Fracture testing of large-scale thin-sheet aluminum alloy

摘要

A series of fracture tests on large-scale; pre-cracked, aluminum alloy panels was carried out to examine and to characterize the process by which cracks propagate and link up in this mat erial. Extended gripas and test fixtures were specially designed to enable the panel specimens to be loaded in tension in a 1780-kN-capacity universal testing machine. Ten panel specimens, each consisting of a single sheet of bare 2024-T3 aluminum alloy, approximately 4 m high, 2.3 m wide, and 1 mm thick, were fabricated with simulated through-cracks oriented horizontally at mid-height. Using existing information, a test matrix was set up to explore regions of failure controlled by failure mechanics, with additional tests near the boundary between plastic collapse and fracture. In addition, a variety of multiple site damage (MSD) configurations were included to distinguish between various proposed linkage mechanisms.