Learn more about the phase or process of steel formation using these hands-on printable steel phase diagrams, available in high resolution! Phase diagrams, also known as constitution diagrams or equilibrium diagrams, graphically represent the influences of alloy composition and temperature on phase changes and solidification. In other words, the phase diagram can show the phases and percentage of each phase present at a specific temperature and alloy composition. It can also show how the phases are affected by changes in the alloy composition, temperature, or both. For steel phase illustration, take a look at the following labeled diagram.
As you can see in the labeled 101 Diagrams above, the gamma phase is called austenite. Austenite is a high temperature phase and has a Face Centred Cubic (FCC) structure [which is a close packed structure]. The alpha phase is called ferrite. Ferrite is a common constituent in steels and has a Body Centred Cubic (BCC) structure [which is less densely packed than FCC]. Fe3C is called cementite and lastly (for us), the “eutectic like” mixture of alpha+cementite is called pearlite.
Austenite has a cubic-close packed crystal structure, also referred to as a face-centered cubic structure with an atom at each corner and in the center of each face of the unit cell. Ferrite has a body-centered cubic crystal structure and cementite has an orthorhombic unit cell containing four formula units of Fe3C. The phase diagram illustrates the domains in which particular phases or combinations of phases are stable, and contains information about their equilibrium compositions. Equilibrium phase fractions can also be estimated from a knowledge of the carbon concentration of the steel and an application of the lever rule. More steel phase diagrams are posted below.
All posted are free to be saved and available in high definition. Get more educational teaching and learning diagrams in this site for free, just go to search column and type the key word. Don’t forget to share the article to your social media accounts!