APPENDIX F

GRAIN SIZE DETERIMINATION

Grain size is measured with a microscope by counting the number of grains within a given area, by
determining the number of grains that intersect a given length of random line, or by comparison with standard
charts. The average grain diameter D can be determined from measurements along random lines by the
equation
where L is the length of the line and N is the number of intercepts which the grain boundary makes with the line. This
can be related to the ratio of the grain-boundary surface area S to the volume of the grains, V, by the equation
where 1 is the total length of grain boundary n a random plane of polish and A is the total area of the grains
on a random plane of polish. A very common method of measuring grain size in the United States is to
compare the grains at a fixed magnification with the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
grain-size charts. The ASTM grain-size number n is related to N , the number of grains per square inch at a
magnification of 100X by the relationship
Table F-l compares the ASTM grain-size numbers with several other useful measures of grain size.
Table F-1. Comparison of Grain-Size Measuring Systems
(from ASM Metals Handbook, 1948 ed.)
ASTM #
Grains/in
2
@ 100X Grains/mm
2
Grains/mm
3
Ave. Grain Dia. (mm)
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
0.06
0.12
0.25
0.5
1
2
4
8
16
32
64
128
256
512
1024
2048
1
2
4
8
16
32
64
128
256
512
1024
2048
4096
8200
16400
32800
0.7
2
5.6
16
45
128
360
1020
2990
8200
23000
65000
185000
520000
1200000
1500000
1.00
0.75
0.50
0.35
0.25
0.18
0.125
0.091
0.062
0.044
0.032
0.022
0.016
0.011
0.008
0.00096
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