PHASE DIAGRAM

and
MICROSTRCTURE of
Fe-C alloys
41659 Materialelre
Karen Pantleon
1
Fe-C alloys
ferrous alloys
Fe +
< 0.008 wt% C commercially pure iron
0.008 s wt%C s 2.14 steels
(usually < 1 wt% C)
2.14 s wt%C s 6.7 cast iron
(usually < 4.5 wt%)
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2
Phase diagrams of the Fe-C system
stable phase diagram Fe-C
true equilibrium diagram
(graphite = stable)
metastable phase diagram Fe-Fe
3
C
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3
o-Fe
(ferrite)
= bcc
o-Fe
= bcc
-Fe
(austenite)
= fcc
Fe
3
C (cementite)
eutectic reaction:
L + Fe
3
C
eutectoid reaction:
o +Fe
3
C
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Fe-C alloys: Fe-Fe
3
C phase diagram
4
interstitial solid solutions:
o-Fe (ferrite) bcc,
maximum solubility: 0.022 wt% C at 727C
-Fe (austentite) fcc,
maximum solubility: 2.14 wt% C at 1147C
metastable compound:
Fe
3
C (cementite) o + Fe
3
C or + Fe
3
C
(when the solubility limit of C is exceeded)
Fe-C alloys
phases / microconstituents
pearlite
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0.05 wt% C 0.2 wt% C 0.4 wt% C
0.76 wt% C
1.2 wt% C
effect of C-content in steel
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1.6 wt% C
equilibrium cooling
6
0.8% C: 780C, furnace cooled 0.8% C: specially heat treated
0.8% C: normalized, air cooled 780C
effect of heat treatment of steel
- spheroidized pearlite
- coarse pearlite
- fine pearlite
hardness depends on
inter-lamellae distance of pearlite
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see also lesson 8
7
mechanical properties depend on microstructure
microstructure can be influenced by
- chemical composition
(= C-content and other alloying elements, like Cr, Ni, Mn, W, ...)
and/or
- heat treatment
(either equilibrium slow cooling, see current lesson,
or non-equilibrium fast colling, see next lesson)
Fe-C alloys: Fe-Fe
3
C phase diagram
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8
Microstructure of steel
depends on heat treatment and C-content
0.76 wt% C
eutectoid reaction: o + Fe
3
C
a: T
1
(> 727C):
b: T
2
(s 727C): o + Fe
3
C
austenit () transforms to
pearlite (o + Fe
3
C) upon cooling
Karen Pantleon, 41659
9
Microstructure of steel
eutectoid reaction: o + Fe
3
C, i.e. austenite pearlite
diffusion of carbon
lamellar microstructure
(since o and Fe
3
C form simultaneously, but have different composition)
pearlite

o + Fe
3
C
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10
Pearlite formation
fine pearlite
lamellar microstructure
(o and Fe
3
C form simultaneously, but have different composition)
coarse pearlite
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Microstructure of steel
hypoeutectoid alloys:
0.022 s wt% C < 0.76
c: T
1
(~ 875C):
d: T
2
(~ 775C): o +
e: T
3
(> 727C): o +
f: T
4
(< 727C): o + Fe
3
C
eutectoid ferrite
proeutectoid ferrite
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Microstructure of steel
hypoeutectoid alloys:
0.022 s wt% C s 0.76
o + Fe
3
C
proeutectoid o eutectoid o (within the pearlite,
i.e. alternating with Fe
3
C)
example:
0.38 wt% C
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13
Microstructure of steel
hypereutectoid alloys:
0.76 < wt% C s 2.14
g: T
1
(~ 910C):
h: T
2
(~ 790C): + Fe
3
C
i: T
3
(< 727C): o + Fe
3
C
proeutectoid cementite
eutectoid cementite
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Microstructure of steel
hypereutectoid alloys:
0.76 s wt% C s 2.14
example:
1.4 wt% C
proeutectoid cementite
o + Fe
3
C
pearlite (with
eutectoid cementite)
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Karen Pantleon, 41659
see the software on Campus Net
demonstration of microstructure evolution
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Microstructure constituents
coarse pearlite fine pearlite
Austenite (typicall twins!)
= pearlite
ferrite
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o-Fe Fe
3
C and
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Lever rule
determination of the fraction of ferrite, F, and cementite, C, in pearlite
0.022 - 6.67
0.022 - 0.76
W
C
=
0.022 - 6.67
0.76 - 6.67
W
F
=
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W
F
= 88%
W
C
= 12%
or
W
C
= 100 - W
F
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Lever rule
determination of the fraction of pearlite (P) and proeutectoid ferrite (o)
and of the fraction of pearlite (P) and proeutectoid cementite (Fe
3
C)
0.76 6.70
0.76 C
W
'
1
C Fe
'
3

=
0.76 6.70
C 6.70
W
'
1
P

=
0.022 0.76
C - 0.76
W
'
0

'

=
0.022 0.76
0.022 C
W
'
0
P

=
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true equilibrium Fe-C phase diagram
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for very slow cooling,
repeated melting and solidification
after annealing (t |, T |)
promoted by the presence of Si
graphite = stable
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Cast iron
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gray cast iron nodular cast iron white cast iron malleable cast iron
graphite flakes
in ferrite or pearlite
matrix
gray fracture surface
alloying with Mg
nodular or sphere
-like graphite in
ferrite or pearlite
matrix
cementite in pearlite
matrix
white fracture surface
graphite rosettes in
ferrite or pearlite
matrix
(tempering of white
cast iron)
compacted graphite iron
worm-like graphite
improved mechanical properties
21
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Classification
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