A generic model to predict the ultimate tensile strength in pearlitic lamellar graphite iron

Varying the carbon contents, chemical composition and solidification rate greatly influences the microstructural morphology in lamellar graphite iron resulting in large variations in material properties. Traditionally, ultimate tensile strength CUTS) is used as the main property for the characterisation of lamellar graphite iron alloys under static loads. The main models found in the literature for predicting UTS of pearlitic lamellar graphite iron are based on either regression analysis on experimental data or on modified Griffith or Hall-Petch equation. In pearlitic lamellar graphite iron the primary austenite transformed to pearlite reinforces the bulk material while the graphite flakes which are embedded in an iron matrix reduce the strength of the material. Nevertheless a dominant parameter which can be used to define the tensile strength is the characteristic distance between the pearlite grains defined as the maximum continuous defect size in the bulk material, which in this work is expressed by the newly introduced parameter the Diameter of Interdendritic Space. The model presented here covers the whole spectrum of carbon content from eutectic to hypoeutectic composition, solidified at different cooling rates typical for both thin and thick walled complex shaped castings. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.