PHYSICAL METALLURGY

By ROBERT BROWN

CONTENTS A METALS 1 METALS THE GENERIC METALS AND ALLOYS; IRON-BASED, COPPER-BASED, NICKEL-BASED, ALUMINIUM-BASED AND TITANIUM-BASED ALLOYS; DESIGN DATA; EXAMPLES 2 METAL STRUCTURES THE RANGE OF METAL STRUCTURES THAT CAN BE ALTERED TO GET DIFFERENT PROPERTIES: CRYSTAL AND GLASS STRUCTURE, STRUCTURES OF SOLUTIONS AND COMPOUNDS, GRAIN AND PHASE BOUNDARIES, EQUILIBRIUM SHAPES OF GRAINS AND PHASES; EXAMPLES 3 EQUILIBRIUM CONSTITUTION AND PHASE DIAGRAMS HOW MIXING ELEMENTS TO MAKE AN ALLOY CAN CHANGE THEIR STRUCTURE; EXAMPLES: THE LEAD–TIN, COPPER–NICKEL AND COPPER–ZINC ALLOY SYSTEMS; EXAMPLES 4 CASE STUDIES IN PHASE DIAGRAMS CHOOSING SOFT SOLDERS; PURE SILICON FOR MICROCHIPS; MAKING BUBBLE-FREE ICE; EXAMPLES 5 THE DRIVING FORCE FOR STRUCTURAL CHANGE THE WORK DONE DURING A STRUCTURAL CHANGE GIVES THE DRIVING FORCE FOR THE CHANGE; EXAMPLES: SOLIDIFICATION, SOLID-STATE PHASE CHANGES, PRECIPITATE COARSENING, GRAIN GROWTH, RECRYSTALLISATION; SIZES OF DRIVING FORCES; EXAMPLES 6 KINETICS OF STRUCTURAL CHANGE: I – DIFFUSIVE TRANSFORMATIONS WHY TRANSFORMATION RATES PEAK – THE OPPOSING CLAIMS OF DRIVING FORCE AND THERMAL ACTIVATION; WHY LATENT HEAT AND DIFFUSION SLOW TRANSFORMATIONS DOWN; EXAMPLES 7 KINETICS OF STRUCTURAL CHANGE: II – NUCLEATION HOW NEW PHASES NUCLEATE IN LIQUIDS AND SOLIDS; WHY NUCLEATION IS HELPED BY SOLID CATALYSTS; EXAMPLES: NUCLEATION IN PLANTS, VAPOUR TRAILS, BUBBLE CHAMBERS AND CARAMEL; EXAMPLES 8 KINETICS OF STRUCTURAL CHANGE: III – DISPLACIVE TRANSFORMATIONS HOW WE CAN AVOID DIFFUSIVE TRANSFORMATIONS BY RAPID COOLING; THE ALTERNATIVE – DISPLACIVE (SHEAR) TRANSFORMATIONS AT THE SPEED OF SOUND; EXAMPLES 9 CASE STUDIES IN PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS ARTIFICIAL RAIN-MAKING; FINE-GRAINED CASTINGS; SINGLE CRYSTALS FOR SEMICONDUCTORS; AMORPHOUS METALS; EXAMPLES 10 THE LIGHT ALLOYS WHERE THEY SCORE OVER STEELS; HOW THEY CAN BE MADE STRONGER: SOLUTION, AGE AND WORK HARDENING; THERMAL STABILITY; EXAMPLES 11 STEELS: I – CARBON STEELS STRUCTURES PRODUCED BY DIFFUSIVE CHANGES; STRUCTURES PRODUCED BY DISPLACIVE CHANGES (MARTENSITE); WHY QUENCHING AND TEMPERING CAN TRANSFORM THE STRENGTH OF STEELS; THE TTT DIAGRAM; EXAMPLES 12 STEELS: II – ALLOY STEELS ADDING OTHER ELEMENTS GIVES HARDENABILITY (EASE OF MARTENSITE FORMATION), SOLUTION STRENGTHENING, PRECIPITATION STRENGTHENING, CORROSION RESISTANCE, AND AUSTENITIC (F C C ) STEELS; EXAMPLES 13 CASE STUDIES IN STEELS METALLURGICAL DETECTIVE WORK AFTER A BOILER EXPLOSION; WELDING STEELS TOGETHER SAFELY; THE CASE OF THE BROKEN HAMMER; EXAMPLES 14 PRODUCTION, FORMING AND JOINING OF METALS PROCESSING ROUTES FOR METALS; CASTING; PLASTIC WORKING; CONTROL OF GRAIN SIZE; MACHINING; JOINING; SURFACE ENGINEERING; EXAMPLES B CERAMICS AND GLASSES 15 CERAMICS AND GLASSES THE GENERIC CERAMICS AND GLASSES: GLASSES, VITREOUS CERAMICS, HIGH-TECHNOLOGY CERAMICS, CEMENTS AND CONCRETES, NATURAL CERAMICS (ROCKS AND ICE), CERAMIC COMPOSITES; DESIGN DATA; EXAMPLES 16 STRUCTURE OF CERAMICS CRYSTALLINE CERAMICS; GLASSY CERAMICS; CERAMIC ALLOYS; CERAMIC MICRO-STRUCTURES: PURE, VITREOUS AND COMPOSITE; EXAMPLES 17 THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF CERAMICS HIGH STIFFNESS AND HARDNESS; POOR TOUGHNESS AND THERMAL SHOCK RESISTANCE; THE EXCELLENT CREEP RESISTANCE OF REFRACTORY CERAMICS; EXAMPLES 18 THE STATISTICS OF BRITTLE FRACTURE AND CASE STUDY HOW THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLAW SIZES GIVES A DISPERSION OF STRENGTH: THE WEIBULL DISTRIBUTION; WHY THE STRENGTH FALLS WITH TIME (STATIC FATIGUE); CASE STUDY: THE DESIGN OF PRESSURE WINDOWS; EXAMPLES 19 PRODUCTION, FORMING AND JOINING OF CERAMICS PROCESSING ROUTES FOR CERAMICS; MAKING AND PRESSING POWDERS TO SHAPE; WORKING GLASSES; MAKING HIGH-TECHNOLOGY CERAMICS; JOINING CERAMICS; APPLICATIONS OF HIGH-PERFORMANCE CERAMICS; EXAMPLES 20 SPECIAL TOPIC: CEMENTS AND CONCRETES HISTORICAL BACKGROUND; CEMENT CHEMISTRY; SETTING AND HARDENING OF CEMENT; STRENGTH OF CEMENT AND CONCRETE; HIGH-STRENGTH CEMENTS; EXAMPLES C POLYMERS AND COMPOSITES 21 POLYMERS THE GENERIC POLYMERS: THERMOPLASTICS, THERMOSETS, ELASTOMERS, NATURAL POLYMERS; DESIGN DATA; EXAMPLES 22 THE STRUCTURE OF POLYMERS GIANT MOLECULES AND THEIR ARCHITECTURE; MOLECULAR PACKING: AMORPHOUS OR CRYSTALLINE?; EXAMPLES 23 MECHANICAL BEHAVIOUR OF POLYMERS HOW THE MODULUS AND STRENGTH DEPEND ON TEMPERATURE AND TIME; EXAMPLES 24 PRODUCTION, FORMING AND JOINING OF POLYMERS MAKING GIANT MOLECULES BY POLYMERISATION; POLYMER “ALLOYS”; FORMING AND JOINING POLYMERS; EXAMPLES 25 COMPOSITES: FIBROUS, PARTICULATE AND FOAMED HOW ADDING FIBRES OR PARTICLES TO POLYMERS CAN IMPROVE THEIR STIFFNESS, STRENGTH AND TOUGHNESS; WHY FOAMS ARE GOOD FOR ABSORBING ENERGY; EXAMPLES 26 SPECIAL TOPIC: WOOD ONE OF NATURE’S MOST SUCCESSFUL COMPOSITE MATERIALS; EXAMPLES D DESIGNING WITH METALS, CERAMICS, POLYMERS AND COMPOSITES 27 DESIGN WITH MATERIALS THE DESIGN-LIMITING PROPERTIES OF METALS, CERAMICS, POLYMERS AND COMPOSITES; DESIGN METHODOLOGY; EXAMPLES 28 CASE STUDIES IN DESIGN 1 DESIGNING WITH METALS: CONVEYOR DRUMS FOR AN IRON ORE TERMINAL 2 DESIGNING WITH CERAMICS: ICE FORCES ON OFFSHORE STRUCTURES 3 DESIGNING WITH POLYMERS: A PLASTIC WHEEL 4 DESIGNING WITH COMPOSITES: MATERIALS FOR VIOLIN BODIES 29 ENGINEERING FAILURES AND DISASTERS – THE ULTIMATE TEST OF DESIGN INTRODUCTION CASE STUDY 1: THE TAY BRIDGE RAILWAY DISASTER – 28 DECEMBER CASE STUDY 2: THE COMET AIR DISASTERS – 10 JANUARY AND 8 APRIL CASE STUDY 3: THE ESCHEDE RAILWAY DISASTER – 5 JUNE