Nanostructured Fe-C alloys produced by ball milling

Nanocrystalline ferrite was produced through heavy cold work on carbon steels. Structural, thermal and property characterizations were carried out by micro-Vickers hardness testing, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Ball milling resulted in the dissolution of cementite simultaneously. Further deformation led to a uniform nanocrystalline ferrite structure in the whole specimens. High hardness was observed in the nanocrystalline ferrite formed through ball milling due to the formation of nanocrystalline ferrite rather than the solution hardening of carbon due to dissolution of cementite.