显微结构的量化处理及组织分析的教程 Lecture Notes 2.docx

Quantification of Microstructure and Texture5. Volume Fraction from Planar SectionsVolume FractionThe volume fraction of phases in a microstructure can be very important to assess the effect of processing and the likely properties. Although it is obvious that microstructures are inherently three dimensional structures, we generally examine them by looking at planar sections. Measurement of volume fraction (VV) of second phase particles may be made from such planar sections using a variety of methods because of the following fundamental relationships:VV = (1)VV = (2)VV = (3)where is the mean point fraction, the mean line fraction, and is the mean area fraction of a second phase in a planar section. There are a number of possible ways in which one of these 3 parameters might be measured, giving the volume fraction. One of the earliest microscopists to examine materials, Henry Sorby, who worked in Sheffield, determined volume fractions of different phases in rock samples by cutting up an image and weighing the various parts.The three methods that will be considered in this lecture are point counting, lineal analysis and areal analysis. For making measurements “by hand” point counting to obtain a point fraction is generally the most efficient method but either areal or lineal analysis may be carried out using automatic image analysis systems.Point CountingVolume fraction determination can be carried out either in the microscope, or, more commonly, on a micrograph or series of micrographs taken for a particular sample. The method of point counting lends itself particularly well to manual application in either of these cases (although a graticule would be needed to carry out the assessment in the microscope), and is generally the quickest and most statistically efficient way to collect data.Point counting is based on counting the fraction of points that fall in the phase of interest in a random array of points. This could be, for example, pearlite in steel, ? phase g