The factors that have an impact upon fatigue strength are residual stress, stress concentration, the mechanical properties of the material, and the macrostructure and microstructure. Residual stress is one of the most important factors but its effect on high-cycle fatigue is of more concern than the other factors. Residual stress is a tension or compression that exists in a material without any...

This paper discusses a number of special ultrasonic NDE problems of particular interest to inertia and friction welds, but most of the results can be readily applied to other similar or dissimilar solid-state bonds as well. One of the major problems associated with dissimilar bonds is the "blinding" effect of the strong interface reflection caused by the inherent elastic discontinuity at the ot...