Schematic presentation of the influence of austenitizing

temperature on the grain size of the structure of a eutectoid

steel after normalizing. (From H.J. Eckstein (Ed.),
Technologie der Wa¨rmebehandlungvon Stahl, 2nd ed.,
VEB Deutscher Verlag fu¨r Grundstoffindustrie, Leipzig,
1987.)

Nucleation sites for austenite formation in

microstructures of (a) ferrite; (b) spheroidite;
Transformation of a pearlitic structure (c) pearlite. (From G. Krauss, Steels: Heat
to austenite when heating an unalloyed Treatment and Processing Principles, ASM
eutectoid steel of 0.8% C. International, Materials Park, OH, 1990.)
Nucleación de la cementita Nucleación de la ferrita

Crecimiento de la bainita Volumen ocupado por austenita y martensita

Curvas típicas de enfriamiento del
núcleo y la superficie de una pieza
Fases durante el enfriamiento
 Fases durante el enfriamiento
A fase de envolvimiento de vapor
B fase de ebullición C fase de convección
Al ponerse en contacto, se forma
A pesar de ser menor el gradiente de Ahora la velocidad de enfriamiento es muy
instantáneamente, en la superficie de
temperaturas acero-liquido, el valor del pequeña, pues aun cuando el coeficiente de
separación de ambas, una capa de vapor
coeficiente de película(A) es mucho más película (A) es muy elevado, el gradiente de
que rodea al metal y lo aísla del líquido,
elevado que el anterior. Al desprenderse las temperatura es muy bajo, ya que el
verificándose el enfriamiento por radiación
burbujas e iniciarse corrientes de convección enfriamiento se realiza por conducción y
y conducción a través de la capa gaseosa
en el líquido, la transmisión de calor es convección del líquido.
(las burbujas de vapor dificultan la
rápida (A aumenta).
transmisión de calor)

I de recubrimiento de vapor II de ebullición III de convección

Wetting process on the surface of CrNi steel specimens
quenched from 850oC into water and oil. (a) Cylinder (25-
mm diameter 100 mm) in water at 30oC flowing at 0.3 m/s;
(b) cylinder (25-mm diameter 100 mm) in oil at 60oC
flowing at 0.3 m/s; (c) prismatic cylinder (151545mm) in
water at 60oC without forced convection.
Wetting process on the surface of cylindrical samples
which is quenched in water with different admixtures. (a)
CrNi steel cylinder (25-mm diameter 100mm) quenched in
5% aqueous polymer solution at 30oC without forced
convection and (b) silver cylinder (15-mm diameter 45
mm) quenched in a 10% aqueous polymer solution with a
chemical additive at 25oC without forced convection.
Wetting process on the surface of a 1040 steel (15-mm
diameter 45 mm) quenched from 850oC in water at 50oC
(a) without forced convection and (b) with an agitation rate
of 1 m/s.
• The cooling rate varies with position.
 HARDENABILITY VS ALLOY CONTENT
• "Alloy Steels"
• Jominy end quench (4140, 4340, 5140, 8640)
results, C = 0.4wt%C --contain Ni, Cr, Mo
(0.2 to 2wt%)
--these elements shift
the "nose".
--martensite is easier
to form.
QUENCHING MEDIUM & GEOMETRY
• Effect of quenching medium:

Medium Severity of Quench Hardness

air small small
oil moderate moderate
water large large
• Effect of geometry:
When surface-to-volume ratio increases:
--cooling rate increases
--hardness increases

Position Cooling rate Hardness

center small small
surface large large
 GROSSMANN’S HARDENABILITY CONCEPT
Grossmann’s method of testing hardenability uses a number of cylindrical steel bars of different
diameters hardened in a given quenching medium. After sectioning each bar at midlength and
examining it metallographically, the bar that has 50% martensite at its center is selected, and the
diameter of this bar is designated as the critical diameter (Dcrit).

Typical hardness test survey made along a

diameter of a quenched cylinder
For example, after quenching in still water (H=1.0), a round bar constructed of steel A has a critical diameter (Dcrit)
of 28 mm according to figure, this corresponds to an ideal critical diameter (DI) of 48 mm. Another round bar,
constructed of steel B, after quenching in oil (H=0.4), has a critical diameter (Dcrit) of 20 mm. Converting this
value, using Figure 5.6,provides an ideal critical diameter (DI) of 52 mm. Thus, steel B has a higher hardenability
than steel A. This indicates that DI is a measure of steel hardenability that is independent of the quenching
medium.
 ©2003 Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Thomson Learning™ is a trademark used herein under license.

The Grossman chart used to determine the hardenability at the center of a steel
bar for different quenchants.
Severity of quench values of some typical quenching conditions
To identify a quenching medium and its condition, Grossmann introduced the
quenching intensity (severity) factor H. The H values for oil, water, and brine under
various rates of agitation are given in Table . From this table, the large influence of
the agitation rate on the quenching intensity is evident.

Severity of Quench as indicated by the heat transfer equivalent H

f 1 f → heat transfer factor Note that apart from the nature of the quenching
H [m ] medium, the vigorousness of the shake determines the
K K → Thermal conductivity
Process Variable H severity of the quench. When a hot solid is put into a
Air No agitation 0.02 liquid medium, gas bubbles form on the surface of the
Oil quench No agitation 0.2 solid (interface with medium). As gas has a poor
" Slight agitation 0.35 conductivity the quenching rate is reduced. Providing

Increasing severity of quench

" Good agitation 0.5
agitation (shaking the solid in the liquid) helps in
bringing the liquid medium in direct contact with the
" Vigorous agitation 0.7
solid; thus improving the heat transfer (and the cooling
Water quench No agitation 1.0
rate). The H value/index compares the relative ability of
" Vigorous agitation 1.5
various media (gases and liquids) to cool a hot solid.
Brine quench
(saturated Salt water)
No agitation 2.0 Ideal quench is a conceptual idea with a heat transfer
factor of  ( H = ).
" Vigorous agitation 5.0
Ideal quench 
Through hardening of the sample
 The surface of is affected by the quenching medium and experiences the best possible
cooling rate. The interior of the sample is cooled by conduction through the (hot) sample and
hence experiences a lower cooling rate. This implies that different parts of the same sample
follow different cooling curves on a CCT diagram and give rise to different microstructures.
 This gives to a varying hardness from centre to circumference. Critical diameter (dc) is that
diameter, which can be through hardened (i.e. we obtain 50% Martensite and 50% pearlite at
the centre of the sample).

Schematic showing variation

in cooling rate from surface
to interior leading to
different microstructures
Time- Temperature-Transformation (TTT) Curves – Isothermal Transformation
Eutectoid steel (0.8%C)
800
Eutectoid temperature
723
Austenite Coarse
600 Pearlite
Fine

500 Pearlite + Bainite

T → 400 Bainite

Not an isothermal
300

200
 Ms
Austenite

transformation
Mf
100
Martensite
0.1 1 10 102 103 104 105
t (s) →
Time- Temperature-Transformation (TTT) Curves – Isothermal Transformation
Eutectoid steel (0.8%C)
800
Eutectoid temperature
723
Austenite
Pearlite
600
 + Fe3C
500 Pearlite + Bainite

T → 400 Bainite

300
Ms
200
Mf
100
Martensite
0.1 1 10 102 103 104 105
t (s) →
 Continuous Cooling Transformation (CCT) Curves Eutectoid steel (0.8%C)

800
Eutectoid temperature
723

Austenite 600 Pearlite

500
Original TTT lines
T → 400

300
Ms
Cooling curves 200
Constant rate Mf
100
Martensite T1 T2
0.1 1 10 102 103 104 105
t (s) →
 Different cooling treatments Eutectoid steel (0.8%C)

800
723

M = Martensite 600

P = Pearlite 500

T → 400

300

200
Coarse P
100
M M +P Fine P

0.1 1 10 102 103 104 105

t (s) →
Pearlite

 →  + Fe3C

 Nucleation and growth

 Heterogeneous nucleation at grain boundaries
 Interlamellar spacing is a function of the temperature of transformation
 Lower temperature → finer spacing → higher hardness
 Bainite

Bainite formed at 348oC Bainite formed at 278oC

 →  + Fe3C**

 Nucleation and growth

 Acicular, accompanied by surface distortions
** Lower temperature →
carbide could be ε carbide (hexagonal structure, 8.4% C)
 Bainite plates have irrational habit planes
 Ferrite in Bainite plates possess different orientation relationship
relative to the parent Austenite than does the Ferrite in Pearlite
 Martensite  ( FCC )  ' ( BCT )

Quench Possible positions of
0.8 %C 0.8 %C Carbon atoms
Only a fraction of
the sites occupied
FCC
Austenite

C along the c-axis

obstructs the contraction
FCC
Austenite
Alternate choice of
Cell

Tetragonal In Pure Fe after

20% contraction of c-axis the Matensitic transformation
Martensite
12% expansion of a-axis c=a

Austenite to Martensite → 4.3 % volume increase Refer Fig.9.11 in textbook

 Martensite

 The martensitic transformation occurs without composition change

 The transformation occurs by shear without need for diffusion
 The atomic movements required are only a fraction of the interatomic
spacing
 The shear changes the shape of the transforming region
→ results in considerable amount of shear energy
→ plate-like shape of Martensite
 The amount of martensite formed is a function of the temperature to
which the sample is quenched and not of time
 Hardness of martensite is a function of the carbon content
→ but high hardness steel is very brittle as martensite is brittle
 Steel is reheated to increase its ductility
→ this process is called TEMPERING
 60

Hardness (Rc) →
Hardness of Martensite as a
function of Carbon content
40

20
% Carbon →
0.2 0.4 0.6

Properties of 0.8% C steel

Constituent Hardness (Rc) Tensile strength (MN / m2)
Coarse pearlite 16 710
Fine pearlite 30 990
Bainite 45 1470
Martensite 65 -
Martensite tempered at 250 oC 55 1990
 Tempering  ' ( BCT )  ( BCC ) Fe3C (OR)

Temper

Martensite Ferrite Cementite

 Heat below Eutectoid temperature → wait→ slow cooling

The microstructural changes which take place during tempering
are very complex
 Time temperature cycle chosen to optimize strength and toughness
 Tool steel: As quenched (Rc 65) → Tempered (Rc 45-55)
Fe-C martensites are unusual for being so strong
(& brittle). Most martensites are not significantly
stronger than their parent phases.
Interstitial sites:
fcc: octahedral sites radius= 0.052 nm fcc: carbon
tetrahedral sites radius= 0.028 nm occupies the
bcc: octahedral sites radius= 0.019 nm octahedral sites
tetrahedral sites radius= 0.036 nm
Carbon atom radius = 0.08 nm.
Surprisingly, it occupies the octahedral site in the
bcc Fe structure, despite the smaller size of this
site (compared to the tetrahedral sites)
presumably because of the low modulus in the
<100> directions. bcc: carbon
occupies the
octahedral sites
Martensite formation
rarely goes to
completion because
of the strain associated
with the product
that leads to back
stresses in the
parent phase.
Lattice Parameters of Austenite and Martensite

The tetragonality, ie., the c/a ratio, of the bct cell of the martensite phase
is governed by the carbon concentration.
For a steel of composition x wt% C, a linear dependency gives the
following relationships.
The lattice parameters of austenite are given by
a = 0.3555 + 0.0044x
The lattice parameters of martensite are given by
a = 0.2866 – 0.0013x
c = 0.2866 + 0.0106x
 Trabajo en caliente: moldeado y recristalización
simultánea

Deformación plástica del material (moldeado) a una temperatura superior a la de

recristalización: durante el trabajo en caliente el material se moldea y cristaliza
continuamente (recristalización dinámica)
a) Deformación plástica ilimitada durante el trabajo en caliente (ideal para piezas
grandes y con tamaño final de grano muy fino)
b) Eliminación de las imperfecciones (porosidades, diferencias de composición, etc...)
c) Estructura final del material anisotrópica (gradientes térmicos, granos fibrosos en
la dirección del laminado,...)
d) Peor acabado superficial y precisión que el trabajo en frío
 Recocido

Tratamiento cuyo objeto es destruir mediante un calentamiento, la

estructura distorsionada por el trabajo en frío y hacer que adopte una forma
libre de deformaciones.

Este proceso se realiza totalmente en el estado sólido, y el calentamiento

va seguido normalmente de un enfriamiento lento en el horno desde la
temperatura de trabajo.

El proceso de recocido puede dividirse en tres fases:

 Restauración o recuperación

 Recristalización

 Crecimiento de grano.
1) Restauración o recuperación

a) Restauración de la resistividad eléctrica

b) Liberación de la energía almacenada

c)Restauración de las propiedades mecánicas

Mecanismos de recuperación
d) Restauración de la estructura:

- Disminución de defectos puntuales en el

interior de los granos

- Movimiento de las dislocaciones

-Reordenamiento de éstas en configuraciones

nuevas (poligonización)
Restauración de la estructura (microscopía óptica, electrónica y DRX)

La variación de la estructura se puede observar en metales donde se

produce la restauración de las propiedades mecánicas antes de la
recristalización (metales con alto valor de energía de falla de
apilamiento)

Coalescencia de dislocaciones
Poligonización después de flexión
para formar bordes de grano de
(a) monocristal (b) deslizamiento
ángulo pequeño
por flexión (c) poligonización
Temperatura de recristalización disminuye cuando mayor es la pureza
del metal
 Resistencia mecanica

Dutilidad (% Alargamiento)
Rresistencia a la Tension (MPa)
Dutilidad

RP RCR CG
Granos deformados
y recuperados
Tamanho de grano (mm)

Nuevos granos

Temperatura de recosido (ºC)