Residual stresses
Mechanical surface treatments — Principles

Any manufacturing process introduces residual stresses into a mechanical part that will influence its fatigue, fracture, and even corrosion behavior. There are few methods of implementing materials that do not create a new state of stress. Mechanical treatments are part of a range of processes whose role is to introduce residual compressive stresses. This field of residual stresses, which helps to relieve the surface layers of a mechanical part, significantly improves performance. This action can be likened to prestressed concrete. For this reason, mechanical surface treatments are often considered to be a form of prestressing.