Metallurgical Engineering 211

(630.211)

Metal Alloys
(Ferrous Alloys)

A.Prof. Yinong Liu

School of Mechanical Engineering The University of Western Australia

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Todays lecture: Fe-C System Classification of metal alloys

Ferrous alloys Fe-Fe3C phase diagram Austenite, Ferrite, Cementite, Pearlite Peritectic reaction: +L Eutectic reaction: L+Fe3C Eutectoid reaction: a+Fe3C Steels and Cast Irons

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Most engineering metallic materials are alloys. Metals are alloyed to enhance their properties, such as strength, hardness or corrosion resistance, and to create new properties, such as shape memory effect and magnetic properties. Engineering alloys can be broadly divided into Ferrous Alloys and Nonferrous Alloys Metal Steel Cast irons Stainless steel Aluminium Copper Nickel Titanium Magnesium, Tin, Zinc, 13,000 20,000 3,200 1,100 56 Lead 2,000 2,000 2,500 12,300 35,000 26 40 8 13.5 2 Global demand tonnes, x1000 900,000 Price $/tonne 400 Market $ billion 360

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Ferrous Alloys
Metal Alloys Ferrous Steels Carbon
Low-C Medium-C High-C Tool

Non-ferrous Cast irons

Low Alloy
High strength low alloy steels Bearing steels Rail steels (<5% alloying elements)

High Alloy
Stainless High-Mn Tool

Grey iron Nodular iron White iron Malleable iron Alloy cast irons

(Mo,V,W,Cr,Ni)

(>5% total alloying elements)

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Fe-C system
Polymorphism of Fe: At 1394C: At 912 C: a Five basic solid phases: -phase: solid solution of C in bcc Fe at high T. Austenite (A, ): solid solution of C in fcc Fe. Maximum solubility of C in fcc Fe: 2.11wt% at 1148C. Ferrite (F, a): solid solution of C in bcc Fe. Maximum solubility of C in bcc Fe: 0.022wt% at 727C. Cementite (Fe3C): Fe-C intermetallic compound of complex structure; metastable. Graphite (G): pure C; stable.

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Fe-C system
Three reactions: Peritectic reaction: +L Eutectic reaction: L+Fe3C Eutectoid reaction: a+Fe3C

The product of eutectoid transformation is a laminar structure of F and Fe3C, known as pearlite.

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Ferrous

are alloys containing Fe as the main element. The most important ferrous alloy system is the Fe-C system. Alloys of this system can be further divided into steels and cast irons. Steels contain less C (generally <1.4wt%C) than do cast irons Steels (generally 2.4~4.3wt%C). As a result, all steels solidify into a single -Fe structure first and then experience the complex eutectoid reaction. Therefore, Cast irons heat treatment processes, which alter the eutectoid reaction, are vitally important for controlling microstructure and properties of steels. Cast irons, on the other hand, experience complex eutectic reaction during solidification, due to the formation of graphite or cementite. Consequently, solidification control is the most important single factor for properties of cast irons.

Alloys

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Microstructure of Ferrous Alloys -Fe (Austenite):

solid solution of C in FCC iron, formed by solidification from liquid, large grains and straight grain boundaries, stable at high temperatures, high solubility for C, high ductility and formability

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a-Fe (ferrite): A solid solution of C in BCC iron, formed from austenite

through solid phase transformation, small grains and irregular grain boundaries, stable at room temperature, very low solubility for carbon, ductile and soft, not so strong

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Pearlite (P): A composite

structure of laminar ferrite and cementite, formed as a product of eutectoid transformation from Austenite, good combined strength and toughness, ideal for structural applications

Cementite plates (Fe3C)

Ferrite matrix

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Hypoeutectoid steels:

Steel of <0.77%C. These account for low and medium carbon steels. Microstructure consists of pearlite and proeutectoid ferrite. The proportion of pearlite increases with increasing C% towards 0.77wt%. Higher portion of P makes the steel stronger but less ductile.

Pearlite (dark regions) Ferrite (white regions)

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Hypereutectoid steels: Steels

of >0.77%C. These accounts for high-C steels. Microstructure consists of pearlite matrix and cementite network along grain boundaries; cementite network reduces toughness and ductility significantly. Proportion of cementite increases with increasing C content away from 0.77wt%.

Pearlite matrix Cementite

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Todays lecture: Steels and their applications Low-C Steels Medium-C steels and HSLA steels High-C steels and tool steels Stainless steels Alloy designation of steels Steel products

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(0.15% carbon steel)

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Plain Carbon Steels

Low carbon steels (mild steels): 0.1-0.25%C proeutectoid F + small amount of P high formability, high ductility: ~30%EL relatively low strength: y= 250~400MPa excellent weldability cannot be strengthened by heat treatment usually strengthened by cold working typical applications: pipes, panels, sheets, wires, I-beams etc.

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(0.4% carbon steel)

Medium-carbon steels (structural steels)

0.25-0.55%C

Good combination of strength and ductility Yield strength: 300~600MPa Tensile strength: 400~800MPa Elongation: ~25% Strengthenable by heat treatment Weldable; weldability deteriorates with increasing C% Used for load-bearing applications, crankshaft, bolts, gears, Heavy-duty machinery, mining equipment, cranes

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High strength low alloy steels (HSLA) Medium carbon steels have desired mechanical properties for structural applications, but suffer from welding-induced embrittlement due to the formation of martensite. To overcome this problem, C content in these steels is reduced (<0.3%) and the loss of strength is compensated by increasing Mn content (>1%) and by microalloying with Nb, V, Ti, Cr and Cu. This leads to the development of HSLA steels. These steels are widely used for manufacturing large welded structures, such as Sydney harbor bridge, ocean liners and cargo ships, oil drilling rigs and platforms, large mining and earth moving equipment, and pressure vessels and storage tanks.

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High carbon steels Spring steels: 0.6~0.8%C predominately eutectoid pearlite at room temperature often strengthened and hardened by heat treatment high strength and moderate toughness
Tool steels: 0.8~1.2%C proeutectoid cementite + pearlite very high hardness, low toughness, very difficult to machine used for chisels, hammers, knives, saw blades, drills, dies, punches, cutlery, chine tools and wear resistant applications High carbon steels have poor weldability and poor machinability
spring

Extrusion dies

Cutting blades

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Alloy Designation

(carbon and low-alloy steels)

AISI: American Iron and Steel Institute SAE: Society of Automotive Engineers ASTM: American Society for Testing and Materials UNS: Uniform Numbering System AISI/SAE
carbon steels

UNS

1040 1xYY

low alloy steels

G10400 G1xYY0
G2xxx0

plain carbon steel containing 0.4wt%C modified carbon steel (S, P, Mn)
alloy steels

2xxx

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Tool Steels High alloy tool steels are often alloyed with Mo, V, W, Cr and/or Ni. UNS: Txxxxx Normally specified by hardness and impact toughness.

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Stainless Steels Three basic classes, specified by microstructure: Ferritics: Fe-Cr alloys (12~25%Cr), can be cheap Martensitics: Fe-Cr alloys, low Cr, hard, cutting tools Austenitics: Fe-Cr-Ni alloys (18Cr-8Ni), corrosion resistance Precipitation hardened, high strength and hardness Duplex (18Cr-5Ni) Alloys designation type AISI 2xx 3xx 4xx UNS S2xx00 S3xx00 S4xx00

304, 316, 316L (austenitics) 410 (martensitic), 446 (ferritic)

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Stainless Steels - Typical Mechanical Properties Yield strength: 200MPa ~ 1600MPa Tensile strength: 300 MPa ~ 1800 MPa Ductility: EL% 40 ~ 2 Youngs modulus: ~ 170 GPa

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Steel Products Nearly all carbon and alloy steels can be produced either as cast products or wrought products. Castings: Casting is used to produce near-finish components. Wrought products are produced more as semi-processed raw materials for further fabrication into components. Wrought products are usually produced by any or combination of rolling, extrusion, drawing and forging. Common forms available are bars, tubes, sheets, coils, wires, I-beams, angles. Most structural and mild steels, stainless steels are found in these forms. Tool steels: usually produced by casting and forging and are available as bars, rods and forged shapes.

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Todays lecture: Cast irons Grey irons Nodular irons White irons Malleable irons Alloy cast irons Alloy designation for cast irons

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Cast Irons - Microstructures

From a microstructural view point, cast irons can regarded as steels embedded with a carbonrich phase, which can be either graphite or cementite (Fe3C). Graphite offers no strength nor toughness and acts like voids in the iron; cementite is very hard and brittle.

Grey iron: graphite flakes embedded in ferrite matrix, cutting the continuity of the matrix and rendering the metal high brittleness. Nodular iron: graphite nodules in ferrite matrix, significantly improving toughness and ductility of the metal

White iron: cementite plates embedded in pearlite matrix, renders the metal high hardness and brittleness. Malleable iron: graphite clusters converted by decomposing cementite in white iron, significantly improving toughness and ductility

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Grey Irons SAE G1800 G2500 G3000 G6000 UNS F10004 F10005 F10006 F10012 Tensile Strength 18 (ksi) (140MPa) yield ductility -

60 (ksi) (400MPa)

Cheap to produce, excellent castability, high damping capacity, good metal-metal wear resistance when lubricated, strength much higher in compression than in tension, brittle in tension.

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Grey Irons - Application Grey irons are by far the most produced among all cast irons. Grey irons are used primarily for their low cost and excellent castability. Typical applications include:

engine cylinders, pistons, gear box casing, transmission casing, machine tool bases, balance weight of large cranes, large diameter underground pipework.
They are used always under compressive loading conditions. They are unsuitable for taking tensile loads or bending loads.

Stress

Mild steel Grey iron

Strain Tensile stress-strain behaviour of grey cast iron

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Typical grey iron components

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Nodular Irons (ductile irons) ASTM 60-40-18 120-90-02 UNS F32800 F36200 Tensile 60 (ksi) 120 Yield 40 90 Ductility 18 2

Produced by inoculating (addition of RE or Mg to molten metal just before casting) grey iron. This treatment converts graphite flakes into granules. These irons are much stronger and tougher than grey irons. They are produced and used for high specification applications. They are more expensive than grey irons. Typical applications include: gears, crankshafts, pump bodies, pressure valves, rollers.

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Typical nodular iron components

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Malleable Irons ASTM 32510 35018 UNS F32510 F36200 Yield strength 32.5 (ksi) 35 Ductility 10 18

Produced by heat treating white iron at elevated temperatures for long times. Such treatment decomposes cementite into ferrite and graphite. Consequently, these cast irons are stronger, tougher and much more ductile than grey irons, compatible to nodular irons. They have certain capacity to take shock loading, bending and tension. They are suitable for castings of thin thickness. They are expensive to produce, largely due to the heat treatment. Typical applications include gear box casing, transmission casing, differential casing.

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White Irons White irons contain relatively less C and Si. As a result cementite (Fe3C) is formed instead of graphite. This makes the alloy very hard and brittle, practically useless as structural materials. The high hardness, however, renders them high resistance to abrasive wear. White irons are produced mainly for two purposes: Intermediate product for producing malleable irons As abrasive wear resistant components, such as ball mill lining tiles, slurry pipe elbows, slurry pump bodies