temperatures.

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14      K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel

Experimental basis embrittlement slowly takes over despite the local slip as
hydrogen accumulates at the crack tip.

e
an
Combined
pl
ip

8 Summary and conclusion

Sl

Cleavage
q a
aN Crack growth behavior under corrosion and corrosion
b <r fatigue of 4340 steel was examined by using the avail-
Slip and able data in the literature and by applying the two-load
cleavage parameter requirement developed by the authors for
have to be
a <q H2 q the characterization of fatigue damage. It is shown that
alternating
for crack based on the crack growth trajectory maps, environ-
growth ment affects crack growth from its inception to speci-
men failure. The effects vary with the environment.
Cleavage component = aN=cot(a )
Environmental effects on Crack growth can be time
From vehoff and neumann, 1979 dependent, stress dependent, or both. Environmental
Figure 20: Relative roles of blunting and cleavage during crack
contribution depends on the aggressiveness of the envi-
growth. ronment, the test frequency, and the magnitude of the
applied stresses. The quantification of the environmen-
tal contribution requires the reference data in an envi-
ronment-free condition, which is lacking for most of the
the reduction in the flow stress, but eventually cleavage
materials including for 4340 steel. Both the amplitude
occurs before slip is again facilitated.
ΔK and the peak stress intensity Kmax are affected by the
The analysis requires the detailed evaluation of hydro-
environment and need to be quantified for the reliable
gen behavior at atomic level, dislocation process at dislo-
prediction of the crack growth of components in service,
cation level, crack nucleation, and extension at fracture
which are subjected spectrum loads and varying envi-
mechanics level. Solanki (2014) is currently doing this,
ronments. It is shown that the use of failure diagrams
and the preliminary results indicate that dislocation glide
can help in quantifying the internal stresses arising
and cleavage alternate as the energies for each process
from both mechanical and chemical forces in causing
oscillate around the mean. This is shown schemati-
crack initiation and growth. The importance of both the
cally in Figure 21. Thus, analysis indicates that hydrogen
magnitude and the gradients of these stresses is shown
in the initiation and growth of an incipient crack and the
conditions under which the initiated crack can become
propagating or nonpropagating under given applied
loads and environments.

Acknowledgments: The authors thank Dr. P.S. Pao, Naval

G Gdisl Research Labs, Washington, DC, and Dr. T. Romgopal,
DNV Labs, Ohio, for their technical inputs and discus-
sions on this topic.
Gclea

Crack length
Slip and cleavage alternating – with
hydrogen cleavage become dominating
Figure 21: Discrete dislocations calculations confirm the alternat-
ing cleavage and glide at the growing crack tip.
References
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strength steels. Met Trans 1977; 8: 1043–1053.

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 K. Sadananda and A.K. Vasudevan: Crack growth behavior of 4340 steel      15

Kitagawa H, Takahashi S. Application of fracture mechanics to very Vehoff H, Rothe W. Gaseous hydrogen embrittlement on Fe-Si and
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during January 2014 and is currently working at Technical Data
Sadananda K, Sarkar S, Kujawski D, Vasudevan AK. A two parameter
Analysis, Inc at Falls Church, Virginia, USA. Prior to joining the Navy,
analysis of S-N fatigue life using Δσ and σmax. Int J Fatigue 2009;
he spent about 10 years at ALCOA Research Labs, where he devel-
31: 1648–1659.
oped high strength aerospace aluminum alloys. During his 25 years
Solanki K. Arizona State University, AZ, 2014. Unpublished work.
in the Navy, he directed research in the areas of bulk nanostruc-
Tanaka K, Nakai Y, Yamashita M. Fatigue growth threshold of small
tured materials for wear and corrosion applications, piezoelectric
cracks. Int J Fracture 1981; 17: 519–533.
materials, molybdenum disilicide materials and fatigue and fracture
Usami S, Shida S. Elastic-plastic analysis of the fatigue limit of a
of Navy structural alloys. He further directed the group to develop
material. Fat Eng Mater Struct 1979; 1: 471–482.
a fatigue life prediction model (called UniGrow) that has currently
Vasudevan AK, Sadananda K. Role of internal stresses on the
become important in the community. He has over 200 publications,
incubation times during stress corrosion cracking. Met Mat
12 patents and 12 books. He received the Sigma-Xi Award in 1983,
Trans 2011; 42A: 396–404.
ASM George Burgess Award in 2000, ASM Fellow in 2002, Navy
Vasudevan AK, Sadananda K, Holtz RL. Analysis of vacuum fatigue
Dual-Use Award in 2002, Lifetime FDSM award in 2008 and Henry
crack growth results and its implications. Int J Fatigue 2005;
Marion Howe Gold Medal in 2012.
27: 1519–1529.
Vehoff H, Neumann P. Crack propagation and cleavage initiation in
Fe-2.6%-Si single crystals under controlled plastic crack tip
opening rate in various gaseous environments. Acta Met 1979;
28: 265–272.

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