MODULE- III

MET 285
Material Science and Technology
 SOLID SOLUTION
 When two metals are melted together and crystallized , a single structure
may form
 In the unit cell of this crystal , both the metal atoms are present in
proportion to their concentration
 This structure is known as a solid solution
 Three types of solid solutions
1. Random substitutional solid solution
2. Ordered substitutional solid solution
3. Interstitial solid solution
 TYPES OF SOLID SOLUTIONS

a. Random substitutional solid solution b. Ordered substitutional solid solution

c. Interstitial solid solution
 TYPES OF SOLID SOLUTIONS
1. Random substitutional solid solution: The solute atoms have substituted
randomly for the parent atoms on their sites
2. Ordered substitutional solid solution : The solute and solvent atoms are
arranged in a regular fashion on the atomic sites
3. Interstitial solid solution : The solute atoms are much smaller than the
parent atoms and have occupied randomly the interstitial voids between
parent atoms
 HUME ROTHERY’S RULE
 Hume Rothery studied a number of alloy systems and formulated the
conditions that favour extensive substitutional solid solubility
 These are known as Hume Rothery rules
1. The size difference between the parent atoms and the solute atom must be
less than 15%
2. The electronegativity difference the metals must be small
3. The crystal structure of the metals and the valency of the atoms must be
the same
 PHASE DIAGRAMS
 The relationships between phases in a system as a function of temperature,
pressure and composition are depicted in the form of maps
 These are equilibrium relationships in that correspond to the state of the
minimum free energy of the system
 Such maps are called equilibrium diagrams (also phase diagrams or
constitutional diagrams)
 GIBBS PHASE RULE
The Gibbs phase rule can be stated as
𝐅=𝐂−𝐏+ 𝟐
Where F is the degrees of freedom
C is the number of components and
P is the number of phases in the systems
 PHASES & COMPONENTS
Phases
 Different states of aggregation of matter such as solid, liquid and gas form
separate phases
 The gaseous phase is always a single phase, as atoms (or molecules ) in the
gaseous phases are mixed at atomic level
 A solid solution of an alloy with the component atoms mixed at unit cell
level constitutes a single phase
Components
 Components refers to the independent chemical species that constitute an
alloy
 For plain carbon steel, iron and carbon are the chemical species ; so ,the
components are Fe and C
 DEGREES OF FREEDOM
 The degrees of freedom refer to the number of independent variables
associated with the system
 The total number of variables is the external variables (temperature and
pressure) plus the composition variables
 The minimum value for the degrees of freedom is zero and this sets an
upper limit on the number of phases that can coexist in a system under
equilibrium
 BINARY PHASE DIAGRAMS
 The most commonly used phase diagrams are those depict the equilibrium
between two components
 These are known as binary phase diagrams
 The Fe − Fe3C phase diagram is used in the study of carbon steels, which
usually contain small quantities of S,P, Si and Mn, in addition to Fe and C
 For equilibrium in a system containing three components ternary phase
diagrams are used
 For graphical representation of the binary phase relationship, a map with
three axes corresponding to temperature, pressure and composition
 For binary phase diagrams it is customary to ignore the pressure variable
and the vapour phase
BINARY ISOMORPHOUS SYSTEMS
 BINARY ISOMORPHOUS
SYSTEMS
 The easiest type of binary phase diagram to understand and interpret is that
which is characterized by the Copper–Nickel system
 Temperature is plotted along the ordinate, and the abscissa represents the
composition of the alloy, in weight percent (bottom) and atom percent (top)
of nickel.
 The composition ranges from 0 wt% Ni (100 wt% Cu) on the left horizontal
extremity to 100 wt% Ni (0 wt% Cu) on the right.
 Three different phase regions, or fields, appear on the diagram, an alpha (α)
field, a liquid (L) field, and a two-phase α + L field.
 Each region is defined by the phase or phases that exist over the range of
temperatures and compositions delimited by the phase boundary lines
 The Copper–Nickel system is termed isomorphous because of this
complete liquid and solid solubility of the two components.
 INTERPRETATION OF
PHASE
DIAGRAMS
For a binary system of known composition and temperature that is at
equilibrium, three kinds of information are available:
(1) the phases that are present,
(2) the compositions of these phases,
(3) the percentages or fractions of the phases
 PHASES PRESENT
 Locate the temperature–composition point on the diagram and notes the
phase(s) with which the corresponding phase field is labelled.
 For example, an alloy of composition 60 wt% Ni–40 wt% Cu at 1100̊ C
would be located at point A ; since this is within the α region, only the
single α phase will be present.
 On the other hand, a 35 wt% Ni–65 wt% Cu alloy at 1250̊ C (point B) will
consist of both α and liquid phases at equilibrium.
 DETERMINATION OF
PHASE

COMPOSITIONS
The first step in the determination of phase compositions is to locate the
temperature–composition point on the phase diagram.
 Different methods are used for single- and two-phase regions.
 If only one phase is present, the procedure is trivial: the composition of
this phase is simply the same as the overall composition of the alloy.
 For example, consider the 60 wt% Ni–40 wt% Cu alloy at 1100̊ C (point
A)
 At this composition and temperature, only the α phase is present, having
a composition of 60 wt% Ni–40 wt% Cu.
 DETERMINATION OF
PHASE COMPOSITIONS
(CONT…)
 In two-phase regions, a series of horizontal lines, one at every temperature;
each of these is known as a tie line, or sometimes as an isotherm.
 These tie lines extend across the two-phase region and terminate at the
phase boundary lines on either side.
 To compute the equilibrium concentrations of the two phases, the following
procedure is used:
1. A tie line is constructed across the two-phase region at the temperature of
the alloy.
2. The intersections of the tie line and the phase boundaries on either side are
noted.
3. Perpendiculars are dropped from these intersections to the horizontal
composition axis, from which the composition of each of the respective
phases is read
 DETERMINATION OF PHASE
AMOUNTS
 The relative amounts (as fraction or as percentage) of the phases present at
equilibrium may also be computed with the aid of phase diagrams
 The solution is obvious in the single-phase region: Since only one phase is
present, the alloy is composed entirely of that phase; that is, the phase
fraction is 1.0 or, alternatively, the percentage is 100%.
 From the previous example for the 60 wt% Ni–40 wt% Cu alloy at 1100̊ C
(point A ) only the α phase is present; hence, the alloy is completely or
100% α.
 LEVER RULE
If the composition and temperature position is located within a two-phase region,
the tie line must be utilized in conjunction with a procedure that is often called the
lever rule (or the inverse lever rule), which is applied as follows:
1.The tie line is constructed across the two-phase region at the temperature of the
alloy.
2. The overall alloy composition is located on the tie line.
3.The fraction of one phase is computed by taking the length of tie line from the
overall alloy composition to the phase boundary for the other phase, and dividing
by the total tie line length.
4. The fraction of the other phase is determined in the same manner.
5.If phase percentages are desired, each phase fraction is multiplied by 100. When
the composition axis is scaled in weight percent, the phase fractions computed
using the lever rule are mass fractions—the mass (or weight) of a specific phase
divided by the total alloy mass (or weight).The mass of each phase is computed
from the product of each phase fraction and the total alloy mass.
 LEVER RULE (EXAMPLE)
 Consider again the example shown
in Figure, in which at 1250̊ C both α
and liquid phases are present for a 35
wt% Ni–65 wt% Cu alloy.
 The problem is to compute the
fraction of each of the α and liquid
phases.
 The tie line has been constructed that
was used for the determination of α
and L phase compositions.
 Let the overall alloy composition be
located along the tie line and denoted
as C𝑂 , and mass fractions be
represented by WL and Wα for the
respective phases
 LEVER RULE (EXAMPLE)
From the lever rule, WL may be computed according to
S Cα − CO
WL = =
R + S Cα − CL
wt% Ni, Cα = 42.5 wt% Ni, and CL =31.5 wt% Ni)
42.5 − 35
WL = = 0.68
42.5 − 31.5
Similarly, for the α phase
R CO − CL
Wα = =
R + S Cα −CL
35 − 31.5
Wα = = 0.32
42.5 − 31.5
BINARY EUTECTIC SYSTEMS - (Cu-Ag)Phase Diagram
 BINARY EUTECTIC SYSTEMS
 Three single-phase regions are found on the diagram: α, β, and liquid.
 The α phase is a solid solution rich in copper; it has silver as the solute
component and an FCC crystal structure.
 The β phase solid solution also has an FCC structure, but copper is the
solute
 Addition of silver to copper changes the temperature at which the alloys
become totally liquid decreases along the liquidus line, line AE; thus, the
melting temperature of copper is lowered by silver additions.
 The introduction of copper reduces the temperature of complete melting
along the other liquidus line, FE
 These liquidus lines meet at the point E on the phase diagram, through
which also passes the horizontal isotherm line BEG. Point E is called an
invariant point,
 BINARY EUTECTIC SYSTEMS
 The composition CE and temperature TE; for the copper–silver system, the
values of CE and TE are 71.9 wt% Ag and 779 ̊C
L(CE)⇋α(CαE) + β(CβE)
 Upon cooling, a liquid phase is transformed into the two solid α and β
phases at the temperature TE; the opposite reaction occurs upon heating.
 This is called a eutectic reaction
L(71.9 wt% Ag) ⇋ α(8.0 wt% Ag)+ β(91.2 wt% Ag)
Pb-Sn Phase diagram
Iron–Iron Carbide (Fe–𝐅𝐞𝟑C) Phase Diagram
 FAILURE
 A component looses its ―Engineering Functionality‖
 Need not be a Fracture (fragmentation) always
CAUSES
 Improper materials selection
 Improper processing
 Inadequate design of the component
 Misuse.
 FAILURE MODES
Failure Type of load causing failure

Fracture(Simple fracture) Under static loading

Fatigue Cyclic loading , time dependent

Time dependent deformation at higher
Creep temperature under static loading
 FRACTURE
 Fracture is the separation of a body into two or more pieces in response to an
imposed stress that is static (i.e., constant or slowly changing with time) and at
temperatures that are low relative to the melting temperature of the material.
 The applied stress may be tensile, compressive, shear, or torsional
 Classification is based on the ability of a material to experience plastic
deformation.
 Ductile materials exhibit substantial plastic deformation with high energy
absorption before fracture.
 There is normally little or no plastic deformation with low energy absorption
accompanying a brittle fracture.
 FRACTURE
 Fracture process involves two steps, crack formation and propagation in response
to an imposed stress
 The mode of fracture is highly dependent on the mechanism of crack
propagation.
 Ductile fracture is characterized by extensive plastic deformation in the vicinity
of an advancing crack.
 The process proceeds relatively slowly as the crack length is extended
 Such a crack is often said to be stable, i.e., it resists any further extension unless
there is an increase in the applied stress.
 For brittle fracture, cracks may spread extremely rapidly, with very little
accompanying plastic deformation.
 Such cracks may be said to be unstable, and crack propagation, once started,
will continue spontaneously without an increase in magnitude of the applied
stress
 DUCTILE FRACTURE

(a) Highly ductile fracture in which the specimen necks down to a point
(b) Moderately ductile fracture after some necking.
(c) Brittle fracture without any plastic deformation.
 DUCTILE FRACTURE
 The configuration shown in fig (a )is found for extremely soft metals, such as
pure gold and lead at room temperature, and other metals, polymers, and
inorganic glasses at elevated temperatures.
 These highly ductile materials neck down to a point fracture, showing
virtually 100% reduction in area
 The most common type of tensile fracture profile for ductile metals is that
represented in fig (b) which fracture is preceded by only a moderate amount
of necking
 The configuration shown in fig (c ) is found in brittle materials
 STAGES IN DUCTILE FRACTURE

(a) Initial necking. (b) Small cavity formation. (c) Coalescence of cavities to form a
crack. (d) Crack propagation. (e) Final shear fracture at a 45⁰ angle relative to the
tensile direction
 STAGES IN DUCTILE FRACTURE
 Necking begins, small cavities, or micro voids, form in the interior of the
cross section
 As deformation continues, these micro voids enlarge, come together, and
coalesce to form an elliptical crack, which has its long axis perpendicular to
the stress direction.
 The crack continues to grow in a direction parallel to its major axis by this
micro void coalescence process fracture ensues by the rapid propagation of a
crack around the outer perimeter of the neck
 Fracture having this characteristic surface contour is termed a cup and cone
fracture because one of the mating surfaces is in the form of a cup, the other
like a cone
CUP-AND-CONE FRACTURE

Cup-and-cone fracture in aluminium

 BRITTLE FRACTURE
 Brittle fracture takes place without any appreciable deformation, and by
rapid crack propagation.
 The direction of crack motion is very nearly perpendicular to the direction of
the applied tensile stress and yields a relatively flat fracture surface
 For most brittle crystalline materials, crack propagation corresponds to the
successive and repeated breaking of atomic bonds along specific
crystallographic planes; such a process is termed cleavage.
 This type of fracture is said to be transgranular (or transcrystalline),
because the fracture cracks pass through the grains
 In some alloys, crack propagation is along grain boundaries; this fracture is
termed intergranular
 TRANSGRANULAR &INTERGRANULAR
FRACTURE

Transgranular Facture Intergranular Fracture

BRITTLE FRACTURE

Brittle fracture in a mild steel

 FRACTURE MECHANICS
 Fracture mechanics allows quantification of the relationships between
material properties, stress level, the presence of crack-producing flaws, and
crack propagation mechanisms.
 Design engineers are better equipped to anticipate, and thus prevent,
structural failures
 STRESS CONCENTRATION
 The measured fracture strengths for most brittle materials are significantly
lower than those predicted by theoretical calculations based on atomic
bonding energies.
 This discrepancy is explained by the presence of very small, microscopic
flaws or cracks that always exist under normal conditions at the surface and
within the interior of a body of material.
 These flaws are a detriment to the fracture strength because an applied stress
may be amplified or concentrated at the tip, the magnitude of this
amplification depending on crack orientation and geometry
 The magnitude of this localized stress diminishes with distance away from
the crack tip is nominal stress
 Due to their ability to amplify an applied stress in their locale, these flaws
are sometimes called stress raisers.
 GRIFFITH THEORY
 The tensile stress required to break all the atomic bonds simultaneously
across the perfect cross-section of a solid is of the order of E/6, where E is
the Young’s modulus of the solid
 Real brittle materials fracture at much lower stress of the order of E/500 to
E/1000
 Griffith proposed an energy criterion for the spontaneous propagation of a
pre-existing crack in a brittle solid
 If it is assumed that a crack has an elliptical shape and is oriented
perpendicular to the applied stress
GRIFFITH THEORY
 GRIFFITH THEORY
𝑎
ς 𝑚 = 2ς𝑜
ρ𝑡

 The maximum stress at the crack tipςm, ς𝑜 is the magnitude of the nominal
applied tensile stress, ρ𝑡is the radius of curvature of the crack tip and a
represents the length of a surface crack, or half of the length of an internal
crack
ς𝑚
 The ratio is denoted as the stress concentration factor 𝐊 𝐭
ς𝑜
𝜎𝑚 𝑎
𝐾𝑡 = =2
𝜎𝑜 𝜌𝑡
 GRIFFITH THEORY
 A crack will propagate when the decrease in elastic energy is at least equalto
the energy required to create the new crack surface
 This criterion is useful in determining the tensile stress which will just cause
a critical sized crack to propagate as brittle fracture
 The stress required to propagate a crack in a thin plate under plane stress

2𝐸γ
ς𝐶 =
π𝑎
Where E= Young’sModulus
γ= Surface energy
 FRACTURE TOUGHNESS
 Using fracture mechanics principles, an expression has been developed that
relates this critical stress for crack propagation (ς𝑐 ) and crack length (a)as
𝐾𝑐 = 𝑌ς𝑐 π𝑎
 In this expression 𝐾𝑐 is the fracture toughness, a property that is a measure
of a material’s resistance to brittle fracture when a crack is present
 Unit of 𝐾𝑐 is MPa 𝑚
 Y is a dimensionless parameter or function that depends on both crack and
specimen sizes and geometries, as well as the manner of load application
 For planar specimens containing cracks that are much shorter than the
specimen width, Y has a value of approximately unity
 MODES OF CRACK
SURFACE
DISPLACEMENT

(a) Mode I, opening or tensile mode;

(b) Mode II, sliding mode; and
(c) Mode III, tearing mode
 IMPACT TESTING TECHNIQUES
 Two standardized tests, the Charpy and Izod, were designed and are still used to
measure the impact energy, sometimes also termed notch toughness.
 For both Charpy and Izod, the specimen is in the shape of a bar of square cross
section, into which a V-notch is machined
 The load is applied as an impact blow from a weighted pendulum hammer that is
released from a cocked position at a fixed height h.
 Upon release, a knife edge mounted on the pendulum strikes and fractures the
specimen at the notch, which acts as a point of stress concentration for this high-
velocity impact blow.
 The pendulum continues its swing, rising to a maximum height h’ which is lower
than h.
 The energy absorption, computed from the difference between h and h’ is a
measure of the impact energy
CHARPY AND IZOD TEST
 METHODS OF PROTECTION
AGAINST FRACTURE
 According to Griffith’s theory the cracks and their propagation are the main
reason for fracture, external cracks being more effective in causing final
fracture
 Protection against fracture by crack propagation involves making the cracks
ineffective
Methods employed for protection
1. Introducing compressive stresses on the surface to counteract the tensile
stresses that cause the crack to propagate. This is achieved by shot peening
(shot blasting)
Shot peening-the surface is plastically deformed by repeated impingement
of hard steel balls
 METHODS OF PROTECTION AGAINST
FRACTURE (CONT…)
2. Polishing the surface to a good surface finish to remove many cracks from
the surface
3. Avoid sharp corners and notches in parts to eliminate points of stress
concentration
4. Purity of materials should be improved, because impurities and inclusions
will produce brittle phases
5. Precipitation of second phase particles should be avoided along grain
boundaries
6. Grain refinement in polycrystalline materials offer good protection against
fracture
7. In composites, use of ductile materials in a matrix of brittle material can
avoid facture due to tensile load
 FATIGUE
 Fatigue is a form of failure that occurs in structures subjected to dynamic and
fluctuating stresses (e.g., bridges, aircraft, and machine components).
 Under these circumstances it is possible for failure to occur at a stress level
considerably lower than the tensile or yield strength for a static load.
 The term ‘ fatigue’ is used because this type of failure normally occurs after
a lengthy period of repeated stress or strain cycling.
 Fatigue is important in as much as it is the single largest cause of failure in
metals, estimated to comprise approximately 90% of all metallic failures
 It is catastrophic and insidious, occurring very suddenly and without
warning.
 CYCLIC STRESSES
 The applied stress may be axial (tension-compression), flexural (bending), or
torsional (twisting) in nature.
 Three different fluctuating stress–time modes are possible.
 One is represented schematically by a regular and sinusoidal time dependence ,
wherein the amplitude is symmetrical about a mean zero stress level, for
example, alternating from a maximum tensile stress (ς𝑚𝑎𝑥 ) to a minimum
compressive stress (ςmin ) of equal magnitude; this is referred to as a reversed
stress cycle.
 Another type, termed repeated stress cycle, the maxima and minima are
asymmetrical relative to the zero stress level.
 Finally, the stress level may vary randomly in amplitude and frequency
 CYCLIC STRESSES

(a) Reversed stress cycle, in

which the stress
alternates from a
maximum tensile stress
(+) to a maximum
compressive stress (-) of
equal magnitude.
(b) Repeated stress cycle, in
which maximum and
minimum stresses are
asymmetrical relative to
the zero stress level;
mean stress ς 𝑚 , range
of stress ς 𝑟 , and stress
amplitude ς𝑎 are
indicated
(c) Random stress cycle
 PARAMETERS OF
FLUCTUATING
STRESS CYCLE
 The stress amplitude alternates about a mean stress ς 𝑚 , defined as the average of
the maximum and minimum stresses in the cycle
ς max + ς min
ςm =
2
 The range of stress ς𝑟 is just the difference between ς max andς min
ς𝑟 = ς max − ς min
 Stress amplitude ς𝑎is just one half of this range of stress
ς𝑟 ς max − ς min
ς𝑎 = =
2 2
 The stress ratio R is just the ratio of minimum and maximum stress amplitudes
ς 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑅=
ς 𝑚𝑖𝑛
FATIGUE TEST
 FATIGUE TEST
 The specimen in the form of a cantilever loaded at on end
 It is rotated at the same time, by a high speed motor to which it is connected
 At any instant, the upper surface of the loaded specimen is in tension and the
lower surface in compression, with the neutral axis at the centre
 During each revolution, the surface layers pass through a full cycle of
tension and compression
 The maximum stress amplitude S that the material withstands decreases with
increasing frequency of stress reversals
 The result of fatigue test are plotted as S-N curve, where N is the number of
stress cycles
 S-N CURVE
 The results of a fatigue test are
reported in the form of S-N curves,
where N is the number of stress
cycles
 The steel exhibits a fatigue limit(also
sometimes the endurance limit), i.e.,
if the stress amplitude is below a
certain value, failure does not occur,
how large is N
 In case of aluminium alloys , there is
no fatigue limit
 The fatigue strength can be specified
only by giving the corresponding
value of N
 FATIGUE STRENGTH & FATIGUE LIFE
 Fatigue strength is defined as the stress level at which failure will occur for
some specified number of cycles.
 Another important parameter that characterizes a material’s fatigue
behaviour is fatigue life 𝐍𝐟
 It is the number of cycles to cause failure at a specified stress level
MECHANISM OF FATIGUE
 CRACK INITIATION AND
PROPAGATION
The process of fatigue failure is characterized by three distinct steps:
(1) crack initiation, wherein a small crack forms at some point of high stress
concentration;
(2) crack propagation, during which this crack advances incrementally with each
stress cycle; and
(3) final failure, which occurs very rapidly once the advancing crack has reached a
critical size
 Cracks associated with fatigue failure almost always initiate (or nucleate) on the
surface of a component at some point of stress concentration.
 Crack nucleation sites include surface scratches, sharp fillets, key ways, threads,
dents, and the like
 Cyclic loading can produce microscopic surface discontinuities resulting from
dislocation slip steps that may also act as stress raisers, and therefore as crack
initiation sites
 FATIGUE BEACHMARKS
 The region of a fracture surface that formed during the crack propagation
step may be characterized by two types of markings termed beachmarks and
striations.
 Both of these features indicate the position of the crack tip at some point in
time and appear as concentric ridges that expand away from the crack
initiation site(s), frequently in a circular or semicircular pattern
 Beachmarks (sometimes also called ―clamshell marks‖) are of macroscopic
dimensions and may be observed with the unaided eye
 These markings are found for components that experienced interruptions
during the crack propagation stage
 Each beachmark band represents a period of time over which crack growth
occurred.
 FATIGUE STRIATIONS
 Fatigue striations are microscopic in size and subject to observation with the
electron microscope (either TEM or SEM).
 Each striation is thought to represent the advance distance of a crack front
during a single load cycle.
 Striation width depends on, and increases with, increasing stress range
 Beachmarks and striations will not appear on that region over which the rapid
failure occurs
 FACTORS THAT AFFECT FATIGUE LIFE
 The fatigue behaviour of engineering
materials is highly sensitive to a
number of variables.
 Some of these factors include mean
stress level, geometrical design,
surface effects, and metallurgical
variables, as well as the environment.
Mean Stress
 Increasing the mean stress level leads
to a decrease in fatigue life
 SURFACE EFFECTS
 Fatigue life is sensitive to the condition and
configuration of the component surface
 Numerous factors influence fatigue resistance,
the proper management of which will lead to
an improvement in fatigue life.
 These include design criteria as well as
various surface treatments.
Design Factors
 Any notch or geometrical discontinuity can act
as a stress raiser and fatigue crack initiation (a) Poor design: sharp corner. (b) Good
site; these design features include grooves, design: fatigue lifetime improved by
holes, keyways, threads, and so on. incorporating rounded fillet into a
 The sharper the discontinuity (i.e., the smaller rotating shaft at the point where there is
the radius of curvature), the more severe the a change in diameter
stress concentration
 SURFACE TREATMENTS
 During machining operations, small scratches and
grooves are invariably introduced into the workpiece
surface by cutting tool action.
 These surface markings can limit the fatigue life.
 Improving the surface finish by polishing will
enhance fatigue life significantly
 One of the most effective methods of increasing
fatigue performance is by imposing residual
compressive stresses within a thin outer surface layer
 Residual compressive stresses are commonly
introduced into ductile metals mechanically by
localized plastic deformation within the outer surface
region.
 Commercially, this is accomplished by a process
termed shot peening
 Case hardening is a technique by which both surface
hardness and fatigue life are enhanced for steel
alloys
 ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
 Two types of environment-assisted fatigue failure: thermal fatigue and
corrosion fatigue.
 Thermal fatigue is normally induced at elevated temperatures by fluctuating
thermal stresses; mechanical stresses from an external source need not be
present.
 The origin of these thermal stresses is the restraint to the dimensional
expansion and/or contraction that would normally occur in a structural
member with variations in temperature.
ς = αtE∆T
 Where α t = Co-efficient of thermal expansion
E = Modulus of elasticity
∆T = Temperature change
 CORROSION FATIGUE
 Failure that occurs by the simultaneous action of a cyclic stress and chemical
attack is termed corrosion fatigue.
 Corrosive environments have a deleterious influence and produce shorter fatigue
lives.
 Even the normal ambient atmosphere will affect the fatigue behaviour of some
materials.
 Small pits may form as a result of chemical reactions between the environment
and material, which serve as points of stress concentration and therefore as crack
nucleation sites.
 Crack propagation rate is enhanced as a result of the corrosive environment.
 The nature of the stress cycles will influence the fatigue behaviour; for example,
lowering the load application frequency leads to longer periods during which the
opened crack is in contact with the environment and to a reduction in the fatigue
life
 PROTECTION METHODS
 The methods of increasing fatigue life are primarily aimed at preventing or
delaying initiation of crack at the surface
1. Shot peening introduces compressive residual stresses near the surface
layers. The surface is plastically deformed by repeated impingement of
hard steel balls
2. Carburizing and nitriding introduce compressive residual stresses at the
surface, as well as the hardness and strength
3. A fine grain size improves fatigue life
4. The crack initiation invariably occur from a site of stress concentration. In
design, fillets of adequate radius of curvature should be provided at the
places where a sudden change of cross-section exists
 DUCTILE-BRITTLE TRANSITION
 Under certain circumstances , ductile
materials fracture abruptly and with
very little plastic deformation
 There is a transition from ductile to
brittle fracture, as crack propagation
takes precedence over plastic
deformation
 This ductile to brittle transition
occurs when
1. The temperature is lowered
2. The rate of strain hardening
increased
3. A notch or stress raiser is
introduced in the material
 DUCTILE-BRITTLE TRANSITION (CONT..)

 At higher temperatures, the atoms in the material vibrate with greater

frequency and amplitude
 This increase allows the atoms under stress to slip to new positions within
the material (to break bonds and form new ones with other atoms in the
material)
 This slippage of atom is observed outside of the material as plastic
deformation
 When the temperature is lowered, atoms may not be able to slip to new
position in the material
 The decrease in slippage does not cause plastic deformation
 Thus, the material behaves in brittle manner at low temperatures
 DUCTILE-BRITTLE TRANSITION
TEMPERATURE (DBTT)

 At some temperature called ductile-brittle transition temperature, the stress to

propagate a crack σc equals to the stress to move dislocations, σy (yield
stress)
 When σy < σc, the material first yields plastically and then fracture occurs
 That is at temperature higher than the transition temperature, the material is
ductile
 At temperature less than transition temperature, the material become brittle
 This transition is commonly observed in metals having BCC and HCP
structures
 Ceramics and polymers experience ductile to brittle transition
 CREEP CURVE
 Upon application of the load there is
an instantaneous deformation, as
indicated in the figure, which is
mostly elastic.
 The resulting creep curve consists of
three regions,
 Primary or transient creep occurs
first, typified by a continuously
decreasing creep rate, the slope of the
curve diminishes with time.
 This suggests that the material is
experiencing an increase in creep
resistance or strain hardening
deformation becomes more difficult as
the material is strained.
 CREEP CURVE
(CONT…)
 Secondary creep, sometimes termed steady-state creep, the rate is constant;
that is, the plot becomes linear.
 This is the stage of creep that is of the longest duration.
 The constancy of creep rate is explained on the basis of a balance between the
competing processes of strain hardening and recovery, recovery being the
process whereby a material becomes softer and retains its ability to experience
deformation.
 Tertiary creep, there is an acceleration of the rate and ultimate failure.
 This failure is frequently termed rupture and results from microstructural and/or
metallurgical changes; for example, grain boundary separation, and the formation
of internal cracks, cavities, and voids.
 For tensile loads, a neck may form at some point within the deformation region.
 These all lead to a decrease in the effective cross-sectional area and an increase
in strain rate.
CREEP
TEST
 CREEP
TEST
 Creep test is conducted to determine the continuing change in the
deformation of materials at elevated temperatures when stressed below yield
point
 The test is carried out at constant temperature by applying a fixed load or
stress and the induced strain induced in the specimen is noted at regular
intervals of time
 The specimen of the same dimensions used for the tension test is employed
for creep test
 For applying a constant load, the test setup requires a dead weight and a
system of levers to multiply it to the target load
 Specimen is placed in a furnace in order to conduct creep test at elevated
temperature
 The specimen is heated to a specified temperature at the same time a constant
load is applied
 CREEP TEST
(CONT…)
 The resulting strain in the specimen is measured using a strain gauge or an
extensometer
 The test is repeated with for or five specimens tested under different loads at
each temperature
 The change in length (strain ) of the specimen over a period of time is plotted
against time to obtain creep curve
 STRUCTURAL CHANGES
DURING CREEP
 During deformation by creep, the temperature and stress are remaining
constant
 The rate at which creep deformation takes place is the result of changes in
internal structure of the material , with creep strain and time
 Structural changes observed in metals at elevated temperatures are
1. Deformation by slip
2. Sub-grain formation
3. Grain boundary sliding
 DEFORMATION BY

SLIP
At elevated temperature new slip systems becomes operative
 The critical resolved shear stress for slip on these new planes is lower than
that at low temperature
 Slip under high temperature conditions occur on many slip planes for small
slip distances
 At low temperature condition , these slip systems would not be operative,
because the dislocation loop s would repel each other
 At higher temperature these dislocation loops can climb and annihilate each
other
 This annihilation facilitates steady flow of new dislocations from many
sources
 Hence the dislocations continue their motion causing creep strain
 SUB-GRAIN
FORMATION

(a) Excess dislocations in a bent crystal

(b) Dislocation climb
(c) Re-arrangement after polygonisation
 SUB-GRAIN

FORMATION
Bending of crystals result in the formation of excess dislocations of the same
sign
 When annealed at high temperatures, dislocation climb occurs and these
dislocations rearrange themselves into a low angle grain boundary
 The low angle grain boundaries so developed are called sub-boundaries and
the crystal regions they separate are called sub-grains
 This process is known as polygonisation or sub-grain formation
 The bent crystal therefore break up into a number of closely related small
crystal segments
 Creep deformation is quite inhomogeneous and lattice bending can occur
near grain boundaries
 Lager sub-grains are formed at higher temperatures at stresses
 The sub- grain boundaries being less regular and less well defined, serve as
less effective barriers to moving dislocations
 Continued dislocation motion causes further creep strain
 GRAIN BOUNDARY

SLIDING
When a polycrystalline material is heated, grain boundaries loose their
strength at a temperature lower than the grain
 At temperature above 0.5Tm, grain boundaries act as a low viscosity liquid
separating the neighbouring grains allowing them to slide against each other
 At elevated temperatures the grains in a polycrystalline material are able to
move relative to each other
 This is known as grain boundary sliding
 This is a shear process and is promoted by increasing the temperature or
decreasing the strain rate
 The resultant strain due to grain boundary sliding represents from a few
percent to as high as 50 percent of the total strain depending on the material
and the test conditions
 Due to grain boundary sliding metals undergo a transition from transgranular
to intergranular fracture, as temperature increases
 MECHANISM OF

CREEP
The temperature and time dependence of creep deformation indicates that it
is thermally activated process
 Several atomic processes are known to be responsible for creep in crystalline
materials
1. Dislocation cross slip
2. Dislocation climb
3. Diffusion of vacancies
4. Grain boundary sliding
 The dynamic recovery occurs in the later stages of plastic deformation due
to cross slip of screw dislocations
 At low temperature region of creep, cross slip continues with the aid of
thermal energy and causes further plastic strain as a function of time
 This involves dislocations moving along slip planes and overcoming
barriers by thermal energy at higher stresses
 MECHANISM OF CREEP

(CONT…)
If the temperature is high enough for an appreciable diffusion rate off vacancies,
they may diffuse to the edge dislocations or away from them, making them
climb up or down
 Thus edge dislocations piled up against an immobile dislocation can move to
other parallel slip planes by climb and continue their motion in response to the
applied stress
 Vacancies also move in response to the applied stress from surfaces of the
specimen transverse to the stress axis to the surface that are parallel to the stress
axis over a period of time
 This movement would elongate the specimen in the direction of the stress axis
and contract in the transverse direction resulting in creep
 When a material is heated, grain boundaries loose their strength at a
temperature lower than the grain
 At temperature above 0.5Tm, grain boundaries act as a low viscosity liquid
separating the neighbouring grains allowing them to slide against each other
 At higher temperature the grain boundaries facilitate the deformation process by
sliding and causes slip
 THRESHOLD FOR
CREEP
 Both temperature and the level of
applied stress influence the creep
characteristics
 Below 0.4 Tm ,after initial
deformation , the strain is
independent of time
 With either increasing stress or
temperature the following will happen
 The instantaneous strain at the
time of stress application increases
 The strain rate (ΔE ΔT ) is enhanced
 The time to rupture is decreased
 THRESHOLD FOR CREEP
(CONT…)
 Creep characteristics vary with materials
 The higher the melting point temperature (Tm) of a metal, the better is its
resistance to high temperature creep
 The combination of stress level and temperature at which strain remains
constant at the instantaneous deformation level is known as the threshold
for creep
 PREVENTION AGAINST
CREEP
 Materials having high thermal stability and higher melting point resist creep
 An annealed material having higher thermal stability than quenched material
of low thermal stability is superior in its creep resistance
 A fine grained material is having better mechanical properties at low
temperature
 But fine grained material is prone to grain boundary sliding at high
temperature
 Coarse grained material exhibit better creep resistance at high temperature
 Precipitation hardening alloys improve creep resistance
 Fine insoluble precipitates at high operating temperatures prevents
dislocation movements as well as grain boundary sliding
 Dispersion hardening improves creep resistance
 Hard insoluble particles of second phase are uniformly distributed in a finely
divided form off metal matrix
 PREVENTION AGAINST
CREEP (CONT…)
 Cold working or work hardening is an important method of strengthening a
metallic material since the process results in an increased elastic limit yield
strength
 In a cold worked material, the slip process is less easy
 Previous cold wok can modify creep behaviour in the primary and secondary
stages
 Formation of substitutional solid solution improves creep resistance, since it
involves the creation of lattice strains which hinder dislocation movement
 The resistance offered by solute atoms to the movement of dislocations is useful
at moderate temperatures
 SUPER

PLASTICITY
The phenomenon of extensive plastic deformation without necking is termed as
structural super plasticity.
 Superplastic deformation in tension can be >300% (up to even 2000%).
 Typically superplastic deformation occurs when:
(i)T>0.5Tm
(ii) grain size is < 10 μm
(iii) grains are equiaxed (which usually remain so after deformation)
(iv)grain boundaries are glissile (with a large fraction of high angle grain
boundaries).
 Presence of a second phase (of similar strength to the matrix- reduces cavitation
during deformation), which can inhibit grain growth at elevated temperatures
helps (e.g. Al-33%Cu, Zn-22%Al)).
 Many superplastic alloys have compositions are close to eutectic or eutectoid
points.
 Superplastic flow is diffusion controlled (can be grain boundary or lattice
diffusion controlled).
 APPLICATIONS OF
SUPERPLASTICITY
 Widely used in metal forming processes like thermoforming, blow forming,
vacuum forming, deep drawing, etc. for the production of large complex
shaped products
 Deep or complex shaped products can be made as one piece, single
operation pressings, rather than multi step conventional pressings or multi
piece assemblies
 The disadvantage of super plastic forming is low forming rate
 This is compensated by the elimination of considerable number of
subsequent assembly operations, reduction of fastening holes (helps in
prevention of fatigue cracks) reduction in weight of the product and
reduction in tooling cost
 Super plastic forming techniques are adopted also for the production of
aerofoil in gas turbine from difficult to form super alloys