Stressed steel

1998/03/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Patenteak/Asmakizunak

Like humans, steel beams are under stress before they break. Recently scientists have released the technique of detection and measurement of the onset of this fatigue.

According to physicist Davis Jiles, metal fatigue is the origin of many nightmares. Despite the numerous techniques of detection of damaged steels, so far they have not been able to know the time of their life when steel suffered greater fatigue or tension.

This technique is based on magnetism. The steel rods have a series of atoms located in the same direction of the magnetic poles, which when bending or tightening the bar change configuration. Therefore, when breakdowns begin to appear in the steel structure, the vibrations of the magnetic field of the bar increase. Knowing all this, in the graph representing the magnetic field of steel about to crack, you can observe large oscillations that indicate an immediate break.

However, the stress level or fatigue of steel structures can be measured and seen, but it is not predictable. As researchers say, you can’t put a sensor on the steel and ask it to say “I’m going to break next week.” Unfortunately.