Lecture 40

Phase
transformations

Summary
Nucleation: Homogenous nucleation and
heterogeneous nucleation
Growth

Nucleation rate and growth rate

Temperature dependence of nucleation and
growth rates

Overall transformation kinetics

Time temperature
Transformation (TTT) diagram

X
1

Nose of C curve
Bypassing the nose means
suppression of
transformation: critical
cooling rate
T

ts

tf

log t

T
Tm

Stable liquid

crystal
Under
Cooled liquid
dX/dt

log t

TTT Diagram for liquid-to-solid transformation

T
U
T
Tm
I

Stable liquid
Under
Cooled liquid
Fine grained
crystals

Coarse
grained
crystals

glass
log t

APPLICATIONS

Solidification and crystallization

Phase Transformations in Steel

Precipitation
Recovery recrystallization & grain growth

Fe-Cementite diagram
Peritectic
L+

Eutectic
L + Fe3C
L
1493C

L+

0.1 %C

1147C

2.06

Eutectoid
+ Fe3C
Pearlite

+ Fe3C

0.025 %C

+ Fe3C

723C

Fe

0.16 0.8

4.3

%C

Fe3C
6.7

TTT diagram for eutectoid steel (0.8% C)

Stable austenite

550

unstable
austenite

725

TTT diagram for eutectoid steel

T
U

Stable austenite

coarse
pearlite
I

fine pearlite

unstable
austenite

Mechanism of Austenite-> Pearlite

Pearlite

transformation

+ 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/strength

Coarse pearlite vs. fine pearlite:

Interlamellar spacing

Callister

Coarse pearlite
Fine pearlite

Annealing
Normalizing

Furnace cooling
Air cooling

Austenite to Bainite
Transformation
(Portion below the nose of C curve)

Bainite
Coarse Pearlite
Fine Pearlite

Short needles of Fe3C embedded in

plates of ferrite
C diffuses only to short distances

Bainite

Austempering

QUENCHING

TTT diagram for eutectoid steel

Stable austenite

'
rapid cooling

: martensite (M)
Extremely rapid, no C-curves

Ms : Martensite start
temperature
Mf : Martensite finish
temperature

Ms

unstable
austenite
A+M

Mf
M

Optical micrograph:
Illustrating shape of
Martensite

Courtesy: H. Bhadhesia

 ( FCC )

Quench

( BCC )

20% contraction of c-axis

12% expansion of a-axis

Martensite

( FCC )
0.8 %C

Quench

' ( BCT )
0.8 %C

Possible positions of
Carbon atoms
Only a fraction of
the sites occupied

FCC
Austenite

C along the c-axis

obstructs the contraction

20% contraction of c-axis

12% expansion of a-axis

Tetragonal
Martensite

Austenite to Martensite 4.3 % volume increase

In Pure Fe after
the Matensitic transformation
c=a

Martensitic transformation (contd.)

BCT unit cell of (austenite)

c
2 1.414
a
BCT unit cell of (martensite)

c
1.00 1.08
a

Expand ~
12%
Contract ~
20%
Fig. 9.12

0% C (BCC)

1.2 % C

Why martensite in steels known as hard/brittle

Solubility of C in austenite is more than in ferrite.
C atoms in ferrite causes asymmetric distortion and
therefore huge hardening
Imagine if you rapidly cool austenite to form
martensite: trap all the C in ferrite: huge stress
and will have high hardness
This hard and brittle matensite is of little
commercial importance, so what to do???