Working at the Royal Mint and the Royal School of Mines in the 1890s, William Chandler Roberts-Austen used thermal analysis, recording the temperatures at which cooling iron-carbon alloys released or absorbed heat as they changed phase, to plot a constitution diagram across the range of carbon content used in steel and cast iron. The diagram identified the distinct solid phases, including the one later named austenite in his honour, and gave metallurgists their first systematic map of how composition and temperature together determine a steel's structure.
Facts
MethodSourced to the subject's own accountRoberts-Austen recorded the temperatures at which cooling iron-carbon alloys released or absorbed heat as they changed phase, using an automatic recording pyrometer of his own design to plot a constitution diagram across the composition range used in steel and cast iron. 1 Key FindingSourced to the subject's own accountThe resulting diagram identified the distinct solid phases of iron-carbon alloys, including the phase later named austenite in his honour, giving metallurgists their first systematic map of how composition and temperature determine a steel's structure. 1 LocationSourced to the subject's own accountRoyal School of Mines, London 1 Connections
Conducted By
Source William Chandler Roberts-Austen (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. William Chandler Roberts-Austen (Wikipedia)
WikipediaCareer section
Professor of Metallurgy at the School of Mines (1880)
- Career / Legacy section
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