TO STUDY THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF MILD STEEL

AFTER HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

A Thesis
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
The award of the Degree of
BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING
IN
PRODUCTION ENGINEERING
BY

RISHAV PARASHAR (BE/6322/12)

DEPARTMENT OF PRODUCTION ENGG.

BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLGY
MESRA, OFF CAMPUS DEOGHAR
2016

1
 DECLERATION
This is to certify that the work presented in the thesis entitled ‘‘STUDY THE
MECHANICAL BEHAVIOUR OF MILD STEEL AFTER HEAT
TREATMENT PROCESSES’’ in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the
award of Degree of Bachelor of Engineering in Production Engineering of Birla
Institute of Technology, Mesra, off campus Deoghar is an authentic work carried
out under my supervision and guidance.

To the best of my knowledge , the content of this thesis does not form a
basis for the award of any previous degree to anyone else.

DATE: RISHAV PARASHAR

(BE/6322/12)

2
 CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL

The foregoing thesis entitled ‘‘STUDYING THE MECHANICAL

PROPERTIES OF MILD STEEL AFTER HEAT TREATMENT
PROCESS’’, is hereby approved as creditable study of project topic and has been
presented in a satisfactory manner to warrant its acceptance to the prerequisite to
the degree for which it has been submitted.

It is understood that by this approval, the undersigned do not necessarily

endorse any conclusion drawn or opinion expressed therein, but approved the
thesis for the purpose it is submitted.

(Internal Examiner) (External Examiner)

Asst. Professor Anil Sharma Director

Head of Department Birla Institute of Technology , Mesra
Production Engineering Deoghar Campus
Birla Institute of Technology Mesra
Deoghar campus

3
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I pay my veneration and heartfelt gratitude to Professor of Production

Engineering Department, in the absence of whose erudite guidance, I could not
presented this thesis. I shall remain indebted to him for his magnanimous help.

I am also grateful to Dr. RANDHIR KUMAR, of the Department of Production

Engineering, whose immense help, inspiration and advice helped me to present the
thesis.

I shall be failing in my duties, if I do not express my sense of gratitude and

respect to all the faculty members of Production Engineering Department, who
ushered me to the successful completion of the thesis.

I would like to thank all the staff members of Production Engineering Department
for their kind cooperation extended towards me.

Finally, I pay my respect and love to my parents and friends without whose
unimpeded support and encouragement that would not have seen the light of the
day.

RISHAV PARASHAR

Date: (BE/6322/12)

4
 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE NUMBER
1. INTRODUCTION -........................... 7

2. OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT-......... 10

3. LITERATURE REVIEW -.................... 11

4. EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS-............... 37

5. GRAPHS AND TABLES-.................... 46

6. RESULTS-........................................ 53

7. CONCLUSION-................................ 59

8. REFRENCES-.............................. 60

5
 ABSTRACT

Low carbon mild steel is easily available and cheap having all material properties
that are acceptable for many applications. Heat treatment on low carbon mild steel
is to improve ductility, to improve toughness, strength, hardness and tensile
strength and to relive internal stress developed in the material. Here basically the
experiment of harness and ultimate tensile strength is done to get idea about heat
treated low carbon steel, which has extensive uses in all industrial and scientific
fields. Microstructure for the low carbon mild steel is also detected at high
temperature which shows various phase transformation .

6
 INTRODUCTION
In this experiment we explored the effects of heat treatment on the material properties
of mild Steel. We studied three different parameters for the heat treatment
configuration; variation in tensile strength, absolution in microstructure and hardness
properties.

The appropriate condition is obtained by heating the metal work piece at temperature
above transformation temperature and further air cooling it.

Air Quenching is used to slowly reduce the temperature of the steel, preventing the
increase of ductility and helping to increase the strength of the mild steel.

Now the question arises what is heat treatment and what are the basic procedures
required for proper heat treatment.

Heat treatment may be defined as an operation or combination of operations that

involves the heating and cooling at pre determined temperature of a solid metal or alloy
for the purpose of obtaining certain desirable conditions or properties.

Steels may be broadly classified into two types, (1) carbon and (2) alloy. Carbon steels
owe their properties chiefly to the carbon. They are frequently called straight or plain
carbon steels.

Alloy steels are those to which one or more alloying elements are added in sufficient
amounts to modify certain properties.

The various heat treatment process are annealing, normalizing, hardening,

austempering7, mar tempering, tempering and surface hardening.

7
The basic heat treatment processes used are:

1.ANNEALING: Annealing is a process involving heating and cooling, usually applied

to produce softening. The term also refers to treatments intended to alter mechanical
or physical properties, produce a definite microstructure, or remove gases. The
temperature of the operation and the rate of cooling depend upon the material being

annealed and the purpose of the treatment.

2.NORMALIZING: Normalizing is a process in which a steel is heated to a

temperature above the transformation temperature and then cooled in still air.

3.HARDENING:Hardening is the process in which the metal is heated above

transformation temperature, holding long enough to insure the attainment of uniform
temperature and solution of carbon in the austenite, and then cooling rapidly.

Now discussing about the parameters defined in the

experiment.
1.TENSILE STRENGTH: Tensile strength is the ability of the material to withstand a
pulling force when applied on it. The ability to resist the break under tensile strength is
one of the most widely measured properties of material.

2.HARDNESS : Hardness measurement quantify the resistance of material to plastic

deformation . When testing materials, indentation hardness correlates linearly with
tensile strength.

3.MICROSTRUCTURE : Microstructure is the small scale structure of the material , defined

as the structure of prepared surface of material as relieved by a microscope above 25X

8
magnification. The microstructure of material can strongly influence physical properties such as
strength , toughness ,ductility ,hardness ,corrosion resistance ,high temperature behaviour.

As discussed above the working parameters of the heat treatment process is under a specified
temperature (above the transformation temperature) and heated for a specified time for better
results.

The equipments used were at proper condition and all random errors are tried to be avoided .

It is usually desired to preserve, as nearly as possible, the form, dimensions, and surface of the
piece being treated. This process increases the strength, but decreases the ductility. Thus the
need and augment that the specific heat treatment of a material is extremely important to a design
engineer. As the properties can vary by quite a bit, it is important to design capacities and safety
factors around the correct heat treatment’s properties.

9
 OBJECTIVE
Evaluation of the mechanical properties of mild steel post heat

treatment process :
 TENSILE STRENGTH-To describe the variation of tensile
strength pro and post heat treatment.

 HARDNESS CHECK-To measure the variation of indention on the

work piece, pro and post heat treatment.

 MICROSTRUCTURE-To study the variation on the grain

orientation of the metal work piece , pro and post heat treatment

processes .

10
 LITERATURE-REVIEW
Going through the basic introduction and understanding the objective of the project ,
now we will go through the basic contents , the processes used ,the reasoning behind
the absolution of the objective and the detailed summary of the project.

Some of the detailed theory to be discussed are:

 Properties of mild steel.(chemical and mechanical)
All the required properties of mild steel for the experiment needed are described during
further explanation of theories.

 Explanation of heat treatment processes.

All the basic heat treatment processes from annealing to hardening , which

results in the variation of tensile strength is detected.

 Explanation of the various testing processes.

All the testing processes from sample preparation to final checking of the sample is
discussed.
During tensile test , the variation between the untreated sample and treated one is
checked.
similarly during the hardness test and microstructure tests the variation are checked and
the reasoning for the cause is detected

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 PROPERTIES OF MILD STEEL
Steel is an alloy of iron, consisting of 0.2% to 2.1% of carbon, as a hardening agent.
Beside carbon , there are many metals as part of it, it includes vanadium, manganese,
chromium and tungsten.

Mild steel is typically the variety which has a comparatively low amount of carbon
(0.05%- 0.26% ).

All elements along with carbon acts as a hardening agents. They prevent dislocation from
happening inside the iron crystals and stop the lattice layers from sliding past each other.

Low carbon steel has carbon content of 0.15% to 0.45%. Low carbon steel is the most
common form of steel as it’s provides material properties that are acceptable for many
applications. It is neither externally brittle nor ductile due to its lower carbon content. It
has lower tensile strength and malleable. Steel with low carbon steel has properties
similar to iron. As the carbon content increases, the metal becomes harder and stronger
but less ductile and more difficult to weld. .

12
 BASIC CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

CARBON 0.16%- 0.18%

SILICON 0.40% max

MANGANESE 0.70 % - 0.90 %

SULPHUR 0.040 % max

PHOSPHOROUS 0.040 % max

13
Some of the basic mechanical properties of mild steel used in the industry
are :

 Mild steel has ferromagnetic properties .

 Unlike other steel, which tend to be brittle , mild steel is hard ,yet
malleable.

 It has high flexibility, compared to others.

 Bright mild steel is an improved quality material free of scale has

been cold worked to size.

 Bright dawn steel has more consistent hardness and increased tensile
strength.

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 BASIC MECHANICAL PROPERTIES

Max stress 400-560 N/mm2

Yield stress 300-440 N/mm2

0.2% proof stress 280-420 N/mm2

Elongation 10-14 %

Due to these above properties mild steel are used in

 They are used in welding, due to their ferromagnetic properties

It is their hard , yet malleable properties which are used in pipeline industries.

15
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

 ANNEALING : Annealing is a process involving heating and cooling,

usually applied to produce softening.

 The term also refers to treatments intended to alter mechanical or physical

properties, pro- duce a definite microstructure, or remove gases.

 The temperature of the operation and the rate of cooling depend upon the
material being annealed and the purpose of the treatment.

 As a definite microstructure, or remove gases. The temperature of the

operation and the rate of cooling depend upon the material being annealed
and the purpose of the treatment.

 The term also refers to treatment intended to alter mechanical or physical

properties.

 The microstructures of the hypoeutectoid steels that result after full

annealing are quite similar to those shown for the equilibrium conditions.

16
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

 FULL ANNEALING: Carbon steel is heated to approximately above the

upper critical temperature (550-650) for 1 hour.

 Here all the ferrite transforms into austenite. The steel must then cooled in
the realm of 38 per hour.

 This results in a coarse pearlite structure. Full annealed steel is soft and
ductile with no internal stress.

 Eutectoid and hypereutectoid steels frequently spheroidize partially or

completely on full annealing.

 The microstructures of the hypoeutectoid steels that result after full

annealing are quite similar to those shown for the equilibrium conditions.

17
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

PROCESS ANNEALING:
The steel is heated to a temperature below or close to the lower critical
temperature (550-650), held at this temperature for some time and then cooled
slowly.

 The steel is usually heated close to, but below, the transformation
temperature .

 If the steel is not to be further cold-worked, but relief of internal

stresses is desired, a lower range of temperature will suffice.

 This type of anneal will cause recrystallization and softening of

the cold-worked ferrite grains, but usually will not affect the
relatively small amounts of cold-worked pearlite

 Typical structures of cold-worked, process-annealed, and fully

annealed mild steel have large variation between the phase
transformation and grain size .

18
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

DIFFUSION ANNEALING :
 The process consists of heating the steel to high temperature (1100-
1200).

 It is held at this temperature for 3 hours to 20 hours and then cooled to

800-850C inside the furnace for a period of about 6 to 8 hours.

 It is further cooled in the air to room temperature. This process is mainly

used for ingots and large casting. It is also called isothermal annealing.

 These effects promotes brittleness and reduce ductility and toughness of

steel.

 Diffusion annealing is employed to remove any structural non-uniformity.

 Segregated zones are eliminated , and chemically homogeneous steel is
obtained by this treatment as a result of diffusion.

19
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

NORMALIZING:
 Normalizing is a process in which a steel is heated to a temperature above the
transformation temperature and then cooled in still air.
 The purpose of the treatment is to obliterate the effects of any previous heat
treatment (including the coarse-grained structure sometimes resulting from high
forging temperatures) or cold-working and to insure a homogeneous austenite on
reheating for hardening or full annealing.

 The resultant structures are pearlite or martensite with excess ferrite or cementite,
depending upon the composition of the steel.

 Since the type of structure, and, therefore, the mechanical properties, are affected
by the rate of cooling, considerable variations may occur in normalized steels
because of differences in section thickness of the shapes being normalized.

20
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

HARDENING:
Steels can be hardened by the simple expedient of heating to above the transformation,
holding long enough to insure the attainment of uniform temperature and solution of
carbon in the austenite, and then cooling rapidly (quenching).

Complete hardening depends on cooling so rapidly that the austenite, which otherwise
would decompose on cooling through the transformation is maintained to relatively low
temperatures.

The maximum hardness that can be obtained in completely hardened low-alloy and plain
carbon structural steels depends primarily on the carbon content.

Once this has been accomplished, slow cooling from then on, either in oil or in air, is
beneficial in avoiding distortion and cracking.

Special treatments, such as time quenching and martempering, are designed to bring
about these conditions. As martensite is quite brittle, steel is rarely used in the as-
quenched condition, that is, without tempering.

The maximum hardness that can be obtained in completely hardened low-alloy and plain
car bon structural steels depends primarily on the carbon content.

21
 HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

TEMPERING:
Tempering (sometimes called drawing) is the process of reheating hardened
(martensite) or normalized steels to some temperature below the lower critical.

Proper tempering of a hardened steel re- quires a certain amount of time.

At any selected tempering temperature, the hardness drops rapidly at first,
gradually decreasing more slowly as the time is prolonged.
Proper tempering of a hardened steel requires a certain amount of time.

At any selected tempering temperature, the hardness drops rapidly at first,

gradually decreasing more slowly as the time is prolonged.

The necessity for tempering a steel promptly after hardening cannot be

overemphasized. If fully hardened steel is allowed to cool to room temperature
during hardening there is danger that the steel may crack.

Part of all of this residual austenite will transform to martensite on cooling from
the tempering temperature so that the final structure will consist of both
tempered and untempered martensite. The brittle un- tempered martensite,
together with the internal stresses caused by its formation, can easily cause
failure of the heat-treated part.
22
HEAT TREATMENT PROCESSES

CASE HARDENING:
Case hardening is a process of hardening a ferrous alloy so that the surface
layer or case is made substantially harder than the interior or core.

The chemical composition of the surface layer is altered during the

treatment by the addition of carbon, nitrogen, or both.

The most frequently used case-hardening processes are carburizing,

cyaniding, carbonitriding, and nitriding.

 CARBURIZING:
Carburizing is a process that introduces carbon percentage solid
ferrous alloy by heating the metal in contact with a carbonaceous
material to a temperature above the transformation of the steel and
holding at that temperature.

The depth of penetration of carbon is dependent on temperature,

time at temperature, and the composition of the carburizing agent.

As a rough indication, a carburized depth of about 0.030 to 0.050 in.

can be obtained in about 4 hr at 1,700 F, depending upon the type
of carburizing agent, which may be a solid, liquid, or gas.

23
 CYANIDING:
A hard, superficial case can be obtained rapidly on low-carbon
steels by cyaniding. This process involves the introduction of both
carbon and nitro-gen into the surface layers of the steel.

Steels to be cyanided normally are heated in a molten bath of

cyanide-carbonate-chloride salts (usually containing 30 to 95% of
sodium cyanide) and then quenched in brine, water, or mineral oil;
the temperature of operation is generally within the range of 1,550
to 1,600 F.

Steels can be cyanided also by heating to the proper temperature

and dipping in a powdered cyanide mixture or sprinkling the
powder on the steel, followed by quenching.

Cyaniding salts are violent poisons if allowed to come in contact

with scratches or wounds; they are fatally poisonous if taken
internally.

Molten cyanide should never be permitted to come in contact with

sodium or potassium nitrates commonly used for baths for
tempering as the mixtures are explosive.

24
CARBONITRIDING:
As above , we went through all the heat treatment processes , now
we go through all the testing equipments and the testing processes
that are to be used during the project Carbonitriding, also termed
gas cyaniding, dry cyaniding, is a process for case hardening a steel
part in a gas-carburizing atmosphere that contains ammonia in
controlled percentages.

Carbonitriding is used mainly as a low-cost substitute for Cyaniding

and, as in cyaniding, both carbon and nitrogen are added to the
steel.

The process is carried on above the transformation temperature of

the steel, and is practical up to 1,700 F. Quenching in oil is
sufficiently fast to attain maximum surface hardness; this moderate
rate of cooling tends to minimize distortion.

The depth to which carbon and nitrogen penetrate varies with

temperature and time.

The depth to which carbon and nitrogen penetrate varies with

temperature and time.

The penetration of carbon is approximately the same as that

obtained in gas carburizing.

25
.

TENSILE STRENGTH TEST:

This test is done to obtained the maximum stress and yield stress ,

along with percentage elongation for the project .

The heat treated specimens were treated in UTS Machine for obtaining the %
elongation, Ultimate Tensile Strength. The procedures for obtaining these values

can be listed as follows;

1) At first the cross section area of the specimen was measured by means of an
electronic slide caliper and then the gauge length was calculated.

2) Now the distance between the jaws of the UTS was fixed to the gauge length
of the specimen

3) The specimen was gripped by the jaws of the holder

4) The maximum load was varying gradually and load was set as a reference f
200 KN , and then varied .

5) The specimen was loaded till it fails

26
Tensile test of a metal work piece is done to obtain the allowable maximum
stress , for the experiment. Tensile properties indicate how the material will
react to forces being applied in tension. A tensile test is a fundamental
mechanical test where a carefully prepared specimen is loaded in a very
controlled manner while measuring the applied load and the elongation of
the specimen over some distance. Tensile tests are used to determine the
modulus of elasticity, elastic limit, elongation, proportional limit, reduction
in area, tensile strength, yield point, yield strength and other tensile
properties.
The basic procedures for the testing of tensile strength for the

experiments are :
 The tensile testing machine is to be checked and maximum stress that
it can overtake during the process , should be determined.

 Work piece of accurate dimension , and proper material are required

for the test.

 The load applied on the work piece , should be done gradually as, if a
sudden load is applied creep could be formed , and proper values are

not obtained .
 After the work piece are crake from the gauge point, the increase in
elongation is noted , for the project

27
 HARDNESS TEST
Hardness is resistance of material to plastic deformation caused by
indentation.

Stanley P. Rockwell invented the Rockwell hardness test. He was a

metallurgist for a large ball bearing company and he wanted a fast
non-destructive way to determine if the heat treatment process they
were doing on the bearing races was successful.

Therefore, Brinell tests are frequently done on large parts

By varying the test force and ball size, nearly all metals can be tested
using a Brinell test. Brinell values are considered test force
independent as long as the ball size/test force relationship is the same.

APPLICATIONS:
Because of the wide test force range the Brinell test can be used on
almost any metallic material. The part size is only limited by the
testing instrument's capacity.

STRENGTHS:
1. One scale covers the entire hardness range, although comparable
results can only be obtained if the ball size and test force relationship
is the same.

28
2. A wide range of test forces and ball sizes to suit every
application.

TYPES OF ROCKWELL TEST:

There are two types of Rockwell tests:
1. Rockwell: The minor load is 10 kgf, the major load is 60,
100, or 150 kgf.

2.Superficial Rockwell: the minor load is 3 kgf and

major loads are 15, 30, or 45 kgf.

There are 30 different scales. The majority of applications are covered

by the Rockwell C and B scales for testing steel, brass, and other
metals.
However, the increasing use of materials other than steel and brass as
well as thin materials necessitates a basic knowledge of the factors
that must be considered in choosing the correct scale to ensure an
accurate Rockwell test.
The choice is not only between the regular hardness test and
superficial hardness test, with three different major loads for each, but
also between the diamond indenter and the 1/16, 1/8, 1/4 and 1/2 in.
diameter steel ball indenter

29
For soft materials such as copper alloys, soft steel, and aluminum
alloys a 1/16" diameter steel ball is used with a 100-kilogram load and
the hardness is read on the "B" scale.
In testing harder materials, hard cast iron and many steel alloys, a 120
degrees diamond cone is used with up to a 150 kilogram load and the
hardness is read on the "C" scale.
There are several Rockwell scales other than the "B" & "C" scales,
(which are called the common scales). A properly reported Rockwell
value will have the hardness number followed by "HR" (Hardness
Rockwell) and the scale letter.

Laboratory exercise: Rockwell-C hardness

test:
1. Choose the appropriate scale to suit the material to be tested
(scale C)

2. Select a location for the test Remove oil or dirt, but the surface
does not need to be polished

3. Make sure the part can be held securely.

4. Raise the 1200 diamond cone according to 10 kgf pre-load

5. Zero the C-scale

30
6. Apply the 150 kgf main load and wait until the indicator stops
moving
7. Remove the load

8. Take a reading. The C scale should be between 80 to 100

OTHER TYPES OF HARDENSS TESTS ARE:

BRINELL HARDNESS TEST:

The oldest of the hardness test methods in common use today, the
Brinell test is frequently used to determine the hardness of forgings
and castings that have a grain structure too course for Rockwell or

vicker testing .

MICROSTRUCTURE VARIATION

Examination of the microstructure of a material provides information

used to determine if the structural parameters are within certain
specifications. The analysis results are used as a criterion for
acceptance or rejection.

Normalized – microstructure has fine bands of Pearlite – more phase

boundaries than annealed, but not as much as other methods, gives

31
more hardness and less ductility. Thinner bands of pearlite form when
steel is air-cooled.
As quenched – microstructure is martensite, a super-carbon-saturated
steel solution – extremely hard and brittle, has almost no ductility.
Successful formation of martensite depends on how rapidly the steel is
cooled.

Quenched and tempered – Microstructure has extremely small

spheres of cementite in a matrix of martensite – very fine structure has
a very large amount of phase boundaries, can be very hard but less
brittle than as quenched.

As the tempering temperature rises, the rate of diffusion increases,

which would allow larger Fe3C particles. Larger particles results in
less phase boundary area, lower strength, and higher ductility.

SAMPLE PREPARATION:

32
In order to identify and evaluate the microstructure of material, it is
very important to prepare the test sample carefully and properly. The
various steps in sample preparation for micro structural examination

include:
1.Selecting a representative sample of the materials.

.
2 Sectioning the sample to avoid altering or destroying the structure

of interest.

3.Mounting the section without damage to the test sample.

4.Grinding to achieve a flat sample with a minimum amount of

damage to the sample surface.

5.Polishing the mounted and ground sample.

6.Etching in the proper etchant to reveal the micro structural details.

As the sample is created , the sample is taken to a laboratory

microscope and the phase transformation are detected and images
are taken for further tests.

33
The basic procedures for the micro structure
test are:
1.SELECTING : The raw material is selected for the process.

2. SECTIONING: Proper sections for the work piece is created

for the purpose.

3.GRINDING: All the extra abrasive part of the metal is

removed.

4.POLISHING: It removes the last thin layer of the abrasive

particle.

5.ETCHING: It is the last step and is required so that grain

orientation and phase transformation could be checked.

These were the basic theories and the procedures required

during the project.

34
 EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS
 SAMPLE PREPRATION:
Sample shape Cylindrical in shape

Total length 210mm

Outer diameter 25mm

Inner diameter 15mm

Gauge length 120mm

Image of the actual workpiece:

ONE OF THE CYLINDRICAL WORKPIECE.

35
 Fig. 1: Tensile Specimen of Mild steel rod
Heat treatment Process Parameters of Mild
Steel rod

Temperature (°C) Time of heating the sample (hr)

650 3
650 6
750 3
750 6

36
 Fig.-2: Heat treatment of mild steel rod

 COOLING MEDIUM:
Air is taken as the cooling medium for the experiment .Basically the hot
work piece is kept at room temperature.

37
 TENSILE - TEST

1. THE U.T.M (universal testing machine) , is checked and the

maximum load it can apply is dictated out.

2. The untreated metal work piece is attached on the machine and

gradually load is applied, and after a moment the work piece breaks
from the taper end and load applied is measured from the indicator
scale.

Similarly, the process is repeated 12 times, as for the number of work piece
and the average of 3 for each temperature and time is taken with treated
work piece and the result is noted down.

As the result is made in a tabular form , graphs are plotted to show the
variation in tensile strength that varied through out the process on the
sample.

38
Fig. 3: UTM (Universal Testing Machine) used for Tensile
test.

39
 HARDNESS TEST

1. There are majorly two type of hardness test. BRINELL TEST

and ROCKWELL TEST.

2. On the basis of work piece dimension and the load it can

sustain, the proper hardness test is chosen.

3. In our case , it is the rockwell test for the project.

4. Cylindrical work piece of 12 mm in length and diameter of

25mm is taken and kept on the table.

5. Scale B is chosen for the project and indention done on the

work piece is measured.

6. The above steps are repeated 4 times as it is the variation of

temperature taken.

40
Fig.:4 Rockwell hardness tester

41
 MICRO STRUCTURE TEST

1. After the work piece is sectioned off , for the test a series of steps are
taken.

2. Proper grinding and removal off macro particles are done , so to get a
plane surface.

3. Using proper etching agent ( NATAL reagent ) and after a polishing

with emery paper ( grade-200, 400 ,600 and 800 ), the work piece is
observed on a microscope for the grain orientation .

After the sample is treated with etching agent , the sample is taken
on a laboratory microscope and variation between the grain size is
noted.

42
 FLOW DIAGRAM
OF THE PROCESS:
PARAMETER IS DECIDED FOR THE PROJECT.

(TESTS TO BE DONE , THE APPROPRIATE

TEMPERATURE AND TIME )

MATERIAL IS DECIDED FOR THE PROJECT.

(MILD STEEL IS USED AS THE STANDARD

METAL)

THE WORKPIECES ARE HEATED AT TWO

DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE (650 AND 750
DEGREE CENTIGRADE.) AND FOR (3 hr and 6 hr
respectively ).

WORK -PIECE OF PROPER DIMENSION AND SHAPE

FOR THE TESTING IS MADE.

ALL THE WORK PIECE ARE TO BE OF SAME

DIMENSION.

THE WORKPIECES ARE TAKEN FOR TESTING

PROCEDURES .

TENSILE TEST HARDNESS TEST MICROSTRUCTURE

AFTER POLISHING ,
FOR EACH FOR EACH
THE PIECE IS TESTED
PARAMETER , THE A PARAMETER , THE
UNDER MICROSCOPE.
VALUE IS TAKEN VALUE IS TAKEN
THMICROSCOPE
MICROSCOPEMICROS
COPE
43
 GRAPHS FOR VARIOUS TEST

140

120

100

80
LOAD APPLIED(KN) Series 1
60 Series 2
Series 3
40

20

0
650°C/3hr 650°C/6hr 750°C/3hr 750°C/6hr Untreated
TEMPERATURE°C/TIME(hr)

Fig.5: Applied load and Heat treatment Process

parameters.

The above graph shows the variation between the load applied and the change in

temperature and time .

44
 TABLE REPRESENTATION OF THE TENSILE
TEST
TEMPRATURE WORKPIECE WORKPIECE WORKPIECE
(°C) /TIME(hr) (1) (2) (3)
(KN) (KN) (KN)
650/3 80 70 70
650/6 95.2 95.8 105
750/3 103 102 108
750/6 117.5 103.5 112
Untreated 62 64 68

(fig-6)
THIS TABLE SHOWS THE ACTUAL DATA THAT IS DERIVED DURING THE EXPERIMEMT .

45
 VARIATION IN HARDNESS
100

95

90
HARDNESS ( HRC) SAMPELE 1
85 SAMPLE 2
SAMPLE 3
80

75
650°C/3hr 650°C/6hr 750°C/3hr 750°C/6hr untreated
TEMPERATURE/ TIME

Fig.7: Hardness of the Heat treatment process parameters of mild steel rod
THE ABOVE GRAPH SHOWS THE VARIATION BETWEEN THE CHANGE IN HARDNESS PARAMETER

WITH TEMPERATURE AND TIME POST HEAT TREATMENT PROCESS .

46
 TABLE No:2: Hardness value of the heat treatment process parameter of
the Mild steel rod

TEMPERATURE(°C TIME SAMPLE(1) SAMPLE(2) SAMPLE(3)

1 650 3 hr 88 92 94
2 650 6 hr 97 96.5 94
3 750 3 hr 97 92.5 97.5
4 750 6hr 98 96 95
5 untreated 85 88 92

This table shows the actual data taken in

the project.

47
 MICROSTRUCTURE TEST
SPECIMEN FOR THE UNTREATED MILD
STEEL.

Fig.9: The microstructure consists mainly of light grains of ferrite – the

equilibrium crystal structure of pure iron at room temperature, with a little
carbon (<0.01%) in solid solution.

48
 SPECIMEN FOR THE NORMALIZED MILD
STEEL.

Fig.10: The microstructure consist of the greater proportion of pearlite in

the microstructure, due to the increase in carbon content from 0.2% to 0.4%
(almost all the carbon is in the iron carbide in the pearlite). Hardness increases
and toughness decreases with increasing amount of pearlite.

49
SPECIMEN FOR THE HARDENED MILD STEEL.

Fig. 11: Martensite appears as light-coloured fine needle-like grains – the

carbon in solution is not affected by the etch. The bcc lattice is distorted by the
carbon atoms being forced into supersaturated solid solution

50
 RESULTS
 TENSILE TEST RESULTS:

SAMPLE SPECIMEN AVERAGE MAX. LOAD

APPLIED
UNTREATED 60 KN
HEATED AT 650°C and for 3hr 73 KN
HEATED AT 650°C and for 6 hr
99 KN
HEATED AT 750°C and for 3hr 105 KN
HEATED AT 750°C and for 6 hr 111 KN
(fig-12)
As the results shows:

 As the temperature increases with a given time taken the load

applied on the sample piece increases showing the increase in
Strength.

51
 HARDNESS TEST RESULTS:

SAMPLE SPECIMEN AVERAGE HARDNESS NUMBER

UNTREATED SAMPLE 85 HRC

HEATED AT 650°C and for 3hr 91 HRC

HEATED AT 650°C and for 6 hr 95 HRC

HEATED AT 750°C and for 3hr 96 HRC

HEATED AT 750°C and for 6 hr 97 HRC

(fig-13)
As the results shows:

With increase in temperature with a given increase in time the hardness

factor increases.

52
IMAGES SHOWING THE BROKEN WORKPIECE
BEFORE HARDNESS STRENGTH:

Fig.:14 SAMPLE WITH NO INDENTION MARKS

53
IMAGES AFTER HARDNESS TEST:

Fig.15: SAMPLE WITH INDENTATION MARKS

IMAGES OF SAMPLE BEFORE TENSILE STRENGTH:

54
Fig.16: THIS IMAGE SHOWS THE ACTUAL SAMPLE IN THE PROJECT.

55
IMAGES OF WORK PIECE AFTER HEAT TREATMENT:

Fig.17: This image shows the breaking point of the work piece as load is
applied

56
 CONCLUSION
From the various results obtained during the project work it can be concluded that the
mechanical properties vary depending upon the various heat treatment processes.
Hence depending upon the properties and applications required we should go for a
suitable heat treatment processes.

As viewed from the results the best temperature for increasing the tensile strength of
mild steel of a particular grade is about 750°C and should be heated for about 6 hr.
Whereas, there is a increase in hardness or decrease in ductility as the temperature of
that magnitude. However if there is a demand for increase in elongation annealing could
be done The microstructure as is shown clearly only at 750°C , that there is formation of
martensitic structure on the sample.

57
 REFRENCES
1. Heat Treatment: Principles and Techniques-By T.V Rajan, C.P Sharma,
Ashok Sharma.
2. Heat treatment and properties of iron and steel - By U.S Department of
commerce National Bureau of Standards.
3. Effect of Heat Treatment on Mechanical Properties and Microstructure-By
D. A. Fadare , T. G. Fadara and O. Y. Akanbi .
4. Effect of heat treatment on the mechanical properties of mild steel . By- A.
Adebayo and J.T STEPHEN.
5. Heat Treatment of steel lab report. By - JUSTIN LANCE.

58