Carbon steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Pagina 1 de 5 Carbon steel From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Carbon steel is steel in which the main interstitial alloying constituent is carbon in the range of 0.12-2.0%. The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) defines that Steel is considered to be carbon steel ‘when no minimum content is specified or required for chromium, cobalt, molybdenum, nickel, no ‘tungsten, vanadium or zirconium, or any other element to be added to obtain a desired alloying effects ‘When the specified minimum for copper does not exceed 0.40 percent; ‘oF when the maximum content specified for any ofthe following elements does not exceed the percentages noted: ‘manganese 1.65, silicon 0.60, copper 0.60." 1m, titanium, The term "carbon steel" may also be used in reference to steel which is not stainless ste! steels. this use carbon stee! may include alloy As the carbon percentage content rises, ste! has the ability to become harder and stronger through heat treating; however, it becomes less ductile. Regardless ofthe heat treatment, a higher carbon content reduces weldability. In carbon stels, the higher carbon content lowers the melting point"! Contents = 1 Type 1.1 Mild and low-carbon steel, 1.2 Higher-carbon steels = 2 Types = 2.1 Low-carbon steel ‘© 22 Medium-carbon steel ‘+ 23 High-carbon steel (ASTM 304) ‘= 2.4 Ultrachigh-carbon stel ‘= 3 Heat treatment 4 Case hardening ‘5 Forging temperature of stee! = 6Seealso = 7 References 8 Bibliography Type Mild and low-carbon steel Mild steel, also known as plain-carbon stel, is now the most common form of stel because its price is relatively low while it Provides material properties that are acceptable for many applications. Low-carbon steel contains approximately 0.0S-0.15% carbon) ‘making it malleable and ductile, Mild stel has relatively low tensile strength, but i is cheap and easy to form; surface hardness can be increased through carburizing.” {tis often used when large quantities of steel are needed, for example as structural steel. The density of mild ste! is approximately 7.85 g/om’ (7850 kg/m? or 0.284 Ibn’)! and the Young's modulus is 210 GPa (30,000,000 psi"! Low-carbon steels suffer from yield-point runout where the material has two yield points. The first yield point (or upper yield point) is higher than the second and the yield drops dramatically after the upper yield point. Ia low-carbon stec| is only stressed to some point ‘between the upper and lower yield point then the surface may develop Lider bands_? Low-carbon stels contain less carbon than other steels and are easier to cold-form, making them easier to handle.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_steel 05/03/2015Carbon steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Pagina 2 de 5 Higher-carbon steels Carbon steels which can successfully undergo heat-treatment have a carbon content in the range of 0.30-1.70% by weight. Trace impurities of various other elements can have a significant effect on the quality ofthe resulting steel, Trace amounts of sulfur in Particular make the stel red-shor, that is, britle and crumbly at working temperatures. Low-alloy carbon stel, such as A36 grade, ‘contains about 0.05% sulfur and melts around 1,426-1,538 °C (2,599-2,800 °F"! Manganese is often added to improve the hhardenability of low-carbon steels. These additions turn the material into @ low-alloy steel by some definitions, but AISIs definition of carbon steel allows up to 1.65% manganese by weight. Types Carbon steel is broken down into four classes based on carbon content: Low-carbon steel 0.05-0.1% carbon content. Medium-carbon steel ‘Approximately 0.250-0.6% carbon content!" Balances ductility and strength and has good wear resistance; used for large pats, ‘orging and automotive components," High-carbon steel (ASTM 304) Approximately 0.9-2.5% carbon content!" Very strong used for springs and high-strength wires"! Ultra-high-carbon steel Approximately 2.5-3.0% carbon content. Steels that ean be tempered to great hardness. Used for special purposes like (non industial-purpose) knives, ales or punches. Most steels with more than 2.5% carbon content are made using powder metallurgy. "Note that stee! with a carbon content above 2.14% is considered cast iron. Heat treatment The purpose of hx tentng carton cl changa he hao propa fet taal Gui frdven ed argo Inge rms Now Gants aes aled that consi eee alguty lied fa wis no sronpnaicg eet os ke oea, Youngs modulus (lasity)'s unalfced All womans of weal onde Socty be went sng and vie vrs shat ighe sob fr oabes in he enue ates beets Abe eames, excep aphrldcng end rosea toe sat by anne oa ine tnapentio st vila he nea phos ar ase Thewel hte eens oe Gt) a high ris cig comer proce an oly hooting oc ee soll. The nts ch he del a colad rough he xsi amperes af he rte Sich cuton diss ont of eatin arms camoaic Geary edie ote = Seiy wil lene bon culo cy dopaed tnd pode fe puasa ears Goats ———— atest epee) anda wives orp.” eesti dean vig Coating ype sel estan 7 Sse inane of RRP net ton ade layers wth fei (gus) betwen. Ks ypc ste 0177 wt%C then te swore al pate ith sal ge tan te ras lane of omen seatered thug. The lave emouns of conus ond eng the ever ul, The flowing sat tien ateatomaee pater *+ Spheroidizing: Spherodite forms when carbon see! is heated to approximately 700 °C for over 30 hours. Spheroidte can form at lower temperatures but the time needed drastically increases, as this is adiffusion-controlled process The result structure ‘of rods or spheres of cementite within primary structure (ferte or pearite, depending on which side of the eutectoid you are on). The purpose is to soften higher carbon steels and allow more formabilty. This isthe softest and most ductile form of stel. ‘The image to the right shows where spherodizing usually occurs.) hittp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_steel 05/03/2015Carbon steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Pagina 3 de 5 ‘= Full annealing: Carbon steel i heated to approximately 40 °C above Ac3 or Acl for 1 hour; this ensures all the ferrite ‘transforms into austenite (although cementite might sil exist ithe carbon content is greater than the euteetoid), The stel must then be cooled slowly, in the realm of 20°C (36°F) per hour. Usually iti just furmace cooled, where the furnace is tumed off withthe steel stil inside. This results ina coarse pearlitic structure, which means the "bands" of pearlite are thick!" Fully annealed ste! is soft and ductile, with no intemal stresses, which i often necessary for cost-effective forming. Only spheroidized stel is softer and more ductile"! ** Process annealing: A process used to relieve stress ina cold-worked carbon stel with less than 0.3 wi% C. The stel is usually hheated up to 550-650 °C for 1 hour, but sometimes temperatures as high as 700 °C. The image rightward shows the area where process annealing occurs. ‘+ Isothermal annealing: It is a process in which hypocutectoid ste! is heated above the upper critical temperature and {temperature js maintained for atime and then the temperature is brought down below lower critical temperature and is again ‘maintained, Then finaly itis cooled at room temperature. This method rids any temperature gradient. = Normalizing: Carbon ste! is heated to approximately $5 °C above Ac3 or Acm for 1 hour; this ensure the steel completely ‘transforms to austenite The ste! is then air-cooled, which isa cooling rate of approximately 38 °C (100 °F) per minute. This results in a fine pearlitic structure, and a more-uniform structure. Normalized stel has a higher strength than annealed ste: it has a relatively high strength and hardness." ** Quenching: Carbon sicel with at east 0.4 wi% C is heated to normalizing temperatures and then rapidly cooled (quenched) in ‘water, brine, or ol to the critical temperature. The critical temperature is dependent on the carbon content, but as @ general rule {is lower as the carbon content increases. This results in a martensitic structure; a form of steel that possesses a super-saturated carbon content in a deformed body centered cubic (BCC) crystalline structure, properly termed body centered tetragonal (BCT), with much intemal stress. Thus quenched ste! is extremely hard but britle, usually too brite for practical purposes. These internal stresses cause stress cracks on the surface. Quenched steel is approximately three to four (with more carbon) fold hharder than normalized ste!" * Martempering (Marquenching): Martempering is not actually a tempering procedure, hence the term *marquenching”.Itis form of isothermal heat treatment applied after an initial quench of typically in a molten salt bath ata temperature right above the "martensite start temperature". At this temperature, residual stresses within the material are relieved and some bainite may be formed from the retained austenite which did not have time to transform into anything else. In industry, this isa process used to control the ductility and hardness of a material. With longer marquenching, the ductility increases with a minimal loss in strength; the steel is held inthis solution until the inner and outer temperatures equalize. Then the ste! is cooled ata moderate speed to keep the temperature gradient minimal. Not only does this process reduce internal stresses and stress eracks, but it also ‘increases the impact resistance.” * Quench and tempering: This isthe most common heat treatment encountered, because the final properties can be precisely «determined by the temperature and time of the tempering. Tempering involves reheating quenched steel toa temperature below the eutectoid temperature then cooling. The elevated temperature allows very small amounts of spheroidite to form. which restores ductility but reduces hardness. Actual temperatures and times are carefully chosen for each composition." ‘+ Austempering: The austempering process is the same as martempering, except the steel is held in the molten salt bath through {the bainite transformation temperatures, and then moderately cooled. The resulting banite steel has a greater ductility, higher impact resistance, and less distortion. The disadvantage of austempering is it can only be used on a few steels, and it requires a special salt bath"! Case hardening Case hardening processes harden only the exterior ofthe steel part, creating a hard, wear resistant skin (the "ease”) but preserving a ‘ough and ductile interior. Carbon steels are not very hardenable; therefore wide pieces cannot be through-hardened, Alloy stcels have «better hardenability, so they can through-harden and do not require case hardening. This property of carbon sel can be beneficial, because it gives the surface good wear characteristics but leaves the core tough. Forging temperature of steel te http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_steel 05/03/2015