Experimental and numerical characterization of anisotropic damage evolution of forged Al6061-T6 alloy

Aluminum alloy 6061-T6 (Al-Mg-Si) has been selected as the material of the vessel for the construction of Jules-Horowitz material testing reactor. Fracture mechanism of this alloy has been investigated using mechanical testing of smooth and notched tensile specimens loaded in different directions. A strong anisotropic fracture behavior has been observed. Microstructural studies using tomography and image analysis have shown a presence of anisotropic distributed coarse precipitates which is the key microstructural feature affecting the damage evolution. These observations were complemented by investigations on fractured tensile samples. A damage scenario of anisotropic growth and coalescence of voids is proposed to explain the fracture behavior associated with the distribution of precipitates. A GTN (Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman) damage model is used to simulate this scenario and to predict damage evolution. (authors)