ABSTRACT
Shot peening is a mechanical surface treatment procedure which introduces compressive residual stresses at the surface of a component and is widely used to improve fatigue performance [2-4]. The improvement in fatigue life is attributed to the introduction of near-surface compressive residual stresses, a complex distribution of dislocations, and by work hardening of the material at the surface. Figure 15.1 shows the improvement in fatigue life achieved by applying a shot peening operation [3]. The greater the magnitude and depth of the compressive stress layer the greater the improvement in fatigue life. However, excessive peening operations may introduce cracks.
