This article presents typical values for the most used types of thermophysical property data that are needed for processing and modeling of solidification and casting processes. It describes methods to determine thermophysical properties, such as specific heat capacity and enthalpy of transformation; enthalpy of melting; solidus and liquidus temperatures; coefficient of thermal expansion; density; surface tension; viscosity; electrical and thermal conductivity; and emissivity.

There are several main sources of thermophysical property data that provide the most authoritative and comprehensive compilations of critically and systematically evaluated data that are presently available. This article provides thermophysical property data to assist in the materials properties selection for the simulation of casting processes. The measurements of thermophysical property are difficult due to high temperatures and the reactivity of some alloys. The article discusses the strategies adopted to minimize the effects of high temperatures and reactivity of alloys. It presents the thermophysical properties of pure metals and some commercial alloys and tabulates the enthalpy of fusion and solidus and liquidus temperatures for various alloys of commercial interest. The article also lists the density, thermal conductivity, surface tension, and viscosity for some commercial alloys.

Characterization of nonmechanical properties is performed in the testing and certification of composite materials. This article focuses on the properties of composites that are commonly investigated. The properties include: per ply thickness; constituent content; density; coefficient of thermal expansion and coefficient of moisture expansion; glass transition temperature; thermal conductivity, diffusivity, and specific heat.

The article discusses the fundamentals of fusion welding processes with an emphasis on the underlying scientific principles. It describes how surface temperature varies on steel with surface power densities that range from 400 to 8000 W/cm2. The article illustrates the spectrum of practical heat intensities used for fusion welding. It contains tables that present information on the thermal diffusivities of common elements and alloys from 20 to 100 °C.

In an induction heating system, thermal and electromagnetic properties of heated materials make the greatest impact on the heat transfer and performance of induction heating process. This article focuses on major thermal properties, namely, thermal conductivity, heat capacity, and specific heat. It describes the two important electromagnetic properties, electrical resistivity (electrical conductivity) and magnetic permeability, which posses the most pronounced effect on the performance of the induction heating system, its efficiency, and selection of main design parameters. The article also discusses the magnetic properties of diamagnetic, paramagnetic, ferromagnetic, ferrimagnetic, antiferromagnetic, and metamagnetic materials.

This article focuses on the necessary basics for thermomechanical fusion welding simulations and provides an overview of the specific aspects to be considered for a simulation project. These aspects include the required material properties, experimental data needed for validation of the simulation results, simplifications and assumptions as a prerequisite for modeling, and thermomechanical simulation. The article concludes with information on the sensitivity of the material properties data with respect to the simulation results. It also provides hints on the central challenge of having the right material properties at hand for a specific simulation task.

Material properties are the link between the basic structure and composition of the material and the service performance of a part or component. This article describes the most significant properties that must be considered when choosing a metal for a given application, namely physical properties (mass characteristics and thermal, electrical, magnetic, radiation, and optical properties), chemical properties (corrosion and oxidation resistance) and mechanical properties (tensile and yield strength, elongation, toughness, hardness, creep, and fatigue). The article also contains tables that list room-temperature physical properties, vapor pressures, and mechanical properties for various metals.

This article provides information on the general characteristics, composition, uses, applications and specifications for standard grades of ductile iron. It describes the manufacturing and metallurgical process control procedures, including testing and inspection, and heat treatment. The article also talks about the effects of composition, graphite shape, and section size on the mechanical properties of ductile iron. Tables and graphs provide helpful information on the tensile properties, compressive properties, torsional properties, damping capacity, impact properties, fracture toughness, fatigue strength, and elevated-temperature properties of ductile iron.

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is the most common thermal technique for polymer characterization. This article provides a detailed account of the various factors and processes involved in DSC. The discussion covers the equipment used, specimen preparation process, calibration requirements, data analysis, and provides examples of the applications and interpretation of DSC.

Nanofluids offer a completely different behavior of wetting kinetics and heat-removal characteristics, which are exploited in industrial heat treatment for quenching. This article provides information on the important thermophysical properties of nanofluids, namely, thermal conductivity, viscosity, specific heat, density, and surface tension. It reviews wetting and boiling heat-transfer characteristics of nanofluids as quenchants and highlights the importance of using nanofluids as effective quench media for the hardening process during heat treatment. The article describes the effect of nanoparticle addition on the microstructure, mechanical properties of components, wetting kinetics, and kinematics.

In the metal producing and processing industries, induction melting and holding has found wide acceptance. This article provides a detailed account of the physical principles of induction melting processes. It discusses the fundamental principles and components of induction furnaces such as induction crucible furnaces, channel induction furnaces, and induction furnaces with cold crucible. The article describes the advantages, applications, and fundamental principles of induction skull melting. It also provides information on the various specific application-designed induction melting installations.

The role of a mixer/agitator in quenching applications is to control the mixing environment in order to meet the process criteria. This article provides the basic fundamentals of the sizing of agitators, tank geometry importance, and other considerations for the application of agitators in quench tanks. It also discusses the differing methods for the sizing and selection of agitators for quench tank applications.

Quenching severity is agitation-dependent and therefore, magnitude and turbulence of fluid flow around a part in the quench zone are critically important relative to the uniformity of heat transfer throughout the quenching process. This article provides an overview of the measurement principles for different types of flow devices used in production quench tanks, namely, vane sensors, fluid-quench sensors, caterpillar quench-evaluation sensors, and thermal probes. Various methods of flow measurement in commercial quench tanks may be acceptable for adequate control to ensure a high-quality production process.

Gas quenching is one of the standard quenching technologies used in fabricating metallic components. The gas quenching process is usually performed at elevated pressures and is therefore mostly referred to as high-pressure gas quenching (HPGQ). This article presents the physical principles of HPGQ and also presents the equipment for gas quenching. The article describes the three types of gas that are mainly used for HPGQ: nitrogen, helium, and argon. It provides the mathematical model for heat fluxes and temperatures during HPGQ. The article also presents typical industrial applications for HPGQ in addition to equipment process and safety.

Compacted graphite iron (CGI) invariably includes some nodular (spheroidal) graphite particles, giving rise to the definition of the microstructure in terms of percent nodularity. This article discusses the graphite morphology and mechanical and physical properties of CGI. The mechanical and physical properties of CGI with ferritic and pearlitic matrix structures are summarized in a table. The article describes the standards for CGI, with the definition of the grades based on the minimum tensile strength. It also provides information on the applications of compacted graphite iron castings.