Fatigue failure is a multi-stage process. It begins with the initiation of cracks, and with continued cyclic loading the cracks propagate, finally leading to the rupture of a component or specimen. The demarcation between the above stages is not well-defined. Depending upon the scale of interest, the variation may span three orders of magnitude. For example, to a material scientist an initiated crack may be of the order of a micron, whereas for an engineer it can be of the order of a millimetre. It is not surprising therefore to see that investigation of the fatigue process has followed different paths depending upon the scale of phenomenon under investigation. Interest in the study of fatigue failure increased with the advent of industrial ization. Because of the urgent need to design against fatigue failure, early investiga tors focused on prototype testing and proposed failure criteria similar to design formulae. Thus, a methodology developed whereby the fatigue theories were proposed based on experimental observations, albeit at times with limited scope. This type of phenomenological approach progressed rapidly during the past four decades as closed-loop testing machines became available.

Fatigue failure is a multi-stage process. It begins with the initiation of cracks, and with continued cyclic loading the cracks propagate, finally leading to the rupture of a component or specimen. The demarcation between the above stages is not well-defined. Depending upon the scale of interest, the variation may span three orders of magnitude. For example, to a material scientist an initiated crack may be of the order of a micron, whereas for an engineer it can be of the order of a millimetre. It is not surprising therefore to see that investigation of the fatigue process has followed different paths depending upon the scale of phenomenon under investigation. Interest in the study of fatigue failure increased with the advent of industrial ization. Because of the urgent need to design against fatigue failure, early investiga tors focused on prototype testing and proposed failure criteria similar to design formulae. Thus, a methodology developed whereby the fatigue theories were proposed based on experimental observations, albeit at times with limited scope. This type of phenomenological approach progressed rapidly during the past four decades as closed-loop testing machines became available.

Twenty-seven papers from fatigue researchers and practitioners review in detail recent progress in the development of methods to predict fatigue performance of materials and structures and to assess the extent to which these new methods are finding their way into practice. The papers, from the ASTM

In order to apply the damage tolerance design philosophy to design marine structures, accurate prediction of fatigue crack growth under service conditions is required. Now, more and more people have realized that only a fatigue life prediction method based on fatigue crack propagation (FCP) theory has the potential to explain various fatigue phenomena observed. In this book, the issues leading towards the development of a unified fatigue life prediction (UFLP) method based on FCP theory are addressed. Based on the philosophy of the UFLP method, the current inconsistency between fatigue design and inspection of marine structures could be resolved. This book presents the state-of-the-art and recent advances, including those by the authors, in fatigue studies. It is designed to lead the future directions and to provide a useful tool in many practical applications. It is intended to address to engineers, naval architects, research staff, professionals and graduates engaged in fatigue prevention design and survey of marine structures, in fatigue studies of materials and structures, in experimental laboratory research, in planning the repair and maintenance of existing structures, and in rule development. The book is also an effective educational aid in naval architecture, marine, civil and mechanical engineering. Prof. Weicheng Cui is the Dean of Hadal Science and Technology Research Center of Shanghai Ocean University, China. Dr. Xiaoping Huang is an associate professor of School of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Civil Engineering of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. Dr. Fang Wang is an associate professor of Hadal Science and Technology Research Center of Shanghai Ocean University, China.

In this paper a deterministic creep/fatigue accumulation model from simple sequential and repetitive creep and fatigue crack growth mechanisms for creep-brittle materials is developed. In the model the maximum stress intensity factor and stress intensity factor range can be used to describe, respectively, the creep and fatigue crack growth behaviors. The probabilistic behavior of the combined creep-fatigue can be calculated by direct integration of a joint log-normal probability density function or other methods. The Monte Carlo simulation method is used in this paper to analyze the probabilistic behavior of the derived deterministic creep-fatigue model and to estimate the reliability of a creep-fatigue correlation as introduced by the uncertainties in both creep and fatigue lives. Predicted results from this new crack growth method are compared with the bi-linear creep-fatigue interaction models as adopted by ASME Code Case N-47 and API579/ASME FFS, and the results are discussed.

This book is an attempt to provide a uni?ed methodology to derive models for fatigue life. This includes S-N, ?-N and crack propagation models. This is not a conventional book aimed at describing the fatigue fundamentals, but rather a book in which the basic models of the three main fatigue approaches, the stress-based, the strain-based and the fracture mechanics approaches, are contemplated from a novel and integrated point of view. On the other hand, as an alternative to the preferential attention paid to deterministic models based on the physical, phenomenological and empirical description of fatigue, their probabilistic nature is emphasized in this book, in which stochastic fatigue and crack growth models are presented. This book is the result of a long period of close collaborationbetween its two authors who, although of di?erent backgrounds, mathematical and mechanical, both have a strong sense of engineering with respect to the fatigue problem. When the authors of this book ?rst approached the fatigue ?eld in 1982 (twenty six years ago), they found the following scenario: 1. Linear, bilinear or trilinear models were frequently proposed by relevant laboratoriesandacademiccenterstoreproducetheW ̈ ohler?eld. Thiswas the case of well known institutions, which justi?ed these models based on clientrequirementsorpreferences. Thisledtotheinclusionofsuchmodels and methods as, for example, the up-and-down, in standards and o?cial practical directives (ASTM, Euronorm, etc.), which have proved to be unfortunate.