In situ 3D Synchrotron Laminography Assessment of Edge Fracture in Dual-Phase Steels: Quantitative and Numerical Analysis

The mechanical performance of automotive structures made of advanced high strength steels (AHSS) is often seen reduced by the presence of cut edges. An attempt is made to assess and quantify the initial damage state and the damage evolution during mechanical testing of a punched edge and a machined edge via a recently developed 3D imaging technique called synchrotron radiation computed laminography. This technique allows us to observe damage in regions of interest in thin sheet-like objects at micrometer resolution. In terms of new experimental mechanics, steel sheets having sizes and mechanical boundary conditions of engineering relevance can be tested for the first time with in situ 3D damage observation and quantification. It is found for the investigated DP600 steel that the fracture zone of the punched edge is rough and that needle-shape voids at the surface and in the bulk follow ferrite-martensite flow lines. During mechanical in situ testing the needle voids grow from the fracture zone surface and coalesce with the sheared zone. In contrast, during in situ mechanical testing of a machined edge the damage starts away from the edge (∼800μm) where substantial necking has occurred. Three-dimensional image analysis was performed to quantify the initial damage and its evolution. These data can be used as input and validation data for micromechanical damage models. To interpret the experimental findings in terms of mechanical fields, combined surface digital image correlation and 3D finite element analysis were carried out using an elasto-plastic constitutive law of the investigated DP steel. The stress triaxiality and the accumulated plastic strain were calculated in order to understand the influence of the edge profile and the hardening of the cutting-affected zone on the mechanical fields.