material fatigue
Cyclic stress damage
Material fatigue is the progressive weakening of a material subjected to repeated stress or strain.
Unlike a single catastrophic overload, fatigue occurs through cumulative damage—tiny cracks form and grow with each stress cycle until the material fails.
The bridge collapse was attributed to material fatigue in the support cables.
Engineers design around fatigue limits to prevent structural failures in aircraft, machinery, and buildings.
- hairline cracksExtremely fine surface breaks
- deformationChange in shape
- stress fracturesMicroscopic bone breaks from overuse
- metal bendingShaping rigid alloys
- failure analysisStudy of why something broke
stress · stress analysis · breaking point · buckling · tensile strength · stress testing · bridge construction · load bearing · safety margins · creep · automotive design · aerospace engineering · wear · thermal expansion · strain · tension · aircraft · corrosion resistance
- Deteriorationdecay, rot, degradation, deterioration, corrosion
- material mechanicsstress-strain, tensile strength, elasticity, strain, ductility
- materials testingmicroscopy, spectroscopy, electron microscopy, chemical analysis, microstructure
- metal testingtensile strength, compression test, hardness scale, ultimate strength, impact resistance
- engineeringengineers, civil engineering, engineering, electrical engineering, blueprint
- fatigueexhaustion, tiredness, weariness, lethargy, exhausted
material fatiguestructural integrity
Wholeness under load
durability · full strength · robustness · hardiness · integrity