Chapter 5: Diffusion in Solids

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What is diffusion?
is material transport by atomic motion. Phenomenon of material transport by atomic motion.

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results of an atomistic simulation of atomic mixing

Inhomogeneous materials can become homogeneous by diffusion. For an active diffusion to occur, the temperature should be high enough to overcome energy barriers to atomic motion.
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Applicable/Dominate in Metallic Diffusion

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Interdiffusion and Self-diffusion

Interdiffusion or impurity diffusion:
In an alloy, atoms tend to migrate from regions of large concentration the process where atoms of one metal diffuse into another. occurs in response to a concentration gradient.

Self-diffusion:
Atomic migration in pure metals. is diffusion in one-component material, when all atoms that exchange positions are of the same type.

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Interdiffusion or Impurity Diffussion

Initially After some time

Heat

100%

Inhomogeneous materials can become homogeneous by diffusion. For an active diffusion to occur, the temperature should be high enough to overcome energy barriers to atomic motion.

Concentration Profiles
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Self Diffusion
Self-diffusion: In an elemental solid, atoms
also migrate.
Label some atoms After some time

C A D B

Heat

Self-diffusion: Atomic migration in pure metals. is diffusion in one-component material, when all atoms that exchange positions are of the same type.
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Chapter 5: Diffusion Mechanisms

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Diffusion Mechanisms
Vacancy diffusion:
The diffusion mechanism wherein net atomic migration is from lattice site to an adjacent vacancy.

Interstitial diffusion:
A diffusion mechanism where atomic motion is from interstitial site to interstitial site.

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Vacancy diffusion mechanism

To jump from lattice site to lattice site, atoms need energy to break bonds with neighbors, and to cause the necessary lattice distortions during jump. This energy comes from the thermal energy of atomic vibrations (Eav ~ kBT) The direction of flow of atoms is opposite the vacancy flow direction.
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Interstitials diffusion mechanism

Interstitial diffusion is generally faster than vacancy diffusion because bonding of interstitials to the surrounding atoms is normally weaker and there are many more interstitial sites than vacancy sites to jump to. Requires small impurity atoms (e.g. C, H, O) to fit into interstices in host.
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Steady and Unsteady State Diffusion

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Diffusion Flux
The flux of diffusing atoms, J,
is used to quantify how fast diffusion occurs. The flux is defined as either the number of atoms diffusing through unit area per unit time (atoms/m2second) or the mass of atoms diffusing through unit area per unit time, (kg/m2- second).

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 where A denotes the area across which diffusion is occurring and t is the elapsed diffusion time.

In differential form, this expression becomes

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Steady and Non- Steady State Diffusion

Steady-state diffusion: 1. The diffusion condition for which there is no net accumulation or depletion of diffusing species. 2. The diffusion flux is independent of time. Non steady-State Diffusion 1. This is the case when the diffusion flux depends on time, which means that a type of atoms accumulates in a region or that it is depleted from a region (which may cause them to accumulate in another region). 2. The diffusion condition for which there is some net accumulation or depletion of diffusing species. The diffusion flux is dependent on time.
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Steady-State Diffusion
Steady state diffusion:
the diffusion flux does not change with time.

Concentration profile: concentration of

atoms/molecules of interest as function of position in the sample.

Concentration gradient: dC/dx (Kg m-4):

the slope at a particular point on concentration profile.

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Steady-State Diffusion: Ficks first law Ficks first law: the diffusion flux along direction x is proportional to the concentration gradient

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The concentration gradient is often called the driving force in diffusion (but it is not a force in the mechanistic sense). The minus sign in the equation means that diffusion is down the concentration gradient.
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Sample Problem 5.1.

A plate of iron is exposed to a carburizing (carbon-rich) atmosphere on one side and a decarburizing (carbon-deficient) atmosphere on the other side at 700C (1300F). If a condition of steady state is achieved, calculate the diffusion flux of carbon through the plate if the concentrations of carbon at positions of 5 and 10 mm (5x10^-3 and 10^-2 m) beneath the carburizing surface are 1.2 and 0.8 kg/m3, respectively. Assume a diffusion coefficient of 3x10^-11 m2/s at this temperature.
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Solution:

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Nonsteady-State Diffusion: Ficks second law

In many real situations the concentration profile and the concentration gradient are changing with time. The changes of the concentration profile can be described in this case by a differential equation, Ficks second law.

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Factors affecting Diffusion

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 As stated above, there is a barrier to diffusion created by neighboring atoms that need to move to let the diffusing atom pass. Thus, atomic vibrations created by temperature assist diffusion. Also, smaller atoms diffuse more readily than big ones, and diffusion is faster in open lattices or in open directions. Similar to the case of vacancy formation, the effect of temperature in diffusion is given by a Boltzmann factor: D = D0 exp(Qd/kT).
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Diffusing Species
magnitude of the diffusion coefficient D is indicative of the rate at which atoms diffuse. The diffusing species as well as the host material influence the diffusion coefficient

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there is a significant difference in magnitude between self-diffusion and carbon interdiffusion in iron at 500C, the D value being greater for the carbon interdiffusion (3.0 x10^-21 vs. 2.4x10^-12 m2/s).This comparison also provides a contrast between rates of diffusion via vacancy and interstitial modes as discussed earlier
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Temperature
has a most profound influence on the coefficients and diffusion rates. temperature dependence of diffusion coefficients.

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Sample Problem 5.4

compute the diffusion coefficient for magnesium in aluminum at 550C.

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Solution:

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Factors that influence diffusion

Temperature
diffusion rate increases very rapidly with increasing temperature

Diffusion mechanism
diffusion by interstitial mechanism is usually faster than by vacancy mechanism

Diffusing and host species

Do, Qd are different for every solute, solvent pair

Microstructure
diffusion is faster in polycrystalline materials compared to single crystals because of the accelerated diffusion along grain boundaries.
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Diffusion in material processing

Case Hardening: Hardening the surface of a metal by exposing it to impurities that diffuse into the surface region and increase surface hardness. Common example of case hardening is carburization of steel. Diffusion of carbon atoms (interstitial mechanism) increases concentration of C atoms and makes iron (steel) harder. Chapter 5-

Quiz on Chapter 5:Diffusion in solids this January 5, 2012 (Saturday)

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 Stress and Strain

Tension Compression Shear Torsion

Advanced Reading

Elastic deformation Plastic Deformation

Yield Strength Tensile Strength Ductility Resilience Toughness Hardness

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Assignment (for Chapter 6)

1. Define engineering stress and engineering strain. 2. Draw and label of its parts of a stress-strain curve of metals. 3. State Hookes law and note the conditions under which it is valid. 4. Define Poissons ratio. 5. What is meant by 0.002 strain offset? 6. Determine on how to compute the working stress for a ductile material.
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Assignment (Continuation)
7. Given an engineering stressstrain diagram, determine
a. b. c. d. the modulus of elasticity, the yield strength (0.002 strain offset), and the tensile strength, and Estimate the percent elongation.

8. For the tensile deformation of a ductile cylindrical specimen, describe changes in specimen profile to the point of fracture. 9. Show theoretically on hoe to compute ductility in terms of both percent elongation and percent reduction of area for a material that is loaded in tension to fracture.
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Assignment (Continuation)
10. Give brief definitions of and the units for modulus of resilience and toughness (static). 11. For a specimen being loaded in tension, given the applied load, the instantaneous cross sectional dimensions, and original and instantaneous lengths, be able to compute true stress and true strain values.

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Quiz on Chapter 6: Mechanical Properties of Materials this January 5, 2012 (Saturday) (Parallel with the Chapter 5 Quiz)

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