Chapter 11: Metal Alloys Applications and Processing

ISSUES TO ADDRESS...
How are metal alloys classified and how are they used? What are some of the common fabrication techniques? How do properties vary throughout a piece of material that has been quenched, for example? How can properties be modified by post heat treatment?

Taxonomy of Metals
Metal Alloys Ferrous Steels Steels <1.4wt%C <1.4 wt% C Cast Irons Cast Irons 3-4.5 wt%C 3-4.5 wt% C Nonferrous

Cu

Al

Mg

Ti

T(C)
1600

1400 1200

L g austenite g+L
1148C 4.30

microstructure: ferrite, graphite cementite

L+Fe3C

1000

Eutectic:
Fe3C cementite

a800 ferrite
600 400

727C

g+Fe3C a+Fe3C
3 4 5 6 6.7

Eutectoid:
0.76 1 2

0 (Fe)

Co , wt% C

Steels
Low Alloy low carbon Med carbon <0.25 wt% C 0.25-0.6 wt% C
Name plain HSLA plain

High Alloy high carbon 0.6-1.4 wt% C

tool austenitic stainless Cr, Ni, Mo

heat plain treatable Cr,V Cr, Ni Additions none none none Ni, Mo Mo Example 1010 4310 1040 43 40 1095 Hardenability 0 + + ++ ++ TS 0 + ++ + EL + + 0 Uses auto struc. sheet bridges towers press. vessels crank shafts bolts hammers blades
pistons gears wear applic.

Cr, V, Mo, W 4190 +++ ++ -drills saws dies

304 0 0 ++
high T applic. turbines furnaces V. corros. resistant

wear applic.

increasing strength, cost, decreasing ductility

Steels
Nomenclature AISI & SAE 10xx Plain Carbon Steels 11xx Plain Carbon Steels (resulfurized for machinability) 15xx Mn (10 ~ 20%) 40xx Mo (0.20 ~ 0.30%) 43xx Ni (1.65 - 2.00%), Cr (0.4 - 0.90%), Mo (0.2 - 0.3%) 44xx Mo (0.5%) where xx is wt% C x 100 example: 1060 steel plain carbon steel with 0.60 wt% C Stainless Steel -- >11% Cr

System and Composition of Plain Carbon Steel and Alloy Steel

Low carbon

Medium, High carbon

Plain Carbon Steel

Low carbon Good formability and weldability Strengthening by coldwork Structure usually pearlite and ferrite Medium carbon Can be quenched to form martensite or bainite Compromising structure between ductility and strength

High carbon
Low toughness and formability Good hardness and wear resistance Can form martensite by quenching but risk of cracking

Compare to other engineering materials High strength and stiffness, reasonable toughness, easy to recycle and low cost Rust easily, require surface protection

Effect of alloy elements

Bi, Pb - improve machinability B 0.001-0.003% - powerful hardenability agent Cr 0.5-2% - increase hardenability, 4-18% - corr. resist. Cu 0.1-0.4% corrosion resistance Mn 0.25-0.4% - combine with S to prevent brittleness

Mo 0.2-5% - stable carbides Ni 2-5% - toughener, 12-20% - corrosion resistance Si 0.2-0.7% - strength, 2% - spring, higher% - magnetic p. S 0.08-0.15% - free machining Ti - fix C in inert particles, reduce mart. hardn. in Cr steels W - hardness at high temperature V - stable carbide, inc. str. with remain ductility, fine grain

Alloy Steels
HSLA Large applications High yield (nearly twice of plain C steel), good weldability and acceptable corrosion resistance Limited ductility and hardenability Resist to form martensite in weld zone Dual-Phase Steel Quench from temp. above A1 but below A3 to form structure of ferrite and martensite Strength comparable to HSLA while improve formability with no loss of weldability Automotive structure and body application

Alloy Steels
Free-machining steels S, Pb, Bi, Se, Te or P Making chip-breaking discontinuity in structure and a build-in lubrication Higher cost may compensated with higher speed and lower wear of cutting tools Additives may reduce concerned properties such as strength, ductility cold working also improve machinability Bake-Hardenable steel sheet Significant in automotive steel sheet Low carbon steel Good formability and increase strength after forming with heat exposure in paint-baking process Good spot weldability, crash energy, low cost easy recycle

Alloy Steels
Maraging Steels Super high strength alloy Typical composition is
0.03% C, 8.5% Ni, 7.5% Co, 0.1% Al, 0.003% B, 0.1% Si, 4.8% Mo, 0.4%Ti, 0.01% Zr, 0.1% Mn, 0.01%S and 0.01%P

Can be hot worked to get soft, tough, low martensite and easy to machine Can be cold worked and aging with a yield of 1725 MPa and %EL 11% Weldability

Steel for HighTemp. Good strength, corrosion resistance, creep resistance Plain C steel 250 C Conventional alloy 350 C High temp. ferrous alloy tend to has low carbon (less than 0.1%) Can be used at higher than 550 C

Bake hardenable steel

Dual Phase Steel

Tool Steels
Water hardening (W) Cold Work O Oil hardening A Air hardening D High C high Cr Shock resistance (S) High speed T W base, M Mo base Hot work H1-H19 Cr base H20-H39 W base H40-H59 Mo base Plastic mold (P) Special purpose L Low alloy F carbon-tungsten

High carbon, high strength ferrous alloy Balance of toughness, strength and wear resistance

Tool Steels

Stainless Steels
Series 200 300 400 500 Alloys Cr, Ni, Mn or Ni Cr and Ni Cr, (C) Low Cr (<12%) and (C) Structure Austenitic Austenitic Ferritic or martensitic Martensitic

Oxide of additive elements is tough, adherent, corrosion resistance and heals itself Ferritic stainless steel Normally contain >12% Cr (Cr is ferrite stabilizer) Corrosion resistance Limited ductility or formability but weldable (no martensite can form in weld zone) The cheapest stainless steel

Stainless Steels
Martensitic Stainless The lower content of Cr lead to more stable of austenite at high temp. Slow cool may allow carbide of Cr (loss of chromium oxide film) Higher cost than ferritic stainless steel due to the heat treatment (austenitization, quench, stress relief and temper Austenitic Stainless Ni is austenite stabilizer The most expensive stainless due to Ni cost Mn and N are used as stabilizer instead of Ni to reduce cost but lower quality Non-magnetic, highly corrosion resistance except HCl and other helide acid/salt Outstanding formability(FCC) 304 alloy (18-8) is popular one, high response to CW

Popular stainless steels

Stainless Steel (1)

Stainless Steel (2)

Precipitation hardenable stainless steel is the special class Martensitic or austenitic type, modified by addition of alloying elements like Al to form hard intermetallic compound during temper

Cast Iron
Ferrous alloys with > 2.1 wt% C more commonly 3 - 4.5 wt%C low melting (also brittle) so easiest to cast Cementite decomposes to ferrite + graphite Fe3C 3 Fe (a) + C (graphite) generally a slow process

Fe-C True Equilibrium Diagram

Graphite formation promoted by Si > 1 wt% slow cooling
T(C)
1600 1400 1200 1000

L g Austenite g +L
1153C 4.2 wt% C

Liquid + Graphite

Gray cast iron

a+g
800 600 400
(Fe) 0.65

g + Graphite
740C

Ductile or Nodular iron

White iron
Malleable iron Compacted graphite iron

a + Graphite
0 1 2 3 4 90 100

Co , wt% C

Production of Cast Iron

Types of Cast Iron

Gray iron graphite flakes weak & brittle under tension stronger under compression excellent vibrational dampening wear resistant Ductile iron add Mg or Ce graphite in nodules not flakes matrix often pearlite - better ductility

Types of Cast Iron

White iron <1wt% Si so harder but brittle more cementite

Malleable iron heat treat at 800-900C graphite in rosettes more ductile

Types of Cast Iron

Compacted Graphite Iron Mg/Ce and others are added Worm-like shape graphite Microstructure is between gray cast iron and ductile iron Sharp edge of graphite should be avoided High thermal conductivity Better resistance to thermal shock, fracture and fatigue Lower oxidation at elevated Temp.

Limitations of Ferrous Alloys

1) Relatively high density 2) Relatively low conductivity 3) Poor corrosion resistance

Nonferrous Alloy

Nonferrous Alloys
-lower r: 2.7g/cm3 Brass: Zn is subst. impurity (costume jewelry, coins, -Cu, Mg, Si, Mn, Zn additions corrosion resistant) -solid sol. or precip. Bronze : Sn, Al, Si, Ni are strengthened (struct. subst. impurity aircraft parts (bushings, landing & packaging) gear) Mg Alloys NonFerrous Cu-Be : -very low r: 1.7g/cm3 Alloys precip. hardened -ignites easily for strength -aircraft, missiles

Cu Alloys

Al Alloys

Ti Alloys

-lower r: 4.5g/cm3 vs 7.9 for steel -reactive at high T -space applic.

Refractory metals
-Ag, Au, Pt -oxid./corr. resistant

Noble metals

-high melting T -Nb, Mo, W, Ta

Non-Ferrous Alloys
Cast Alloy Forming or shaping by appreciable deformation is not possible, ordinarily by casting. So, brittle. Wrought Alloy amenable to mechanical deformation Sometimes the heat treatability of an alloy is frequently mentioned as heat treatable

Cu and its alloys 3 important properties are high electrical and thermal conductivity, useful strength with high ductility and corrosion resistance Heavily than iron Pure Cu wire, cable Cu-Zn brass popular alpha brass - ductile, form. beta brass Zn rich, brittle Cu-Ni high thermal conductivity, high strength at high temperature Cu-Sn - bronze

Al and its alloys The most important of nonferrous metal Light weight, corrosion resist., good elec./thermal cond., workability, recycle Serious weakness is low modulus of elesticity Pure Al soft, ductile Alloy for mechanical appl. strength as HSLA level Alloy for corrosion resist. difficult to weld Al-Li high strength, great stiffness, lighter weight

Mg and its alloys Lightest of commerc. Metal Pure Mg weak Alloy poor ductility, wear, creep and fatigue Modulus less than Al In positive side, high strength/weight ratio, high energy absorption, good damping of noise/vibration Higher purity alloy good corrosion resistance Formability at high temp. Good machinability/weldab. Fire hazards

Ti and its alloys Strong, light weight, corrosion resistance Good mechanical properties up to 535 C High cost, fabrication difficulty, high energy content and high reactivity at elevated temperature Fabrication can be by casting, forging, rolling, extrusion or welding

Refractory metal Extremely high melting T Nb (2468 C), Mo, W (3410 C), Ta Ta-Mo to improve corrosion resistance Super alloys Use in aircraft turbine component Difficult to form and machine Special methods are used, EDM, electrochemical, ultrasonic m/c

Noble metals Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, Rh, Ru, Ir and Os Expensive

Miscellaneous nonferrous Ni (coating) Pb Sn Alkaline

Metal Fabrication
How do we fabricate metals? Blacksmith - hammer (forged) Molding - cast Forming Operations Rough stock formed to final shape Hot working
T high enough for recrystallization Larger deformations

vs.

Cold working
well below Tm work hardening smaller deformations

Metal Fabrication Methods - I

FORMING CASTING JOINING
(I-beams, rails, sheet & plate)
roll A d often at

Forging (Hammering; Stamping) Rolling (Hot or Cold Rolling)

(wrenches, crankshafts)
force

die A o blank

elev. T

Ao roll

Ad

Drawing
die Ao die

force

Extrusion
(rods, tubing)
Ao
container

(rods, wire, tubing)

Ad

tensile force

force

die holder
extrusion

ram

billet

Ad

die must be well lubricated & clean

die ductile metals, e.g. Cu, Al (hot)

container

Metal Fabrication Methods - II

FORMING CASTING JOINING

Casting- mold is filled with metal metal melted in furnace, perhaps alloying elements added. Then cast in a mold most common, cheapest method gives good production of shapes weaker products, internal defects good option for brittle materials

Metal Fabrication Methods - II

FORMING
Sand Casting
(large parts, e.g., auto engine blocks)
Sand Sand

CASTING

JOINING

trying to hold something that is hot what will withstand >1600C? cheap - easy to mold => sand!!! pack sand around form (pattern) of desired shape

molten metal

Metal Fabrication Methods - II

FORMING
Sand Casting
(large parts, e.g., auto engine blocks)
Sand Sand

CASTING

JOINING

Investment Casting pattern is made from paraffin. mold made by encasing in plaster of paris melt the wax & the hollow mold is left pour in metal

molten metal

Investment Casting
(low volume, complex shapes e.g., jewelry, turbine blades)
plaster die formed around wax prototype

wax

Metal Fabrication Methods - II

FORMING
Sand Casting
(large parts, e.g., auto engine blocks)
Sand Sand

CASTING

JOINING
Die Casting
(high volume, low T alloys)

molten metal

Investment Casting
(low volume, complex shapes e.g., jewelry, turbine blades)
plaster die formed around wax prototype

Continuous Casting
(simple slab shapes)
molten

solidified

wax

Continuous casting

Metal Fabrication Methods - III

FORMING
Powder Metallurgy
(materials w/low ductility)
pressure

CASTING
Welding

JOINING

(when one large part is impractical)

filler metal (melted) base metal (melted) fused base metal unaffected piece 1 heat affected zone unaffected piece 2

heat

area contact
densify

Heat affected zone:

point contact at low T densification by diffusion at higher T

(region in which the microstructure has been changed).

Thermal Processing of Metals

Annealing: Heat to Tanneal, Soaking, then cool slowly.
Stress Relief: Reduce
stress caused by: -plastic deformation -nonuniform cooling -phase transform.

Spheroidize (steels):
Make very soft steels for good machining. Heat just below TE & hold for 15-25 h.

Types of Annealing
Process Anneal:
Negate effect of cold working by (recovery/ recrystallization)

Full Anneal (steels):

Make soft steels for good forming by heating to get g, then cool in furnace to get coarse P.

Normalize (steels):
Deform steel with large grains, then normalize to make grains small. (air cool)

Fe-Fe3C diagram

Heat Treatments
800
Austenite (stable)

a) Annealing b) Quenching c) Tempered Martensite

T(C)
600

A
P

TE

400

200

M+A M+A

0% 50% 90%

b)
10
-1

a)
10

time (s)

10

10

c)

Hardenability--Steels
Ability to form martensite Jominy end quench test to measure hardenability.
flat ground Rockwell C hardness tests

specimen (heated to g phase field) 24C water

Hardness versus distance from the quenched end.

Hardness, HRC Distance from quenched end

Why Hardness Changes with Position

The cooling rate varies with position.
Hardness, HRC 60 40 20 distance from quenched end (in)

T(C)
600 400 200 M(start)

0% 100%

AM

0 M(finish)

0.1

10

100

1000

Time (s)

Hardenability vs Alloy Composition

Hardness, HRC

Jominy end quench results, C = 0.4 wt% C "Alloy Steels" (4140, 4340, 5140, 8640) --contain Ni, Cr, Mo (0.2 to 2wt%) --these elements shift the "nose". --martensite is easier to form.

100 60

10

2 Cooling rate (C/s)

100

4340

80 %M 50

40

4140 8640 5140

20

0 10 20 30 40 50 Distance from quenched end (mm)

800

T(C)
600 400 200 0 -1 10 10 A B

TE

shift from A to B due to alloying

M(start) M(90%)

103 105 Time (s)

Equivalent distance and Bar diameter

(Quenched in water)

(Quenched in oil)

Radial hardness profile

(Quenched in water)

(Quenched in oil)

Quenching Medium & Geometry

Effect of quenching medium:
Medium air oil water Severity of Quench low moderate high Hardness low moderate high

Effect of geometry:
When surface-to-volume ratio increases: --cooling rate increases --hardness increases
Position center surface Cooling rate low high Hardness low high

Precipitation Hardening
Particles impede dislocations. 700 Ex: Al-Cu system T(C) Procedure: 600
--Pt A: solution heat treat (get a solid solution) --Pt B: quench to room temp. --Pt C: reheat to nucleate small q crystals within a crystals.
500 400

a
A C

a+L

L
q+L

CuAl2

a+q
20 30 40 50

Other precipitation systems:

Cu-Be Cu-Sn Mg-Al

(Al)

300 0 B 10

composition range needed for precipitation hardening

wt% Cu

Temp. Pt A (soln heat treat) Pt C (precipitate q) Time

Pt B

Precipitate Effect on TS, %EL

2014 Al Alloy: TS peaks with precipitation time. Increasing T accelerates process.
tensile strength (MPa)

%EL reaches minimum with precipitation time.

400 300 200 100

149C 204C 1min 1h 1day 1mo 1yr precipitation heat treat time

%EL (2 in sample)

30
20 10

204C
0

149 C

1min 1h 1day 1mo 1yr precipitation heat treat time

Metal Alloy Crystal Structure

Alloys substitutional alloys can be ordered or disordered disordered solid solution ordered - periodic substitution example: CuAu FCC
Cu

Au

Metal Alloy Crystal Structure

Interstitial alloys (compounds) one metal much larger than the other smaller metal goes in ordered way into interstitial holes in the structure of larger metal Ex: Cementite Fe3C

Summary
Steels: increase TS, Hardness (and cost) by adding --C (low alloy steels) --Cr, V, Ni, Mo, W (high alloy steels) --ductility usually decreases w/additions. Non-ferrous: --Cu, Al, Ti, Mg, Refractory, and noble metals. Fabrication techniques: --forming, casting, joining. Hardenability --increases with alloy content. Precipitation hardening --effective means to increase strength in Al, Cu, and Mg alloys.