Continuous Cooling Transformation (CCT) Curves Hardenability

MECH2300- Structures and Materials Materials Lecture 7 Dr Rowan Truss School of Engineering Division of Materials

Continuous Cooling Transformation (CCT ) Curves

TTT curves are for isothermal transformation steels are usually cooled continuously ie. in quenching or air cooling, temperature is continuously dropping

CCT diagrams
continuous cooling delays time for transformation to start and finish Transformation curves moved to longer times notes: 1. Ms and Mf remain at the same temperature 2. in most plain carbon steels, bainite will not form on continuous cooling - austenite has already transformed to ferrite and pearlite CCT curve truncated just below pearlite nose

CCT diagram eutectoid steel

Normalised air cooled Fully annealed slow cooled

Alloy steels
CCT curves for alloy steels often more complex curve for transformation to pearlite and for Bainite separate
CCT curve for 4340 steel

Effect of cooling rates on structure and properties Example : welding

Welding: Joining technique for metal components in which both the filler metal and the metal parts to be joined are melted. On solidification of the melt pool, the components are joined. Many metal structures and objects held together by welds often the origin of brittle fast fracture or fatigue fractures

typical welding process

arc struck between electrode and pieces to be welded arc melts filler metal (electrode has filler metal + flux) and some parent metal forms molten pool that fills gaps between pieces to be joined as arc moves on, melt pool solidifies quickly joining pieces

Coated electrode, electric arc welding

Protection of molten weld metal from oxidation

Slag coated electrodes produce slag (molten glass) covering on melt pool Inert gas stream of inert gas (eg. Argon) flowing over melt pool (TIG, MIG welding) submerged arc arc submerged in melt pool (electroslag welding)

Structure of weld

From centre line: solidified molten weld metal Heat Affected Zone (HAZ) original unaffected metal

HAZ in welding of steels

temperature in heat affected zone can be > A3 structure can transform to austenite rapid heat flow through large parent plates gives rapid cooling or quench of austenite form martensite

Properties of HAZ

Martensite formation in HAZ

Typical cooling rate in HAZ is ~ 100 C/sec for fine grained steel, CCR ~ 400 C/sec and martensite should not form BUT if high temperatures reached, grain growth of austenite can occur which reduces CCR martensite can form, particularly in steels with C > 0.5 - 0.6 wt %

Carbon Equivalent
Alloy elements can effect the CCR in a similar way to C content Effect of alloying elements can be described by Carbon equivalent CE = C + Mn/6 + (Cr +Mo +V)/5 + (Ni + Cu)/15

Hardness / Hardenability
hardness - resistance to penetration of indentor hardenability - ease of forming hard microstructures ie martensite and bainite Note: Both properties of steel

hardness measurement
hardness = force/projected area of indent numerous standardised tests various shaped indentors different applied loads measure depth of penetration or shape of indentation Note: Vickers hardness = force/total surface area)

Hardness test methods

Importance of hardness
hardness related to yield strength H ~ 3y (hardness can be used as a quality check) important parameter in wear

Severity of Quench
Importance of Hardenability
Often want hard structures through thick sections On quenching: high cooling rate on surface transforms to martensite cooling rate at centre of section slower, depends on heat flow through the material may get ferrite and pearlite
Can try to get hard micro-structures by increasing the cooling rate during quenching Severity of Quench depends on: quench media water > oil > air degree of agitation - increases heat flow across solid/liquid or gas interface More rapid quench may not work - cooling rate in centre still governed by conductivity - may induce cracking thermal contraction volume expansion due to martensite transformation

Hardenability
To harden thick section: need material that hardens with slow cooling rate i.e. has high hardenability High hardenability = nose of pearlite transformation moved to longer times = decreasing critical cooling rate

Factors affecting Hardenability

Alloying elements Carbon content Austenite grain size

Measurement of hardenability: Jominy end quench test

can assess hardenability by Standard test *Jominy end quench test applies a range of cooling rates to a standard test specimen

Jominy Test
heat standard test piece into Austenite region rapidly transfer heated bar to test rig cool bar by an impinging water jet on bottom of bar cooling rate varies along the bar

Jominy Test (cont.)

austenite transforms to different structures along the bar different structure have different hardness measure hardness as a function of distance from quenched end plot data as hardness v. distance from quenched end
(Hardenability curve)

Origin of hardness profile

End quenching different cooling rates from CCT diagrams different cooling gives different microstructures microstructures have different hardnesses

Hardenability data
if cooling rate is known - can determine hardness at points in heat treated part determine hardness profiles through a part can determine the thickness of part that can be hardened with a given quench