Creep-fatigue behavior of turbine disc of superalloy GH720Li at 650 °C and probabilistic creep-fatigue modeling

Creep-fatigue experiments have been conducted in nickel-based superalloy GH720Li at an elevated temperature of 650 °C with a stress ratio of 0.1, based on which, different dwell times at the maximum loading were applied to investigate the effect of dwell time on the creep-fatigue behaviors. The tested specimens were cut from the rim region of an actual turbine disc in the hoop direction. The grain size and precipitates of the GH720Li superalloy were examined through scanning electronic microscope (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analyses. Experimental data shows creep-fatigue lifetime decreases as the dwell time prolongs. Further, different scattering was observed in the creep-fatigue lifetime at different dwell times. Then a probabilistic model based on the applied mechanical work density (AMWD), with a linear heteroscedastic function that evaluates the non-constant deviation in the creep-fatigue lifetime, was formulated to describe the dependence of creep-fatigue lifetime on the dwell time. Finally, the possible microscopic mechanism of the creep-fatigue behavior has been discussed by SEM with EDS on the fracture surfaces.