Title:

Microstructure Examination of Steel

Objective:

To observe the constituents, structure and properties of metals and alloys by means of an optical
microscope.

Introduction:

Metallography is that the study of metals by optical and electron microscopes. The
microstructure is that the geometric arrangement of grains and also the totally
different part present in a very material. The low-carbon steel that has 0.25%-0.4% Carbon was
used as the specimen. During this test the microstructure and also the features of the low-carbon
steel specimen was determined from the optical magnifier. And also the average grain size of
every observed microstructure was determined. The common grain size in metals is
typically within the order of many to tens of micrometers, which might be measured only by the
utilization of an optical magnifier or microscope. an optical magnifier strikes the surface of a
specimen with a supply of intense light and uses optics to gather the mirrored beams of light to
make the enlarged image. Typical magnifications used area unit between 50X and 1000X.The
structures that need this kind or vary of magnification for their examination are referred to
as microstructures. This experiment provides an inspiration of a way to observe the
interior structure of steel and helps in understanding of a way to observe
in alternative materials also.

Theory:

Grain size is determined using an intercept method describe below.

Five straight lines with same length are drawn on the printed microstructure image. Then count
the grains which are intersected by each line. Finally the average grain size can be calculated by
using following equation.

Grain Size = (Number of Lines X Length of each line)

(Total No of grain boundaries intersected by all the lines)

Material and Apparatus:

 MP 2-B Grinding and polishing machine

 Water supply

 Power supply

 Diamond lapping paste

 Mild steel specimen

 HNO3 acid

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  Ethyl Alcohol

 Light microscope

 Printout of microstructure

Figure 01: MP 2-B Grinding and polishing machine Figure 02: Light Microscope

Figure 03: Diamond lapping paste Figure 04: Nitric acid

Figure 05: Mild steel

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Procedure:

1. First of all a random mild steel specimen was chosen.

2. Because of some surface cuts and damages were observed in it, the specimen was grinded
using the 2-B Grinding and polishing machine. The grinding process was carried out for
15 minutes.

3. After that the specimen was polished using same MP 2-B Grinding and polishing
machine along with some diamond lapping paste on it. The specimen was polished until
it got a mirror surface.

4. The etching process was done by dipping the specimen in a Nitric acid solution (2%).

5. For the specimen surface to be neutralized it was then washed by ethyl-alcohol next.

6. After that the specimen was left to dry for several minutes.

7. The cleaned surface of the specimen was kept in the microscope to observe.

8. The grains and the intersections were observed using the microscope.

9. The number of grains in each line was counted and the total number of grains were
found.

10. Finally the calculation was done properly.

Observations:

Figure 06: Observed microstructure of mild steel

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Calculations and Results:

Figure 07: Printout which was used calculate grain size

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Average length of a line = (400um/9.9cm) x 5cm

= 202.02um

Average Grains per line = 5.8

Average Grain Size = 34.75um

Discussion:
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Method of preparing mild steel sample for examination.

The test is all regarding revealing the microstructures of soft cast steel and determining the
properties of the actual material.

Selecting:

 A random sample must be selected for the inspection. It may not be similar or either
composition or crystal structure.

Mounting:

 Mounting is not a compulsory step in this experiment. But it is better to do this step
because it supports to get the optima’s result s. The sample usually mounted into plastic
or epoxy metal. Although this is not a compulsory step, this gives a standard sample that
easy to handle in following steps.

Grinding:

 This is done to remove the surface damage points which occurred from the cutting
process.

Polishing:

 Soon after grinding the specimen is undergone by this method.. A smooth velvet surface
is used to polish the specimen more efficiently while using the diamond paste.

Etching and the use of alcohol:

 This helps to wash off the thin surface layer which was deformed by the previous steps.
The micro structures can be observe more clearly and precisely by doing this step more
accurately. For this HNO3 is used. Anyhow the surface of the specimen ought
to stay nutral because it might react with oxygen.

We have to conduct above process according to the required standards. If not obtaining the
correct image will be difficult.

It is essential to use new mild steel specimen for the experiment. A piece of mild steel which was
previously used or old piece of steel will cause errors because it will get rust again.

Possible Errors

 When calculating the average grain size, lot of inconsistencies can be happen. Because
these values are not always absolute.

 In addition to that human errors can be cause during counting the intersecting grains.

Possible improvements

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  The specimen of the steel should be polished to the right amount to get the correct the
correct observations.

 The microscope should be a good quality and higher resolution to get clear observations.

 To obtain correct values grain calculating should be done more than three times.

Phase present in the observed microstructure

Grain:

Above experiment observed the microstructure of the steel. When describing the structure of the
material we've to think about two main things. They're crystal structure and microstructure. To
describe the looks of the fabric we use the microstructure and to explain the average position of
atoms of a unit we use the crystal structure. So metals have a crystalline structure, which is
generally not visible to eye. When the metals are heating millions of crystals are beginning to
grow. When the heating is over, crystals become cool and become large crystals. This massive
crystal sort of the fabric is named grains. During a crystalline structure, there are many grains
that have their own orientation and crystal structure. The boundaries between grains are called as
grain boundaries.

Grain boundaries:

Grain boundaries are the areas between grains. Simply we can say that the interface between two
grains is named grain boundary. Within the crystal structure, grain boundaries are the 2D defects.
Low angle and high angle grain boundaries are the various sorts of grain boundaries. If the
disorientation between two grains is less than 15 degrees is named low angle grain boundary.
And also when the disorientation becomes quite 15 degrees is named high angle grain boundary.

The importance of metallography

Studying the structure of metal is called as metallography. Preparation of specimen for

examination is a crucial a part of metallography. To urge correct observation and
interpretation of the microstructure, the specimen should be prepared correctly. There are some
important parameters in sample selectioning. They're the amount, location and the orientation of
the specimen examined.

The specimen surface should be smooth and like a mirror. We've to be care during sample
preparation as small errors may lead to invalid microstructure interpretation. Then using optical
microscope, the specimens are examined.

Metallography may be a vital part in examine the microstructure of steel. Quality controlling is
the most vital thing within the metallography. Cutting metals causes some side effects. It will
change the properties of the surface and therefore the deformed layers are going to be create at
the surface. Metallographers apply techniques to get rid of these shattered layers.

Microstructural testing techniques are utilized in some areas. A number of them are routing
quality control, analysis of failure and research. To work out whether structural parameters are

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within specific specification, microstructure analysis is employed. And also it's utilized in
internal control. As a result of various parameters like heat treatment, composition or processing
steps there'll be some changes in microstructures. Microstructural analysis is used in research
studies. Using metallography we are capable to observe steel samples.

By means of metallography we can identify the causes of failure of massive steel structures.

And also uses of microstructure analysis is an outcome of metallography. By using

microstructure analysis...

 Theories obtained in microstructure analysis are used in research studies, failure analysis
and routine quality controlling.

 Grain size, amount of impurities, defects present and second phases are used to determine
structural parameters.

 To determine the cause of failure in selecting proper materials.

 To find if the component was made from specified suitable materials.

Conclusion:

The examination of microstructure provides useful information about the microscopic structure
of the material. It defines whether structural parameters are within certain specifications. Also it
provides lots of information about properties and configuration of the microstructure. For the
evaluation of the material, the results which observed are useful. For the magnification process
of the microstructure examination normally we use the optical microscope. Microstructure
examination is used in industry to identify failure of materials as well.

References:

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 ResearchGate. 2020. How Do You Measure The Grain Size In Metals?. [online]
Available at:
<https://www.researchgate.net/post/How_do_you_measure_the_grain_size_in_metals>
[Accessed 7 October 2020].

 Coursehero.com. 2020. Material Lab Report - TITLE Microstructure Examination Of

Steel OBJECTUVE To Observe The Constituents And Structure Of Metals And Their
Alloy By Means | Course Hero. [online] Available at:
<https://www.coursehero.com/file/16424390/Material-lab-report/> [Accessed 7 October
2020].

 EDUZAURUS. 2020. Microstructure Examination Of Steel - Free Essay Example |

Eduzaurus. [online] Available at: <https://eduzaurus.com/free-essay-
samples/microstructure-examination-of-steel/> [Accessed 7 October 2020].

 Sciencedirect.com. 2020. Microstructure Observation - An Overview | Sciencedirect

Topics. [online] Available at:
<https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/microstructure-observation>
[Accessed 7 October 2020].

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