STEEL

AN OVERVIEW
Vikas Kumar
 Allotropic Transformations in Pure Fe

L (no structure, liquid)

M.P 1536°C
BCC, (, delta ferrite)
1392°C
Temperature

FCC (,
austenite)

911°C

BCC (, ferrite)

Room
Temperature
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• FERRITE
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 Time-Temperature-Transformation (TTT) Diagrams
(violate phase diagram by fast cooling)
Martensite is very hard (i.e.
Austenite very strong), but it is also
TA brittle (i.e., low toughness)
>F+C
>F+C To produce martensite:
Trans. Trans. finish
- Must start cooling from
start
Ferrite austenite phase
+ -Cool fast enough to
Temperature Carbide bypass the nose of the TTT
curve
- Cool to below Ms
temperature
ALLOYING ELEMENTS
MOVE THE NOSE OF TTT
MS CURVE TO THE RIGHT
Martensite (improve hardenability
ability to form martensite
MF in thick sections)
t

time
 Time-Temperature-Transformation (TTT) Diagrams to
produce bainite

Austenite
TA Bainite: Consists of
ferrite and carbide
Trans. Trans. finish
start phases in a unique
Ferrite morphology that
+ gives high strength
Temperature Carbide and resilience (has
been considered
Bainite for reactor
pressure vessels
(RPV)
MS
Martensite
MF
t

time
Quenching and Tempering

- Martensite is
saturated with
carbon and is hard
(strong)

-Tempering releases
the carbon in the
form of carbides; if
alloying elements
are present then
alloy carbides will
form

- Goal of tempering
is to sacrifice some
of the hardness and
gain toughness
(make less brittle)
Martensite and tempered martensite

After tempering; carbon

As-quenched martensite comes out of solution as
under a microscope, fine carbide particles in a
feathery structure matrix of ferrite (few
hundred nanometers to a
few microns in size)
Deformation at an atomic level

- When the applied stress

exceeds yield stress,
dislocations move

- Onset of plastic
deformation is marked by
movement of dislocations

- To make materials
stronger (i.e to increase
yield strength) must pin
down the dislocations and
prevent them from moving
Dislocations can be seen under a transmission
electron microscope (TEM)
 Strengthening Mechanisms

- Cold Working: Creates more dislocations and

dislocation entanglements prevent dislocations from
moving

- Reducing grain size (grain refinement): Grain

boundaries act as impediments to dislocation
movement; smaller the grains more the grain
boundaries
Hall-Petch Equation:
Yield Stress =  + Kd-1/2
 Strengthening Mechanisms

Solid solution
strengthening: Presence of
the atoms of an alloying
element of different size
creates a strain field and
prevents dislocation movement

Dispersion strengthening:
Fine second phase particles
such as carbides and oxides
can pin down dislocations
 Yield Strength (and 0.2% yield strength)

Stress at which a material begins to deform plastically (non-recoverable strain)

Strengthening refers to increase the yield stress of steels
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Effect of carbon on toughness

- Carbon makes steel

stronger and harder
- But it also makes
the steel less tough
(more brittle), it also
increases DBTT- not
good!
Trace elements can lower toughness

Steel cleanliness and

batch-to-batch
reproducibility is
critical to toughness
 Concept of Ductile to Brittle Transition Temperature
(DBTT)

In steels fracture
toughness drops
dramatically over a
Impact narrow temperature
Energy
range (DBTT)

Radiation damage
can increase DBTT
DBTT
and lower the upper
shelf of impact
Temperature energy
Sudden catastrophic failure of Liberty ships in N. Atlantic
(~1941)
Temperature dropped to below DBTT leading to a drastic drop in
toughness
 Creep (and stress-rupture)

Creep: Time dependant elongation (and eventual rupture) of steels at

elevated temperature at constant stress (usually occurs at T > 1/3 to ½ Tm.p
in deg.K
Creep is diffusion-controlled and can be described by Arrhenius behavior (t
= Ae-Q/RT)
Larson-Miller parameter (used to predict creep and time to failure at a
given temperature and stress level

Stress
to
failure

Larson-Miller parameter, T [C+ log t])

Role of Alloying Elements

• Stablilize either austenite or ferrite: e.g., Ni, C, N, Mn, Cu

are austenite stabilizers, e.g., Cr, Si, W, Mo, V, Ti are
ferrite stabilizers
• Improve hardenability
• Form carbides, nitrides, carbo-nitrides, for high
temperature strength (dispersion strengthening)
• Solid solution strengthening to prevent creep
• Corrosion resistance by forming a protective oxide layer
• To produce reduced activation steels
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