Effect of Special Heat Treatments and Alloying Element(Ni) on Strengthening and Toughening of Ductile Cast Iron

구상흑연주철의 강인화에 미치는 특수열처리와 합금원소의 영향

Ductile cast iron has a good ductility and ductility and toughness than those of gray cast iron, because the shape of graphite is spheroidal. It has been reported that the strengthening and toughening of the ductile cast iron was resulted from the good modification of various matrix structures obtained by the heat treatment or addition of alloying elements. This study aims to investigate the effect of various special heat treatment(Cyclic Heat Treatment, Intermediate Heat Treatment, Step Quenching), austempering and alloying element(Ni) on the strength and toughness of ductile cast iron. The results obtained from this study are summarized as follows. 1) With addition of Ni, the amount of pearlite or bainite were increased and the morphologies of pearlite or bainite became finer by special heat treatments. 2) As the Ni added and not added ductile cast iron were treated by austenitizing at $900^{\circ}C$ and $840^{\circ}C$, in the latter the austenite was mostly formed in the vicinity of eutectic cell boundary, but in the former on the whole matrix. 3) In cyclic heat treatment, the volume fraction of pearlite was increased and the shape of pearlite was fined with increase of the number of cycle. 4) The shape of pearlite was mostly bar type in the intermediate heat treatment, but spheroidal type in step quenching. 5) The mechanical properties of ductile cast iron containing 1.5%Ni austempered at $400^{\circ}C$ for 25min. after austenitizing at $900^{\circ}C$ for 15min. were a good value of hardness 105(HRB), impact energy 12.5(kg.m), tensile strength 112($kg/mm^2$) and elongation 6.8(%).