Experimental Methodology and Validation for Simulating Strong Transient Thermal Environment and Implementing Temperature Tracking Control in Fatigue Testing

The operating conditions of aero-engines’ components are becoming increasingly severe. The occurrence of strong transient thermal environments during mode transitions in variable cycle engines results in reduction of material properties, with the complex failure modes that encompass thermal fatigue and thermal mechanical fatigue. This paper aims to develop a precise rapid temperature tracking control methodology, while designing a specimen form and temperature change methods through simulation analysis. The multi-physical simulation of magnetic-thermal-solid coupling for temperature field was calculated using the finite element method. A hollow thin-walled tube specimen was designed, utilizing electromagnetic induction heating and forced convection cooling to achieve temperature changes. Using the programmable controller, a double-loop multi-stage proportional integral derivative (PID) control methodology was constructed. The parameter adjustment simulation was validated by software. Finally, the experimental results demonstrated that within the operating temperature range, the specimen’s concerned section achieved a temperature change rate of 100 °C/s, effectively controlling a triangular wave with consistent heating and cooling rates. The error was less than 8.31%, and the waveform was smooth, with preferable temperature uniformity. It validates the effectiveness of the novel experimental methodology, which may provide a new way to simulate and control the strong transient thermal environments in support of reliability tests and safety research.