Metallurgy Interview Question:

What is the difference between diagrams of IT and CT in heat treatment of steels?

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Isothermal Transformation (IT) and Continuous Transformation (CT) diagrams are diagrams used to investigate kinetic aspect of phase transformations and are of extensive use in steels heat treatment. In these diagrams generally called Time-Temperature-Transformation (TTT), the abscissa is time in logarithmic scale and ordinate is temperature. The C shaped curves indicate the onset and the end of diffusion (civilian) transformations e.g. pearlite or bainite formation or precipitation of carbides.

IT diagram shows what happens when steel is held at a constant temperature for a prolonged period. The development of the microstructure with time can be followed by holding small specimens in a lead or salt bath and quenching them one at a time after increasing holding times and measuring the amount of phases formed in the microstructure with the aid of a microscope. An alternative method involves using a single specimen and a dilatometer, which records the elongation of the specimen as a function of time. The basis for the dilatometer method is that the micro constituents undergo different volumetric changes and thus, the onset of transformations could be detected.
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