Department Science of Dental

Materials & Biomaterials Research

Physical Metallurgy
Compiled for MDS

Engr. M. Ali Siddiqui

Lecturer, Department of Metallurgical Engineering
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Email: muetali@yahoo.com
Dr. Ishrat-ul-Ebad Khan Institute of Oral Health
Sciences
DOW University Health Science
 Constitution of Alloys

Reference:
Sidney H. Avner, Introduction to Physical Metallurgy,
2nd Edition, Chapter No 05
 Constitution of Alloys
Introduction
Metal
Have 1, 2, or 3 valence
electrons.
Lose electrons easily.
Form compounds with non
metals.
High electrical conductivity.
High thermal conductivity.
Malleable and Ductile.
Non Metal
Have 4, or more valence
electrons.
Tend to gain electrons.
Form compounds with metals.
Low electrical conductivity.
Low thermal conductivity.
Non ductile (brittle).
Alloys
Combination of two or more
element, of which one is at
least metal.
Has metallic properties
E.g. Ferrous alloys , Non-
ferrous alloys, shape memory
alloys, super alloys.
 Alloy System
Binary Alloy System
System made up of
two element, e.g. shape
memory alloy Ni-Ti Alloys

Ternary Alloy System

System made up of
three element,
 Taking only 45 most common element
gives 990 binary system
If the composition is varied by 1% each
binary system will yield 100 different
alloys.
Taking combination of 03
gives over 14,000 ternary system
Commercial alloys contain many elements
e.g. Commercial Steel: Alloy of Fe, C, Mn,
Si, P and S.
 Classification of Alloys
Possible Alloy Structure

Homogeneous
Heterogeneous
/ Mixture
Solid Intermediate
Solution Alloy Phase Any Combination
(Compound) of Solid Phases
Pure metal
Intermetallic Solid Solution
Substitutional
Intermediate
Interstitial Alloy

Interstitial
Electron
 Classification of Alloys
Homogeneous (uniform) consist of
single phase.
Heterogeneous combination of
several phases.
What is a Phase?

Any thing which is chemically homogeneous and

physically distinct.
OR
Any structure which is visible on
microscopically may be considered as phase.
Example of Different
Phases
 P h a s e C h a n g e i n P u re m e t a l a n d a
M e t a l h a v i n g A l l o t ro p i c c h a n g e

For most pure element

the term phase is
synonym with state e.g.
Aluminum, Oxygen,
Mercury (Solid, Gas,
liquid).

Some metals are

allotropic in solid state
and will have different
solid phases.
 SOLID SOLUTIONS
Solution Solute + Solvent
e.g. Liquid Solution Sugar + Water
Austenite, Solid Solution C (2% Max) + -Fe ( or Fe-FCC)

A solid solution is simply a solution in the solid state and consist of

two kind of atoms combined in one type of lattice. OR
When foreign atoms are incorporated into a crystal structure,
whether in Substitutional or interstitial sites, the resulting phase is a
solid solution of the matrix material (solvent) and the foreign atoms
(solute)
A solid solution forms when, solute atoms are added to the host
material.
A solid solution is also compositionally homogeneous; the impurity
atoms are randomly and uniformly dispersed within the solid.
 It is generally a
function of
temperature
(pressure constant)
e.g. increasing
temperature
increases solubility
limit and vise versa.
Most solid solution
solidified over a
range of
temperature.
 Types of Solid Solution
1. Substitutional Solid Solution
Atom of the solute substitute the
atom of the solvent.

e.g. In the Ag-Au System, Silver (FCC

atom) substitute Gold (FCC atom).

2. Interstitial Solid Solution

Atom of small atomic radii fit into
the spaces or interstitial of the
lattice structure of the larger solvent
atom.

e.g. C, H, B, N, and O < 1 atomic

radii are likely to form Interstitial
solid solution.
Interstitial Solid Solution Animation
 Types of Solid Solubility
Unlimited Solid Solubility: Solute and solvent are mutually
soluble at all concentrations, e.g., Cu-Ni system
Meets the requirements of the Hume-Rothery Rules
Result is a single phase alloy

Limited or Partial Solid Solubility: There is a limit to how

much of the solute can dissolve in the solvent before
saturation is reached, e.g., Pb-Sn and most other systems
Does not meet the requirements of the Hume-Rothery Rules
Results in a multi-phase alloy
 Hume Rothery Rules /
Factors Affecting the Degree of Solid Solution
1. Relative Size Factor/Ratio:-
Favorable solid solution formation = difference in the atomic radii is less than 15%
Minimum solid solution formation = difference in the atomic radii is greater than 8%
but less than about 15%
Very Limited solid solution formation = difference in the atomic radii is greater than
15%
2. Crystal Structure:-
must be the same- so that complete solid solubility of the two elements attained
3. Electronegativity Difference:-
The more electropositive one element and the more electronegative the other, the greater
is the likelihood that they will form an intermetallic compound instead of a substitutional
solid solution.
within 0.4 e.u.
4. Valence:- must be the same
Intermetallic compound:
A compound of two metals that has a distinct chemical formula.
On a phase diagram it appears as an intermediate phase that exists
over a very narrow range of compositions. e.g, CaSe,Mg2Pb and
Cu2Se
Interstitial Compound:
These compound are formed b/w transition metal such as, Ti, Ta,
W, Fe with C, H, O, B, and N.
Interstitial compound are metallic, have high M.P and extremely
hard e.g., Fe3C,TiC, TaC, W2C, CrN etc.
Electron Compound:
A term used to describe intermediate phase of metal system that
have both common crystal structure and common ratio of valence
electron to atom. Such as CuZn, CuAl3, Cu5Sn, and FeAl all have
BCC structure and an electron to atom ratio of 3 to 2
The End