Applications and

Processing
of Metal Alloys

By: Engr. Jordan L. Ronquillo RMEE

 Objectives
• Name four different types of steels and cite compositional
differences, distinctive properties, and typical uses for each.
• Name the five cast iron types and describe the microstructure
and note the general mechanical characteristics for each.
• Name seven different types of nonferrous alloys and cite the
distinctive physical and mechanical characteristics and list at
least three typical applications for each.
• Name and describe four forming operations that are used to
shape metal alloys.
• Name and describe five casting techniques.
 Objectives
• State the purposes of and describe procedures for the
following heat treatments: process annealing, stress relief
annealing, normalizing, full annealing, and spheroidizing.

• Define hardenability.
 Fundamental Concepts

Often a materials problem is really one of selecting the material that has the
right combination of characteristics for a specific application.

Therefore, the people who are involved in the decision making should have
some knowledge of the available options.

Materials selection decisions may also be influenced by the ease with which
metal alloys may be formed or manufactured into useful components.

Alloy properties are altered by fabrication processes, and, in addition, further

property alterations may be induced by the employment of appropriate heat
treatments.
 Fundamental Concepts
Types of Metal Alloys

Metal alloys, by virtue of composition, are often grouped into two classes
—ferrous and nonferrous.

Ferrous alloys, those in which iron is the principal constituent, include

steels and cast irons. The nonferrous ones—all alloys that are not iron
based.
 Fundamental Concepts
FERROUS ALLOYS

Ferrous alloys—those in which iron is the prime constituent—are produced in

larger quantities than any other metal type.

They are especially important as engineering construction materials. Their

widespread use is accounted for by three factors:

(1) iron containing compounds exist in abundant quantities within the Earth’s
crust;
(2) Metallic iron and steel alloys may be produced using relatively economical
extraction, refining, alloying, and fabrication techniques; and
(3) ferrous alloys are extremely versatile, in that they may be tailored to have a
wide range of mechanical and physical properties.
Fundamental Concepts
 Fundamental Concepts
Steels

Steels are iron–carbon alloys that may contain appreciable

concentrations of other alloying elements; there are thousands of alloys
that have different compositions and/ or heat treatments.

Some of the more common steels are classified according to carbon

concentration into low-, medium-, and high-carbon types.

Subclasses also exist within each group according to the concentration

of other alloying elements.
 Ferrous Alloys
Plain carbon steels contain only residual concentrations of impurities
other than carbon and a little manganese.

For alloy steels, more alloying elements are intentionally added in

specific concentrations.
 Ferrous Alloys
Low-Carbon Steels

Of the different steels, those produced in the greatest quantities fall within the
low carbon classification. These generally contain less than about 0.25 wt% C
and are unresponsive to heat treatments intended to form martensite;
strengthening is accomplished by cold work.

As a consequence, these alloys are relatively soft and weak but have outstanding
ductility and toughness; in addition, they are machinable, weldable, and, of all
steels, are the least expensive to produce.

Typical applications include automobile body components, structural shapes

(e.g., I-beams, channel and angle iron), and sheets that are used in pipelines,
buildings, bridges, and tin cans.
Ferrous Alloys
 Ferrous Alloys
Another group of low-carbon alloys are the High-strength, low-alloy (HSLA)
steels. They contain other alloying elements such as copper, vanadium,
nickel, and molybdenum in combined concentrations as high as 10 wt%, and
they possess higher strengths than the plain low-carbon steels.

HSLA steels are more resistant to corrosion than the plain carbon steels,
which they have replaced in many applications where structural strength is
critical (e.g., bridges, towers, support columns in high-rise buildings,
pressure vessels).
Ferrous Alloys
 Ferrous Alloys
Medium-Carbon Steels

The medium-carbon steels have carbon concentrations between about 0.25

and 0.60 wt%. These alloys may be heat-treated by austenitizing, quenching,
and then tempering to improve their mechanical properties.

Additions of chromium, nickel, and molybdenum improve the capacity of

these alloys to be heat-treated, giving rise to a variety of strength–ductility
combinations. These heat-treated alloys are stronger than the low-carbon
steels, but at a sacrifice of ductility and toughness.

Applications include railway wheels and tracks, gears, crankshafts, and other
machine parts and high-strength structural components calling for a
combination of high strength, wear resistance, and toughness.
 Ferrous Alloys
Additions of chromium, nickel, and molybdenum improve the capacity of
these alloys to be heat-treated giving rise to a variety of strength–ductility
combinations. These heat-treated alloys are stronger than the low-carbon
steels, but at a sacrifice of ductility and toughness.

Applications include railway wheels and tracks, gears, crankshafts, and other
machine parts and high-strength structural components calling for a
combination of high strength, wear resistance, and toughness.

The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), the American Iron and

Steel Institute (AISI), and the American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM) are responsible for the classification and specification of steels as
well as other alloys.
 Ferrous Alloys
The AISI/SAE designation for these steels is a four-digit number: the first two
digits indicate the alloy content; the last two give the carbon concentration.

For plain carbon steels, the first two digits are 1 and 0; alloy steels are
designated by other initial two digit combinations. The third and fourth digits
represent the weight percent carbon multiplied by 100.

A unified numbering system (UNS) is used for uniformly indexing both

ferrous and nonferrous alloys. Each UNS number consists of a single-letter
prefix followed by a five-digit number.

The letter is indicative of the family of metals to which an alloy

belongs. The UNS designation for these alloys begins with a G, followed by
the AISI/ SAE number; the fifth digit is a zero.
Ferrous Alloys
Ferrous Alloys
 Ferrous Alloys

High-Carbon Steels

The high-carbon steels, normally having carbon contents between 0.60 and 1.4
wt %, are the hardest, strongest, and yet least ductile of the carbon steels.

They are almost always used in a hardened and tempered condition and, as
such, are especially wear resistant and capable of holding a sharp cutting edge.

These steels are used as cutting tools and dies for forming and shaping
materials, as well as in knives, razors, hacksaw blades, springs, and high-
strength wire.
Ferrous Alloys
 Ferrous Alloys

Stainless Steels

The stainless steels are highly resistant to corrosion (rusting) in a variety of

environments, especially the ambient atmosphere.

Their predominant alloying element is chromium; a concentration of at least 11

wt% Cr is required. Corrosion resistance may also be enhanced by nickel and
molybdenum additions.

*open pdf (11.4)

 Ferrous Alloys
Cast Irons

Generically, cast irons are a class of ferrous alloys with carbon contents above
2.14 wt%; in practice, however, most cast irons contain between 3.0 and 4.5 wt
% C and, in addition, other alloying elements.

Furthermore, some cast irons are very brittle, and casting is the most
convenient fabrication technique.
 Ferrous Alloys
Gray Iron

The carbon and silicon contents of gray cast irons vary between 2.5 and 4.0 wt
% and 1.0 and 3.0 wt%, respectively.

Mechanically, gray iron is comparatively weak and brittle in tension as a

consequence of its microstructure; the tips of the graphite flakes are sharp and
pointed and may serve as points of stress concentration when an external
tensile stress is applied. Strength and ductility are much higher under
compressive loads.

Base structures for machines and heavy equipment that are exposed to
vibrations are frequently constructed of this material.
 Ferrous Alloys
Ductile (or Nodular) Iron

Adding a small amount of magnesium and/or cerium to the gray iron before
casting produces a distinctly different microstructure and set of mechanical
properties.

White Iron and Malleable Iron

For low-silicon cast irons (containing less than 1.0 wt% Si) and rapid cooling
rates, most of the carbon exists as cementite instead of graphite.

A fracture surface of this alloy has a white appearance, and thus it is termed
white cast iron.
 Ferrous Alloys
Compacted Graphite Iron

A relatively recent addition to the family of cast irons is compacted graphite iron
(abbreviated CGI). As with gray, ductile, and malleable irons, carbon exists as graphite,
whose formation is promoted by the presence of silicon.

Compared to the other cast iron types, desirable characteristics of CGIs include the
following:
• Higher thermal conductivity
• Better resistance to thermal shock (i.e., fracture resulting from rapid temperature
changes)
• Lower oxidation at elevated temperatures Compacted graphite irons are now being
used in a number of important applications, including diesel engine blocks, exhaust
manifolds, gearbox housings, brake discs for high-speed trains, and flywheels.
Next Topic: Non-Ferrous Alloys