This article discusses the specimen preparation of three types of cast and wrought heat-resistant alloys: iron-base, nickel-base, and cobalt-base. Specimen preparation involves sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching. The article illustrates the microstructural constituents of cast and wrought heat-resistant alloys. It describes the identification of ferrite by magnetic etching. The transmission electron microscopy examination of the fine strengthening phases in wrought alloys and bulk extraction in heat-resistant alloys are included. The article also reviews the gamma prime phase, gamma double prime phase, eta phase, laves phase, sigma phase, mu phase, and chi phase in wrought heat-resistant alloys.

This article describes the metallographic technique for nonferrous metals and special-purpose alloys. These include aluminum alloys, copper and copper alloys, lead and lead alloys, magnesium alloys, nickel and nickel alloys, magnetic alloys, tin and tin alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, refractory metals and alloys, zinc and zinc alloys, and wrought heat-resisting alloys. The preparation of specimens for metallographic technique includes operations such as sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching of nonferrous metals and alloys. The article contains tables that list the etchants for macroscopic examination and microscopic examination of nonferrous metals and special-purpose alloys.

This article describes the metallurgy and microstructure of high-performance cobalt-base alloys. It discusses metallographic preparation procedures, including sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, etching, staining, and heat tinting. It examines the microstructure of cobalt alloys in cast, wrought, and powder metal forms, including magnetic alloys as well as several cobalt-base superalloys.

This article describes the metallographic technique for nonferrous metals and special-purpose alloys. These include aluminum alloys, copper and copper alloys, lead and lead alloys, magnesium alloys, nickel and nickel alloys, magnetic alloys, tin and tin alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, refractory metals and alloys, zinc and zinc alloys, and wrought heat-resisting alloys. The preparation of specimens for metallographic technique includes operations such as sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and etching of nonferrous metals and alloys. The article contains tables that list the etchants for macroscopic examination and microscopic examination of nonferrous metals and special-purpose alloys.

Metallographic contrasting methods include various electrochemical, optical, and physical etching techniques, which in turn are enhanced by the formation of a thin transparent film on the specimen surface. This article primarily discusses etching in conjunction with light microscopy and describes several methods for film formation, namely, heat tinting, color etching, anodizing, potentiostatic etching, vapor deposition, and film deposition by sputtering. It provides information on the general procedures and precautions for etchants and reagents used in metallographic microetching, macroetching, electropolishing, chemical polishing, and other similar operations.

Microstructural analysis of specialized types of magnetic materials is centered on the examination of optical, electron, and scanning probe metallographic techniques unique to magnetic materials. This article provides a comprehensive overview of magnetic materials, their characteristics and sample preparation procedures. It reviews the methods pertaining to the microstructural examination of bulk magnetic materials, including microscopy techniques specified to magnetic materials characterization, with specific examples. The techniques used in the study of magnetic domain structures (microstructure) include the magneto-optical Kerr method, the Faraday method, the Bitter technique, scanning electron microscopy (magnetic contrast Types I and II), scanning electron microscopy with polarization analysis, Lorentz transmission electron microscopy, and magnetic force microscopy. The article also illustrates the microstructure of different types of soft magnetic material and permanent magnets.

Gears are a common part type for applications of the magnetic Barkhausen noise (MBN) techniques for nondestructive inspection. This article discusses the typical applications for MBN techniques, namely, detection of grinding retemper burn, evaluation of residual stresses, and detection of heat treatment defects, including the evaluation of case depth.

Quality control of cemented carbides includes the evaluation of physical and chemical properties of constituent raw material powders, powder blends/formulations, green compacts, and fully dense finished product. This article provides a summary of the underlying principles and size ranges for the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard methods of particle sizing and distribution. It presents the methods used to analyze the chemical composition of cemented carbide materials in a tabular form. The article also presents information on microstructural evaluation and physical and mechanical property evaluation of cemented carbides.

This article describes the characteristics of tools and dies and the causes of their failures. It discusses the failure mechanisms in tool and die materials that are important to nearly all manufacturing processes, but is primarily devoted to failures of tool steels used in cold-working and hot-working applications. It reviews problems introduced during mechanical design, materials selection, machining, heat treating, finish grinding, and tool and die operation. The brittle fracture of rehardened high-speed steels is also considered. Finally, failures due to seams or laps, unconsolidated interiors, and carbide segregation and poor carbide morphology are reviewed with illustrations.

This article discusses failure mechanisms in tool and die materials that are very important to nearly all manufacturing processes. It is primarily devoted to failures of tool steels used in cold working and hot working applications. The processes involved in the analysis of tool and die failures are also covered. In addition, the article focuses on a number of factors that are responsible for tool and die failures, including mechanical design, grade selection, steel quality, machining processes, heat treatment operation, and tool and die setup.

This article outlines the beam/sample interactions and the basic instrumental design of a scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which include the electron gun, probeforming column (consisting of magnetic electron lenses, apertures, and scanning coils), electron detectors, and vacuum system. It discusses the contrasts mechanisms used for imaging and analyzing materials in the SEM. These include the topographic contrast, compositional contrast, and electron channeling pattern and orientation contrast. Special instrumentation and accessory equipment used at elevated pressures and during the X-ray microanalysis are reviewed. The article also provides information on the sample preparation procedure and the materials applications of the SEM.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has shown various significant improvements since it first became available in 1965. These improvements include enhanced resolution, dependability, ease of operation, and reduction in size and cost. This article provides a detailed account of the instrumentation and principles of SEM, broadly explaining its capabilities in resolution and depth of field imaging. It describes three additional functions of SEM, including the use of channeling patterns to evaluate the crystallographic orientation of micron-sized regions; use of backscattered detectors to reveal grain boundaries on unetched samples and domain boundaries in ferromagnetic alloys; and the use of voltage contrast, electron beam-induced currents, and cathodoluminescence for the characterization and failure analysis of semiconductor devices. The article compares the features of SEM with that of scanning Auger microscopes, and lists the applications and limitations of SEM.

This article provides an overview of scanning probe microscopes (scanning tunneling microscope and atomic force microscope (AFM)), covering the various operating modes and probes used in these instruments and providing information on AFM instrumentation, applications, and analyses.

Metallography plays a significant role in the quality control of metals and alloys used in the manufacture of implantable surgical devices. This article provides information and data on metallographic techniques along with images showing the microstructure of biomedical orthopedic alloys, including stainless steels, cobalt-base alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, porous coatings, and emerging materials.

This article provides a discussion on a working principle, the operations, characteristics, capabilities, and applications of electrochemical grinding (ECG). The basic elements of the ECG machine tool are also presented.

Case depth is the normal distance from the surface of the steel to the start of the core. Measurement of case depth is highly sensitive to the type of case hardening, original steel composition, quenching condition, and even to the testing method. This article describes the various methods of measuring case depth in steels, including chemical methods such as the combustion analysis and spectrographic analysis, microhardness test method, macroscopic and microscopic visual methods, and nondestructive methods. It contains a table that provides approximate equivalent hardness numbers for steel.

Metallographic techniques for ductile irons are similar to those for other cast irons but more difficult than for steels, because graphite retention is a challenging task. This article presents recommended procedures to prepare ductile irons. It discusses three contemporary approaches for preparing ductile cast iron specimens with a wide range of phases and constituents as well as variations in graphite morphologies. A wide variety of matrix microstructures can be obtained in ductile irons. Examples are presented using a variety of etchants. Control of the nodularity of graphite in ductile irons is critical to their performance. The article presents details concerning the characterization of the graphite nodules.

This article describes the six fundamental factors that decide a tool's performance. These are mechanical design, grade of tool steel, machining procedure, heat treatment, grinding, and handling. A deficiency in any one of the factors can lead to a tool and die failure. The article presents a seven-step procedure to be followed when looking for the reason for a failure. A review of the results of the seven-point investigation may lead directly to the source of failure or narrow the field of investigation to permit the use of special tests.

Addition of beryllium, up to about 2 wt″, produces dramatic effects in copper, nickel, aluminum, magnesium, gold, zinc, and other base metal alloys. This article provides information on the chemical composition, microstructure, heat treatment, fabrication characteristics, production steps and physical metallurgy of beryllium-copper, beryllium-nickel, and beryllium-aluminum alloy, and tabulates their mechanical, electrical and physical properties, and temper designations. It describes the important features of this alloy group, including information on safe handling. Additionally, the article presents examples of the beneficial properties of beryllium-copper alloys and quantifies some of the major reasons for their selection for particular applications.

This article discusses the basic principles of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), covering different instruments used for performing ICP-MS analysis. The instruments covered include the sample-introduction system, ICP ion source, mass analyzer, and ion detector. Emphasis is placed on ICP-MS applications in the semiconductor, photovoltaic, materials science, and other electronics and high-technology areas.