The effect of surface corrosion damage on the fatigue life of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy extrusions

An investigation was performed where 6061-T6 extrusions were exposed to a 3.5% NaCl solution at pH 2 for 2 days and 24 days to create distinct surface flaws. The effect of these flaws on the rotating beam fatigue life was then investigated and analyzed by using Wöhler curves, Weibull statistics and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was determined that corrosion damage reduced the fatigue life significantly and specimens corroded for both 2-days and 24-days exhibited similar fatigue lives. Statistical analyses showed that fatigue life of all three datasets followed the 3-parameter Weibull distribution and the difference between the fatigue lives of two corroded datasets was statistically insignificant. Analysis of fracture surfaces showed that sizes of pits that led to fatigue crack initiation were very different in the two corroded datasets. Implications of the similarity in fatigue lives despite disparity in surface condition are discussed in detail in the paper.