The Effect of Carbon

THE EFFECT OF CARBON
Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon (0.01 - 1.4%C). Plain Carbon Steels
0.1% Increase in carbon 1.4%
Increase in tensile strength

Increase in hardness
Decrease in elongation
STEEL ALLOYS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO FIVE MAIN GROUPS

1. Carbon steels.
2. Alloy steels.
3. Quenched & tempered steels.
4. Heat treatable low alloy steels.
5. Chromium molybdenum steels
PLAIN CARBON STEELS COME IN THREE TYPES

Low Carbon Steels 0.01 - 0.3%C
Medium Carbon Steels 0.3 - 0.6%C
High Carbon Steels 0.6 - 1.4%C
ELEMENTS IN STEELS
Alloy steels contain iron and carbon plus other alloying elements to give the steel required mechanical & metallurgical
properties.
Low alloy steels

Fe & C +Mn, Cr, Ni, Mo < 7% total
High alloy steels

Fe & C + Mn, Cr, Ni, Mo> 7% total
Alloying Elements
Manganese (Mn) - Primary de sulphuriser & Secondary deoxidizer.

 Added to steels to reduce carbon.
 Affects strength & harden ability.
Silicon (Si) - Primary deoxidizer.
Aluminum (Al) - Grain refiner & tertiary deoxidizer.
Molybdenum (Mo) - Improves creep resistance and temper embrittlement.
Chromium (Cr) - Improves hardness & resistance to wear. A major element in stainless steels to give corrosion resistance.
Nickel (Ni) - Improves ductility, strength & toughness. A key element in austenitic stainless steel to improve corrosion
resistance from acids.
Sulphur (S) - An impurity in steels. Harm full because it can cause ‘hot shortness’ - cracking during hot working.
Phosphorus (P) - An impurity in steels. Harmful in steels when over 0.05% because it can cause ‘cold shortness’ - cracking
during cold working.
CARBON CONTENT VS CARBON EQUIVALENT
Carbon content: The actual amount of carbon in the steel.
Carbon Equivalent: The carbon content in relation to other alloying elements .TO obtains good weldablity.
Ceq% = C + Mn /6 + (Cr + Mo + V) /5 + (Cu + Ni)/15 ( Equalizing C content to other element )
Key grain structures
Grain structures in materials are influenced by

1. Elements in the material.
2. Temperature.
3. Cooling rate.
CRITICAL COOLING RATE

Critical cooling rate: The rate of cooling from the austenite region which determines the final grain structure.
Simplified Continuous Cooling Diagram
FRACTURE MECHANISMS
 ductile fracture.
 Brittle fracture.
 Fatigue fracture.
DUCTILE FRACTURE
Ductile (overload) fracture appears when yielding and deformation precedes failure.
Ductile fracture distinguish features

 It is the result of overloading
 Evidence of gross yielding or plastic deformation
 The fracture surface is rough and torn
 The surface shows 45° shear lips or have surfaces inclined at 45° to the load direction (because maximum shear plane is
at 45° to the load!)
BRITTLE FRACTURE
It is a fast, unstable type of fracture.
BRITTLE FRACTURE DISTINGUISH FEATURES

 There is little or no plastic deformation before failure
 The crack surface may show chevron marks pointing back to the initiation point
 In case of impact fracture, the surface is rough but not torn and will usually have a crystalline appearance
 The surface is normally perpendicular to the load
Factors Affecting Brittle Fracture

 Temperature (transition curve, convergence of YS and UTS as the temperature is reduced)
 Crystalline structure (B.C.C. vs. F.C.C.)
 Material toughness
 Residual stress
 Strain rate (YS increase but UTS remain constant)
 Material thickness (restrain due to surrounding material)
 Stress concentrations/weld defects
Causes for brittle fracture

 Presence of weld defects (poor quality)
 Poor toughness in parent material (wrong choice)
 Poor toughness in HAZ (to high heat input)
 High level of residual stress (no PWHT, wrong design)
FATIGUE FRACTURE
If a material is subjected to a static load, final rupture is preceded by very large strains.
If the same material is subjected to cyclic loads, failure may occur:
 At stress well below elastic limit.
 with little or no plastic deformation.
Fatigue fracture distinguish features

Crack growth is slow.
It initiate from stress concentration points.
Load is considerably below the design or yield stress level.
The surface is smooth.
The surface is bounded by a curve.
Bands may sometimes be seen on the smooth surface - 'beach marks'. They show the progress of the crack front from
the point of origin.
The surface is 90° to the load.
Final fracture will usually take the form of gross yielding (as the maximum stress in the remaining ligament increase!).
Fatigue crack need initiation + propagation periods.
Location: Any stress concentration area.
Steel Type: All steel types.
Susceptible Microstructure: All grain structures.
Fatigue cracks occur under cyclic stress conditions.

 Fracture normally occurs at a change in section, notch and weld defects ie stress concentration area.
 All materials are susceptible to fatigue cracking.
 Fatigue cracking starts at a specific point referred to as a initiation point.
 The fracture surface is smooth in appearance sometimes displaying beach markings.
 The final mode of failure may be brittle or ductile or a combination of both.
Precautions against Fatigue Cracks

 Toe grinding, profile grinding.
 The elimination of poor profiles.
 The elimination of partial penetration welds and weld defects.
 Operating conditions under the materials endurance limits.
 The elimination of notch effects eg . Mechanical damage cap/root undercut.
 The selection of the correct material for the service conditions of the component.
STEEL TERMINOLOGY
The terminology used to describe and specify different steel products can be
Confusing as these can be based on a combination of:
 Product form (sheet, plate, bar, sections, pipe or wire).
 Deoxidation practice (killed, semi-killed).
 Manufacturing route such as cast, forged, rolled, extruded.
 Heat treatment such as annealed, normalized and quench and tempered, which are used to achieve properties.
 Cleanliness level in terms of impurities such as sulphur and phosphorous.
 Finishing methods such as cold rolled or hot rolled.
 Presence or not of corrosion protection coatings
 And so on.
Destructive Testing
Measure a mechanical property – Quantitative tests

Assess the joint quality – Qualitative tests
Various types of mechanical tests are used by material manufacturers and suppliers to
verify that plates, pipes, forgings, etc. have the minimum property values specified for
particular grades.
Design engineers use the minimum property values listed for particular grades of material
as the basis for design and the most cost-effective designs are based on an assumption that
welded joints have properties that are no worse than those of the base metal.
Transverse Tensile tests
Test objective
Welding procedure qualification tests always require transverse tensile tests to show that
the strength of the joint satisfies the design criterion.
Tensile tests:
Test pieces may be machined to represent the full thickness of the joint but for very thick
joints it may be necessary to take several transverse tensile test specimens to be able to
test the full thickness.

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THE EFFECT OF CARBON

0.1% Increase in carbon 1.4%

Increase in tensile strength

STEEL ALLOYS CAN BE DIVIDED INTO FIVE MAIN GROUPS

PLAIN CARBON STEELS COME IN THREE TYPES

Low alloy steels

High alloy steels

Manganese (Mn) - Primary de sulphuriser & Secondary deoxidizer.

Silicon (Si) - Primary deoxidizer.

Aluminum (Al) - Grain refiner & tertiary deoxidizer.

Molybdenum (Mo) - Improves creep resistance and temper embrittlement.

CARBON CONTENT VS CARBON EQUIVALENT

Carbon content: The actual amount of carbon in the steel.

Ceq% = C + Mn /6 + (Cr + Mo + V) /5 + (Cu + Ni)/15 ( Equalizing C content to other element )

Key grain structures

Grain structures in materials are influenced by

CRITICAL COOLING RATE

Simplified Continuous Cooling Diagram

Ductile fracture distinguish features

BRITTLE FRACTURE DISTINGUISH FEATURES

Factors Affecting Brittle Fracture

Causes for brittle fracture

Fatigue fracture distinguish features

Location: Any stress concentration area.

Steel Type: All steel types.

Susceptible Microstructure: All grain structures.

Fatigue cracks occur under cyclic stress conditions.

Precautions against Fatigue Cracks

Measure a mechanical property – Quantitative tests

Transverse Tensile tests

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