539.4Fatigue behavior of brittle materials under compression is considered. The findings should be taken into account in the failure probability assessment of components made of materials with limited plasticity, which are used in various stress states.Keywords: brittle material, compressive loading, fatigue behavior, cyclic cracking resistance.Fatigue of brittle materials (interstitial phases, oxides, intermetallic compounds, graphite, etc.) produced mainly by powder metallurgy methods, has been examined far less extensively than that of metals. The absence of macro-plastic deformation in powder metallurgy materials in a wide temperature range (in many cases, up to 0.5-0.8 of the melting point [1-3]) limits the extent of manifestation of fatigue processes and stresses in the vicinity of the static strength [2]. In some experiments [3], the fatigue effect was not recorded at all (specimens of brittle materials either failed in the first load cycle or did not fail at all over a given test time); therefore, it appears that mechanical fatigue does not take place, and this impression is enhanced by the fact that in some materials (aluminum oxide [1], silicon nitride) fatigue failure is associated with stress corrosion.At the same time, comparative tests on brittle materials under long-term static and cyclic loading, including tests in a highly corrosive atmosphere, e.g., tests on alumina, have revealed inherent fatigue processes caused by cyclic loading. It is evident that the process of fatigue failure of brittle materials results from the phenomenon of inelastic and highly localized deformation [2], and the intensity of this deformation governs the microcrack growth rate in the material.In the majority of cases, the data on the crack growth rate in brittle materials were obtained in long-term loading of specimens of double cantilever type [2]. These data are represented in the form of a kinetic fatigue failure diagram in the coordinates of crack growth rate vs. stress intensity factor (SIF). The reports on fatigue behavior under other types of loading, e.g., under compressive loading which is encountered most often in structures made of powder metallurgy materials, are few in number.The procedure of constructing a kinetic fatigue failure diagram (KFFD) is based on the method of determination of cracking resistance in uniaxial compressive loading, which is described in detail in [4].The experimental data obtained in testing organic silicate glass, graphite, and zirconium carbide show that compression fracture is of kinetic nature [5]. The tests were conducted on flat specimens measuring 20 30 4´mm with a central straight initial crack of length 2L (2L = 2-3 mm), positioned at an angle b to the compressive loading axis at a distance d from each other. The growth and interaction of cracks in brittle solids under compressive stress state are shown (Fig. 1). From the fracture mechanics standpoint, this process consists of three conventional stages occurring successively with increasing compressive load. The first stage ...