Torsional Fatigue Failure of Additively Manufactured Stainless Steel of Reduced Specimen Size

The torsional fatigue response of as-built direct metal laser sintered (DMLS) stainless steel (SS) GP1 of reduced specimen size and horizontal build orientation subjected to cyclic loading at a highly plastic shear strain has been investigated. The average shear modulus, G , was found to be 55.36 GPa, with shear stress history revealing cyclic hardening to stabilization and softening to fracture. Findings suggest that stainless steel GP1 of reduced specimen size experiences fatigue crack initiation at voids near the surface, resulting in a star-spline brittle fracture response, and premature torsional fatigue failure within the low cycle fatigue regime. A noninteraction deformation constitutive model through finite element simulations has been used to successfully simulate the deformation response of the gage section under torsional fatigue conditions.