Diffusionless

Transformations - 5
SOLID STATE

Diffusionless Transformation

Martensite forms in plate or lath form

It is a supersaturated solid solution of
ferrite
The first plates form at Ms temperature
and the transformation is completed at
Mf temperature
Usually 100% martensite is never
obtained.

Some austenite remains - Retained Austenite.

10-15% retained austenite is common in
quenched steels

C in Solid Solution

There are two possible positions for

interstitial C:

In FCC , the largest interstitial atom

that can be accommodated is

Tetrahedral sites (4 nearest neighbors)

Octahedral sites (6 nearest neighbors)

d4 = 0.225 D and d6 = 0.414 D

DFe = 0.252 nm (atomic diameter of Fe)
Then d4 = 0.056 nm and d6=0.104 nm
DC = 0.154 nm (atomic diameter of C).

Hence C occupies octahedral sites. But

the lattice is distorted

In BCC ,

d4 = 0.291 D and d6 = 0.155 D

Note the interstitial size in BCC is less than in
FCC

Note d6 < d4.

Yet C occupies octahedral sites in .
Because of less distortion energy

In ,

Octahedral sites have 2 nearest neighbor atoms

Tetrahedral sites have all 4 nearest neighbors.

For containing C in solution

severely distorted in the <100>

C atoms take ordered positions causing distortion
in one of the <100> directions leading to a BCT
crystal
c/a = 1 + 0.045 (wt% C)

In FCC

C is randomly in octahedral sites.

Hence the crystal remains cubic but lattice
parameter increases

Martensite Crystallography

Two orientation relationships found

(i) Kurdjumov-Sachs
(ii) Nishiyama/Greininger and Troiano
{111} // {110} and <11-2> // <1-10>
The closest packed planes are parallel in both

The correspondence between FCC and

BCT lattices was first pointed out by Bain

A BCT unit cell could be outlined

between two FCC unit cells. To obtain
the lattice parameters of martensite,
give a 17% contraction along [001] and
12% expansion along <100>

This is not the mechanism of

transformation nor does it predict the
orientation relationships
Scratch observations indicate that the
martensite plates are tilted about the
junction plane with austenite (habit
plane) - homogeneous shear has taken
place

Lath martensite in very low-C HSLA

steels

Can see prior austenite g.b.

Microstructure with high dislocation density

Retained austenite between Laths of

martensite

Tempering of Martensite

25-100 C: Carbon segregation to dislocations &

boundaries
100-200 C: Transition carbide precipitation
200-350 C: Transformation of retained austenite
350-550 C: Segregation of impurity/alloying atoms to
boundaries
400-600 C: Recovery of dislocation substructure

500-700 C:

Reduced c/a ratio

Conversion of BCT to BCC-ferrite
Formation of alloy carbides (secondary hardening)
Formation of austenite & its subsequent transformation (secondary
hardening)

600-700 C: RXN and GG, coarsening of carbides

New austenite nucleating at the lath

boundaries of aged martensite

New austenite grows

between laths
Some retained
Some transformed to
dislocated martensite
Some transformed to
twinned martensite
(micro-twins evident)

Recap

Homogeneous nucleation energetics

and rates
Heterogeneous nucleation phenomenon
Growth rates of precipitates. Zener
approximation
Cellular transformation kinetics
Precipitation hardening in Al-Cu system
Spinodal decomposition
Particle coarsening

Transformations in steels
morphology of ferrite, pearlite, bainite and
martensite
mechanisms of transformation
crystallography