Fatigue and Its Relation to the Mechanical and Metallurgical Properties of Metals

A COMPARISON of the fatigue strength of metals with the other mechanical and metallurgical properties shows no precise correlation by which the fatigue strength can be evaluated with sufficient accuracy for engineering use from the more readily determined properties.

It is shown that fatigue is a discrete property of metals which must be established on the basis of independent laboratory tests.

Several theories of the mechanism of fatigue are discussed and an explanation is offered for the beneficial effects of surface treatments such as cold-rolling, shotpeening, and electroplating.