The mechanism of fatigue failure by flow-induced vibration was studied by using a newly developed small wind tunnel. The necessary conditions of flow-induced vibration for a carbon steel specimen attached to a larger styrofoam cylinder were first investigated. Possible methods to detect indications of fatigue crack initiation and propagation were sought. A fatigue life prediction method was also developed. The change in natural frequency and amplitude of the test cylinder and strain history at the prospective crack initiation sites were measured. The 0.45 C steel specimen contained an artificial small hole which is expected to become the crack initiation site. A small portable service strain histogram recorder (Mini Rainflow Corder, MRC) developed in another project was used to monitor the variation of strains due to crack growth from the small hole. Fatigue damage accumulation based on Miner's rule was calculated and compared with the experimental results.
