I've been convincing my mum to let me take metallurgical engineering since when I made my last post. The problem is, she thinks it will be unsuitable for me as a female since she saw that the work environment was similar to my father's (he's a welder.) I've been explaining that there are always safety precautions if I ever handle hot metals and such similar to how my father does. Can I please get more insights or ideas about what really happens when working? I know it still depends on what type of work someone is doing, but I just want a general overview of what happens so that I can explain it to my mother. Thank you!

Hey Metallurgists!
I’m looking to dive deeper into non-ferrous extractive metallurgy, specifically focusing on copper and lead extraction. I’ve been trying to learn, but the books I’ve found haven’t been invaluable, and I’m hoping to get some guidance from anyone with experience in the field.

If anyone is willing to teach me or has video recommendations that explain the extraction processes clearly, I would appreciate it!

Thanks in advance for your help!

I want to turn the face of the bracelet blue, but first need to identify and remove whatever preventative coating that was applied. Any help is much appreciated.

Hey all! I am looking for a nice gift for someone who has been in the steel business for 45 years. I was thinking of sonething like some precicly cnc steel blocks that shift in each ither, or a very specialized nifty (old) tool. Anyone got some cool ideas? (prices can go up to 200 ish

How do you do, fellow metallurgists? I am definitely not a materials science undergrad also a metallurgist and wondering what you fine fellows think of my micrograph? Any idea what I’m looking at? I am definitely cramming for a lab report due tomorrow super experienced but have never seen anything like this before! If you don’t mind, can you tell me what this alloy is and how it has been processed? Thanks!

I'm working on a personal project that involves a lot of metals, and combinations of them that could not be realistically achieved. Ex 50% gold 50% aluminum. I'd really love to talk to someone with a lot of knowledge on alloying or combining various metals. I have some very specific questions and have hit a wall with Google lol. If anyone has a good bit of experience with uncommon alloys, I would love to talk

Long-time materials scientist, first time poster (on this subreddit). Would anyone be interested in a weekly or bi-weekly online group that meets to argue over paper(s) while also drinking (if you want)?

Greetings, for the last two days I have been wondering which are the one-phase and which are the two-phase regions in the Cu-Zn phase diagram, because every answer I got is different. I hope that maybe one of you knows.

Thank you for every answer.

It's no secret that stainless steel is stain resistant at best, so are there steel alloys that actually will not rust, even if say exposed to seawater for years?

I ordered some metal straws. They said they were 304 stainless steel, which I read didn't have nickel. Unfortunately they're cheap crappy ones off Amazon. I would have ordered a reputable brand but I needed super tall ones because I'm disabled. They were the only really tall ones I could find.

When drinking out of them my mouth feels funny and I don't wanna risk it. But I can't tell if it's all in my head. Is there a way to test whether there's nickel in them? I tried a magnet and it didn't stick.

I'm sorry for the very simplistic question, but want an authoritative answer, and this seems to be the right place.

I was reading online that metals might leech into plain water, and water with electrolyte dissolved.

Is this true?

I'm sure it could depend on the alloy, but overall would this be an issue?

I read nickel is an offender, and want to buy someone a nice water bottle, but they have a documented nickel allergy, and need to know this before buying anything.

Thank you!

I’m repairing a pipe expansion die made from A2 tool steel, hardened to RC58-60, used in a hydraulic pipe expansion press. The die broke during use, and my repair attempts have so far been unsuccessful. Here’s what I’ve tried and observed (all attempts were beveled CJP welds):

1. First Attempt:
   • Material: 308LSi MIG (0.045”) on pulse.
   • Parameters: 40V / 450WFS.
   • Heat Treatment: No preheat or post-heat.
   • Post-Processing: Ground down with a standard flap disk.
   • Result: Held for more units than subsequent attempts but eventually broke again.
2. Second Attempt:
   • Material: 309L TIG rod (3/32”).
   • Heat Treatment: Preheat to 400°F, maintained interpass at 400°F, cooled in an oven from 450°F to ambient.
   • Result: Broke again, almost immediately.
3. Third Attempt:
   • Material: Matching A2 TIG rod (Crown Alloy AH-10).
   • Parameters: Repaired per weld procedure spec.
   • Result: These repairs failed at the base almost instantly, which was surprising.
4. Fourth Attempt:
   • Material: Super Missile Weld (1/8”).
   • Heat Treatment: No preheat or post-heat.
   • Post-Processing: Hardfaced over remnants of previous alloys, machined the surface.
   • Result: It’s holding better than the matching A2 rod but ultimately snapped at the base.

Important Details to Consider:

• Surface Finish: Spec is 16uin, but surfaces are not ground perfectly flush.
• Collet Assembly Fitment: The assembly is driven through a hole that may be enlarged (no original ID print to verify).
• Hydraulic Spear: The spear that flares the six segments isn’t dimensionally perfect but is very close.
• Segment Stretching: Each time the segments snap, they are placed back together, but the die’s overall size increases slightly.

Questions I Need Help With:

1. Am I repairing these dies correctly, or is there something fundamentally wrong with my approach?
2. Could the problem lie in other factors like dimensional inconsistencies or the materials used in other components (e.g., the spear or collet assembly)?
3. What’s a quick fix to keep production running while the new parts are being fabricated?
4. When the new parts arrive, what steps should I take to ensure the next setup is flawless?
5. Is A2 tool steel the right material for these parts, or should I consider a different alloy or heat treatment process to improve performance and durability?

I’m open to any advice on metallurgy, welding processes, alternative materials, or machine alignment. Thanks in advance for any insights! Just to be clear, the spear drives up through the six segments that flare out and drives the whole collet body up where the base of the segments (that are being repaired) catches a thick plate with a hole in it, and this is where the snap occurs. The sensors are to spec. The spear stops where it has been registered to stop historically.

Afterthoughts:

• Thickness of material is 1-1/2". A2 tool steel isn't structural steel, so it's not in table 5.8 on AWS D1.1, which is why I randomly chose 400F on the fly.
• What is the preheat on A2 tool steel for repair? Is that AWS D2.4? What table? (https://app.aws.org/forum/topic\_show.pl?tid=4625)
• Is H13 or S7 steel better suited?

Hello Everyone,

I've done some research on this, but am still having a bit of an issue conceptualizing this, so I thought I would ask here.

I'm a speculative fiction author, and I have a story idea where I would like to have the main character be the first to work out how to refine/use titanium for weaponry and armor. The more research I've done, the more it seems like this might be an event that would be to ahead of its time for where I would want the world to be in the story.

The core of my question is how can Titanium be refined in the most rudimentary way possible? I know it needs to be de-oxidized, and when I look up processes, the main one that comes up is the Kroll process, which requires the use of inorganic tetrachloride. I know that inorganic substances like that are too far ahead of my tech limit.

I know titanium oxide can't be "forged" or reduced like iron because it will end up as titanium carbide. Is there any situation where it could be worked outside of very specific laboratory conditions? Or would any inclusion of atmospheric gases render it too brittle? What if it was a titanium-steel or titanium-iron alloy?

EDIT: just wanted to thank you all for the resources and responses! I’m diving into those now!

copper shot poured into a bucket of water

Hello!

I am wondering if this color (goldenish yellow) is a unique color to the copper community? I am curious why it is forming into this color and not a light brown like copper normally is.

Thanks in advance for any input or feedback!

Hello everyone, I come from Shop that exclusively uses electric Furnaces. we are trying to procure a new machine for our company. Does anyone here use a gas fired radiant tube austenizing Furnace? How does the efficiency of a gas fired radiant tube furnace compare with electric radiant tubes using bundle rods. I’m looking forward to your comments. Thanks

So, I was wondering how steel works, How do they get the carbon into the iron to make steel? Can you just... Add carbon powder to molten iron?

Just curious because 1. Actually no idea how it works and 2. Wanted to enrich iron with carbon myself, using the ashes of a loved one to forge a kind of "Corpse Steel" Knife to remember them by c:

Is that possible?

I'm looking for papers that show the mechanical properties of steels that have the hardness but different C content

Any suggestions please?

I tried to use a burnishing compound (https://a.co/d/csq4QZU) on some scrap parts that I had laying around that were either brass or steel (I'm assuming carbon steel).  The brass started off moderately tarnished, and the steel was very lightly oxidized. The steel parts were polished at some point, but time has taken it's toll.

I have a rotary tumbler that is typically used for rocks, and some 0.5 mm stainless steel pins as tumbling media.  The compound asks for 2 fl. oz. of concentrate for 1 gallon of water. I used 50 mL of water and maybe ⅛ cap of the burnishing compound. This is probably way above the recommended concentration but's my tumbler is small, and I don't have the means to measure out the tiny amount of concentrate needed to keep the same ratio at 50 mL.

After letting them run for 2 hours, the brass parts were immaculate; bright and shiny like they just came out of the factory.  The steel parts, however, were now dull, and had a gray film on them.  One of the steel parts I threw in there was damn near black.  I would think that a burnishing compound, with the mild abrasiveness of the steel media, would stop any surface film from forming.  The product is supposed to be safe on steel, so what might be happening to the steel parts?

I checked the SDS of the compound and it says that there is <8% citric acid, with no other ingredients listed, other than "Product is water-based. Product is a mixture of cleaning agents, surfactants, softeners and inhibitors in an aqueous solution." I'm assuming the citric acid did something to etch the surface. Is there any way I can bring the parts to a shine again, or at least undo the dull gray appearance?

There seems to be a large number of videos online about forging damascus steel items. I've read a little about what damascus steel is, and I have a funny feeling that most of these items do not meet the criteria, especially since nobody it entirely certain what the original process was.

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of these items simply reproduced the appearance without actually recreating the properties and structure.

Does anyone have any insight on the matter? It would be interesting to know if any of them have been analyzed.

My wife and I have an idea about making rose gold by adding our birth year pennies to molten gold and this would be for making 25th anniversary wedding rings.

Having to use a different, purer source of copper isn't a dreamkiller but we like the penny idea.

Does the windvolume from the blower motor to the stoves and the cooling water for the staves have any co relation? For example, in my company sop it's said that if the emergency water for the primary circuit enters the circuit the wind volume should we reduced.. why??