Fatigue of brazed joints made of X5CrNi18-10 and Cu110 and derivation of reliable assessment approaches

Brazing in a continuous belt furnace is a quite cost-effective way of joining components consisting of many individual parts. It is extensively used in many industrial sectors like the automotive or in the energy industry. Even though many components are cyclically loaded during service up to now, no approaches to assess the lifetime under in-service loads are available. In order to assess the fatigue strength of brazed joints, three different specimen types have been investigated: peel and shear as well as a component-like specimens. The specimens were characterized and tested under load control using constant and variable amplitudes. Subsequently, the fatigue life of these joints was assessed by linear-elastic notch stresses. A reference S-N curve and characteristic damage sums were derived that enable to perform a reliable fatigue assessment. Further parameters which seem to have a strong influence on the fatigue life, the surface topology, and the overall quality of the braze were identified. Their influence is discussed.