CHAPTER 11:

METAL ALLOYS

ISSUES TO ADDRESS...
How are metal alloys classified and how are they used?
What are some of the common fabrication techniques?
How do properties vary throughout a piece of material
that has been quenched, for example?
How can properties be modified by post heat treatment?

Chapter 11- 1

TAXONOMY OF METALS
Metal Alloys

Nonferrous

Ferrous
Steels
<1.4wt%C

Cu Al

Cast Irons
3-4.5 wt%C

Mg Ti

T(C)

1600

1400
1200
1000

+L

austenite

800

ferrite
600

L+Fe3C

1148C

Eutectic:

4.30

+Fe3C

727C

Fe3C
cementite

Eutectoid:
0.77

400
0

(Fe)

+Fe3C

C o, wt% C

6.7

Chapter 11-2

STEELS
Plain Carbon
low carbon
<0.25wt%C
medium carbon
0.25 - 0.6wt%C
high carbon
0.6 - 1.4wt%C

Low Alloy
5 % alloying
element

HSLA
High Strength Low Alloy

High Alloy
> 10 % alloying
element

Stainless
Tool

Heat Treatable
Tool Steels

CommonAlloyingElements:Cr,V,Mo,W,Ti,Mn,Al
Alloyingisdonetoimprove:
Wear,corrosionandFatiqueresistance,toughness,hardenability
Butincreasesthecost
Chapter 11-3

Steels
High Alloy

Low Alloy
low carbon med. carbon
<0.25 wt% C 0.25-0.6 wt% C

high carbon
0.6-1.4 wt% C

heat
plain
treatable
Cr, V
Cr, Ni
Additions none
none
none
Ni, Mo
Mo
Example 1010 4310
1040
4340 1095
Hardenability 0
+
+
++
++
TS
0
+
++
+
EL
+
+
0
Name

plain

Uses

auto
struc.
sheet

HSLA* plain

bridges
towers
press.
vessels

crank
shafts
bolts
hammers
blades

pistons
gears
wear
applic.

wear
applic.

tool
Cr, V,
Mo, W
4190
+++
++
-drills
saws
dies

increasing strength, cost; decreasing ductility

*HSLA: High-Strength, Low-Alloy

austenitic
stainless
Cr, Ni, Mo
304
0
0
++
high T
applic.
turbines
furnaces
V. corros.
resistant
Chapter 11-

Steels: AISI*/SAE** Designation

System

Examples:
(XX and XXX are wt% C x 100)
1060 steel Plain carbon steel (10XX) with 0.60 wt% C
4340 steel - Nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloy steel
(43XX) with 0.40 wt% C
2320 steel - Nickel alloy steel with about 3.5% nickel
(23XX) with 0.20 wt% C
52100 steel Chromium alloy tool steel with about
1.45% chromium (52XXX) with 1.00 wt% C

*AISI: The American Iron and Steel Institute, **SAE: The Society of Automotive Engineers
Chapter 11-

Cast Iron
Ferrous alloys with > 2.1 wt% C
more commonly 3 - 4.5 wt%C

low melting (also brittle) so easiest to

cast
Cementite decomposes to ferrite +
graphite
Fe3C 3 Fe () + C (graphite)
generally a slow process

Chapter 11-

Types of Cast Iron

Gray iron
graphite flakes
weak & brittle under tension
stronger under compression
excellent vibrational damping
wear resistant

Adapted from Fig. 11.3(a) & (b), Callister 7e.

Ductile iron
add Mg or Ce (Cerium)
graphite in nodules not flakes
matrix often pearlite - better
ductility
Chapter 11-

Types of Cast Iron

White iron
<1wt% Si so harder but
brittle
more cementite
Adapted from Fig. 11.3(c) & (d), Callister 7e.

Malleable iron
heat treat at 800-900C
graphite in rosettes
more ductile
Chapter 11-

REFINEMENT OF STEEL FROM ORE

Coke
Limestone
Iron Ore

gas
refractory
vessel
layers of coke
and iron ore
air
slag
Molten iron

BLAST FURNACE
heat generation
C+O2CO2
800C

1300C
1800C

reduction of iron ore to metal

CO2+C2CO
3CO+Fe 2O32Fe+3CO2
purification
CaCO 3CaO+CO2
CaO + SiO2 +Al2O3slag

10meters
Chapter 11-5

NONFERROUS ALLOYS
Cu Alloys

Al Alloys

Brass : Zn is subst. impurity -lower : 2.7g/cm3

(costume jewelry, coins,
-Cu, Mg, Si, Mn, Zn additions
corrosion resistant)
-solid sol. or precip.
Bronze: Sn, Al, Si, Ni are
strengthened (struct.
subst. impurity
aircraft parts
(bushings, landing
& packaging)
gear)
Mg Alloys
NonFerrous
Cu-Be:
-very low : 1.7g/cm3
Alloys
precip. hardened
-ignites easily
for strength
-aircraft, missles

Ti Alloys

-lower : 4.5g/cm3

Refractory metals

-high melting T
vs 7.9 for steel
Noble metals -Nb, Mo, W, Ta
-reactive at high T -Ag, Au, Pt
-oxid./corr. resistant
-space applic.

Chapter 11-4

METAL FABRICATION METHODS-I

CASTING

FORMING
Forging

(wrenches, crankshafts)
force

JOINING
Rolling
(I-beams, rails)
roll

die
A o blank

A d often at
elev. T

Drawing

force

Ao
die

Ad

roll

Extrusion

(rods, wire, tubing)

die

Ao

Ad

(rods, tubing)
Ao

tensile
force

force

container

ram

billet

container

die holder
extrusion
Ad
die
Chapter 11-6

FORMING TEMPERATURE
Hot working (T > 0.5 Tm)
--dynamical recrystallization
--less energy to deform
--oxidation: poor finish
--lower strength

Cold working (T < 0.3 Tm)

Chapter 11-7

METAL FABRICATION METHODS-II

FORMING

CASTING

Sand Casting
(large parts, e.g.,
auto engine blocks)
Sand

Die Casting
(high volume, low T alloys)

Sand

molten metal

Investment Casting
(low volume, complex shapes
e.g., jewelry, turbine blades)

plaster
die formed
around wax
prototype

JOINING

Continuous Casting
(simple slab shapes)
molten
solidified

wax
Chapter 11- 8

METAL FABRICATION METHODS-III

FORMING

CASTING

Powder Processing

Welding

(materials w/low ductility)

pressure

heat

area
contact

JOINING

(when one large part is

impractical)
filler metal (melted)
base metal (melted)
fused base metal

heat affected zone

unaffected
unaffected
piece 1 piece 2

densify
point contact
at low T

densification
by diffusion at
higher T

Heat affected zone:

(region in which the
microstructure has been
changed).
Chapter 11-9

Heat Treatment of
800
Austenite (stable)
Steels
Annealing
coarse pearlite

T(C)

TE

A
P

600

Normalizing
Fine pearlite
Quenching

400

0%

Martensite
Tempering

50
%

10
0%

0%

M+A

200

50%

M+A

Tempered martensite

b)
-1

10

10

10

time (s)

a
)

90%

10

Chapter 11-

c)

Quenching and Tempering of Steels

Hardenability is the ability to form martensite upon
Hardness, HRC

quenching,
Martensite can later be tempered to60 the optimum strengthtoughness combination
40
The cooling rate ,
20
hence the resulting
microstructure,
varies with distance
from the surface.

distance from quenched end (in)

T(C)

0%
100%

600
400
200

M(start)
A M

0 M(finish)

0.1

10

100

1000

Time (s)

Chapter 11-11

Hardenability can be improved by

ALLOYING
Alloying elements such as Ni, Cr, Mo, V shift
the pearlite "nose of the TTT diagram, so that
martensite forms easier.
100

T(C)

600

400
200
0 -1
10 10

TE
shift from
A to B due
to alloying
M(start)
M(90%)

103 105 Time (s)

10

60

H a rd n e s s , H R C

800

40

2 Cooling rat
100

4340

80

%M

50

4140
8640
5140

20
0 10 20 30 40 50
Distance from quenched end (mm

Chapter 11-13