Fatigue Testing and Certification

Developing test data to support decision making

Fatigue engineering is subject to uncertainty, and data from well executed tests are used to validate conclusions made by analysis and to provide a basis for structural certification. Our staff have extensive experience in testing materials and components under slowly varying, static loads, and under rapidly varying cyclic loads. Tests under static loads are used to assess material properties or to assess the load-deformation behavior of structural components. Tests under cyclic loads provide time to crack initiation, time to failure, or measurements of crack growth over time. We have extensive experience in measuring fatigue crack growth behavior in metallic materials. Past programs have measured crack growth with microscopy and photogrammetry at the surface, cracked area with direct current potential drop, and through-thickness crack profiles with quantitative fractography. By assessing crack growth with a variety of experimental methods, we enable robust analysis validation for cases of complex cracking. Our capabilities in fatigue engineering allow for careful design of a fatigue test program. Whether the tests use constant amplitude loading or an irregular loading spectrum, we specialize in engineering the test that meet your needs. Much of our experience is in non-standard test programs, which require engineering to optimize the test setup. Few others match our capability and experience in fatigue test engineering.