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Ultrasonicinvestigationofgraphitenodularityinductilecastirons

DGZfPJAHRESTAGUNG2001
ZerstrungsfreieMaterialprfung

ZfPinAnwendung,EntwicklungundForschung
Berlin,21.23.Mai2001Berichtsband75CD

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Beitrge:Plakate:Materialcharakterisierung:

Ultrasonicinvestigationofgraphitenodularityinductilecastirons
C.H.Gr,B.Aydinmakina
MiddleEastTech.Univ.,MetallurgicalandMaterialsEng.Dept.,AnkaraTurkey
Fax:00903122101267,Email:chgur@metu.edu.tr

Abstract
Theaimofthispaperistodemonstratethecapabilityofultrasonictechniquesintheassessmentofthe
structureandpropertiesofductilecastirons,andalsocontributetothedatabaseconcerningtheuseof
ultrasonicvelocityandattenuationmeasurementsforqualitycontrol.Intheexperiments,castironspecimens
withdifferentnodularitypercentages(0,50and90%)werecastbytheadditionofdifferentamountsofalloys
tothemelt,andthenvariousheattreatmentswereapplied.Ultrasonicvelocityandapparentattenuation
measurementswerecarriedoutontheascastandheattreatedspecimens.Then,theresultsofultrasonic
measurementswerecorrelatedwiththemicrostructuralinvestigationsonthespecimens.

1.Introduction
Typicalapplicationsofnodularcastironincludeautomotiveanddieselcrankshafts,pistons,andcylinder
heads,electricalfittings,motorframesandcircuitbreakerparts,steelmillworkrolls,furnacedoors,bearings,
toolanddiewrenches,levers,andmiscellaneousdiesforshaping.Nodularcastironshowshigherstrengthand
ductilitythangreycastironofsimilarcomposition.Inoculationofgreycastironsiswidelypractisedand
involvesaddingtotheliquidmetalshortlybeforesolidificationasmallamountofsubstancesuchas
magnesiumorcerium.Whentheresidualmagnesiumcontentofthemeltissufficient,thegraphitegrowswith
aspheroidalshape.Otherwise,variousdegenerateformsofgraphitesuchasflakegraphitemayforminthis
case,thesharpedgesofflakescausecriticalstressconcentrationsthathaveamoreadverseeffectonthe
mechanicalpropertiesthancompactedformsofgraphitewithroundedends.Whetherthematrixisfullyferritic
orpearliticorothercombinations,variationsinthesizeandshapeofthegraphitecanbeproducedby
variationsinchemicalcomposition,castingsectionthickness,design,andcastingconditions.Heattreated
nodularcastironusuallyhasmoreuniformmechanicalpropertiesthanascastone,particularlyincastings
withwidevariationsinsectionthickness.Asthematrixphaseisvariedfromferritetomartensite,strength,
hardnessandwearresistanceincrease,butductility,impacttoughnessandmachinabilitydecrease.
Foundriesneedtospecifythepropertiesofthematerialdeliveredtothecustomersbychemical,mechanical
andmetallurgicaltests.Qualitycontrolofnodularcastironsiscriticalsinceitisverysensitivetotheprocess
variablesaffectingthemicrostructureandmechanicalproperties.Theclassicalprocedurescharacterisethe
propertiesinstandardstates,therefore,theycannotexpresstheactualstrengthandstructuralrelationsinthe
casting.Ontheotherhand,sincethesemethodsaredestructive,labourintensiveandtimeconsuming,itis
meaningfulforbothfoundriesandconsumerstohave100%qualitytesting,whichisreliable,rapidand
suitableforautomaticgrading.Thus,developinganultrasonictechniquethatcouldidentifythenodularityand
thematrixphasesnondestructively,wouldbehelpfulforthepurposesofbothqualitycontrolandproduct
reliability.
Ultrasoniccharacterisationtakestheadvantageoftheelasticandanelasticinteractionsbetweenthesound
waveandthemicrostructure.Indirectassessmentofgraphitemorphologyispossiblebyultrasonicvelocity
measurementsthatarealsodependentonthemechanicalproperties.Anotheralternativeistheevaluationof
theultrasonicattenuation.Castironsconsistofgrainsofthematrixphasesandgraphiteparticleshaving
remarkablydifferentelasticproperties.Althoughthematerialshowsisotropicpropertiesasawholedueto
randomorientationofgrains,elasticanisotropyanddifferentorientationofcrystallographicaxeswithrespect
totheaxesofneighbourgrainsmakestheelasticmodulusdifferentformgraintograin.Thegrainsmayalso
differindensityduetodifferentphases.Thus,soundwaveswillsufferabruptchangesintheirvelocities,with
correspondingchangesintheircharacteristicimpedances,andreflectionswilltakeplaceatgrainboundariesor
interfaces.
Severalstudiesrelatedtothistopichadbeenpublished.EmersonandSimmonsevaluatedthegraphiteformin
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ferriticductileironsbymeasuringultrasonicvelocityandresonantfrequency,[1].Fullerperformedultrasonic
measurementsonpearliticductileironswithvaryingamountsofcompactedgraphite,andontheductileirons
withdifferentmatrixstructureshavingvariednodularityfrom40to100%.Heconcludedthatultrasonic
velocityandattenuationmeasurementswerenoteffectivewhenbothgraphiteformandmatrixstructure
varied,[2,3].Fulleretal.measuredultrasonicvelocityandattenuationonductileironswithvarying
proportionsofferriteandpearliteinwhichthegraphiteformrangedfromfullynodulartoamixtureofnodular
andcompactedgraphite,[4].Theeffectsofnodularityandmatrixphasesontheultrasonicpropertieswere
researchedbyLeeandSuen,[5].Cechresearchedthequalityofcomplexcastingsofbothgreyandnodular
castironshavingdifferentcombinationsofferriteandpearliteinthematrixbyusingultrasonicmeasurement
ofrelativevelocity,magneticandelectricalmethods,[6].OrlowiczandOpiekunconcludedthatthechangesin
thegraphitemorphologyduetoheattreatmentcouldbedetectedbyultrasonicvelocity,[7].Collinsand
Alcheikhperformedultrasonicmeasurementsoncastironswithdifferentnodularityandmatrixstructures.
Theyfoundadefiniterelationshipbetweenthenodulargraphitecontentandtheultrasonicvelocity,but
influencesofmatrixstructureonthevelocitywasnotclear.Theattenuationincreasedwithdecreasing
nodularity,however,matrixstructureswerefoundtohavesimilarattenuationcharacteristicsexcepttempered
martensite,[8].LernerandBrestelmeasuredultrasonicvelocitiestopredicttensilestrengthafterannealingand
normalisingofgreycastironswithdifferentgraphitemorphologies,[9].KrugerandCharlierdevelopeda
modeltosimulatethebackscatteredsignalsfrominhomogeneitiesthataremuchsmallerthanthewavelength,
[10].

2.ExperimentalStudy
Threegroupsofspecimenswerecastintothesandmouldstoproducetheslabshavingdifferentamountof
nodulargraphite.Table1givesthechemicalcompositionsandthecastingparameters.First,specimenshaving
cubicshape(sidelengthof40mm)wereprepared.Aftergrindingandpolishingthesurfacesofthecubes,
ultrasonicmeasurementsweredoneintheperpendiculardirections.Afterverifyingtheisotropicbehaviourof
soundvelocityandattenuation,twospecimenswerepreparedbycuttingeachcubeintoequalparts.These
specimensweremachined,groundandpolishedtoobtaintheparallelsurfaces,andthen,aseriesofspecimens
wereheattreated.Thespecimenswereheatedto860Candstayedatthistemperatureforonehour.Next,the
firstgroupwasannealedbyfurnacecoolingto360Cthesecondgroupwasnormalisedbyaircoolingandthe
thirdgroupwasquenchedintooil.
Theamountsofthephasesandnodulargraphite,andtheaveragesizesofnodulesweredeterminedatthe
randomlyselectedpointsonthespecimenswiththeBuehlerOmnimetimageanalyser.Vicker'shardnesstests
wereperformedbyHeckerthardnessdevice.Theaveragevalueswerecalculatedbyconsideringfive
independentmeasurementsoneachspecimen.Thedensitiesofthespecimenswerealsomeasured.
UltrasonicmeasurementswerecarriedoutusingtheKrautKramerBransonUSIP15anda2MHzstraight
beamprobe.Auniformforcewasexertedontheprobetokeepthethicknessofoilfilmconstantatthe
interface.Theunknownvelocitiesinthespecimensweredeterminedbycomparativemeasurementsonthe
referenceblockK2whoseultrasonicvelocityisaccuratelyknown.
V=tVref/(kT)

(1)

wheretisthethicknessofthespecimen,Vrefisthevelocityoflongitudinalwaveinthereferenceblock,kisa
measurerepresentingonescaleonthetimebaserange,andTisthescalevalueofthebackwallpeak.The
meanvalueswerecalculatedbyrepeatingthemeasurementthreetimesoneachspecimen.Forthevelocity
measurementsinthereferenceblock,thetimeofflightbetweentwobackwallechoeswasmeasuredusing
Panametricsanalyser5052UAX50combinedwithPhilipsoscilloscopePM3365A,andthen,theultrasonic
velocitywascalculatedbydividingthetwicethethicknessofthespecimenwithtime.
Sinceabsoluteattenuationmeasurementsrequirespecializedultrasonicequipmentandtechniques,apparent
attenuationthatistheobservedlossintheultrasonicenergywasdetermined.Inadditiontothetrueloss,italso
includeslossesattributabletoinstrumentation,specimenconfiguration,beamdivergence,andmeasurement
procedure.Thismeasurementprocedureisreadilyadaptableforthedeterminationofrelativeattenuation
betweenmaterials.ApparentattenuationwasdeterminedusingEquation2byconsideringfirstandsecond
backwallechoes,
=[20log(A1/A2)]/2t

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(2)

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whereA1andA2aretheamplitudesofthereflectionsindB,andtisthethicknessofthespecimen.Three
measurementsweredoneoneachspecimen,andtheaveragevaluewascalculated.

3.Resultsanddiscussion
ThelongitudinalultrasonicvelocitycanberelatedtoPoisson'sratio(),density()andelasticmodulus(E)
accordingtotheEquation3.
VL2=(E/)[(1)/(1+)(1)]

(3)

Ithasbeenreportedthatisindependentofthephasesinthematrixofthecastironssincethevelocityratioof
shearandcompressionwavesisconstantirrespectiveofthematrices,[10].Sincethedensityvaluesofthe
specimensareclosetoeachother(between7.02and7.06),theelasticmodulusisthemainparameterinthe
variationofultrasonicvelocities.Fig.1showsthatthereisadirectcorrelationbetweenthelongitudinal
ultrasonicvelocityandtheamountofnodulargraphite,andthevaluesobtainedareinagreementwiththe
literature.Specimenswiththehighestcontentofnodulargraphitehavethehighestvelocity,andultrasonic
velocitydecreaseswithdecreasingnodulargraphitepercent.
Group
I

AsCast
65%F+35%P
27
80%F+20%P
24
5%F+95%P

Annealed
93100%F
23
95100%F
24
100%F

Normalised
8290%P
26
90%P
22
95100%P

OilQuenched
100%M
31
M+fewRA
25
100%P

Matrix
Graphitesize(m)
II
Matrix
Graphitesize(m)
III
Matrix
Flakegraphite
F:ferrite,P:pearlite,M:martensite,RA:retainedaustenite
3.7%C,1.4%Si,0.2%Mn,0.017%P,0.011%S,0.033%Cr,0.03%Ni,0.001%Mo,0.286%Cu,
GroupI: 0.006%Sn,0.035%Mg
Castingtemp.=1430C,Inoculation=2minutes.
3.1%C,2.6%Si,0.22%Mn,0.016%P,0.017%S,0.029%Cr,0.015%Ni,0.002%Mo,0.275%Cu,
GroupII 0.018%Sn,0.022%Mg
:
Castingtemperature=1430C,Inoculation=8,5minutes.
3.6%C,1.11%Si,0.34%Mn,0.077%P,0.074%S,0.022%Cr,0.04%Ni,0.002%Mo,0.27%Cu,
Group 0.015%Sn
III:
Castingtemp.=1360C,noinoculation.
Table1:Dataaboutcastingprocedures,chemicalcompositionsandmicrostructures

Fig.2givesthevariationofrelativeamplitudewithrespecttothenumberofbackwallechoes.Astheamount
ofnodulargraphitedecreases,thenumberofbackwallechoesobservedonthescreenalsodecreases.Since
thescatteringofultrasonicwavesbyflakegraphiteismuchmorereadilythannodulargraphite,adecreasein
nodularityresultedinhigherattenuationintermsofechoamplitude.TheresultsgiveninFig.3supportthe
statementthattheapparentattenuationoftheultrasonicwavesissensitivetothevariationsintheamountof
nodulargraphite.

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Abb1:Relationshipbetweennodulargraphitecontentandultrasonicvelocity
intheascastspecimens.

Abb2:Comparisonofscreenheightsofthebackwallechoes.

Abb3:Variationofapparentattenuationwithrespecttoamountofnodulargraphite.

FromFig.4itisseenthatanincreaseintheamountofthenodulargraphitecausesanincreaseinboth
ultrasonicvelocityandhardness.Indeed,thecorrelationbetweenultrasonicvelocityandmechanicalproperties
isdifficultsincethematrixphasesalsoinfluencethemechanicalproperties.Fortheknownamountofnodular
graphite,hardnessincreasedintheorderofferrite,pearlite,andmartensite.However,foragivenamountof
nodulargraphite,thespecimenshavingdifferentmatrixphasesdidnotshowanyvariationinultrasonic
velocity.Thus,itwasconcludedthattheelasticmodulusofductileironisdecidedmainlybytheamountof
nodulargraphite.
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Abb4:Relationshipbetweenlongitudinalultrasonicvelocityandhardness.

4.Conclusions
Thesensitivityofultrasonicvelocityandapparentattenuationagainstthechangesinthenodulargraphite
contentallowsgradingofnodularcastirons.Itisalsopossibletodetectlocalunnodularizedzonesinthe
castings.Inthespecimenshavinghighamountofnodulargraphite,thelongitudinalwavepropagatesfaster.
ThedifferencesindensityandPoisson'sratioamongthespecimensarenegligible,then,themainreasonfor
thevelocitychangeisthemodulusofelasticity.Variationintheamountofnodulargraphitealsoaffectsthe
soundattenuation.Whenthenodulargraphitecontentdecreases,theattenuationincreasesduetotheincreased
scatteringeffectofthenonsphericalgraphites.Thematrixphasesalsoaffectthemechanicalproperties,
however,thisinfluencecouldnotbeendetectedbyvelocitymeasurements.Althoughapparentattenuation
measurementsaremoresensitive,thereliableutilisationofitrequiresfurtherresearch.Whenthematrix
phasesareknown,ultrasonicmeasurementscanbeusedfordetermininggraphitemorphologythatisalsoan
indicatorofthestrengthproperties.Ifparallelsurfacesexistandsidewalleffectisnegligible,these
measurementsprovideaquicktoolforqualitycontrol.

Acknowledgments
TheauthorsgratefullyacknowledgeErkuntandDkta companies,andthestaffoftheWeldingTechnology
andNDTCentreofMiddleEastTechnicalUniversity.

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