Customer Reviews

Metallurgy of Failure Analysis

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The author is an expert in failure analysis in the aerospace industry, and seems to have a fairly good background in that field. The great merit of the book is to discuss the fundamentals of failure and related topics form a metallurgist's point of view. However, most of the relevant part of the book is overly concentrated on discussions of case studies of failures in aerospace parts. Other case studies, such as failures in automotive parts, are lacking. Highly recommended if one works in the aerospace industry, but not as useful for professionals of other fields of activity.

I previously took a graduate course in Mechanical Properties of Materials. The textbook had alot of theoretical background with some practical examples. Recently, I had to brush up on my fracture analysis for my current job. I found this book at my undergraduate library which seemed to be a good choice. It was a general textbook with lots of examples for any level. The first six chapters are probably the first source of background for those who need a refresher or just new to failure analysis of materials. There are plenty of examples and lots of pictures for reference which is a great starting point. The remaining chapters are case studies which outlines how to approach failure analysis step-by-step. My recommendations to best utilize this textbook is to first do a quick scan of the first six chapters based on your knowledge of your failed sample. Then, examine your sample with optical microscope to get an idea where to focus your investigation. Consult your textbook and look closer in detail with SEM or TEM. This is part of the discovery that you will find very interesting. I found it really helpful and satisfying to apply what I learned to analyze a failed sample. Finding brittle fractures which showed feather-like river structures and then connecting the dots to the failure mechanism/mode was part of the fun and joy in actually applying knowledge in real-life problems in failure analysis of materials.

I have read several metallurgy books but this one is unique in that it focuses on failure analysis, tying together the macro and micro view. I have read about phase diagrams and looked at a hundred curves with photos but - what looks normal and what looks abnormal in real life? Finally, this book ties the familiar sight of corrosion, fractures, fatigue, creep, and wear to the microstructural view. Each case study shows the metallographic photo, from high mag microscope and/or SEM microscope photos, and explains what is wrong with it. Each case study is very concise, typically about 3 pages, and gets straght to the point. I read the whole book in a couple hours and was left with some degree of confidence in interpreting the metallographic signs of excessive cold work, transgranular fracture, intergranular corrosion, stress-corrosion cracking, creep failures, fatigue striations, and even hydrogen embrittlement. A great read and highly recommended. Not so highly recommended is the high price, which is why I obtained this book via inter-library loan : )

A good book to keep in your library as a failure analysis investigator. It has a good collection of case studies show casing various failure modes and root causes.