Kinetics of carbon dissolution in Fe-C alloy at 1550°C

The dissolution of commercial recarburising material in iron alloys has been studied, on a 20 kg scale at a temperature of 1550 degrees C, as a function of particle size of carbon additive and initial metal carbon activity. The magnitude and consistency of both carbon yield and temperature loss of the molten alloy were found to be dependent on the initial carbon activity of the metal. Rate analysis indicated mass transfer coefficients consistent with a dissolution process constrained by the diffusion of carbon in the liquid boundary layer. The mass transfer coefficient for carbon dissolution was found to increase with increasing particle size of the recarburising material. IS/1354 (C) 1998 The Institute of Materials.