If you were to take a small section of a common metal and examine it under a microscope, you would see a structure similar to that shown in Figure 3(a). Each of the light areas is called a grain, or crystal, which is the region of space occupied by a continuous crystal lattice. The dark lines surrounding the grains are grain boundaries. The grain structure refers to the arrangement of the grains in a metal, with a grain having a particular crystal structure.

The grain boundary refers to the outside area of a grain that separates it from the other grains. The grain boundary is a region of misfit between the grains and is usually one to three atom diameters wide. The grain boundaries separate variously-oriented crystal regions (polycrystalline) in which the crystal structures are identical. Figure 3(b) represents four grains of different orientation and the grain boundaries that arise at the interfaces between the grains.

A very important feature of a metal is the average size of the grain. The size of the grain determines the properties of the metal. For example, smaller grain size increases tensile strength and tends to increase ductility. A larger grain size is preferred for improved high-temperature creep properties. Creep is the permanent deformation that increases with time under constant load or stress. Creep becomes progressively easier with increasing temperature. Stress and strain are covered in Module 2, Properties of Metals, and creep is covered in Module 5, Plant Materials.

Figure 3 Grains and Boundaries (a) Microscopic (b) Atomic

Another important property of the grains is their orientation. Figure 4(a) represents a random arrangement of the grains such that no one direction within the grains is aligned with the external boundaries of the metal sample. This random orientation can be obtained by cross rolling the material. If such a sample were rolled sufficiently in one direction, it might develop a grain-oriented structure in the rolling direction as shown in Figure 4(b). This is called preferred orientation. In many cases, preferred orientation is very desirable, but in other instances, it can be most harmful. For example, preferred orientation in uranium fuel elements can result in catastrophic changes in dimensions during use in a nuclear reactor.

Figure 4 Grain Orientation (a) Random (b) Preferred

Summary

The important information in this chapter is summarized below.

Grain Structure and Boundary Summary

Grain is the region of space occupied by a continuous crystal lattice.

Grain structure is the arrangement of grains in a metal, with a grain having a particular crystal structure.

Grain boundary is the outside area of grain that separates it from other grains.

Creep is the permanent deformation that increases with time under constant load or stress.

Small grain size increases tensile strength and ductility.