ABSTRACT
We have all come across examples of materials failure, whether it be the broken rail which caused trains to be delayed or the cup that broke when dropped on the floor. A material can be considered to have failed when its ability to completely satisfy the original design function ceases. Failure can occur as a result of a number of causes, e.g. the material may fracture or perhaps degrade as a result of corrosion. In this chapter, we consider the causes of such failures and the methods that can be adopted to prevent, or at least, delay failure.
