Fracture surface analysis in HDPE pipe material fatigued at different temperatures and loading frequencies

Effect of temperature and loading frequency on the fatigue fracture process in high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe material has been investigated in this study via optical and scanning electron microscopy. Fatigue tests were performed using rectangular coupons obtained by slitting and flattening 50-mm-wide ring sections from 4-inch schedule 80 HDPE pipes. The flattening was carried out in a specially designed compression fixture at a temperature of 105 °C. Fatigue tests were conducted at temperatures of 0, 23, and 40 °C and loading frequencies of 0.1, 1, and 50 Hz. Fracture surface examinations reveal that the fatigue crack-growth process at all the test temperatures and loading frequencies involved mechanisms of shear yielding and crazing. Crack growth via crazing was found to be the dominant mechanism at higher temperature of 40 °C, while at 0 °C, a small amount of initial shear yielding precede the crazing process. Filler material particles contained in the HDPE pipe material play an important role of stress concentrators and help in micro-void nucleation, which promotes crack growth via crazing. The fatigue resistance of HDPE may thus be improved by addressing the stress concentration effect of filler particles.