MSE 3107

Course Conducted By:

PHYSICAL METALLURGY Fatema Tuz Zahra
LECTURE 03 Azmery Akter
 Superalloys
 A Superalloy is an alloy which can be used at high temperatures,
often in excess of 0.7 of the absolute melting temperature (Tm).
There are 4 main Criteria for Superalloys:
1. Ability to withstand loading at high temperature.
2. Dimensional Stability
3. Corrosion resistant
4. FCC crystal structure-Why?
 Properties of Superalloys
 A Superalloy or high-performance alloy exhibits several key characteristics such as:
1. High temperature resistance (>1300°C)
2. Stable chemical composition
3. Ability to remain solidified even at 80-90 % of normal melting point
4. Excellent mechanical strength
5. Resistance to thermal creep deformation
6. Good surface stability
7. Resistance to corrosion or oxidation
8. High fracture toughness
9. High fatigue resistance.
Examples: Haste alloy, Inconel, Waspalloy, Rene alloys, Haynes alloy, CMSX Single
crystal, MP98T, Incoloy etc.
 Why Superalloys?
Initially Austenitic Stainless Steels were used for high temperature applications. But working in the
range of 450ºC-850ºC , sensitisation occurs due to depletion of Chromium in the grain boundary
region which makes it susceptible to cracking. So Superalloys were developed.
 There are three types of Superalloys on the basis of the predominant elements present in the
alloy.
 Ni Based Superalloy
• Most Ni based alloy contain 38-76% Ni, 10-20% Cr, up to 8% Al and Ti,
5-10% Co, and small amounts of B , Zr and C

• Other common additions are molybdenum, niobium, and tungsten, all of

which play dual roles as strengthening solutes and carbide formers.

• Chromium and aluminium improves surface stability through the

formation of Cr2O3 and Al2O3

• Some of the common type of nickel based alloys are Nimonic, Hastelloy
and Inconel. These are the most common types of Superalloy which are
widely used in turbine blades.
 Fe-Ni or Fe Based Superalloy
• Most Fe-Ni based alloy contain 9-38 % nickel, 15-22 % chromium, 32-
67 % iron

• Iron based Super alloys are characterized by high temperature as well

as room temperature strength.

• Apart from this, it will have good resistance to creep , oxidation,

corrosion and wear

• Oxidation resistance increases with chromium content

• Common type of Iron based alloy is Incoloy series.

 Co Based Superalloy
• Most Co based alloy contain up to 35% nickel, 19-30 % chromium, 30-
65 % cobalt

• Cobalt based Super alloys have their origin in the stellite alloys

• Cobalt alloys have higher melting points than nickel alloys

• Cobalt based alloys can retain their strength at high temperature but
they are not as strong as nickel based alloys

• Cobalt alloys show superior thermal fatigue resistance and

weldability over the nickel alloys
Microstructures of Superalloys
Major Phases in Ni Based Superalloy

• Gamma matrix, γ
• Gamma prime, γ'
• Gamma double prime, γ''
• Carbides
• Topologically close-packed (TCP) type phases
 Gamma matrix, γ
• The continuous matrix (called gamma) is an face-centered-cubic (FCC) nickel-
based austenitic phase that usually contains a high percentage of solid-solution
elements such as Co, Cr, Mo, and W.

• Alloying elements found in most commercial Ni-based alloys are, C, Cr, Mo, W,
Nb, Fe, Ti, Al, V, and Ta

• No phase transformation upto Tm

Gamma prime, γ'
Gamma double prime, γ''
 Carbides

M6C : Complex cubic structure. Stable form of carbide due to the presence of
W/Mo. Stable upto temperature range 815-980˚C. Commercially important due
to presence of stable carbides as grain boundary precipitates during the
processing of wrought alloys.
Topologically close-packed (TCP) type phases
Heat Treatments
Strengthening Mechanism of
Ni Based Superalloy
Fe Based Superalloy
Co Based Superalloy
Process Development of Superalloys
Processing of Superalloys
Applications of Superalloys
 Ultra High Strength Steels(UHSS)
• UHSS are the steels that have very high strength, such as over 700 or 780 MPa.
They are also called Advanced High-Strength Steel (AHSS). This allows for weight
reduction of and design freedom for different types of structural reinforcements and
crash components.

• UHSS/AHSS are complex, sophisticated materials, with carefully selected chemical

compositions and multiphase microstructures resulting from precisely controlled
heating and cooling processes. Various strengthening mechanisms are employed to
achieve a range of strength, ductility, toughness, and fatigue properties.

• Ultra-high strength steel grades for automotive applications, such as HyperForm®,

are lightweight and offer design freedom for complex parts and offer very high
strength and optimised formability.

• Their high yield and ductility ensure shape accuracy and tolerancing, which enable
maintained in-service performance for difficult-to-form parts.
 Why UHSS?
• High strength to weight ratio – Gauge reduction – Mass, Material and Fuel
Saver. Stronger than conventional steels

• Offer high work-hardening rates & bake hardening capability, which allows
increased formability.

• Greater part complexity - Fewer individual parts - Time, mass and cost
effective.

• Steel is the most recycled material – Used in new automotive or other

products.

• Improved crash performance – Improved passenger safety.

•
• Leave minimum carbon footprint – Environment friendly

• When considering UHSS application benefits for vehicles, the steel industry
has adopted the acronym given below :
• SAFE—for crash protection (Safety), for Affordability and cost, for Fuel
efficiency, and for the Environment.
 Dual Phase(DP) Steel: 𝜶+M
Inter critical heat treatment
• Dual Phase steels offer an outstanding combination of strength and
drawability as a result of their microstructure, in which a hard martensitic
phase is dispersed in a soft ferritic matrix.

• Alloy additions- Si, P strengthen the steel, but must be balanced for
weldability, while Mn, Cr, V, Nb increase the hardenability.

• The most common way of producing DP steels is by cold rolling of low alloy
(LA) steels followed by inter critical annealing in a continuous annealing line,
referred to as CAL and finally followed by quenching.
Dual Phase(DP) Steel: 𝜶+M
Inter critical heat treatment
Austforming Steels
 Maraging Steels
• Extra-low-carbon, high nickel, iron base alloy

• Maraging steels are characterized with superior strength combined with

excellent toughness properties and weldability. without loss of malleability.

• Maraging steels are carbon free iron-nickel alloys with additions of

cobalt, molybdenum, titanium and aluminium.

• The term maraging is derived from the strengthening mechanism, which

is transforming the alloy to martensite with subsequent age hardening.
(Martensite + Ageing)

• Extra ordinary combination of structural strength and fracture toughness, at

the same time , readily weldable and easy to heat treat

• Special class of steel contain No-carbon but provides “ultrahigh-strength”

• Their strength comes from precipitation of intermetallic compounds like

(Mo, Ti & Al)Ni3 “NOT FROM CARBON”.
 Microalloyed Steel
• Microalloyed steel is a type of alloy steel that contains small amounts
of alloying elements (0.05 to 0.15%),
including niobium, vanadium, titanium, molybdenum, zirconium, boron,
and rare-earth metals. They are used to refine the grain microstructure or
facilitate precipitation hardening.

• In these steels, small amounts of niobium or vanadium or titanium were added

and significant grain refinement was obtained due to retarding
the recrystallization by precipitates of carbon-nitrides of these microelements.

• The precipitation process of carbon-nitride Nb(C,N) strongly influences the

final microstructure and properties of products. Precipitates inhibit the
recrystallization of austenite, which leads to reduction of the size of
the ferrite grains after transformation of nonrecrystallized austenite. A new
generation of steels called high strength low alloyed (HSLA) steels was
developed on this basis.
High Strength Low Alloy(HSLA) Steels
 High Strength Low Alloy(HSLA) Steels
• HSLA steels are hardened by a combination of precipitation and grain size
refining, resulting in high strength with low alloy content. This enhances
weldability and choice of coatings, since these steels exhibit neither weld
zone softening nor grain coarsening.
• The mechanical properties of hot rolled HSLA steels and their excellent
cold forming performance and low temperature brittle fracture resistance
support cost-effective solutions for many parts and sub-assemblies for
which weight, thickness and size reduction are sought, such as: Chassis
components; wheels; side rails; cross members.
Properties of HSLA Steels
Applications of HSLA Steels
Thermo Mechanical Treatment
Comparison Between Heat Treatment
&Thermo Mechanical Treatment
Objectives of Thermo Mechanical Treatment
 Grain Refinement

Effect of strain rate and temperature on grain size

TMT Processing on Steel
DP Steel Sheet Production
 TMT Bars
• Thermo mechanically treated steel known as TMT steel can be described as a new-
generation-high-strength steel having superior properties such as weldability, strength,
ductility and bendability meeting highest quality standards at international level.
• Under thermo mechanical treatment of bars, the steel bars are made to pass through a
specially designed water cooling system where these are kept for such a period that
outer surface of bars becomes colder while the core remains hot.
• This creates a temperature gradient in the bars.
• When the bars are taken out of the cooling system, the heat flows from the core to the
outer surface causing further tempering of steel bars thereby helping them in attaining
higher yield strength of steel.
TMT Bars
Processing of TMT Bars
Properties of TMT Bars
 Advantages of TMT Bars
• TMT Bars comes with better strength & superior Elongation than any other
type of steel bars

• It saves up to 17% of steel

• The cost of TMT Bar are lower than other types of steel bar

• For better Ductility & Bendability it is easy to use for any type of construction
structure and saves time as well

• TMT Bars are Resistant to Fire and Corrosion that is why worldwide the
demand of TMT Steel Bars are higher

• The fatigue strength in TMT Bar is higher so, during the construction it can
bend as per the requirement
 Applications of TMT Bars

• Thermo mechanical treatment makes Steel bars superior construction

purposes. It is important to choose only Thermo mechanically Treated Bars
(TMT Bars) for construction purpose.
 Control of Texture
• Texture is the distribution of crystallographic orientations of
a polycrystalline sample.
• A sample in which these orientations are fully random is said to have no distinct
texture.
• If the crystallographic orientations are not random, but have some preferred
orientation, then the sample has a weak, moderate or strong texture.
• The degree is dependent on the percentage of crystals having the preferred
orientation.
• Texture is seen in almost all engineered materials, and can have a great influence
on materials properties.
• The sheet manufacturing process, which involves various solid-state
transformations such as phase transformations, plastic deformation and
thermally activated recovery processes, determines the texture of steel and
aluminium sheet.
• The conventional process of flat rolling and annealing only offers limited
degrees of freedom to modify the texture of the final product.
Controlling Texture
Thermo Mechanical Processes
 Hot Rolling
Temperature in rolling mill for sequencing is used between 1200 – 1300°C.
High Strength & Ductility comes into the steel for Thermo mechanical
treatment.
Steel turns into ferrite pearlite structure that means the outer core becomes
strong and inside remain soft.
Hot Forging
Hot Extrusion
Effect of Extrusion Ratio on Microstructure