Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

50 MOST
IMPORTANT
TERMS OF
METALLURGY

Metallurgy:
Metallurgy is the science and technology of extracting, re ning, and processing
metals to understand and enhance their properties for various applications. It
involves studying metal behavior, alloy creation, and the manipulation of
microstructures to achieve desired characteristics.
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Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

1. Alloy:
- A mixture of two or more elements, where at least one is a metal. Alloys are
designed to have speci c properties such as strength, ductility, corrosion resistance,
and hardness. Examples include steel (iron and carbon) and brass (copper and zinc).

2. Annealing:
- A heat treatment process that involves heating a material to a speci c
temperature, holding it there for a period, and then slowly cooling it. This process
reduces hardness, increases ductility, and relieves internal stresses. The process can
be described by:
Annealing Temperature = Ta

3. Austenite:

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- A face-centered cubic (FCC) phase of iron or steel, stable at high temperatures.

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Austenite can dissolve more carbon than ferrite, making it a key phase in steel heat
treatment.

4. Bainite:
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- A microstructure consisting of ferrite and cementite that forms in steels at
temperatures lower than those needed for pearlite but higher than those for
martensite. It o ers a good combination of strength and toughness.

5. Cementite (Fe3C):
- An iron carbide phase that is hard and brittle. Cementite is a component of
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pearlite and contributes to the hardness and strength of steel.

6. Creep:
- The slow, time-dependent deformation of a material under constant stress,
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typically occurring at high temperatures. The steady-state creep rate can be

described by the Norton-Bailey law:

ϵ· = Aσ ne − RT
Q
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where ϵ· is the creep rate, σ is the applied stress, n is the stress exponent, Q is
the activation energy, R is the gas constant, and T is the absolute temperature.

7. Decarburization:
- The loss of carbon from the surface layer of a steel or iron component, often
occurring during heat treatment or hot working, leading to reduced hardness and
strength on the surface.

8. Dendrite:
- A tree-like crystal structure that forms as metal solidi es. Dendrites can in uence
the mechanical properties of cast metals due to their morphology.

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 Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

9. Di usion:
- The movement of atoms or molecules within a material, leading to changes in
composition and microstructure over time. Fick's laws describe di usion:

dC
J=−D
dx
dC
where J is the di usion ux, D is the di usion coe cient, and is the
dx
concentration gradient.

10. Dislocation:

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- A defect within the crystal structure that allows for deformation. The Burgers
vector b characterizes dislocations.

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11. Ductility:
- The ability of a metal to undergo signi cant plastic deformation before rupture. It
is often measured as percent elongation or reduction in area during a tensile test.

12. Elasticity:
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- The property of a material to return to its original shape after the stress is
removed. Hooke's law describes the linear elastic behavior:
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σ = Eϵ
where σ is stress, E is the modulus of elasticity (Young's modulus), and ϵ is
strain.
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13. Eutectic:
- A mixture of two or more phases that solidify simultaneously from a liquid at a
speci c composition and temperature, forming a ne microstructure.
Liquid → α + β
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Example in the Lead-Tin (Pb-Sn) System:

Liquid → Pb (solid) + Sn (solid)
At the eutectic composition (61.9% Sn) and eutectic temperature (183°C), the liquid
alloy solidi es into a mixture of solid lead and tin.

14. Eutectoid:
- A phase transformation in alloys where one solid phase transforms into two
di erent solid phases at a certain temperature and composition.
γ→α+β

Example in the Iron-Carbon (Fe-C) System:

γ (Austenite) → α (Ferrite) + Fe3C (Cementite)

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 Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

15. Fatigue:
- The weakening or failure of a material due to repeated cyclic loading. Fatigue life
is often described by the S-N curve (stress vs. number of cycles to failure).

16. Ferrite:
- A body-centered cubic (BCC) form of iron or steel that is stable at room
temperature. Ferrite has low carbon solubility and contributes to the ductility and
magnetic properties of steel.

17. Forging:

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- A manufacturing process that shapes metal using localized compressive forces.

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Forging improves the mechanical properties by re ning the grain structure.

18. Fracture Toughness:

- A property that describes a material's ability to resist crack propagation. It is
quanti ed by the stress intensity factor KIC:

rS KIC = Yσ πa

where Y is a geometric factor, σ is the applied stress, and a is the crack length.
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19. Grain Boundary:
- The interface between two grains or crystals in a polycrystalline material. Grain
boundaries can impede dislocation movement and a ect mechanical properties.
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20. Hardness:
- The measure of a material's resistance to deformation, typically by indentation.
Common hardness scales include Rockwell, Brinell, and Vickers.
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21. Heat Treatment:

- A group of processes used to alter the physical and sometimes chemical
properties of a material through controlled heating and cooling.

22. Hysteresis:
- The lag between input and output, often referring to magnetic or stress-strain
behavior in materials. In magnetic materials, it describes the energy loss per cycle of
magnetization.

23. Impact Strength:

- The ability of a material to resist shock loading or sudden forces, often measured
using a Charpy or Izod impact test.

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 Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

24. Ingot:
- A large block of metal, typically cast into a shape suitable for further processing.
Ingots are used as starting materials for rolling, forging, and other manufacturing
processes.

25. Martensite:
- A hard and brittle phase formed in steels by rapid cooling (quenching) from the
austenite phase. The martensitic transformation is di usionless and shear-
dominated.

26. Metallography:
- The study of the microstructure of metals using microscopy. Techniques include
optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron
microscopy (TEM).

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27. Nucleation:

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- The initial process of phase transformation where small clusters of atoms form a
new phase. Nucleation can be homogeneous or heterogeneous.

28. Oxidation:
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- A chemical reaction in which a metal reacts with oxygen to form an oxide layer,
often resulting in corrosion. The rate of oxidation can be described by the parabolic
rate law:
dx
= kx
dt
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where x is the oxide layer thickness and k is the rate constant.

29. Passivation:
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- The process by which a material becomes resistant to corrosion by forming a

protective oxide layer. Passivation is common in stainless steels and aluminum.

30. Pearlite:
- A microstructure in steel consisting of alternating layers of ferrite and cementite,
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providing a combination of strength and ductility.

31. Phase Diagram:

- A graphical representation showing the stability of phases of a material at
di erent temperatures and compositions. It is essential for understanding alloy
behavior.

32. Plastic Deformation:

- Permanent deformation of a material subjected to a stress that exceeds its yield
strength. Described by the stress-strain curve beyond the elastic limit.

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Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

33. Precipitation Hardening:

- A heat treatment process that increases strength by forming small particles
within the metal matrix. Also known as age hardening, it involves solution treatment,
quenching, and aging.

34. Quenching:
- Rapid cooling of a metal from a high temperature to set its microstructure, often
increasing hardness. Quenching media include water, oil, and air.

35. Recrystallization:
- The process by which deformed grains are replaced by new, defect-free grains
during heat treatment. Recrystallization temperature is typically 0.3-0.5 times the
melting temperature in Kelvin.

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36. Reduction:
- The process of extracting metal from its ore by removing oxygen or other

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elements, typically using a reducing agent like carbon in a blast furnace.

37. Rolling:
- A metalworking process in which metal stock is passed through one or more
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pairs of rolls to reduce thickness and make the thickness uniform.

38. Solid Solution:

- A homogeneous crystalline phase that contains two or more elements, where the
solute atoms occupy substitutional or interstitial positions in the solvent lattice.
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39. Solution Hardening:
- Strengthening of a metal by adding alloying elements that form a solid solution.
The solute atoms create lattice distortions that impede dislocation movement.
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40. Spheroidizing:
- A heat treatment process that produces a spherical carbide phase in steel to
improve machinability and ductility.
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41. Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC):

- The growth of cracks in a corrosive environment, exacerbated by tensile stress.
SCC can lead to sudden and catastrophic failure.

42. Tempering:
- A heat treatment process applied to quenched steel to reduce brittleness and
increase toughness by heating to a temperature below the eutectoid temperature
and then cooling.

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Samarjeet Kumar Singh Materials Engineering

43. Tensile Strength:

- The maximum stress a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled
before breaking. Represented by the peak point on the engineering stress-strain
curve.

44. Thermal Conductivity:

- The ability of a material to conduct heat, represented by k in the heat conduction
equation:
dT
q =−k
dx
dT
where q is the heat ux, k is the thermal conductivity, and is the temperature
dx
gradient.

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45. Transformation Temperature:
- The temperature at which a material undergoes a phase change. For example,
the austenite-to-martensite transformation in steel occurs at the martensite start
temperature (Ms).

46. Twinning:
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- A deformation mechanism where a portion of the crystal lattice reorients to form
a symmetrical mirror image of the original lattice, contributing to plastic deformation.

47. Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS):

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- The maximum stress a material can withstand before necking and eventual
fracture. It is calculated from the maximum load Fmax divided by the original cross-
sectional area A0:
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Fmax
UTS =
A0

48. Vacancy:
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- A point defect in a crystal where an atom is missing from its lattice site.
Vacancies play a crucial role in di usion and other material properties.

49. Work Hardening:

- The strengthening of a metal by plastic deformation due to dislocation
movements within its crystal structure. The increase in dislocation density hinders
further dislocation motion.

50. Yield Strength:

- The stress at which a material begins to deform plastically. It is often determined
from the stress-strain curve as the stress corresponding to a speci c amount of
permanent strain (e.g., 0.2 % o set yield strength).

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