A Fatigue Life Prediction Method of Laser Assisted Self-Piercing Rivet Joint for Magnesium Alloys

Due to magnesium alloy's poor weldability, other joining techniques such as laser assisted self-piercing rivet (LSPR) are used for joining magnesium alloys. This research investigates the fatigue performance of LSPR for magnesium alloys including AZ31 and AM60. Tensile-shear and coach peel specimens for AZ31 and AM60 were fabricated and tested for understanding joint fatigue performance. A structural stress - life (S-N) method was used to develop the fatigue parameters from load-life test results. In order to validate this approach, test results from multijoint specimens were compared with the predicted fatigue results of these specimens using the structural stress method. The fatigue results predicted using the structural stress method correlate well with the test results.