MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

Heat Treatment (of Iron alloys)

R. Arockiakumar
Assistant Professor

How to control the properties of an eutectic alloy?

Amount of eutectic
Interlamellar spacing

Eutectic colony size

MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

How to control the properties of an

eutectoid alloy?

Amount of eutectoid
Cooling rate

Interlamellar spacing ()
Eutectoid colony size/ Austenite grain size

(Austenite) Transformation temperature

Eutectoid reaction
It is a solid state transformation
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Effect of cooling rate

Fast cooling: diffusion distance is shortened
fine pearlite (stronger)

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Effect of interlamellar spacing ()

- Strength

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(Austenite)Transformation temperature
Eutectoid reaction
Solid state reaction
Hence it is slow
Alloy cools before transformation begins
Untransformed austenite
It is unstable
This transforms at low temperatures
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Effect of transformation temperature on

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Time-Temperature-Transformation Diagram
TTT diagram (or) Isothermal transformation
diagram
Composition is fixed here
e.g. eutectoid composition

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Interpreting sigmoidal curve

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Microstructure of Bainite

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Effect of transformation temperature on

mechanical properties of eutectoid steel

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Martensite transformation

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Martensite in Fe-C alloy (or) Steels

Structure of Martensite BCT (>0.2%C)

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Effect of carbon on the hardness of martensite

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Microstructures of steel martensite

Lath type

Plate type

(low Carbon)

(high Carbon)

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Tempering
Martensite phase is
Hard& Brittle
Hence to improve the ductility and toughness
Tempering treatment is applied
Martensite decomposes
At low temperatures: +Fe2.4C ()
At high temperatures: +Fe3C
Close to eutectoid temperatures: Coarse Fe3C
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Properties after tempering

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Martensite Transformation (summary)

Characteristics of martensite transformation
Diffusionless transformation
Atoms move in a coordinated manner
(military type transformation)
Shear/ Displacive transformation
Transformation depends on only
temperature NOT time

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Heat treatment of iron alloys

Annealing
Normalising
Hardening
Tempering
Austempering
Martempering
Age hardening
Surface hardening
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Annealing
Expose materials to an elevated temperature
for an extended time and then slowly cooled to
room temperature
Why annealing?
To relieve stresses
Increase softness, ductility& toughness
To produce specific microstructure
Final structure: Coarse Pearlite
MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

Annealing
How to do annealing?
Heat the material to specific temperature
Careful about heating rate
Soak at that temperature for a period of time
Cool to room temperature (furnace cooling)
Process Annealing (to relieve stresses
between cold working process)
MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

Process annealing
To relieve the stresses caused by
Machining (e.g. grinding)
Non-uniform cooling of specimens to room
temperature after elevated temperature
processing (e.g. welding)
Phase transformation

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Annealing& Normalising

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Normalizing
Why Normalizing?
To refine the grain size of plastically
deformed steels (What happens during
plastic deformation?)
To improve the machinability
To improve the microstructure of welds
How to do? (air cooling)

Final microstructure: Fine pearlite

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Properties of normalized steel

Stronger than annealed steels
Impact energy lower than annealed steels

Elongation is lower than annealed steels

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Hardening
Rapid quenching after austenization
Quenching media: Water, Oil, Salt water
Incomplete hardening
Over heating

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In simple
Treatment

Annealing

Normalizing

Hardening

Air

Water

Cooling
Furnace

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Tempering
We have seen this already

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Spheroidising
Kind of annealing process
Particularly for high-carbon steels (tool steels)

Aim: to obtain granular cementite

lamellar pearlite transforms to granular
pearlite

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Austempering
Isothermal heat treatment
Aim: To obtain bainite

How it is done?

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Marquenching/ martempering
How it is being done?

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Why marquenching?
To avoid quench cracks

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Designing heat treatment

Interrupted cooling

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Age hardening/ Precipitation hardening

Al-Cu system

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What is the philosophy behind heat treatment?

Increasing the interface area

(refining the grain/ colony size)
Change the shape of secondary shape
Change the fraction second phases
Ultimately
To modify the properties of alloys
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Continuous Cooling Transformation (CCT) curves

Why we need CCT curve?

Industries process large specimens
Specimen cools continuously (unavoidable)
What is the difference between CCT and TTT?
Time required for transformation larger in
CCT than TTT
Some transformation may be suppressed
during Continuous Cooling
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TTT diagram of eutectoid steel

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CCT vs TTT
Composition: Fe-0.76C
TTT-Dotted line
CCT-Continuous line
NOTE in case of CCT
Delay in transformation
There is no bainite region

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CCT
Composition: Fe-0.76C
Cooling rate determines
the kind of

Microstructure develops

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CCT
Composition: Fe-0.76C

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CCT (Alloy steel)

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Summary
Microstructure differs as cooling rate differs

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Hardenability
Ability of the alloy to be hardened by the
formation of martensite for a given heat
treatment
Depth to which the alloy can be hardenable
Hardenability is different from hardness

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How to measure hardenability?

Jominy End-Quench Test
Specimen size
1 inch diameter (i.e.25.4 mm)
4 inch long (i.e. ~100 mm)

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Jominy End Quench Test

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Jominy End Quench Test

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Factors affecting hardenability

Austenite grain size
larger grains are preferred
Alloying elements
Carbon content

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Hardenability curve (effect of alloying elements)

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Hardenability curve (effect of carbon)

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Radial hardness profile& Effect of specimen size

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Hardenability
Critical diameter (Dc): (for a steel and quench)
is the diameter that would harden to 50%
martensite at center
Ideal diameter (Di): diameter that would
harden to 50% martensite in an ideal quench.
Ideal quench: An ideal quench is one for which
there is no resistance to heat transfer from the
bar to the quenching medium (H = ), so the
surface comes immediately to the temperature
of the bath.
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Hardenability
The cooling rate at the quenched end should be
fast enough to ensure 100% martensite in all
the steels, so the hardness at the quenched end
depends only on the carbon content.
The hardenability increases with the amount of
alloying addition.
The hardenability increases with carbon
content.
MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)

MM235 Materials Engineering (2014-15)