Department of Metallurgy and Materials Science,

COEP Pune-5

Class : S. Y. Metallurgy

Acad. Year: 2020-21

Course : Principles of Physical Metallurgy

Topic: Phase transformation

Course coordinator: Mrs. S. U. Dangarikar

Lecture: 15
 Phase Transformation
• Based on mass transport
• Diffusional
• Diffusionless
• Based on Order
• 1st order (Nucleation and growth)
• 2nd and higher order (Volume transformation)
 Bulk Gibbs free energy ↓

Energies involved Interfacial energy ↑

Strain energy ↑ Solid-solid transformation

New interface created

Volume of transforming material

Porter
 Solidification = Nucleation + Growth

Nucleation
Homogenous

Nucleation
 Liquid → solid
Heterogenous walls of container, inclusions
 Solid → solid
inclusions, grain boundaries,
dislocations, stacking faults

 The probability of nucleation occurring at point in the parent phase is same

throughout the parent phase
 In heterogeneous nucleation there are some preferred sites in the parent phase
where nucleation can occur
Porter
 1nd order
nucleation & growth

Growth
Nucleation
Trasformation till
= of + L is
L→  phase
exhausted
Solidification
Mechanism of dendritic
transformation
Development of Cast structure
Cast structure schematic
Dendritic structure
Liquid → Solid phase transformation

 On cooling just below Tm solid becomes stable

 But solidification does not start
 E.g. liquid Ni can be undercooled 250 K below Tm
↑t
Solid stable Liquid stable

Crude schematic!
Gv

Solid (GS)

G → ve
G →

T Liquid (GL)
G → +ve
Tm “For sufficient
T → Ref: Porter Undercooling”
T - Undercooling
 Neglected in L → S
Homogenous nucleation transformations
Free energy change on nucleation 
Reduction in bulk free energy  increase in surface energy  increase in strain energy

ΔG  (Volume).( G )  (Surface).( )

4 3 2
ΔG   r .(Gv )  4r .( )  
3 

Liquid
Gv  f (T )
r3
r2 Solid

1
Ref: Porter
 4
ΔG   r 3 .(Gv )  4r 2 .( )

3 
 By setting dG/dr = 0 the critical values (corresponding to the maximum)
are obtained (denoted by superscript *)
 Reduction in free energy is obtained only after r0 is obtained

2 As Gv is ve, r*is +ve

dG *
0 r1  0 r2  
*

dr Gv
Trivial
* 2
r  dG
0
Gv dr
3 G  0
16 
G *  
3 Gv2
r*
G →

r0
3
G  0 r0   Embryos Supercritical nuclei
Gv
Ref: Porter
r →
Free energy as function of radius
 r* critical radius
• Liquid metal is cooled below freezing point,
slow moving atom bond together to form
nuclei.
• Nucleus –larger than critical size can grow into
crystal
• Embryo-smaller than critical size, continuously
formed and redissolve in molten metal
• r*= -2 ϒ/∆Gv
Gv  f (T ) The bulk free energy reduction is a function of undercooling

Turnbull approximation
Tm
 16 3 Tm2
G  
3 T 2 H 2
Decreasing G*


s ing
a
c re
In

Decreasing r*
G →

r →

Ref:Porter